Mama K's Clay modelling clay

Yesterday I was dressed as Batgirl for Halloween (and no before you ask... I will not post pics of myself on the blog) and I must have hit a wall when flying over West London for Trick or Treat because this morning, I got Mila dressed for school, waited for 30 min for the bus to arrive, then called the lady at bus company who told me that my child was on holidays for another week...which is funny because last week I got SO organized for once with Half-term activities and Halloween that I thought I was becoming a bit like Martha...well not quite!
Anyway, once thing we did with Mila last week was to test Mama K's Clay modelling clay

And all I can say is that it's wonderful!

Mama K's Clay modelling clay is 100% natural using only certified GF flours and organic essential oils so it's very good for all the children in general but great for those who have gluten allergies etc but also and it smells amazing. Each tube comes with 5 scents to stimulate, inspire, refresh and ease anxiety. Personally I really love the Lavender and Geranium scents but they all seem very nice and when you think that regular play doughs you buy in the store are made from petroleum-based ingredients that can be toxic, for me it was a no brainer.

Mila's 5th B'day party....Major success

Last Sunday, we celebrated Mila's 5th Birthday and it was amazing!
As Mila and I share our lives with the kiwi King of BBQ & Sunday roast, we decided to organise Mila's party with a BBQ afterwards with all the parents to give everyone the opportunity to get to know each other.
Total: 14 kids + 25 adults = a very noisy but happy and memorable afternoon!

The invitation....

The blackboard sign...

The party bags.....

The Gingerbread man decoration....

Mila's cup cakes....

The guests....

Best party activity: Decoration of the Gingerbread man...by far
Best party find: Glitter clutch bag at the £1 shop....a real bargain with WOW factor!
Best creative idea: Decorating cupcakes with Mila's face on. I got the idea from Swiss Miss but added little things that Mila says often on the back of the cards like" "I love you to the moon and back and back to the planet...", "For ever and ever....", "Let's have a huggle" (family cuddle), etc...
Best life saver: Chocolate & strawberry cupcakes from Tesco's Finest range (£1.70 for 2)
Best friends: Mandy, Peyman, Mel, Guillaume, Pete, Barbara, Jerome, Liz, Francois, Julie & Eleonore + anyone else who helped us to make this day truly special. Thank you all

Little DIY project...painted bottles Part 2

Do you remember this little DIY project I posted last month...well... I found these gorgeous images by photographer Bonnie Tsang and I thought they were a perfect example of what could be achieved if we were using gold paint for our little project...

See more of Bonnie Tsang work here

My Little Day....

Mila's B'day party is next Sunday and I'm almost sorted but if you haven't had time yet to organise your child's party, My Little Day is fantastic if you're running out of time or ideas. My Little Day is the brainchild of two friends and mummies who got fed up running out of time to organise cool birthday parties for their kids.

I love their concept and I love their super boites (funky boxes with everything you need) especially 'La Boite a Pois' which has plates, cups, balloons, candles. They also have some gorgeous invitations, stamps and masking tapes and a lovely blog here to give you more party ideas

Wedding invitation genius

When Dom Roberts, Director of Mash, an Aussie Design company, was about to get married to Helena, he took a week away from other projects to concentrate on creating a unique and memorable wedding invitation. I'm not sure that's the kind of vision everyone wants to have on their wedding day but I thought it was pure genius and really good fun for like a 40 birthday party....

Pretty, handmade, vintage details.....

I'm posting these beautiful wedding pictures of Bryce and Stephanie by Amy Carroll as a reminder because like Joanna, I love how the bride tucked her veil under her bun...
Then I went to Amy's website and realized that there was more to love and now I am totally in awe with all the gorgeous, vintage and handmade details of this beautiful wedding which would work as well for a great home party or may give you some ideas for a Birthday celebration....these beautiful details certainly fired up my imagination.....

I'm loving this welcoming message on a blackboard charming and oh....I so LOVE the fun image of the now husband and wife (Bryce & Stephanie had their wedding in the town's school...).
Look at all these adorable vintage details.....absolutely beautiful!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend...back to work now!

Inspiring images by Karen Mordechai

My new photography love is Karen Mordechai.
I discovered her beautiful images on Sunday Suppers which is an inspiring class-cooking- dining experience, pairing friends and food where classes held in a waterfront loft in Brooklyn, NY and are taught by Local Chefs (on my growing list of things to do in NYC...well Brooklyn).
Photographer Michael Paul once explained to me that shooting food is not easy. You have to work fast as the heat of the spots can rapidly alter the look and colour of the food so it is best to work with natural light. Easier to say than do, especially if you're shooting during winter time but this did not prevent Karen Mordechai to come up with amazing shots.
Just looking at her amazing photos, I feel like eating and cooking and I think you will agree that her beautiful photography would encourage any 'wont cook/can't cook girl' to spend the day in her kitchen feeling like a Domestic Goddess.
Last year, Karen Mordechai shot a Winter party organised by Hatch Creative Studio, an event company which can throw some of the coolest parties in town and also cater for your wedding. This party was just full of amazing and inspiring little details...very elegant and yet totally whimsical. Hot chocolate shots, sweaters for picture frames and candles, cozy throws and mitten favors, a snowman booth with hats, mustaches and carrots for guests to play around, an eclectic collection of Medicine bottles hanging from birch behind the bar filled with snow from ski mountains around the country...Amazing but just see for yourself.

Cool Kids party

Mila is turning 5 years old next month and if I go by the 'kids party rule' which is to match the number of guests to the age of the B'day girl + 1 (so 6 guests), she is now almost 15 years old and I'm starting to think that I'm going to have stock of G&T to cope with this event....

Anyway, looking for some inspirations, I came across these cool pics on Fine Little Day. Fine Little Day is a lovely blog written by Elisabeth, a Swedish Designer who shares a studio with Studio Violet and Camilla Engman. These are the images of her daughter's twelfth B'day party...the theme was Old Men....I'm loving it