May 1 2015

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Posted on May 1, 2015 by admin

Before holiday we were contacted by the guys at Little Chickie, an independent Baby Boutique stocking handpicked goodies from across the globe. They kindly sent Heidi some adorable pieces from their bright and adorable collection and it’s now one of my favourite websites to browse for holidaywear and unique staples for the children’s wardrobes. Packed full of quality and ethical brands such as Olive & Moss, Little Green Radicals, Slugs & Snails and Piccalilly, the collection is distinctive, vibrant and guaranteed to help your little one stand out from the crowd.

Our products are all hand-selected by our team, are of the highest quality and many are organic & fair trade. We have found some fantastic up and coming new designers, and successful European labels which are just arriving in the UK as well as some established UK brands. We have also ensured all our clothes are made from naturals fibres - baby’s comfort and washability is paramount! Little Chickie

Unisex Baby Quilted Pramsuit in Red £21.95 / William Yellow Polo T-Shirt £16.99 / William Shorts - Red Check £15.99 / Story Time Dungarees £20.99 / Baby Boy Bib -Crispin the Crab £5.95 / Baby Romper - Piccalilly Circus £19.99 / William Red & Blue Polo T-Shirt £16.99 / Baby Romper with Acorn print £19.99

With rompers, outfits and separates for both princes and princesses, the site is also perfect for new baby gifts. There are also tons of coordinating accessories and soft toys, hooded towels, toys and swaddle muslins too. All the usual social share buttons are in place and you can create a wishlist if you’re spoilt for choice. Prices are also incredibly reasonable allowing you to clad your child in designer clothes for less.

Light as Air Romper £23.99 / Body and Skirt for Baby Girl - Tulip Print £21.50 / Sheila the Sheep Short Sleeved T-Shirt £19.95 / Audrey Cherry Girls Top £12.99 / Story Time Dress £22.99 / Audrey Lucy Girls Shorts Red £14.99 / Audrey Frilly Girls Skirt £14.99 / Baby Tights - Penguins £11.99 / Baby Girl Romper - Pink Birds £19.90

So what was Heidi sent?

Mini Madam was sent the most adorable Kite Clothing pink daisy dress that she wore for her first birthday on our recent holiday to the Canaries. Based in Poole in Dorset, the Kite Clothing eco-friendly range features children’s wear made with organic cotton without using any chemicals - even the buttons are made with coconut shells! The brand focuses on beautiful colours and prints in relaxed and practical styles for the trend-setting toddler.

Heidi’s dress was a dream fit, perfect around the neckline and bust with plenty of room to grow. As it’s calf-length it hides her nappy and covers her bum if she has a tumble, yet doesn’t interfere with crawling should she fancy a lazy bout of exploring.

I love the vibrant pink making her easy to spot in a crowd, and the cute feminine daisy design looks fabulous on her. Front and back yokes means the dress keeps its shape perfectly without ironing, and there’s a back zip opening for fuss-free dressing. Made from organic cotton it’s good for the farmer, good for the planet and good for baby - especially given Heidi is prone to eczema. This also makes it thick and opaque, yet perfectly breathable in the height of the summer sun.

This dress is £23.95 and is spot on for special occasions yet can be worn time and time throughout the year as it looks equally great with a cardie and tights. When she grows out of it, we’ll pop it in her memory box given she wore it for her very first birthday.

They also kindly sent her a Gilly the Giraffe Olive & Moss tee. I’m a massive fan of this brand given their thick cotton washes amazingly well with zero shrinkage. Its also insanely soft and features tons of little textured details to bring the designs to life. The bright stripey colours, capped sleeves and delicate edging looks incredibly pretty and Heidi loves the soft bumps of Gilly’s applique body.

There are dozens of other Olive & Moss pieces to choose from at Little Chickie including quality rompers, bibs and sweatshirts all in their distinctive retro designs. Having gathered quite the cult following, there are tons of quirky characters to collect with coordinating accessories. This paticular tee is £19.95 which might seem expensive but I’d spend this time and time again given the unbeatable quality.

Want to win something from the site?

Well here’s a chance to win with Little Chickie Baby Boutique! One lucky winner will win an item of their choice from the site. This can be anything at all - whether it’s an adorable jacket, cute comforter, fleecy blanket or traditional wooden toy. So get your bums over to LittleChickie.co.uk and get exploring. For more inspiration and the latest deals, you can also follow on Twitter & Facebook.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms and conditions

UK entrants only – you must be over 18 too (sorry)
The winner will be contacted by email and must respond within 3 days of having been emailed (I’ll try all known avenues to contact them) or a new winner will be drawn
When the giveaway is closed, Rafflecopter will select the winner completely at random
The winners name will be published on this site
There is no cash alternative

More competitions at www.theprizefinder.com

Apr 27 2015

#TravellingWithKids Roomy, Stylish and Great Value: Fun and Funky Caboodle Bag Review

Posted on April 27, 2015 by admin

With two kids we LOVE a roomy change bag. We’re not great at clearing them out so you can usually find the majority of the kids wardrobes stuffed in beside nappies, bum cream, wipes and enough bottles to keep an adult hydrated for a week. It’s almost like we’re envisaging an apocalypse every time we venture out the front door - Bear Grylls would be straddling somewhere between impressed and disdainful.

Our brand new Fun and Funky bag from Caboodle Bags certainly ticks the box in terms of space. It’s a super sensible 42cm x 33.5cm with a depth of 16.5cm giving it a life beyond carrying the kids essentials. It would make an ideal hospital bag if you’re due to drop, and we took ours as hand luggage on the plane to Lanzarote. With a nice metrosexual design it was perfect for daddy to sling over his shoulder in the airport - not a flower or a cupcake montage in sight, and the coordinating lime green zips give it an extra layer of interest for the style-conscious.

Yet there’s so many practicalities a good change bag should have. Pockets galore are essential for keeping food, drinks, medicines and ‘bum bits’ separate. We’ve all been there when your storage cup of breast-milk has drenched your nappy supply, or even worse, the cap escapes off your Metanium and coats the children’s jackets in yellow gunk. Well the Caboodle Fun and Funky design has a whooping five internal pockets. Each is really generous with all-important wipe proof lining to curb any cross-contamination and put an end to mishaps, and house any stowaway toys!

So that’s 5 pockets already before you consider the two outer pockets. If you haven’t discovered the advantages of side pockets yet, these will literally transform your outings. When Child 1 is running into newsagents and pinching Creme Eggs, and Child 2 is screaming from the pushchair, easy access to a bottle is essential for freeing up those hands and diffusing the situation. If you’re looking at a fancy change bag without these, don’t bother.

Change bags generally come rammed with extras too. The Caboodle bag is no exception with a coordinating changing mat, grubby stuff bag (fabulous if you’re faced with wet or poo-saturated clothing) and insulated bottle bag. These will set you back a good £25 if you buy them separately making its £40 price tag seem even more attractive.

Like Cath Kidston’s bags, our Caboodle Bag is made from oil cloth. If there is one thing I would recommend above all else when selecting a change bag, it’s this. Having a wipe clean material is just sooo essential. I have no idea why so many mums choose cloth when you think what a change bag will go through. It will be set down on the floor of public toilets, it will be set down on muddy grass, bottles will leak from the inside - It’s common sense to pick something that’ll survive parenthood.

Caboodle

Finally, like all good change bags, this one comes with a webbing handle for grabbing, and an adjustable shoulder strap for flinging over your pushchair… I know, I know we’re told not to hang things off buggy handles, but you’re going to do it anyway - Just be super aware you aren’t popping rocks in there or it’ll tip over your pushchair.

So do I love it? Yes. This is exactly what you want out of a change bag. Yes I have a super posh one for when I’m showing off, but for everyday, I can’t fault it. If you’re bucking the Pink Lining trend as you find it a little too twee (and expensive), this is the bag for you.

If you enjoyed this Fun and Funky Caboodle Bag Review, head to CaboodleBags.co.uk to buy your own, or follow on Twitter and Facebook for competitions, chat and more reviews.

Apr 2 2015

Getting beach-ready! Ginvera Green Tea BB Cream & Bio Water Sunscreen from Janiro

Posted on April 2, 2015 by admin

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I suspect you all know by now that we’re gearing up for our holiday. Did you hear that one? WE’RE OFF ON HOLIDAY!

(Given I haven’t shut up about it, it would have been pretty hard to miss…)

Holidays act like a symbolic shove to switch my make-up bag to a summer version. Out goes the liquid eyeliner, and in comes bronzer. It’s a huge relief, but you can feel a little bare-faced when you step in to summer for the first time when those around you are still trawling it on.

Thankfully I haven’t worn foundation for a long time now. I remember some three years ago when I applied some in front of Craig when we first started dating. He came up behind me at my dressing table, planted a kiss on my cheek, and picked up the bottle (in that absent-minded way men sometimes do) and commented that he’d been “under the impression that only old women wore foundation, not pretty young twenty-somethings” - that was enough to make me question whether I needed it. He wasn’t flattering me, he just genuinely thought foundation was an old ladies weapon in the fight against wrinkles and age spots.

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My ditching the foundation happened to coincide with the proliferation of BB Creams on the market. And I haven’t found any better than Ginvera Green Tea BB Cream. Until this came into my life I was using L’Oreal’s Nude Magique and would often end up with patchy cheeks where it cloyed and dried out my skin. This one hydrates and delivers perfect coverage all day. Even better, it’s SPF 30 to prevent photoaging and UVA damage.

A skin care sensation that has swept Asia, Ginvera is enriched with premium Green Tea, Ginseng, Chinese Angelica and Hyaluronic Acid. Not only does it smell utterly divine, it also has some pretty impressive long-lasting effects. Hyaluronic Acid (typically produced by the human body) helps bind moisture and leaves skin hydrated, plumper and firmer, whilst Green Tea, Allantoin, Ginseng and Angelica encourage cell renewal and revitalise tired skin.

Even the lightest of applications will leave your skin fairer and more radiant. Specially formulated with a nano fine texture to allow easy spreading and application, it’s a non greasy texture and dries to a velvety finish in seconds. Although it claims to mattify, you are left with a slight sheen but this is completely natural and healthy-looking and creates a perfect base for the rest of your make-up.

Gemma

My only slight reservation is that, as a nude BB Cream, the inference is that it will colour match against your skin tone. I can’t refute this as my skin is pale. I would be interested to see it on someone with a richer and darker complexion though as it does leave my skin more porcelain than other BB Creams I’ve tried. It also dries to a matt finish incredibly quickly so you will want to apply in sections.

At £24.95, it is expensive, yet to say I’m blown away is an understatement. I just can’t imagine not having it in my make-up bag and will definitely buy it again. You can buy yours from official stockist Janiro.co.uk who are also on Facebook and Twitter should you want to see what other beauty journalists are saying about Ginvera.

As if I wasn’t spoiled enough, they’ve also given me some Bio Essence Bio Water Sunscreen to use on myself and the children. I came across this product months ago as it’s regularly listed as a top pick by health and beauty editors. I can totally see why.

HeidiBioWater

With paper thin water technology, a little goes a long way. It applies just like water and dries to a matt finish in seconds. It’s completely non-greasy and a pleasure to pop on before hitting the beach. Sand won’t stick to it and nor will clothes - so it’s a great choice for fussy kids (also available in SPF 56).

As it’s so gentle, it’s fabulous for the face too. In fact, this is the real selling point for this product as we’re all so used to buying separate moisturisers and make-up with SPF. In fact, it’s worth noting that moisturisers with SPF aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. A good slather of these of a morning isn’t enough. To safeguard against UVBs it will need re-applying every two hours, or more if you use it too sparingly. Rather a mineral sunblock on top of your moisturiser before applying make-up will better protect your skin. These, much like Bio Water, sit on top of your skin to reflect the sun’s rays, rather than absorb into it.

I’d go so far as to say, you can pop this on top of your BB Cream without ruining your makeup - it’s that invisible. You’ll want to do this anyway as it’s also enriched with Tranexamic Acid which serves to lighten the skin and prevent dark spots and freckles.

Now for the best bit. It’s also rich in trace minerals providing a real cooling effect. This isn’t short-lived either, it’ll stay cool to the touch even under the afternoon sun. It’s not an unpleasant, or even particularly strong sensation, rather it’s gentle and understated. A definite bonus if you don’t cope well in the heat!

Once again, this isn’t cheap. You’re looking at £18.90 for 40ml. Yet as I previously mentioned, a little goes a long way, and a bottle per person should be enough for a week’s holiday. As you can’t put a price on your families skin, it’s definitely worth stocking up.