Not a Me&i photo shoot - Review

I am a sucker for a great print. Like Orla Kiely and her retro bright designs, me&I have captured some amazing Autumn colours in their new season range emblazoned on some fabulous T-shirts and dresses.The prints are bold and funky and easily coordinate into any wardrobe. They are also largely unisex which makes for some very cool kids on the block.

Having been sent a couple of pieces to review I really wanted to capture their coolness is all their glory. I was thinking a beautiful autumn setting, conker hunting and a soft afternoon sun to light the colours of the clothes. Yeah right.

Take this t-shirt for example:

That shot is from the catalogue. Look at the perfectly composed photo.

Now look at my shot of the Wee One 'modelling'. Or not.

He was having too much fun to sit still or smile or pose or in fact do anything I asked him to. This wasn't just on one day either. This is is new favourite t-shirt which he wears just as soon as I can get it clean and dry. It has been through the wash at least 4 times already and is still looking amazing.

Did I mention they also have womenswear?
Love the colours and the print of this dress.

The cut is excellent and perfect for my 'curves'. Unfortunately I had just been out for a rather gut busting pizza lunch with a delectable tiramisu for dessert so my curves were more curvy than normal yet the dress was still very forgiving.

I look just like a model don't I?

The best bits of this dress are the sleeves are nice and long and actually reach my wrists ( I'm not a fan of 3/4 length sleeves) so I'm thinking I'm going to layer this dress up over vest tops or long sleeve tops as the temperature drops. Another plus is the wrap ties are really long so I could tie them all the way round to the front or at the back. The fabric is a lovely soft jersey with loads of stretch for those pizza lunch days and has washed really well too.

The prices may be higher than your average High Street store with the t-shirt ranging in price from £18 to £20 depending on size and the dress at £55, but I think the quality more than justifies the price. That dress is going to be a winter staple for me, and as The Wee One has already proved, the t-shirt is going to last and last and last.

me&i is a Swedish clothing company that designs and commissions cool, high-quality clothes for children and their parents, and sells them at home parties. They are really keen to attract more representatives so that the product is accessible to more mums across the UK so if you think you might be interested in joining their sales team, have a look at their company page here.


Disclosure: I was sent these items by me&i for the purposes of review. All opinions are my own.

Silent Sunday

Half Term Happy

Blessed by some lovely weather (I know, how lucky were we?), and the Mr being off work for a couple of days has stacked up to us having a rather lovely half term holiday. Lazy mornings scattered with friends to play with has left the children with an overdose of smiles and giggles fuelled by seemingly endless energy.

This is not typical. I would normally expect major bickering by mid morning on day one of the holidays but for some reason this hasn't happened. If anything I've been complaining because they are spinning round the room lapping each other, laughing raucously and giving me a headache.

Stop having so much fun!

Thank goodness for good weather and the great outdoors. Oh and a lovely lunch.

Grinning from ear to ear to be carrying the flag.

Nail polish, eye shadow and a colouring book. One happy Princess.

I could see the smile on my face in those tiles.

Go. Run. Be free.

Sunshine, beach and shadows.

A smilely snoozy Misty Moo after a satisfying walk.

One two LEAVES! (A grainy grab from an IG video)

Back to school next week which leaves me feeling slightly down at heart, particularly as it's such a long haul till the Christmas holidays. Hopefully the children have enough happy half term memories to last them till then.

I know I have.


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42

The ultimate answer to the ultimate question is 42. And we are at week 42 of this years 365project. Is it an ultimate week? Have any major milestones come to pass?

Not exactly. More of a passing properly into a new season as the rain falls and blankets are shaken out to snuggle under. Although I was sent an article about reinvention of oneself and it has struck a chord. More than a chord really. More a symphony. 

How would I reinvent myself?

With an Eco car to reduce my carbon footprint.

Dunk toy giraffes instead of biscuits to be kinder to my waistline.

Get more exercise chasing a certain boy.

Not just think 'Meh!' when rain beats against my windows.

Smile even when the dentist's drill is echoing in my ears.

Do something I feel proud of other than my children's achievements.

Search out a little piece of treasure.

What would you do to reinvent yourself?

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Silent Sunday

Appreciation

I have been privileged to have been awarded the honour of a feature post on The Boy and Me's blog this week. And it is indeed an honour. She is a talented photographer with a passion to capture the ordinary in her life as well as the extraordinary and has inspired me not only in my photographic endeavours but also as a parent. So thank you The Boy and Me.

From those giddy heights of recognition to the lowly daily routine captured on my iphone.

The sun rises everyday but sometimes it is more appreciated than others.

An extra pair of hands is always appreciated.

Misty Moo always but always appreciates a walk.

I love sewing and tonight the Big One appreciated a lesson from dear old Ma.

I appreciate a splash of colour on a dreary day.

A welcome cuppa while planning is afoot.

As much as I appreciate the art that is photography, I also appreciate the auto function.


What have you been appreciative of  this week?

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Silent Sunday

            

Sweet Lavender Dreams - Review

Did you sleep well last night?

No of course I didn't. I have a three year old who refuses to stay in his bed and comes and nudges me in the middle of the night for a cuddle. Lovely. But so not lovely.

So when an email drops into my mailbox asking if I slept well and would I like to test a sleeping aid my first response was yes. My second response was, are bed restraints for children legal?

Seems the answer to that question is no, probably.

I wasn't sent any restraints to review, but I was sent a heavenly White Lavender pillow mist from the White Company to apply onto my pillows to aid a restful sleep. The scent is indeed heavenly. Imagine slicing a lemon in a field of lavender. Inhale... ahh yes.

Not to be left out the children have also been sneaking a quick spray or two before bedtime, reminding them of infant days when I would waft a lavender oil scented hanky around their cots. Worked brilliantly. They would nod off gently (that may be rose tinted memories on my part).

And so the White Lavender Pillow Mist was sprayed, and heads were rested upon sweet scented pillows, and gentle dreams were dreamed. Until approximately 2am when a small person would nudge me into the middle of the bed. oh well.

Maybe a more liberal  application of pillow mist for him.

The pillow mist is a wee bit pricey at £15 but all you need is a couple of pumps to get enough scent so the bottle will last and last. I fell asleep very quickly while I used the product and the children enjoyed it too.
On the down side, it was so effective that I haven't managed to read more than 1 page a night of my book before I have to give into my droopy eyelids. I am consequently way behind on my reading and have consistently failed to catch up on any blog reading.

Disclosure: Thank you Silentnight who sent me the Pillow Mist for the purposes of review. All opinions are my own. I have not and do not intend to restrain my children in their beds.

Tesco's Handmade Vintage Christmas

Back in July, when the mercury was hitting 30 degrees in London, I entered into the Tesco's Christmas Grotto to get a sneak peak at what they had to offer for Christmas 2013. I was expecting to see a range of lovely designer inspired Christmas decorations and gifts and a table laden with delicious fare to eat on Christmas Day. I wasn't disappointed.

I just love the deer cushions and I'm sure I could find a home for the lit blossom tree.

What I wasn't expecting to find was the array of vintage inspired and handmade delights to adorn my tree. There was even a hint of kitch which are on my 'must have' list.

Tesco have really scuppered my plans for Christmas this year. I love making things, creating something from some scraps of fabric or some wool but this Christmas it looks like I don't need to because the range has some amazing handmade decorations which I would have spent hours crafting.

I'm sure I could bluff it and convince everyone I have been stitching bird decorations out of my Dad's old tweed cap and wrestling wire coat hangers into bird cage card holders.

Not only that but I am going to amaze some guests this Christmas with my new found confectionery skills when I milk the big Tah-dah moment unveiling these cakes and confectionery.

Admittedly they may not believe I hand carved the chocolate turkey (!) but Yes, I was absolutely up till 3am tempering my chocolate and hand dusting my marzipan fruits. Oh and that cake. Yes I've been feeding it brandy since August. The thing is, the Tesco Christmas Cake has been drinking brandy for months just like you would do at home if you didn't have three children and your need to drink the brandy was far greater than the need to get a cake drunk.

The attention to detail that goes into the confection is astonishing. You see that chocolate cuff around this cake...

Well it has been especially made for Tesco so that it doesn't shatter as soon as a knife even so much as winks at it. It is flexible. And edible. And delicious.

I did get some crafty inspiration though. All I need is two dozen packets of assorted biscuits, 12 blocks of chocolate, 3 kilos of sugar and scaffolding. Gingerbread houses are so 2012.

And should I find myself with 120 eggs, 6kgs of castor sugar and a week I don't know what to do with, I may just whip up a few meringues to build a Christmas Tree.

Happy Christmas list writing x

Disclosure: This post is part of the Britmums project with Tesco.

Reds and pinks and oranges

Reds and pinks and oranges, fading to brown.
I have an art project in my mind for the kids to do, to collect a bucket of leaves and make me a picture in all the autumnal shades they can find. I would enjoy it. They would possibly enjoy it too. It would make for a great IG post ;-)
But so far we haven't managed to squeeze in enough time for a walk in the woods. I'm foraging for leaves in my own garden and off the bonnet of my car, but the sun burnt canopy of autumn's riches at the top of the trees has so far eluded me.
Perhaps I'm a bit premature, and the leaves haven't really turned yet. Impatient as always. I'll park my art project and soak up the colours that this week has given me instead.

 The willow is still green.

 Those adorable pink toes.

Rose lips pursed in concentration

A rich orange circling the heart of these flowers.

Brilliant brilliant red

Plum jacket, plum throw, waiting for his bestie

And all under a beautiful blue sky. How lucky are we?


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