Finding Forest Fairies...

When it gets to this time of year and there's an ounce of sunshine I try to get out there and make the most of it.  What fun we had on our recent walk, there was stick collecting, puddle jumping and perhaps the most surprising... forest fairy finding!

Ok so we've yet to locate an actual fairy but I'm quite adamant they are nocturnal...here's hoping x

Summer loving x

School holidays have really effected my blog post schedule so sorry to those of you have been following my #molmakeuplesson series and have noticed I have been somewhat absent recently...I will return to normal viewing shortly!  In the meantime I thought you might like to see a snapshot of what I got up to in my summer of fun. 

 You might see a few things that will be coming up on the blog soon including how to make a DIY flowercrown (not just for summer my autumnal colour choices make it perfect for my October weddings I am attending this year and a DIY photobooth...such a fun feature to do for a sepcial event, party or wedding as you can see we had great fun doing it!  Hope you've all had a lovely summer..I'm now holding out for the Indian summer to make an appearance!

A little word that means so much...

What words do you think about when you think of a Wedding? Love? Happiness? Marriage? Maybe it's new beginnings and building lives together, starting out and planning your adventures together.  I have the pleasure of being part of weddings who have already started on their journeys and their plans involve more than just husband and wife they maybe already have their homes and have gorgeous little ones to share their wedding day with them so along with 'Happiness', 'Love' and 'Marriage' along comes 'Family' to join the party...

2 years ago we celebrated Kirsty & Nicks wedding day a celebration of their beautiful family.    A day to mark all of the love, history and effort that goes into that small but momentous word....Family. From the matching suits & converse worn by Owen & Evan to Morvens pretty boho floral crown and Joselyn's jewelled dress that twinkled in the lights.  The flowers in tea cups & jars made with love by Kirsty the night before her big day, the meaningful soundtrack to the wedding day chosen by Nick, to the handmade bunting and wedding favour hearts made by her mum and the look of pride on her dads face as he walked her down the aisle.  This was a day full of happiness, love and above all, family.  

Gorgeous families like this don't just happen there's hard work and effort involved, kids to get to school on time and bills to pay and it's sometimes it's easy for us to get caught up in it all.  To me anniversaries aren't about the flowers or chocolates or perfume (although accepted gratefully) but maybe they are about reflection and reminiscing and maybe most importantly there to remind us of who's there at the centre of it all. 

Happy Anniversary to a very beautiful person in my life and her very beautiful family xxx

Natural skincare- Oat Bomb and Oat Milk Toner

My little boy Ollie has eczema it's horrendous for him he's a very itchy boy we are currently on a on a journey to relieve his symptoms in a natural way.  The harsh steroid creams I have been using for the past four years have been shelved and with the help of a herbalist we're now on a natural skincare journey with him.  Thanks to our lovely herbalist Clare at Napiers who introduced me to the power of the humble oat!  I started off just using this on Ollie but I realised how lovely it made my skin feel and now it's a fixture in my own skincare routine.  So much so I've stopped using any other day moisturiser (apart from my eye cream) and I no longer have the flakey skin problem I did have with the transition from winter to spring.

Follow the steps below to create your own natural Oat Bomb and Oat milk toner.

I'm about to go all Blue Peter...

Here's what you need:

1. Oats 
2. A muslin cloth (or you could use a pair of tights)
3. String
4. Something to decant into (for the toner)
5. Coconut oil (optional)

Wrap up a couple of handfuls of oats in a muslin cloth and tie firmly with string.  This is your oat bomb.  Run your bath and allow the water to run through the muslin and oats so the water is turned into a natural oatmilk.  For additional moistursing and lovely scent add a spoonful of coconut oil to your warm bath.  Lie back and wallow in it!  

For the toner: Squeeze some additional water out of the oat bomb into a bowl and later decant into a dropper bottle or recycled pump bottle. Keep this in the fridge and give it a good shake before each use.  You can also use the soaked oat bomb as an exfoliator all over your body in the bath. 

I have been using my decanted oat milk daily.  You can use it as a cleanser itself but most of all I like keeping my container in the fridge and using it as a toner on my skin.  It feels cool and has a slight tightening effect which makes my skin look and feel toned but not in an uncomfortable way.   I still follow my usual evening skincare routine since starting this natural approach I honestly have not used a moisturiser in the mornings and have really noticed a radiance in my skin.  So for as long as it works for me (as I am a believer of changing up your skincare routine) I would highly recommend adding a bag of oats to your shopping list.  For Ollie we are still on his journey some days are better than others but I know oats will always be useful for calming itching & irritated skin the anti-inflammatory, moisturising & cleansing properties of oats have astounded me I would recommend you try for yourself! 
Ax