In association with Sugru

Belle is a big fan of crafts. Whereas I might decide I need some kind of storage solution and immediately order it from Amazon, Belle will take the time to think up an ingenious homemade solution, probably inspired by an Instagram video.

She’s made some really cool stuff recently, including ombre make up brush jars out of old baked bean tins and leftover paint and a very clever makeup storage board using Velcro, with spaces for each of her eyeshadow palettes.

When Sugru asked if I wanted to have a go at a craft activity using their new family-safe, skin-friendly formula, my first thought was ‘I’m definitely going to get Belle to do that…’

For ages she has wanted to make one of those things where you fix mason jars to a bit of wood with hose clamps. I bought some bits for it but to be quite honest I had absolutely no idea how you go about fitting a hose clamp together. I ended up with a length of metal in one hand and a clip thing in the other, staring at both in a baffled way, like an old lady looking at a Sky remote.

Cue the Sugru!

Sugru is, as Mr Shev so nicely summed up on Twitter, amazing stuff:

Imagine getting some plasticine, moulding it into whatever shape you want, and it setting into a super strong but flexible rubber. Or imagine you need to stick something to something else, but you want to use a material that’s easy to use, simple to remove, and brightly coloured too.

That’s Sugru.

Sugru crafts View Post

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It would be fair to say I’m not a natural crafter. I try really hard, but I lack finesse. Even when I put a lot of thought into something, it tends to end up looking like a small child has made it.

And this is why I have children!

If my craft attempts turn out a little squiffy, I can just say that Belle made them. So today, ‘Belle’ has been making Halloween trick or treat balloons! Seriously though, we did actually make these together and I would suggest that they are exactly the sort of wholesome Halloween craft activity that would be ideal to do as a family. Belle even got a friend from next door over to help, and they had a lot of fun playing with the Balloon Time helium canister and decorating the balloons.

The idea behind them is to have something actually exciting to give out to trick or treaters when they come to call, rather than just chucking them a couple of bags of Haribo and sending them on their way. The trick or treat balloons are filled with helium, and weighed down with a spooky home made box. Inside the box is either a treat – like a Screme Egg – or a trick – like a plastic cockroach. The unsuspecting trick or treater has to choose a balloon and accept the consequences!

Mwahaha!

Here we go then…

Halloween crafts View Post

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Morning everyone! Today I have a Galt toys guest review from my sister Annabel. Please do read it and say nice things!

“I’ve got a surprise for you.”

These are some of my four year old son’s favourite words. He is starting to treat them with caution though, having overplayed the ‘surprise’ approach many a time – “I’ve got a surprise if you brush your teeth/eat dinner/stop sitting on my head at 6am.” The excitement is swiftly followed by crushing disappointment when the surprise is revealed to be a kiss from me/an apple/an invisible pet.

We were walking back from school and his interest was piqued by further description of the surprise. “It’s in a box.” I say. “It arrived today.”

This is good news to him, he mentally ticks of the apple/kiss options. He picks up his pace and breaks into a run, “What is it Mummy?”

It was this from Galt toys*: View Post

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Guess what I’m doing today? Go on, you’ll never guess…

Crafts!

I know right? Me? Crafts?

Today I’m going to show you how to make a Donna Wilson Mitten Kitten phone cosy, as part of a blog tour for Donna’s new book – Creative Creatures. If you are a crafty type person, you will love this book. If you’re not a crafty type person you’re still very welcome to read the post and have a laugh at my expense.  View Post

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As regular readers will know, I love a spot of crafting.

OK, that’s a bit of a lie. I’m not a natural crafter Knitty Mummy style, but I do have good intentions. I can knit. I can draw a bit if the thing I’m drawing is a plant, and I do quite enjoy cutting things out.

It’s not completely ridiculous then that I was invited for an evening of crafting fun with interior designer Danielle Proud and Kenco. The event was held to highlight the new Kenco Rewards Club, where you collect points and trade them in for lovely eco-friendly goodies. It was also showcasing this gorgeous new cup that has been designed by Danielle for Kenco, to encourage people to cut down on the number of disposable coffee cups they use, and to refill this one instead. View Post

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This post is going to be a little bit tricky to write.

It is supposed to be showing off all the bargains I picked up on my latest visit to 99p Stores, but I made a bit of a tactical error in planning my shopping. In fact it would be fair to say I have been a little bit stupid.

Not as stupid as when I left all our passports, my purse and our Eurostar tickets in the bedside table after checking out of our Disneyland hotel last weekend, but still pretty silly.

99p Stores, I thought to myself, would be a brilliant place to pick up some presents for Christmas. Stocking fillers, chocolates, arts and craft things for Belle’s friends, that sort of thing. Seriously, 99p Stores is a virtual Aladdin’s cave of stocking fillers.

So far so good.

Off I went, filling my basket with all manner of toiletries, pen sets and festive sweeties. Father Christmas would have been so proud. We had £50 to spend, which sounds like an awful lot of money when everything is 99p, but when you’re shopping for Christmas it’s easy to get carried away.

There was loads to choose from, and we even picked Belle up a 99p chocolate advent calendar. Bargain.

Still sounds OK doesn’t it?

So then I get everything home, and start arranging it all on the kitchen table to take some photos to show everyone what I bought.

Ah.

Then it dawned on me. All the people I had bought things for read my blog.

D’oh!

I felt rather silly.

So, all you can have I’m afraid is this picture of Belle’s calendar.

"Disney Princess advent calendar"

You’ll just have to use your imagination for the other £49.01…

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Belle is a massive fan of all things wholesome. She loves crafts, painting, and especially baking. I on the other hand, do not. I’m much more a nice quiet trip to the cinema type of parent.

So yesterday, in the spirit of the Easter holidays, I outsourced my parenting, and booked Belle into a cookery class. It was the perfect solution – she enjoyed herself, and I did some work in the adjoining cafe, looking up and waving now and again.

I was a little bit disappointed with the class in general, as the promise of ‘making easter biscuits and carrot cakes’ was really more ‘decorating easter biscuits and carrot cakes’, but Belle did her best to pretend to enjoy herself, and to block out the rather annoying boy at the table next to her who kept shouting ‘does anyone know any jokes?’ if the group were quiet for more than 30 seconds.

After half an hour let loose with the icing-in-a-tube, Belle produced these two rather lovely biscuits:

Easter cookery for kids

Biscuits duly iced and pre-prepared carrot cakes spread with icing, she then decided to go off-piste, and to come up with her own Easter ideas. She had a rather furtive look about her, clearly concerned that any sort of unplanned fun would be frowned upon.

Easter cookery ideas

Here’s what she made. I think it’s quite adorable.

Easter crafts for kids

Parenting duties complete – albeit by someone else – we went home to enjoy an afternoon tea of milkshakes and marzipan bunnies.

Will you be partaking in/paying for any Easter craft activities this weekend? Do let us know…

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Struggling for Mother’s Day gift ideas? Fret ye not, Belle has put together a video tutorial for you, inspired by this one from Tesco Magazine, almost live from the kitchen of our Sandy Balls lodge…

She’s a natural isn’t she?

What will you be getting this Mother’s Day? Maybe if you’re lucky you’ll get an apple like me.

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I would love to be one of those mothers who enjoys spending hours baking, painting, and building airplanes out of lolly sticks, but I’m just not.

Apart from the odd bit of cutting and sticking – who doesn’t like cutting pretty pictures out of magazines? – I hate pretty much all kids’ craft activities.

Seriously, they are DULL. View Post

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