• Decorating for Christmas with JDWilliams
    homestyle

    Decorating for Christmas with JDWilliams

    November 27, 2017 - By 

    Am I allowed to be smug and tell you I’ve finished my Christmas shopping? My husband took a day off a few weeks ago and we smashed my to do list. I actually found the stockings the most difficult as the stockings we have are huge! I fill them for 4 people so it takes a while to find little things to put in them. As well as getting the things people wanted I got a few extra special gifts. Decorating for Christmas with JDWilliams I love to shop in-store and browse online. This year I found some lovely Christmas…

  • cupcakes to celebrate #TheStarMovie
    homestyle - Monday Happy List

    Monday mindfulness – 5 happy things

    November 27, 2017 - By 

    Happy Monday everyone, time for me to sit down and write my favourite Monday mindfulness post, focussing on the 5 happy things from the previous week. Last week was busy but good so it was a struggle to make a short list! Monday mindfulness – 5 happy things On Monday my daughter was invested into Beavers. I’m sad she gave up on Rainbows but I’m really hoping she’ll stick with Beavers (especially now I’ve bought the uniform and sewn on her badges!). The programme is really well structured and incentivises the children so I’m hopeful she will be as happy…

  • 8 ways to hold onto summer vibes in winter
    homestyle

    Top tips for holding onto summer vibes in winter

    November 25, 2017 - By 

    In the depths of winter it can be hard to remember that everything is seasonal and although Summer is behind us, it’s not long until the shortest day (check out our winter solstice lamp craft) and we can look forward to Spring. I love living in the UK where life is totally shaped by the seasons. As a parent I get to enjoy the long days of summer with my children. Life is easier in the summer. You can wear minimal clothes, spend all day outside and eat ice cream and salad all day. The winter months are harder. It’s…

  • What's inside our Advent crate
    Advent crafts - Christmas - homestyle

    What’s inside our Advent crate

    November 24, 2017 - By 

    Advent can take a lot of planning but it’s sooo worth the effort. I spend November planning our Advent books and calendars so everything is ready for December 1st. Last year I made a little wooden Advent crate to hold everything but I have to admit it barely fitted anything, so I need to re-think how to hold everything this year. I’m so excited for this year so I’m going to share what I’ve got ready for the family: This year I have winter duvets for the kids. I picked these up in Asda in the Summer holidays as I…

  • YouTube cupcakes
    homestyle - mindfulness - Monday Happy List

    Monday mindfulness – 5 happy things

    November 20, 2017 - By 

    I’m so happy to be sitting down and having the chance to write this blog post after an epic weekend. It feels like I had a 3 day weekend as my husband took Friday off, which was rare and lovely. But first let me tell you about the 5 things which made me happy over the last 7 days. Monday mindfulness – 5 happy things On Wednesday I went into London for a BritMums/YouTube event. I’ve really enjoyed growing my YouTube channel this year so was really looking forward to learning some tricks to improve my videos. I have to…

  • Blue Coffee Box review and giveaway
    competition - homestyle - subscription box

    Blue Coffee Box review and giveaway

    November 18, 2017 - By 

    I was recently sent a new subscription box to try at home for coffee. My husband is a huge coffee fiend and can’t get through the day without grinding his beans and getting his stove top coffee pot out. I love the weekends when the house is filled with the smell of fresh coffee. Blue Coffee Box is a luxury coffee subscription box – a veritable tour of the world of high-quality coffee! Read on for your chance to win a Blue Coffee Box subscription box and a generous discount code for money off your first box! About Blue Coffee…

  • Kawaii box reveal and giveaway
    competition - homestyle - subscription box

    Kawaii box reveal and giveaway

    November 16, 2017 - By 

    I’m so excited to share with you the contents of a Kawaii Box today. As you know, I *LOVE* subscription boxes. I think I could happily sit and open them all day. My kids love them too, so were happy to sit and help me open the latest Kawaii Box. What’s inside the latest Kawaii Box? The November 2017 Kawaii Box was called the Kawaii Thanksgiving Parade. Living in the UK we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving at all so I was interested to see what was inside the box. It’s been a while since we last reviewed a Kawaii Box. They…

  • Delicious Swedish Ginger Cake recipe
    baking - gingerbread - homestyle

    Swedish Ginger Cake recipe

    November 16, 2017 - By 

    I really love ginger in any form. When I spotted a recipe for Swedish Ginger Cakes in Christmas Prima Makes magazine I knew I would have to make them for myself. I adapted the recipe slightly as I couldn’t find black treacle. Ingredients to make Swedish Ginger Cake 100g butter 175g light brown muscovado sugar 2 balls of stem ginger, chopped 1 tbsp of the syrup from the stem ginger 200g plain flour 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp mixed spice 2 medium eggs 150 ml soured cream How to make Swedish Ginger Cake Melt the…

  • What is Stir up Sunday
    baking - Christmas - homestyle

    Stir up Sunday comes early

    November 13, 2017 - By 

    Have you heard of Stir up Sunday? It’s the day when you make your Christmas puddings. They taste best if are cooked in advance and left to mature for a few weeks. Now is the time to get yours ready for Christmas! Stir up Sunday came very early this year. Traditionally Stir up Sunday falls on the last Sunday before Advent, this year that will be Sunday 26th November. However we made a head start on ours at half term when we visited my mum. The first thing we did was to leave the dried fruit to soak overnight. You can…