Presents Hidden in Plain Sight

One of the difficulties of this time of year, especially when you have a big family, is what on earth do you do with the presents you have bought in the run up to Christmas day?  Not many of us have the luxury of a spacious, otherwise unused, lockable, secret hiding place for safely storing the things we buy.  And stashing everything away individually in a multitude of hidey holes often results in things getting misplaced and not unearthed again until the big spring clean of March the following year.  And unfortunately there is not much call for a novelty Santa hat three months after the event!

I've always found that my attempts to hide anything seasonal come unstuck.  Every year when we have our big Easter Egg Treasure Hunt the kids take one look at the elaborate trail of clues that I have spent all night devising and casually say, "The eggs are in the boot of dad's car again aren't they Mum!" before they have even read the very first cryptic question.  And I have to admit that yes they are!  Yet again I have chosen the only hiding place big enough and clean enough. I am too predictable and the kids know me too well.  Plus the boot has its limitations as a safe spot for presents, given that Ian commutes  60 miles to Birmingham every day.  I cringe at the prospect of a fragile gift hurtling up and down the M6 in the back of Ian's car (or is crawling down the M6 possibly more apt?)  Either way, it's not the best long term solution to the issue of present hiding!

When they know there is something hidden away, kids take on the characteristics of a Bloodhound. The children will sniff out anything deemed contraband if I try to hide it away.  I hide food that I buy to avoid temptation and premature consumption! My secret stash of chocolates is always uncovered in the run up to Christmas.  Only yesterday Freddy thought he'd hit the jackpot when he found my secret selection box pile in the garage.  The Buy One Get Two Free offer in my local supermarket has resulted in quite a few chocolatey purchases, but at this rate they will have all been consumed by my eagle eyed present hunters with their sixth sense for confectionery locating, long before I get to wrap them up and put them in their stockings.

Hiding presents, also makes them so very tantalising.  The very fact that something is hidden makes you want to hunt it down.  It's a challenge!  But once found, the thing you were secretly trying to locate loses its magic and becomes nothing but a disappointment as you attempt to feign surprise when it is given to you on Christmas Day.  It really does ruin the gifting element of Christmas, thinking that your well thought out present idea does not get the excited, surprised and delighted response you were hoping for.

So what is the solution?  Well, for me I now hide their presents in plain sight.  It's simple.  I put the carrier bags of purchases on the floor in my bedroom and they sit there by my bed until I get round to wrapping them.  Because they aren't hidden away, they aren't interesting at all.  They are just  a  heap of Primark, Body Shop, Tesco, Boots and Smiths bags, and a pile of plain brown Amazon, Ratuken's Play or Zavvi boxes.  The blatant positioning and disregard for secrecy renders my present pile disinteresting and not worth looking at.  Honestly it's genius!  The moment I try to disguise it or cover up the pile, it suddenly becomes a thing of intrigue filled with surprises and mysteries.  But when simply left unattended on the floor it becomes totally invisible to the curious eyes of a child.  Not one bag has been rummaged through to date!

When it comes to the issue of Santa, my children know that he is a busy man.  He needs the help of mums and dads across the world to buy and wrap their children's presents.  On Christmas Eve the gifts are magically whisked away to the North Pole where Santa adds a hefty dose of Christmas Magic to each and every parcel, before delivering them back to our homes by means of reindeer and sleigh.  So the fact that there is obvious evidence of Christmas shopping does not detract from the essence of Santa being the deliverer of the pile of presents under the tree, whilst  full 'picking out and purchasing' credit falls firmly into the lap of husband and I!

So, I think I've got it all sorted this year.  As long as the kids don't suddenly become interested in my dull, old, messy pile of boring-ness, I can rest assured that they will be in for some lovely surprises on Christmas Day!

This post is an entry into the Hudl Christmas cheer competition.

International Friendship Day

July 30th is International Friendship Day, a day to celebrate friendships and remember all those people in your life that make everyday so much happier.  You can say thank you to your friends today or indeed any other day of the year by giving a card or present.

Hallmark have a host of great range of Friendship gifts available online including personalised sweet jars, mugs, chocolate bars and cards.  So why not treat your best friend with a thoughtful pressie to remind them how much you appreciate them.

As a Hallmark Mummy Blogger panelist, I was sent some cards to send to my best friends to celebrate International Friendship Day.  The quality is great and there is a design that will please everyone.  Whether you like flowers, teddies or something more contemporary or humorous, Hallmark's got it covered! Take a look online for gift ideas for all occasions.

hallmark.co.uk

What Do You Give A Celebrity Who's Got Everything?

'Celebrity Gifts - A Timeline' is an infographic from Find Me A Gift

Experience More with Wish.co.uk

What do you buy for the person who has everything?  This has been an age old problem for present buyers...but never fear, Wish.co.uk is here to help!

Wish.co.uk aims to make anyone's wishes come true by offering a wide range of gifts and experience ideas that are sure to thrill and delight any recipient, whatever the occasion.

Wish deals in fun, adding humour, charm and personality to the gift giving experience.  They aim to give you the best experience as painlessly as possible, so you'll keep coming back for more.  They are a small company with a big heart taking on the big boys to provide the best service they can.

So what is so special about Wish?

Wish guarantees the best price guaranteed or double the difference back! 

They also offer:

• No Fuss Exchanges and Guarantees.
• Free Fast Delivery.
• VIP Support.
• Gift Box as Standard.

The experiences on offer include exciting driving experiences, luxurious pamper days, indulgent cream teas, adrenaline inducing activities and relaxing hotel breaks. Truly something for everyone!  You can tailor the perfect gift by knowing what hobbies someone enjoys.  There is  a whole section dedicated to the joys of golf, comedy, singing, animals, gardening, dancing, cooking or eating.  You can find the ideal experience for your music mad daughter to your steam train enthusiast grandad! 

In order for me to review and experience the site, I have been gifted the fabulous Three Month Curry Recipe Kit Subscription.  For just £20 the subscription gives you all the spices and the recipes you need to create an Indian meal for four every month.  A gift box is sent to the recipient containing the Experience Voucher and details of the recommended experience and how to book it.  

It was very simple for me to activate my voucher online and I'm now awaiting my first Curry Kit.  You can be sure that I'll review it and so you can see how I get on.  I'm ensured that even a culinary dunce like me will be able to cook up an Indian storm in the kitchen!  I had a choice of vegetarian recipes which was a really thoughtful element to this experience from wish.co.uk.

I think the Curry Subscription would make a wonderful gift...giving three months of cooking and eating enjoyment!

So if you're stuck for the perfect gift look no further than wish.co.uk.  Even if you use another experience site, check out Wish...remember that best price guarantee!!  Prices for experiences start at under a tenner so whoever you need to buy for, there really are options for everyone.

With Christmas coming, Wish can help you deliver presents that will really thrill your loved ones (they will definitely beat getting yet another Christmas sweater!!)  So pop over to wish.co.uk and take a look at hundreds of experiences they have on offer  Whether you want to feed a lion or bungee jump or take a trip on the Orient Express they can make your wishes come true!

Tatty Teddy from Me to You

Tatty Teddy’s Chocolate Treat for Mothers Day

Are you looking for a special little gift for your mum on Mothers Day?  Then look no further - Me to You has brought out an exclusive selection of luxury chocolates featuring the adorable bear, Tatty Teddy.

Tatty Teddy’s box design features the cute grey bear with his signature blue nose peeking through a bouquet of pretty pink roses.  How could anyone resist!

The selection includes milk, dark and white luxury chocolates with a choice of luscious fillings.  For the sake of this review we simply had  to taste them, so with the help of my own lovely mum and the tiny testers we tucked into golden caramel, strawberry parfait and other yummy filled choccies. My mum didn't mind about having an early Mother's Day present and she thoroughly enjoyed them, going as far as to say that it was the best coffee cream she'd ever tasted!  They were lovely, nicely crafted with a good quality chocolate.  


Here's a few photos of the all important taste testing!

Available at just £4.99 from selected Tesco stores, show your mum you care with Tatty Teddy's Me to You Luxury Chocolates.

Blue Friesian Glossy Magazine Cover Review Part 2

I recently reviewed Blue Friesian's Personalised Glossy Magazine Covers and my experience with creating my own unique artwork.  You can read all about it here!

I was very impressed with the website, its ease of use and the scope for personalising text and photos to make completely individual gifts, perfect for any occasion.

I opted to have my finished pieces printed by Blue Friesian and delivered to my door.  The turnaround was very quick and well within the time specified.  My covers arrived safely and securely in a plastic wrapping with cardboard inserts.  How many times have you received products in the post in flimsy envelopes that lead to possible water damage and general wear and tear with bashed corners and creases!  It drives me mad!  So I was extremely impressed by Blue Friesian's attention to their packaging.

The finished covers themselves are printed on good quality card.  The colours are bright and vibrant resulting in an impressive A4 sized picture.  I framed them to create beautiful bespoke artwork for my daughters' bedrooms.

This is what my 8 year old daughter thinks of her Girl Alert Magazine Cover.  Just imagine how thrilled your loved ones would be with their own personalised cover, page , 8 or 12 paged magazine.  They really do make wonderfully thoughtful gifts with prices starting at just £10 for a single printed cover (discounts on multiple purchases!)

Blue Friesian Personalised Glossy Magazine Cover Review

Blue Friesian is a new company that specialises in producing personalised 8 or 12 page glossy magazines and glossy magazine front covers for any occasion.  The website offers a host of themes from celebrity gossip magazines to sporting magazines...you name it they have it! You can personalise the templates with your own photographs and text to produce a unique, individual piece of artwork.  Perfect as a thoughtful gift for a loved one, they would also be excellent for weddings, family parties, birthdays, new babies or christenings. They are a beautiful keepsake that would certainly bring a smile to the recipient's face!  Sports teams or corporate events could benefit from having their own bespoke glossy mag.  A wonderfully original and unique idea with the potential to impress and entertain.

Today I was thrilled to learn that I had won a prize from Blue Friesian's Facebook Page.  They are running a fabulous prize draw everyday until Valentine's Day to win a personalised glossy magazine cover. So pop across, check out their competition tab and see if you can get lucky too!

I approached Blue Friesian to ask if they would like me to write a review of my prize and was very happy to be offered an upgrade so I could create two different magazine covers for the purpose of my review.  Without hesitation, I headed to the website. I am a bit geeky.  I love using the computer to produce photo gifts so I was quite excited to check out the Blue Friesian site and have a 'play'!

The site is really user friendly and appealing.  The covers and magazines are displayed so you can see exactly what you can create with a just little time and effort.  The designs are stylish and authentic looking and there is a theme to suit anyone young or old.  Pet lovers, parents, sportsmen, boys, girls, music fans or newly weds can find something to suit them.  You can make your friends, family or loved ones the stars of the show and create your story instantly.

The software allows you to overwrite text and upload photographs into the templates. The number of images and amount of text you can add varies, but the scope to personalise is very generous. You can see exactly how your changes look as you go along by updating your creation, so you can rework the cover or magazine to get it just right.  You have to make sure your photos fit into the spaces as there is no cropping or resizing option on the templates themselves, but this didn't pose any problems.  You can crop your pictures and save them onto your PC before starting the project.  There is flexibility in choices of colour on some of the covers so you can create the perfect piece to suit your needs.

There is helpful advice and prompts at every stage of the process.  I really enjoyed making my covers, it was a fun process that I found quite straightforward.

The first cover I made was a music magazine 'EMN'.  It was a simple template using one large photograph and overlaid text. It was very simple to create. The second cover was 'Girl Alert' which was slightly more complicated as it had four smaller photographs each with captions, on top of the main picture.  This took a little longer as I had to try a few pictures to find which ones fitted best.  I was delighted with both finished results.

You can opt for a digital version of your artwork to print yourself at home, or you can order a high quality printed version from Blue Friesian using their state-of-the-art digital printing presses.  If you want multiple copies, there are great value reductions to be had.  Turnover is between 5 and 7 days.

As part of the package, you are sent an email with an image of your finished magazine cover artwork or a link to a digital version of your magazine.  You can share these on Facebook or email them to your friends so they can share your creation.  I think this is a very thoughtful extra.  I'm looking forward to receiving my covers which I intend to frame and put into my daughters' bedrooms.  They are going to love them.  When they arrive I'll let you know what I think of the finished product.  I'm sure they are going to be wonderful...I can't wait to find out!