Adult colouring books were definitely the big thing in 2015. I have a shelf of them myself and a lovely collection of colouring pens, which the children know they are not allowed to touch! It looks like the trend will be continuing this year and I’m excited to share three new books and a new art therapy series from Anastasia Catris, the creator of #ColourMeMindful. Misplacing your wallet, forgetting where you parked your car, or getting your friend’s birthday wrong: these are just some of the many common memory slips we all experience from time to time. And such cognitive…
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This year we had a lot of wrapping paper and cards left over after Christmas. We try to recycle as much as possible to reduce our waste so the children and I have been using up some of this paper in our crafts. This week we’ve been making some Valentine decorations and have had fun with our coiled paper heart craft. You will need: wrapping paper scissors glue dots ruler heart-shaped cookie cutter How to make coiled paper hearts We experimented and cut our wrapping paper into short strips (longer strips will give larger coils). Then fold the paper in…
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If you’re keen to work your way up the property ladder, you’ll need to know how you can best maximise the value of where you live currently. From transforming your garden with Ashridge Nurseries to adding extra living space, below are five ways to add value to your home: Transform your garage If you don’t use your garage for your car, turn it into another living space. According to the Daily Mail, a study by RAC Home Insurance concludes that nearly half of Britain’s garages are no longer being used for their original purpose. Instead, they’re being used for gardening…
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A couple of weeks ago I tried baking with my favourite tea time snacks – Tunnock’s Caramel Wafers. The results were pretty special, definitely enough to warrant another baking session with another Tunnock’s products, Tunnock’s Tea Cakes. My Tunnocks’ habit began whilst I was at University and I still have a bit of a soft spot for pretty much any Tunnocks treat. Have you ever tried at Tunnocks’ Tea Cake? They are really yummy with a delicious marshmallow centre. Tunnocks Tea Cake Cupcakes I made my Tunnocks Tea Cake Cupcakes the same way as my previous bake, whipping up a…
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I have let my monthly round ups slip in recent months. The end of last year was insanely busy. This year is all about making time for me and spending more time on doing the things which make me, and therefore my family, happy. Unless you’ve been living under a cloud you’ll have probably noticed I’ve been sharing lots of pictures of the Liberty quilt I have been stitching this month. Making I started and finished my Liberty rainbow quilt which I am so pleased about. I am terrible at buying fabric and never making anything so I’ve started the…
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I hope you all had a great weekend. I don’t think we sat down once, it was a busy but fun weekend. Time once again for my weekly Monday Happy Things post. This week I have been singing along to Faure’s Requiem and Haydn’s Te Deum. Last year I joined a local choir and I am looking forward to performing these two pieces in March. On Thursday I went to the Hobbycraft Spring/Summer Press Show and came away with lots of inspiration. They had some lovely products and I was able to try my hand at stencilling, came away with…
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We’re huge fans of Lego. My husband and I grew up with it and have grown into AFOLs (Adult Fans of Lego!). The children love saving their pocket money to buy Lego sets, which are frequently featured on my other blog, Treading on Lego. We are hugely inspired by Lego and I recently had fun sharing 11 Lego crafts for kids and adults which we have made over the last few years. We try to visit Legoland Windsor every year, we’re lucky to only live 30 minutes away, and we’re already planning our next awesome family day out. In case…
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With Valentine’s Day fast approaching I thought it was time that Little Sis and I practised our baking skills. We made a batch of delicious gingerbread heart biscuits using our favourite gingerbread recipe. We iced them with a simple red fondant. Then I thought it might be fun to stamp some letters on the top to make personalised biscuits, so got my letter stamps out. Obviously my 4 year old can’t spell so I helped her. The only problem was that she kept coming up with naughty words, not the kind of words I wanted to stamp! Here are our…
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I took the opportunity of a rare trip to London to pop into the British Library today to see the Alice in Wonderland exhibition today. Did you know that Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland were first published in 1865 so last year celebrated their 150th anniversary? I have to admit I haven’t seen or heard many things about the anniversary, although we did enjoy The Alice Look display at the Museum of Childhood last year. That was also the first time I had seen the Gallymoggers Reynard fabric from the Alice in Wonderland themed SS15 Collection by Liberty. I’m pleased to…