Being Mrs C

Nice things

This latter half of July has been a funny old time. It started with me becoming a year older, not something that I usually get all that fussed about, but despite a bad start to the day itself I also had a lovely spread out series of celebrations and treats. Things certainly started to look up with the postman appeared at the door with a large box of treats from Bettys - with strict instructions on the outside that it should be opened straight away as it contained edible delights the postman looked disappointed when I signed for it!

Both Mr C and Little Miss C must have been busy on notonthehighstreet.com as a series of packages arrived from there before my birthday and I was lucky enough to open some wonderful presents on the day itself. The kind of nice thing that you never buy for yourself as you can't justify doing so, but that you look at in catalogues and online and think "ooooh that would be nice".

It's years since I've had any sort of a birthday "party" but something inspired me this year to just invite round a couple of local blogger friends and their families and happily the date chosen for a BBQ coincided with the start of the recent spell of hot dry weather. After all the rain we'd had amazingly we were able to sit out in the garden without coats and wellies and five children were able to explore the outdoors and we even had to apply sun cream to some of them. Having the opportunity to sit back and relax with good friends for an afternoon was bliss and very rare. My lovely, wonderful, thoughtful friends brought gifts with them too - a bottle of champagne to chill until Baby C arrives and a package of beautifully chosen items all with a sewing theme. Both gifts just perfectly thought out - thank you ladies.

Since the birthday celebrations finished there have been family celebrations of a different kind as my sister got married on Saturday. I was a (rather large) bridesmaid and LMC made an adorable flower girl. The recent period of hot weather meant that I'd finally been able to convince LMC that wearing a pretty dress was a perfectly acceptable thing to do and rather than walk down the aisle in jeans and a Peppa Pig t-shirt she instead wore a beautiful vintage-style print dress and looked adorable and scarily grown up. Apart from a complaint that the wedding service didn't include enough singing - hence a quick rendition of "wind the bobbin up" during the prayers - she thoroughly enjoyed herself and all the attention that all the other wedding guests gave her. She completely loved the dancefloor and even at one point grabbed Mr C and I by the hand and insisted that we dance together! It was lovely also to see so many family friends and family members, some of whom haven't seen LMC at all before and others who saw her last when she was just 6 weeks old. Much has changed since then.

Someone pointed out to me this morning that August starts tomorrow - quite where July has vanished to I wasn't so sure, but then sitting down to write about all the nice things that have gone on in just half the month makes me realise just how busy we've been and how much has happened. In addition to all this our loft conversion work has continued and we're even looking at the possibility of the main work being completed this week. There will still be things to sort - like painting and carpets - but it's actually feeling like the end is near and as my due date approaches I'm feeling rather relieved about that. The idea of not having my house full of builders every day is a very attractive one!

So that was July then. Roll on August - and hopefully a month full of completing things. And fingers crossed that Baby C agrees not to put in an appearance until everything is complete!

Giggles and Tickles Nappy Cake

There's no doubt that baby showers are now very much a part of many women's pregnancies here in the UK. I didn't have one when I was pregnant with Little Miss C and now that I'm pregnant again I have to admit that this time round I possibly won't bother - mainly because we have pretty much everything we need anyway. They are a lovely opportunity for friends and family to celebrate your impending arrival, most importantly before you become a sleep-deprived parent.

Now that I'm over half way through this pregnancy I am starting to think about the new Baby C's arrival and I was delighted to therefore be asked to review a nappy cake from the wonderfully named Giggles and Tickles. Until a few months ago I had absolutely no idea what a nappy cake was, and then a friend of mine who worked as a nanny in New York educated me. If you're as clueless as I once was, a nappy cake is basically as the name suggests, a cake made up of nappies and other small gifts for a newborn baby. These can obviously be customised depending on whether you know the sex of the baby or not, and I particularly like the fact that they comprise of practical gifts for your little one.

Giggles and Tickles was set up by young mum Kendall Gregory not long after the birth of her daughter. Kendall was a teen mum and before finding out that she was pregnant it's fair to say that her life would fit into the "wild" category. Since then she's really turned things around and worked to make a better life for her daughter. After doing a business course with the Prince's Trust she set up Giggles and Tickles to provide help and support to other young parents and also to sell baby shower gifts.

Via their online store you can order one, two or three tier nappy cakes or other baby shower packages. If there's something you want in particular then just talk to Kendall and I'm sure she can work something to accommodate you.

The two tier nappy cake contains: 38 organic size 1 nappies, 4 pairs of newborn socks, a pair of newborn booties, a comforter and a bottle of Little Me Organics Bath Milk.

Disclaimer: I was sent a two tier nappy cake by Giggles and Tickles for this review.

Designs and Such Christmas Tree

I was delighted to recently be asked to review something from new local St Albans company Designs and Such. They are an online craft store that sell both craft kits and also one-of-a-kind handmade items which would make lovely gifts.

Being a crafter myself it seemed logical to test out one of their kits and I was sent the Trio of Feltivity kit to make for Christmas. I should add here that time constraints mean that I've only completed one of the trio so far - the chirstmas tree - but watch out for the other two completed projects later in this advent craft month here on the blog.

The first thing I want to say about these kits is that they contain absolutely everything you need to make the completed item, apart from a bit of sewing skill. There's no faffing about to find needles or a certain coloured thread and it was all beautifully packaged together. I particularly liked the vintage style striped paper bags containing all the smaller items in your kit - and from a green viewpoint it was lovely to not get loads of extra plastic to throw away.

I started with the Christmas Tree from the kit and surprised myself at just how much I enjoyed making it. You need to have a little bit of sewing skill, but this really only requires you to do simple running stitch and blanket stitch around the edges. If I have to have one little criticism it is that the kit doesn't include photographs of the finished items - I will be saying this to Designs and Such as feedback though so I hope they'll take it on board and incorporate them in future versions. The sequins give it a nice bit of detail without it being too "bling" and I loved the twine hanging loop which makes a nice difference to the usual ribbon.

Even Little Miss C declared the finished item as "pretty" so bearing in mind that came from a little lady with a limited vocabulary that's high praise indeed. I'm really looking forward to sitting down and getting on with the other two projects in the kit and if you've got someone crafty who deserves a gift before Christmas then this would be ideal. On their website they also have some other lovely non-Christmassy kits that would also make lovely gifts along with handmade items.

Disclaimer: For this review I was given a Trio of Feltivity kit by Designs and Such, which usually retails at £13.99. This kit contains everything to make the christmas tree detailed and photographed above, plus a robin and a festive red heart. These two latter items will hopefully be made and reviewed here later this month!

Julie Slater & Son Notebook

Hello. My name is Mrs C and I am a list writer.

There I've said it. I write lists and I love doing so. I have lists for everything. What meals we're having this week; what shopping I need the next time I place an Ocado order; what jobs need doing around the house; craft projects that need finishing; what I plan to buy people for Christmas and what I'd like to receive at Christmas. I always have several lists on the go - sometimes on post it notes stuck in strategic places, sometimes on scraps of paper in the bottom of my handbag and some of them written in notebooks that can be found all over the house.

This year though I'm getting organised and I mean seriously organised. About three weeks ago the lovely Julie Slater and Son left on my doorstep one of their A5 notebooks to review in a delicious purple colour. Since that moment all my lists have been compiled in one place and some jobs are actually getting ticked off my lists.

Never before have I owned such a nice notebook - one that makes me want to write in it as often as possible. Even Little Miss C seems to like it and I've had to fight off her advances with an assortment of wax crayons and felt-tip pens! The cover is so incredibly tactile that I find myself stroking it ever now and again, in the way that a sane person my subconsciously stroke a cat whilst thinking of other things. The stitching detail around the edges really gives it a quality look. There's a very handy elastic loop for attaching a pencil or pen - always necessary when you have a list to write - and a tab to keep it closed. A vast number of pages mean that it should last for many, many lists, but when an avid list writer like myself does manage to fill it, you can also buy paper refills for it too.

A notebook like this really would make a lovely gift for any organised person and the matching 2012 diaries would also make great accompanying Christmas gifts.

These limited edition notebooks and 2012 diaries have come from a collabortaion between Julie Slater and Son and Italian diary manufacturer Castelli. Both are available from the Julie Slater & Son website along with loads of other lovely gift ideas. 

Disclaimer: I was sent a notebook for this review by Julie Slater and Son.

Carla Daly Children's Wall Art

Decorating a young child's bedroom can be tricky. You want something that's bright and colourful for them to look at, with some educational value, and also doesn't look too, well, childish. I was delighted therefore when I was emailed by Carla Daly and asked to review some of her Children's Wall Art.

We were sent a Kid's map of the United Kingdom and I was delighted to unwrap it when we arrived back from holiday. The map is in a simple style and clearly shows the countries that make up the UK, along with some of the major cities. Overlaid are a variety of animals (all labelled) which I think are all native to the UK.

Little Miss C is nearly 16 months old now and was delighted as soon as we put this up in her room. She loves animals (and birds) and most of the words that she has so far are animal related. After getting up this morning she spent nearly five minutes stood in front of the picture shouting "fish!" and pointing at the whales, dolphins, salmon and tuna shown in the waters around the UK.

If you have a look at Carla's website there are several other maps - ideal if part of the family is not from the UK and you want to teach your child more about that country - various art pieces and some lovely height charts, which are a particular favourite of mine.

The map was incredibly easy to attach to the wall - some might say so easy a child could do it - and it arrived packaged really well, so much so that even our holiday cover postman didn't manage to damage it at all (remarkable!) If you're looking to buy a gift for a new baby, or to celebrate a child's birthday (or that December event that's fast approaching!) then definitely think about some art like this.

I was sent a copy of the Kid's map of the United Kingdom to review by Carla Daly. This map usually retails at £24 and is available from Carla's website - www.carladaly.co.uk

The Quangle Wangle's Hat - Edward Lear

Coincidence is a funny thing. Only last week I was reading about the Charlotte Strawbridge's new venture Crumpetty Tree and in particular how the name for their business came from Edward Lear's The Quangle Wangle's Hat. I knew of Edward Lear, and in particular Owl and the Pussycat, but not this tale, until Saturday that was when I came across this in a local charity shop.

Not only can I now find out about the Quangle Wangle and the Crumpetty Tree, but the story is also accompanied by lovely illustrations by the fantastic Helen Oxenbury.

In their own words "Crumpetty Tree is the creation of Charlotte Strawbridge and Jim Tomson; a small Cornish based illustration company making arty things you can use, wear or just look at and enjoy..." Their website is here and they also have a new online shop at notonthehighstreet.com

 

Julie Slater & Son Mini Photo Frame

I'm sure that I'm not the only person out there you likes filling their home with nice things. In my mind it's part of creating a home - surrounding yourself with people and things that you love. I'm always on the look out for lovely things, both new and secondhand, and I'm always particularly thrilled when I find someone new creating lovely things that I like.

A few weeks ago I came across Julie Slater & Son - a lovely company selling leather purses, wallets, bags and gifts. I was delighted to be asked to review one of their products and Julie sent me a lovely mini triple photo frame in my favourite colour, purple!

The photo frame is beautiful; small and perfectly formed. It is much smaller than many leather photo frames that I've seen (just measuring 64 x 56 mm when closed), but is actually a perfect size for someone travelling who wants a small frame to tuck away in their handbag or luggage as a way of carrying photos of their loved one. As much as I love having a selection of photos of Little Miss C on my phone there is something about printed photos that is particularly special and I can see myself using this to carry around some of my favourite family photos. It's a lovely quality and very tactile too.

Looking at Julie's website there are some truly beautiful looking items on there. I could quite happily bring home most of her bags and the gifts section of their website has some lovely things in would make lovely gifts for friends or relatives. I'm also quite annoyed that I didn't discover their range before buying myself a new purse a few weeks ago - this large zip round purse would have been perfect. This Daisy Chain Print Passport Cover would also make a useful addition to my handbag for our first foreign holiday with Little Miss C that's fast approaching. All items are priced very reasonably and their range contains enough variety to suit both outgoing personalities and more conservative tastes.

I'm really hoping that several more items from Julie's collection will be finding their way to our home soon!

The details...

Top image: Mini Triple Photo Frame

Bottom image: Mini Double Photo Frame

Julie Slater & Son's range is available to buy via their website.