• Bento - gingerbread - gingerbread house

    Gingerbread man bento

    Once again I’ve teamed up with some lovely European children’s activities bloggers to co-host a Countdown to Christmas organised by Cerys at Rainy Day Mum. Every Monday for the next three weeks we will have a different prompt to inspire our festive crafting – this week’s theme is recipes. Don’t forget to add your crafty post to the linky at the end of this post! So this week’s prompt is recipes but I’ve done something a little different and made a gingerbread themed bento box. My children adore bento and I thought it would be fun to make a seasonal…

  • Christmas - competition - gingerbread - gingerbread house

    Win 2 x Make Your Own Gingerbread Decoration Kit

    I’m so excited to be able to offer you a really fun giveaway today in partnership with the bi-annual Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day. I have two lovely craft kits up for grabs. For a festive craft activity, this Make Your Own Gingerbread Decoration Kit from the Hobbycraft Christmas range, allows you to create your own handmade decorations! This pack contains everything you need to make three adorable gingerbread characters and a house for the Christmas season. Simply follow the step by step instructions inside to create two gingerbread characters and one gingerbread baby plus a beautifully decorated house, all…

  • days out - Local Review - London - museum - toy review

    Remote controlled helicopters at RAF Museum London

    Last weekend we were invited to the RAF Museum London for the UK launch of Propel’s remote control helicopters. This was a winning combination for my husband and son and we all had a great day out. An area of the museum had been set aside to try out the new remote control helicopters and there was also a craft table, photo booth and yummy snacks. My 4 year old loves his radio controlled cars and planes so was eager to try out the new toys. The range of helicopters is designed to suit all abilities and ages; from children…

  • Christmas - Handmade gifts

    Personalised Christmas Treats

    As well as the handmade gifts I’ve already told you about, I’ve also made a few personalised gifts this year. I can’t reveal too much as my family read my blog, but I really enjoyed designing a calendar with a different photo for each month. Stuck for stocking inspiration? I made some personalised keyrings and mugs too using my favourite photos. I made all these products using Snapfish, an online digital printing service. You can even personalise your baubles which would make a great keepsake which you could add to every year. I was thinking of starting an annual Christmas…

  • Baker Ross Blogger Network - Christmas - Kids crafts

    Easy Christmas Gift Boxes

    As much as I love thinking up new crafts to make with the children sometimes it’s really nice to open a ready made craft kit. We were recently sent a box of Christmas craft supplies from Baker Ross and one of our favourite activities was making up their Christmas Gift Box Kits. The kit contained enough supplies to decorate three festive gift boxes – three circular boxes with foam stickers – and my children loved making them. My 4 year old was happy to follow the picture on the kit packaging. He’s good at following pictorial instructions, probably due to…

  • housekeeping

    How to have a thrifty year

    This time of year brings out the thrifty-ness in me. I love to save money all year round but especially at Christmas which is the most expensive time of year for us as a family. One of my most popular posts is how to save money on maternity leave. As I never returned to work after the birth of my first child I’ve been taking my own advice ever since! I thought I would share some of my money saving tips and would love to hear yours. Our biggest monthly expense is our mortgage but due to careful budgeting we’ve…

  • Christmas - Kids crafts - tutorial

    Easy Christmas Tree ornament tutorial

    We like creating with craft sticks. Last year the 4 year old made a sweet craft stick Christmas tree and this year we made some easy Christmas Tree ornaments using more green craft sticks. We’ve been having so much fun with our Christmas crafting. My favourites so far are the Melted Snowman biscuits and the Christmas chocolate bars, but we’ve also been busy played Pin the Nose on Rudolph, making paper chains and baubles to hang on our tree. Today I wanted to share the easy Christmas Tree ornament tutorial with you. Equipment needed to make easy Christmas Tree ornament: green…

  • Christmas - Crafts for adults - Recycled crafts - tutorial - upcycling

    How to make an upcycled ruler Christmas tree

    A while ago I saw a brilliant image on Pinterest of a Christmas tree made of vintage rulers. I thought I would attempt it this year and have been buying up old wooden rulers and cribbage boards whenever I see them. Thankfully you can get them for a few pounds and I seem to have amassed a lot! Equipment needed to make an upcycled ruler Christmas tree: collection of vintage wooden rulers mitre block PVA glue clamp How to make an upcycled ruler Christmas tree: I traced a rough shape on a piece of paper of the shape I wanted…

  • Christmas - homestyle - housekeeping

    Filling the house with seasonal scents

    This time of year is perfect for lighting a candle or two. I love candles and find they really add ambience to a room as well as eliminating nasty smells. With Christmas round the corner I’ve been stocking up on some seasonal scents from Febreze to help set the mood this Christmas. Filling the house with seasonal scents I’m expecting a house full so I want to make sure my house smells fabulous. The new range, which includes yummy sounding Vanilla Latte, Apple & Spice, Warm Cedarwood, Winter Garden and Festive Sprite, are beautifully packaged in vintage-inspired wrapping so are…