I went to my cousin’s engagement party a few weeks ago and my aunty told me about her old boss and the unusual gift registry she had on her 50th birthday. She asked each of her friends to give her what they were currently into for a birthday present. For example a book they’d recently read, a TV series they were addicted to, a CD of their favourite songs, a voucher to a great new restaurant they’d discovered. It was such a great way to get to know her friends again and to discover new things she wouldn’t have known about otherwise.

It inspired me to start a new segment of reader recommendations. I often run surveys to get more information on the Smagglets, like how old you are or if you have kids or not, but this time I want to know what your obsessions are. So each month, I’m going to ask you for your top 3 recommendations from that month. It can be anything; a vegetable that’s been a staple in your weeknight dinners, a new workout that you’re loving or a fabulous app that’s changed your life. I’d love to hear about it!

August 2013 Top Three Favourites

Powerade Zero

Yes I know artificial sweeteners cause cancer and brain shrinkage and drippy poo and all that other stuff but I DON’T CARE! A very wise woman who I worked with as a teenager, nursed me through my first ever hangover and passed on a piece of wisdom that stays with me to this day. Mountain Blast Powerade is the best hangover cure. I was only to drink Mountain Blast flavour and only in DIRE emergencies. As I’ve gotten older though and calories are getting harder to burn, it’s difficult to justify a 200 calorie spend on a blue sports drink. I’d rather have an extra glass of wine the night before to be honest. I swear I nearly cried when I saw this in my local supermarket. 9 calories for the whole bottle. Amazing. I’m still putting it in the ‘sometimes’ drink category though… because… you know… brain shrinkage… or something.

Mud

Mr Smaggle and I were looking for a movie to rent the other night on Apple TV and we stumbled upon Mud with Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon. Literally the only reason why we watched it was because it has a Rotten Tomatos score of 98% which is practically unheard of. It’s about two young boys who find a washed up boat and then realise someone is living in it. I actually don’t have much to say about it, because I don’t have much to say about anything that’s almost flawless. It’s really engaging, beautifully shot and has two wonderful young actors in it who do beautiful performances. I believe it’s playing at some independent theatres in Australia but I’m pretty sure it missed our commercial cinema circuit. Watch it if you can. It’s a really, really good film.

Seche Vite

 

This isn’t strictly a new discovery but I just bought two more bottles from eBay and realised I hadn’t written about this stuff before. It’s a thick, kind of gluggy top coat that you apply with quite a heavy hand. It makes any nail polish shiny and smooth, kind of UV gel polish, and it makes an at home manicure last almost a full week instead of a few days. I’ve honestly scrubbed the bathroom with a three-day old Seche Vite topped manicure and come out the other end looking like I just stepped out of  a nail salon. This stuff is the bomb and if you order it from overseas on eBay you can get a two pack for like $12. Bargain. 

Melbourne Bonus

N2 Extreme Gelato

Image

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you’ll know that I have two main favourite foods. Porridge and frozen sweet shit. I’m not fussy when it comes to the frozen sweet shit. Even a scoop of cheap vanilla ice cream with some strawberry topping on it will please me far more than a sticky date pudding. I know where all the gelato shops are in my hood and I’m pretty quick to sniff out a new one. N2 opened not that long ago and it’s a den of frozen sweet shit sin. I had a scoop of Cookies and Cream gelato and I practically inhaled the stuff. Splendid. The menu is no-nonsense – you can get 1 scoop for $6 and instead of giving you a price for two scoops it simply states ‘you don’t need it’. Which you don’t. One cup of this delightful science cream will give you enough happy endorphins to last you all day. It’s proper full fat, full sugar, dairy deliciousness. They have really interesting flavours like Passionfruit Sponge and Caramel Earl Grey. One flavour even had bacon in it. True story.

Tell me… what are your top 3 recommendations from August? A product? A restaurant? A television show? What made July rock for you?