Bows to bring joy

We have been busy hand crafting huge bows in the studio to be launched on October 8th. Each is carefully handmade from either Liberty fabric or linen and lined with soft cotton wadding to provide some structure. We have added a ribbon for hanging and also provided a little square tag if you would prefer to pin or nail your bow to any surface.

For me ‘the bow’ is a symbol of joy. From the sickly cellophane bows around bouquets to wedding cars, gifts and lavish 80’s bridesmaid dresses. Put a bow on anything and it makes it feel special. When I was about 9 years old I was obsessed with making Fergie bows, the larger and more gaudy all the better ! A little cottage in a village we used to drive through, was seasonally dressed in a huge pink ribbon with a large bow. The treat of seeing this gift of a house was source of fun and anticipation for my family.

Perhaps you will keep your bow wrapped up with your Christmas decorations and treasures to bring out ceremoniously every year. I am sort of girl who never keeps anything for best and would probably hang a bow over the downstairs loo or on the end of the bed. A little reminder that life is a gift, even though it doesn’t always feel like one.

Sophie x

Beep Beep ! Here come the bows…

Winter Love Bomb

At this time of year my children become increasingly anxious that they are on the naughty list and are rather obsessed with their obscenely extravagant Christmas lists. Apparently this year FC has a budget of about 1,000 pounds per child (Wow! who knew he was so eligible?) Anyway, at this point, I start to self implode and mumble about the poor starving children which has absolutely no impact on their moral compasses whatsoever.

This year I am determined to install some kind of Christmas spirit into the entitled little rat bags  without bursting their whole sparkly Christmas bubble and spending the day ranting into my mulled wine.  Getting the children to give is quite a challenge. To be honest their contribution to the Shoe Box Appeal (choosing a toothbrush) and The Food Bank (carrying the cereal) is rather minimal. So brace yourself lucky friends and relatives, this year, the kids are making stuff for you.

We're big bath-fans in our house. It's not really about getting clean (thats just a bonus) but more about having some lovely floaty time-out. So we're making lots of fabulous multi-coloured sparkly love (bath) bombs for everyone. Embellish as you wish, rose petals, glitter, degradable confetti; all provide lots of decadent fun amidst the fizzle. Making stuff for people at Christmas is hardly original but like many parents, I become so consumed getting the festive haul together, I forget to schedule 'making time'. It's a great opportunity for kids to properly give and maybe even start to understand what Christmas all about, a giant winter love bomb (with lots of presents and some good old festive fighting). 

Sophie xxxxx (see Winter Love Bomb recipe below)

Recipe for Winter Love Bombs.

INGREDIENTS.

300g Bicarbonate of Soda,

100g Citric Acid

10ml Fragrance or Essential Oil of your choice (for sensitive babes use half)

Colour - most food colours are fine. 

Razzamatazz- glitter, rose petals, confetti, go wild.

METHOD...

1. Brush a little olive/almond oil inside your mould (silicone ice cube trays or cup cake moulds work a treat)

2. Combine the bicarb, citric acid with food colouring and mix together with your hands.

3. Add your essential oils and mix to combine.

4. Spray a little water into the mixture, just enough so that it holds together when you squish it in the palm of your hand.

5. Add your razzamatazz (glitter, rose petals etc).

6. Push into your moulds and leave to dry out for 2-3 days.