Growing Spaces

Easy lion headdress: Just So Festival 2017

Easy lion headdress: Just So Festival 2017

Victoria’s fantastically easy lion headdress is the perfect partner for my lion face paint design for the Just So Tribal Tournament 2017. Over to Victoria now to share the instructions… Hear me roar! The kings of the jungle are ready to prowl and pounce in their golden fur and wild manes. Lion costumes are all about texture so make use of any scraps of fabrics – velvets, wools etc – it doesn’t matter if they don’t match as it’s the hair/ mane effect that will instantly roar lion! For this version you will need a stretchy hair band or circle of elastic…

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How to create a neat and compact kids homework area

How to create a neat and compact kids homework area

The area between the living and dining zones in our open-plan ground floor space has been through so many different uses as the twins grow and their needs change. Until a month or so ago, our old dining table lived there. We called it the craft table, but in reality it was a dumping spot and just attracted piles of clutter and paperwork (as evidenced by the cringe-inducing before shot above). I decided that it was time for the craft table to go – this would open up the space and help us in our constant battle against clutter, but I…

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16 imaginative gifts for creative kids

16 imaginative gifts for creative kids

Today I’m handing over to my lovely friend Victoria (follow her on IG @justordinaryfolk, and she’ll hopefully have an awesome new blog up and running in the new year), because I know she’s full of absolutely brilliant ideas for imaginative gifts for creative kids that will stand the test of time. Victoria has four gorgeous children, ranging in age from eight (nearly) to one, so she knows what works and what doesn’t in terms of keeping kids happy and entertained. She’s also very creative herself, and she finds great ways to engage and encourage her kids’ imaginations. I’m kicking myself for being…

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Butterfly conservation with B&Q

Butterfly conservation with B&Q

We’ve had some exciting guests staying with us for the last few weeks as part of B&Q‘s new partnership with wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation. The aim of this collaboration is to encourage people to plan butterfly and pollinator-friendly plants in their garden to help create a better home for insects. I thought this was a great project for the kids to get involved with, and we’ll be looking out for butterflies throughout the  year as part of the Garden Butterfly Survey – we’ll enter any sightings of butterflies in our garden online. And our guests? Five Painted Lady caterpillars… We…

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Fun & easy art inspired by T&H Hirameki

Fun & easy art inspired by T&H Hirameki

We were sent Hirameki by artists Peng + Hu from Thames & Hudson to review and I could immediately see how it would appeal to the twins, age 6. Hirameki means ‘brainwave’ or ‘flash of inspiration’ in Japanese, and this book is full of pages of splodges and splashes of colour that you’re encouraged to turn into something amazing, just by adding a few lines or dots with a black fineliner. The splashes are arranged into seven sections to help you go from single drawings blot-to-blot scenes! We all know I’m a fan of the adult colouring book, and this…

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