Happy Egg Hats

Morning,

I posted last week about the brilliant Happy Paper Club box that I received last weekend. In it was an exclusive 'Make Me' card, a clever idea to jot down 'how to' instructions which you can share with a friend. I thought it'd be nice to share one of these cards with you for a little activity we did yesterday.

With Easter just round the corner I decided it was about time we opened up the craft box and got down to some seasonal fun. So whilst a certain little lady had her nap, Wilf and I had a go at making some egg toppers or 'hats' as we ended up calling them. 

 

 A selection of bright paper and some Spring time trims and tape. He couldn't wait to get his hands on them!

If you're the parent of a child who goes to nursery then, like me, you probably have a great collection of paintings and pictures. Wilf runs towards me most weekday afternoons clutching a few A3 pieces of paper decorated with coloured paint. I'm always trying to find ways of 'upcycling' them into something (birthday, thank you cards) as I can't bear to throw them away!

I decided to cut out some circles from one of these 'masterpieces' and use them for out hats.

I had to add an initial for each of us so we know who's egg is who's! I nearly fell off my chair when Wilf said 'W' when I wrote it out. I didn't realise he knew it, those alphabet cartoons are obviously sinking in!

A colourful collection of very mini party hats and some happy eggs! They were loads of fun to do and Wilf loved choosing the colours and decorating each one. 

We made party hats for his birthday party last year and the method was exactly the same as this, just on a much larger scale. Bigger party hats are great fun to do, again Wilf decorated each piece of card and I then spent an evening with a glue gun adorning them! 

Here's a few other photos I posted on Instagram at the time. 

They're lovely to keep and we'll reuse them as much as we can until they fall apart/ get so covered in party food that we have to make new ones. 

This was taken at Anwen's birthday party this month. Her party guests loved picking out a hat to wear for the celebrations.

So, without further ado, here's how we made them:

 

So, they you are, some ideas for some very mini hats as well as some for slightly bigger heads. I hope you can make out my writing and the instructions on the 'Make Me' card! I'd love to see your photos if you have a go at making some this Easter.

Before I go, I love how the happy eggs look in these Buddy and Bear egg cups! They look like they're having a little party. They're available to buy in the little maldod shop so if you like them too, you can find them here.

Thank you so much for reading today. 

Have a brilliant Tuesday! (eggcellent pun duly avoided...)

Love Lowri x

A Spring bunch

Hello,

It really felt like Spring had sprung over the weekend, I hope it did with you too.

We enjoyed a rare weekend with only a few things planned and lots of family time and it was just lovely. We spent Saturday morning at the allotment and it felt so good to be outdoors, enjoying the sunshine and fresh air together.

Yesterday, we were invited round to some friends who live on our street for Sunday lunch. I always like to take a little something with us and decided a hand-tied bunch of Spring flowers would do just nicely. I thought I'd share a few photos I took while I was putting it all together.

I chose a selection of flowers from my local grocers (above), it always has such a great variety and I was spoilt for choice yesterday. I went with Tulips, Hyacinths, Freesias (for their beautiful scent), Wax Flower and these tiny Dafodils (which have a special name that I've now forgotten!)

I was excited to use my new scissors, given to me by my clever children (ahem!) for Mother's Day. They're a delight and perfect for snipping!

 

Can you spot the signs of a little helper having visited the table?!

I stamped onto a brown tag and tied it on to add a little extra something to say thank you.

I hope these flowers have brightened the start to your week. Wishing you all a wonderful, colourful and happy Monday.

Thank you for stopping by,
Lowri x 

Happy Paper

Hello!

Paper makes me happy. They say its about simple things and, to me, there's nothing like the simple pleasure of opening up a new notebook (those fresh clean pages!) or getting out a greeting card to jot down a message for someone.

So when I was told about The Happy Paper Club, a new monthly subscription from the lovely folk at The Green Gables, I jumped at the chance.

I talked about The Green Gables in a recent post when I introduced the lovely 'Happy Boy', 'Happy Girl' and Mum-to-Be notes that are now available in my shop. In fact the very ethos of The Green Gables seems to be to spread a bit of happiness, they're motto is 'green gifts and stationery to spread a bit of joy', what's not to love about that!

So, what's the club? Its a monthly subscription service where you get sent a box filled with lovely stationery and papery goodness, the fun bit is that its a surprise so you don't actually know the contents until it pops through the door. When I placed my order for the March box I was so excited and could hardly wait to tear it open when it arrived last weekend.

I loved it so much that I thought I'd share the contents with you here, along with one or two ideas for using some of the items.

It was a test of sheer restraint not to tear this open as soon as I opened it!

A box of treats!

 A beautifully illustrated A5 notebook. Perfect for my garden and allotment plans and ponderings.

An exclusive to the Happy Paper Club. I love these Make Me notes, they're a lovely idea for sharing crafty ideas with friends.

I spy a few (actually six) little postcards that will be heading out with my 'Pay It Forward' parcels.

Introducing delights from another independent business called Clara and Macy. This came with an envelope and would be the perfect treat to pop in the post for a little friend I know.

A little note pad to jot down some Easter ideas.

So there you are, a box full of papery goodness. I know I'll definitely be able to bring smiles to some friends faces when I pass on and post these goodies. I'll definitely be saving a few treats for myself though and am already looking forward to using my new notebook and pad.

If you're interested in trying out a Happy Paper Club box yourself you can find out more from The Green Gables website here. Subscriptions will be available again from the 1st April, I know I'll be heading there as soon as I can when they open!

Before I go, I don't know about you but I've got loads of ideas for Easter crafts at the moment and am planning to try a couple from my list above over the weekend. I thought it'd be fun to show you what we get up to, so check back next week when I'll be sharing some photos and a 'Make Me' card so you can try out the craft too.

If you've got any suggestions on what you'd like us to try, leave a comment below and Wilf and I will happily give them a go!

I hope you have a great weekend and thanks so much for reading today.

Lowri xx

A Birthday for Belle

Morning,

If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen that we celebrated our daughter's first birthday yesterday.

She actually turns one today but we decided to have a party yesterday to tie in with family and to make sure friends could make it. It was also extra special that it fell on Mothers Day so I was able to wish some of my best friends, who inspire and encourage me as a Mum on a daily basis, a happy Mothers Day.

A vintage invitation and enamel bowl filled with treats.

I posted up a couple of touches yesterday but thought I'd share a few more photos here. The decor and theme was Belle and Boo inspired, I just love the beautifully cheerful illustrations and Belle is just how I imagine Anwen to be when she's a bit older.

Our house was BUSY so I didn't take many photos during the party and the birthday girl herself was non stop so she doesn't feature much either! But here's a few snippets from a very happy afternoon, I hope you enjoy them.

Sweet treats

Touches of Belle and Boo and a handmade personalised print to reuse next year.

Little thank you's

Favors for some special Mums

Capturing a year of milestones and moments

Recycled party hats from previous parties

The birthday girl on the go.

Treats for little guests and their Mamas

A blurry photo of a happy moment of which someone was pretty non-plussed.

Have a lovely start to the week. I'm off to celebrate my baby turning one, fight back the niggling tears at how fast a year has flown and enjoy some family time.

Thank you for reading.

Lowri x

Unexpected creations

Last night after putting the kids to bed I headed straight into my work room to crack on with making some bunting for Anwen's first birthday. If you're creative then you'll know what I mean when I say how enjoyable it is to 'go with the creative flow' and make things according to what inspires you at the time.

I have to say though, last night when I was rummaging through my fabric stash I felt thoroughly uninspired by what lay in front of me. Don't get me wrong, I love the fabrics I've collected but at that moment despite the colours, the prints, the patterns, nothing caught my eye and made me want to make with it.

Until I found this.

I bought this fabric last Summer and just love it. I love the playful images and vintage style and it fits in beautifully with the Belle and Boo theme I'm planning for Sunday's tea party.

Feeling tired after a long day I decided I just wanted something that would be quick to make and add a special touch to the celebrations. However I couldn't shake a nagging feeling of wanting to make something that was personal to Anwen and that we could reuse each year. 

The little girl carrying balloons caught my eye, it reminded me of me as a girl and I can just imagine Anwen marching about like that on her birthday in a few years time! So keeping it simple, I cut out the image, printed an 'A' on a balloon and embroidered it to a plain canvas. I keep a stash of white frames so had one to hand to finish it off nicely.

I think I'll put it on the table next to the cake so it can be seen by her party guests, it can then go up in her bedroom as a little momento.

A party isn't complete without bunting in my book though so I cut out some mini flags from the same fabric and added a few extra colours to brighten it up.

Perhaps I'll manage to make some personalised bunting for her next birthday but in the meantime I'm happy with these unexpected creations and am sure they'll be treasured for years to come.

Thanks for reading today. I'll be back next week to share details of some exciting new arrivals coming to the shop!

Before I go, to celebrate Mothers Day this Sunday you can enjoy 20% off everything in the Mama and Baby range from now until Sunday. Just use the code Mama at the checkout.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Lowri x 

Celebrating a Year

Evening friends,

I hope you're having a good start to the week and enjoying the Spring sunshine.

March is a birthday month in this family and next week there's an extra special birthday coming up. My baby girl turns one on Monday (sob!) It sounds so cliched but I really can't believe how quickly the year has gone. In what feels like a flash, my newborn daughter has grown into a cheeky, affectionate little girl who is trying her hardest to walk and talk and copies just about everything her brother does!

For Wilfred's first and second birthdays I decided to make a photo timeline of special moments and milestones taken throughout the year before. With a slight (ahem) fondness for Instagram I had plenty to choose from and they made a lovely display in our sitting room over the weekends that we celebrated. Unbelievably I didn't get a photo of them displayed (shame on me!) but here's the bunting on his first birthday.

I've decided to do the same for Anwen, this time printing them in a larger polaroid style format, using the Polagram app. I was really impressed with the quality and how easy it was to use and its now uploaded on my phone for good (possibly a risky move on my part!)

I'll use mini wooden pegs to hang them to ribbon in chronological order and annotate them with the odd description here and there. I'm also planning to make some personalised birthday bunting which I'll be pulling out every year until I'm told its too embarrassing (although I'm not sure that'll stop me!)

We're having a very small tea party with a Belle and Boo theme and a vintage twist, thanks to some old invitations given to us by my Grandparents - in - law. I was tempted to use them but couldn't face writing on them so may frame them and use them for decoration instead.

Here's my little mood board which is inspiring me this week and reminding me to get organised as the week is flying by too! 

I'd love to know if you have any special ways of marking the passing years on your Children's birthdays.

With love,
Lowri x

Spring at little maldod

Morning!

I hope this finds you all well and enjoying the arrival of Spring.

What an exciting few days its been! I've been looking forward to launching the Spring range at little maldod and am delighted to have finally shared it with you all. A massive thanks for all the lovely comments and positive feedback I've had about it.

Those of you that have followed little maldod's journey since the start, may have noticed that this Spring range features a whole host of other wonderful products which are not made by my own fare hands. Whilst I still fully intend to design and create for the shop (I love it too much to stop!) I realised towards the end of last year that I wanted to expand what was available but was limited in my capacity (there's only so much time these hands have to make things!)

So this morning I thought I'd share a bit more about the lovely businesses I've had the pleasure of working with for this new collection.

Last Summer I started following the joy filled company that is The Green Gables on Instagram. I am a lifelong stationery fan and when I discovered this wonderful, joy spreading and eco conscious business, run by a lovely lady called Gabrielle I was hooked!
Back in October I bought a pack of the Mummy-To-Be notes for a friend's baby shower and they were a huge hit, giving us all a chance to write an encouraging note to our friend.

Mummy-To-Be Notes, £8.50

When I was thinking about products that would work well with little maldod I knew that the Happy Notes that Gabrielle has designed would be perfect. The Happy Boy and Happy Girl notes are just the sweetest and make such a nice gift for a new older sibling.

Happy Girl and Happy Boy Notes, £8.50

I've connected with so many other wonderful independent businesses via Instagram. Another talented lady I've had the pleasure of finding is Sarah at Blossom and Bear.  I love Sarah's mini prints, they look great as an addition to a nursery or can be used to send a little note to brighten someone's day.

Mini Prints, £0.95

I was delighted when Sarah agreed to design a 'thank you' print too which is now available to buy as a pack of 6 notes. I could quite easily stash this lot away and spend my days sending little notes to friends!

Thank you notes, £3.50 for pack of 6

Another business I'm so pleased to have come across is Lula Handmade. This time, it was after a fortuitous little potter around my parents local town of Narbeth in Pembrokeshire. Having spotted some beautiful handmade dolls in a shop there I eventually got in touch with Katie who makes them and jumped for joy, when she agreed to work with me. She even agreed to produce an exclusive range just for little maldod.

Tilly, Ivy and Martha the Lula Dolls, £21.95

I'm not exaggerating when I say I deliberated a LOT before finally deciding on the designs of the dolls now in the shop (known as Ivy, Tilly and Martha) and I'm thrilled they're proving so popular.

I'm continuing to stock the fantastically popular Alphabet Flashcards from Hope and Rainbows and very excited about the arrival of some new bows from Poppifleur in the next few days!

Spring Bows, £4.95

I'm also looking forward to introducing some gorgeous handmade crayons from the Crayon Box, with some great Easter Egg shapes, a creative alternative to chocolate this year.

Finally, I'm very excited about the arrival of some lovely baby friendly necklaces! I bought one of these necklaces from My Mama Rocks and when my daughter loved it so much, it was the seal of approval I needed to bring them to little maldod. They're a lovely, alternative gift for a new Mum.  

So there we have it, a whistle stop tour of the fantastic new products in the shop and the businesses behind them. I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying working with such talented and lovely people and hope you love the new products as much as I do.

Thanks so much for reading and once again a huge thanks for all your support this week.

Have a cracking weekend!

Lowri xx