Giltterbelle, the Sparkliest Princess. A book review.

Glitterbelle is worried that she isn't a true princess.  Everyone knows the story of the princess and the pea but Glitterbelle doesn't like peas and, much to her mother's frustration, won't eat her peas!

When princess Glitterbelle's friends start pointing out that she doesn't behave much like a princess, she really starts to become concerned.  Thankfully, Glitterbelle does pass the ultimate princess test and proves herself worthy of her title!

Giltterbelle (a character by Rachael Duckett and Harriest Muncaster) is the subject of The Sparkliest Princess Ever which is a series of books targetted at girls of Lara's age (she's nearly 6).  The book is filled with collage-style imagery made from a mixture of photographs and illustrations... and, of course, lots of sparkly bits.

The combination of princesses and sparkliness, with a bit of fun behaviour thrown in means that it is perfectly suited to Lara and she loved the story when I read it to her.

I think Lara's enjoyment of the tale of Glitterbelle, the most sparkly of princesses, was heightened by the accompanying book, Glitterbelle Doodle, Dazzle, Create.  This book is a creative activity book filled with themed activities based on the Glitterbelle princess character and her friends.

The activity book is so well pitched at girls of 5-8 - absolutely spot on.  Each page includes either a drawing activity designed to encourage imagination, a writing activity, a puzzle or a hands-on activity such as a cut-out craft idea, a game or a recipe to make.  Packed full of jewelllery, tiaras, dresses and general sparkliness, Lara has whiled away hours making up her own designs and working, on her own, towards many of the activities.

Glitterbelle. Doodle, Dazzle, Create also comes with a little notepad held inside a tin - the perfect place for secret doodles and messages.  At £4.99 I think this activity book is a bargain because it contains as much fun and entertainment as several regular kids magazines would!

The Glitterbelle books are published by Parragon and you can find out more about princess Glitterbelle at Glitterbelle.com. You can follow Parragon Books on twitter and as @parragonbooks on instagram and pinterest.

I received this product from the publisher for free. However, they have not paid me for this review, and they do not exercise any editorial control over my review or anything else on this site.

   

The Playful Parent - A Very Mellow Book Review

I think it is fair to say that this past month has been the single most stressful of my career, and that of Mr. B. And so, I am very thankful to have rediscovered my Mellow Mummy status this month with thanks to the inspiration from the #31days2015 campaign and #ThePlayfulParent, a very mellow parenting approach by Julia Deering, author of The Playful Parent. You can find out more about the #31Days2015 campaign on twitter or tumblr.

There is one overriding lesson I have learned from The Playful Parent, and that is to plan. I think my "Mellow" approach to parenting had ruled out "planning" as an option, favouring a re-active approach to parenting. But, having read through Julia's book, I can see that I have all of the skills of play with my two girls already, I just need to be well prepared to deploy my skills when the girls need me. It isn't any use knowing how to make 101 creative craft activities if you don't have the materials on hand to make them. It isn't any use knowing that (a) a kitchen colander and (b) coloured pipe cleaners can make the simplest of toys if you have neither a nor b available. I've made an effort this month to plan my evenings and weekends to make sure that I have a few fun activities already pre-prepped and ready for action.

And yes, i think it has made a difference.

This weekend was the ultimate test. Mr. B. was away for much of the weekend so I was in charge of girls, and food, and fun. Because Mr. B. and I share so much of the time at home, it always seems to tip the balance disproportionately when one or other of us is away. But this weekend was unlike most. It was calm, and fun.

We made pink and orange cupcakes. We played "shops". We read books together. We made shrinkie dinks. We coloured in pictures of barns. We swept leaves. We played "cars". And most of all, we danced. I can't actually remember a weekend with less shouting of "Noooooooo". This makes me happy.

At the end of The Playful Parent there is a little chart as an example of how to plan out your days, very much like I would expect the nursery workers at Holly's nursery to have to fill out ahead of each week. I don't think I'll go as far as drawing up a chart (maybe I would if I were home alone with Holly during the weekdays?) but it certainly does help me to have an idea of two to four fun activities that I can have ready for when I need them.

The final chapter in The Playful Parent is about sanity savers. The chapter started with an explanation of some of the science behind why toddlers and young children behave "badly", especially for their parents. It does help to remind yourself of the emotional and physical changes and learning that is taking place in your toddler's body. I think I'm guilty of expecting too much from Holly, as a little sister. At present, I feel more confident about "managing" her "bad" behaviour and helping to calm her down by ensuring that she always has lots of play opportunities at home.

You can find out more about The Playful Parent on Julia's website and the Harper Collins website.

Five Great Sources of Inspiration for Home Decorators

2014 was a big year of changes in our house and now that 2015 is here, I'm beginning to think about decorating another room of the house. If you are going to decorate a room in 2015, then take the time to have a look around and gain inspiration from a range of sources. Having a nosey online gives you a chance to really think about what you want and find out about the latest home decor trends. Here are some places you can turn to for additional home decor inspiration.

Show Homes

Not many people see show houses for inspiration, but they can be a great source of ideas for colours and designs because they are usually styled by professional home decor specialists. When you visit a show home, you can take your time and have a good look around but you do have to be ready to talk homes with a sales representative!

Most firms do not mind you opening the cupboards and trying out the storage solutions. Show homes are decorated to a high standard and they tend to feature all of the latest mod cons, including new storage ideas that you can use in your own kitchen and bedroom cupboards.

In a show house, you can look at every room, so get inspiration for any area of your home. It is normally also fine to take photos, which you can use when speaking to your decorator or shopping for furniture.

Pinterest

Pinterest is a fantastic place to get visual inspiration. My advice is to avoid the commercial boards to start with.  Start by finding people with similar taste to you and investigate their boards. Once you have some ideas from those photo boards look for something similar on commercial Pintrest boards to find places to buy what you need.  My Mellow HQ board is where I pin ideas for my future decorating projects.

Follow Emma Button's board Mellow HQ on Pinterest.

Furniture showrooms and websites

This one is obvious, but furniture showrooms and websites are great sources for decorating ideas. Most firms set their furniture in mock rooms that are decorated in the latest styles. This means that even if you do not want new furniture you can still use them as a source of home decor ideas and inspiration.

Home decor magazines

If I am planning to update a room in my home, I still like to browse a couple of home decor magazines.  In the days of Pinterest, it feels like an old-fashioned way of looking for inspiration, but it still works for me. Perhaps it is because that is how I used to plan updates to my home or perhaps it is because you can just sit back and relax while flicking through a magazine. I am not sure what it is about magazines, but I do know that they are a fantastic place to find new ideas when decorating a home.

Follow Emma Button's board little girls playroom on Pinterest.

Your neighbour’s homes

Naturally, you do not want your home to end up looking like everyone else’s in the street, so many people do not think of looking at their neighbour’s homes for inspiration. However, you could be missing out by taking this approach.

You do not have to copy the decorating style of your neighbour’s homes exactly. Looking at your neighbour’s rooms can still give you ideas, which you can use in your home.  Because the layout and dimensions of your neighbour’s homes are similar to yours it can really help you when trying to decide whether you have room for a table in the kitchen, or a home office on the landing.

It is also great for judging how a new piece of furniture may look in your home. The last thing you need is to buy a lovely super-sized sofa with chaise only to find that whilst it fits into your lounge it overwhelms everything else.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of home decorating ideas inspiration sources, but these are my favourites and I am sure you will find using them helpful.

Disclosure: This post was written in collaboration for Emblem Furniture, but that doesn't stop it being fun to read