Who has been voted the Ultimate Beauty Icon of all time?

New research by Amway has revealed that Hollywood's Golden Age is still considered to be the era that has produced the most beautiful women, whose looks we all aspire to emulate.  Beyonce may be the most Googled female of 2014, but when it comes to beauty icons, she was rated #5 behind the glamour of Sophia Loren, Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn, who claimed the number one spot.  It seems that when it comes to beauty icons, we still favour the old school, sultry sirens and the effortlessly elegant and stylish women from the silver screen to today's pop stars and actresses.  Even Scarlett Johansson, who has been crowned 'Sexiest Woman Alive' couldn't compete with the big beauty hitters of the golden age, placing at number 10, behind Brigitte Bardot and Ava Gardner.  Kate Moss polled just 2% of the vote.

The survey of over 2000 women also revealed views about what they felt defined beauty and about their own personal beauty regimes.

68% of women said that confidence is the holy grail when it comes to beauty whilst 57% claimed being in love made women feel more attractive.  38% of women claimed that having a full face of make-up made them feel better about themselves.

Age doesn't necessarily have an adverse effect on a woman's view of her own beauty.  Woman over 55 were more content with their looks with 26% having a positive view of their beauty compared with just 22% of women aged 18 - 24.  The younger women also feel the need to wear make-up to make themselves feel beautiful (19.8%) whereas the older women are less inclined to rely on cosmetics to feel good (3.74%) recognising the benefits of lifestyle, diet and exercise.

The majority of British women are still quite thrifty when it comes to spending money on beauty products with almost half shelling out less than £10 a month, although a minority admit to spending in excess of £50!

Amway's ARTISTRY skincare and make-up collection has been making women feel beautiful for many years, with its ethos of creating the very best formulations to make women look and feel their best whatever their age or lifestyle.

I was sent some of their new ARTISTRY INTENSIVE SKINCARE Advanced Skin Refinisher which offers skin smoothing benefits, that they claim to be comparable to professional fractional laser treatment.  With age, the skin's texture becomes duller and rougher and pores become more visible. So I was very willing to test out it out, especially given that my aging skin needs a little help in these departments!

I am not usually one to rave over beauty products but this skin refinisher is pretty amazing.  In just one application of the cream, my skin looked more refined, smoother and softer with less visible pores. It felt velvety to touch and some of my fine wrinkles seemed less prominent.  The minimisation of the pores on my cheeks was really pleasing to see and I couldn't stop stroking my face!

The results are thanks to a blend of active ingredients.  Optical diffusers mattify the skin for a soft-focus effect. Lentil Seed Extract is an antioxidant that minimizes the appearance of enlarged pores. Java Tea Extract suppresses sebum production and Star Fruit  Leaf Extract tightens the pore's structure to prevent slackening over time. Oat Extract and NMF Sugars exfoliate and smooth away roughness.

During clinical trials 98% of users felt their skin was softer and smoother and in 4 weeks the appearance of pores was reduced by 62%.

The ARTISTRY products don't come cheap with the Skin Refinisher selling at £53.35, however this is much cheaper than professional treatment and can be used in the comfort of your own home.  It can be used with other products in the ARTISTRY INTENSIVE SKINCARE Collection for an efficacious skincare regime.

One thing's for sure, having my skin look and feel better definitely made me feel more confident and, as confidence is the holy grail of beauty, I felt good about myself - even make-up free!

www.amway.co.uk

Win 4 x Day Passes to Legoland Discovery Centre

We recently spent a fabulous day out at the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Manchester, as guests of Merlin Annual Pass.

Merlin Annual Pass holders get 12 months unlimited access to LEGOLAND Discovery Centre - just one of the 31 magical attractions around the UK that pass holders can visit. There is a January Sale taking place right now where you can buy a Merlin Annual Pass for as little as £99!  Find out more here.

To celebrate the Merlin Annual Pass January Sale, I have 4 x day passes to Legoland Discovery Centre to give away.

For your chance to win, simply find my competition Tweet on Twitter.  (Link here.)  Follow me @wendymcd83 and @MerlinapUK and Retweet.  Winner will be picked at random on 16/1/2015.  Good luck!

5 Ways to Create Extra Space in Your Home

With the start of a brand new year, I am turning my mind to home improvements. After the hustle and bustle of the festive period, January is the perfect time to reflect on things you can do to get your home looking its best and making sure it meets your needs.

Having a big family, space is often an issue, especially when all five children are home at the same time.  I love having an open door policy, where family and friends are always welcome to join us, but sometimes I wish I had the room to accommodate everyone a bit more comfortably.  This year I am focusing on ways to improve our living space and make the most of the room we have.

Here are five top tips for creating extra space in our homes.

1: Homes are generally far more cluttered these days as our demand for material things outweighs our available space. Decluttering is the simplest way to reclaim the extra space in your home, and if you donate the unwanted items to charity, you will be helping out others in the process. This is a win-win situation!  Get a little ruthless and get rid of anything that you don't use or don't need that is taking up valuable room. You can take photos of anything that has any sentimental value if you find it hard to part with something.  Adopt a one in one out policy, so whenever you buy something new, you throw an older thing away so you can keep on top of your possessions.  If you find parting with possessions difficult, box them up and put them away in the loft.  If after a year you haven't missed them, then it is time to get rid of them without any regrets.

2: Make the best use of the space you have got by investing in good storage solutions.  Underbed storage, built in cupboards and an outdoor storage unit can help free up room space and help keep your house tidy. Utilising the space under the stairs or making box seats in bay windows or shelving in alcoves can really help to keep you organised and in control.  Sliding doors are a great space saving idea as they do not encroach into the room.  Encourage children to tidy away their toys in a toy box.  It is amazing how much space the youngest members of the family take up with all of their possessions, especially in the post-Christmas period with all their new presents, so getting them into the habit of tidying up after themselves will reclaim back some valuable space.

3: Invest in a sofa bed - for occasional guests it makes sense to have somewhere where they can sleep in comfort, transforming any room into a multi-functional living space.  During the day it provides extra seating too. Futons are a great idea for smaller spaces.

4: You can carry out some home improvements and add an extra room to your home by having a conservatory built to utilise your outdoor space.  It's a big investment but will add value to your home as well as space.

Choosing a reputable company, such as Reddish Joinery, a family business established in 1967, you can ensure that the job will be done to a high quality specification, with skilled workmanship and great personal service.  A conservatory can be made to measure to your exact requirements to create a bright and comfortable additional space. It can be used as a dining room, lounge or a multi-purpose room/spare bedroom.

A conservatory is top on my list of improvements that I would love to make to my house.  A whole extra room would be wonderful for family get togethers and would add so much extra functional space to my home.

5: If you can't free up extra space, then fake it! Use good lighting to create an illusion of spaciousness. Use strategic lighting to stretch out the corners of the room.  Mirrors are great at reflecting natural light and give the illusion of extra space.  Use light colours on the walls and pick furniture that is also lightly coloured. This will give any room an airier ambiance and make it feel much bigger than it really is.


I have been compensated for writing this post but retain all editorial control.

Visiting Legoland Discovery Centre with a Merlin Annual Pass

We are big fans of the Merlin Annual Pass, which lets you get into thirty one fantastic UK attractions for 12 whole months. It's brilliant when you have a family that enjoys days out and exciting adventures together, allowing you to visit places such as Thorpe Park, Alton Towers, Chessington, Dungeons, Legoland, Madame Tussauds, Blackpool Tower and SeaLife Centres all for one price.   If you order a Merlin Annual Pass in their January Sale, prices start at just £99 per person (for a standard pass for a family of 3, 4 or 5). It's the cheapest price they will be all year, making it a great time to buy.

We were invited to review one of the Merlin attractions that you can visit using a Merlin Annual Pass and we chose to go to Legoland Discovery Centre in Manchester.

Legoland Discovery Centre is a great indoor attraction located in Barton Square at the intu Trafford Centre, right next to the SeaLife Centre (another great Merlin attraction).  Its location makes it the perfect place for MAP holders to pop in for a quick play when out shopping in Manchester.

We arrived just after the centre opened and were greeted at the door and shown through to the desk. You can buy fabulous activity packs filled with puzzles and LEGO facts that can be worn around the neck using a lanyard for just £3, so we treated Freddy to one.  You can collect stamps throughout the attraction, which is something Freddy enjoyed doing and ensures you get to see everything.  Going early meant we didn't have to do much queuing or waiting for rides or shows, so it was a really good time for a visit.

Before entering the main part of the LDC, you go through the fun factory tour guided by Professor Brick who gets the kids involved with working the machines to produce their very own souvenir LEGO bricks that they get to keep.  Freddy loves audience participation and is always first up to join in, so he was very happy to help Professor Brick make the pretend machines work by turning, jumping and shouting at the equipment!

There are three rides at the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre. Kingdom Quest Laser Ride lets you climb aboard a chariot in order to save the princess by shooting the trolls and skeletons with laser guns.  There is also the Forest Pursuit ride where kids can become rookie cops and chase the bad guys around a LEGO City landscape.  Merlin's Apprentice is a pedal operated flying ride which takes riders into the air helping Merlin to conjure his magic.  Freddy went on all three of the rides and loved them all.  They are aimed at younger children, but grown-ups get to enjoy the fun on the Kingdom Quest and on Merlin's Apprentice!

Miniland brings to life the sights of Manchester and surrounding areas such as the Lake District, Birmingham, Blackpool and Alton Towers, in miniature built using LEGO bricks.  With the models going through a cycle of time, you can see Miniland by night and day.  When everything is all lit up it looks really effective.  The detail of the models is wonderful and there are so many things to spot. We loved the model of Alton Towers with the fully working Oblivion ride.  It made us look forward to visiting Alton Towers again when it reopens in March (using our Merlin Annual Passes!)

Miniature versions of the Man Utd and Man City stadiums and Aintree Race Course let little hands get interactive with the models as they try to score a winning goal or come first in a horse race.

There is a 100 seat LEGO Studio 4D cinema at LDC showing The Legends of Chima.  The fabulous 3D film and special effects, such as wind and bubbles, made a really entertaining show featuring the animals of Chima as they embarked on an exciting adventure.  Freddy was chuckling throughout, especially when the skunk let off his stinky smell, emitting a green cloud of gas!

Throughout the day, there are workshops for budding model builders to try their hand at making a model, assisted by a member of staff.  Each child is given a bag of bits and given step by step guidance to create a model.

Freddy made a really cute gingerbread house, complete with a candy cane and a marshmallow tree. He was very proud of himself and really enjoyed the workshop. He got lots of types about LEGO construction and I was really impressed with how well he followed the instructions to create his lovely little model.

Freddy and Ian both really loved the LEGO Racers where you can build a vehicle and test drive it on the various tracks.  They raced against other kids' and timed their cars as they whizzed down the slopes.

Other attractions include the huge, multi-levelled soft play area, LEGO Construction.  It gives parents a chance to sit down on the sofas and relax with a cup of coffee from the cafe whilst the kids let off some steam.  Big boxes of LEGO allow children to immerse themselves in bricks and get creative building anything they want to.  We all enjoyed making our own creations from the multi-coloured bricks.

The LEGO Friends area lets kids enter Olivia's House where everything is pink and somewhat girlie. With flower shaped tables where you can play with pastel coloured bricks, a full size LEGO kitchen and a pretty funky karaoke machine to sing favourite songs, it's a cool place to hang out.  Perfect for children who like things a little more feminine. Freddy was happy to get up on stage to sing a rendition on Incy Wincy Spider, even though he wasn't that keen on the pinkness of the area! However, I think it is good to appeal to all tastes and think that the LEGO Friends range offers something a bit different to children who prefer flowers and butterflies to racing cars and construction.

The DUPLO area is perfect for toddlers and includes a set of giant bricks for them to build with.  All ages are catered for so well and anyone who is a fan of LEGO will have a great time!

There is also a Star Wars Miniland Model Display featuring scenes from Episode III Attack of the Clones, with some interactive bits with buttons to press and some spectacular creations to view.  A NinjaGo Laser Training Camp lets kids practice their Ninja skills by making their way through a series of laser beams, trying to not set off the alarm.  Crawling, jumping and stepping over the red beams of light proved a lot of fun for my little Ninja!

There are lots of full size models around the centre including a cool F1 racing car, Harry Potter and Buzz Lightyear.  It is amazing what can be built out of LEGO!!

The LEGO shop is a fabulous store filled with all things LEGO, from clothing to accessories to full building sets.  The children each made their own LEGO mini figure using the mix and match body parts and accessories, which they really enjoyed doing.  At 2 for £4 it's not too expensive either. Merlin Annual Pass holders get 20% off purchases, making it another great reason to have one!

We had a really lovely time at the Legoland Discovery Centre.  We spent approximately two and a half hours there and did everything we wanted to.  The centre has good facilities including a family restroom, baby changing, pushchair park and cafe, plus there is a lift between floors.  It is open from 10am - 7pm daily and prices start from just £9.95 (for online booking) with under 2's free.  Merlin Annual Pass holders can enjoy unlimited access all year round!

Find out more by visiting the website:  Legoland Discovery Centre Manchester 

You can find out more about a Merlin Annual Pass, which gives you access to a year of family fun and awesome days out by visiting:   www.merlinannualpass.co.uk. I love the freedom it gives us a family to enjoy unlimited days out without worrying about the cost.

The MERLIN ANNUAL PASS January SALE is now on, so be sure to grab a Merlin Annual Pass at the YEAR’S LOWEST PRICES – from just £99*.

To buy your Merlin Annual Pass click here.

*The Merlin Annual Pass is just £99 per person when you buy a family set of four passes.

That was Christmas...Hello 2015!

After an absolutely wonderful Christmas surrounded by the people I love most in this world, I am now ready to face 2015 with positivity and determination.  I made a conscious decision to keep the laptop packed away over the holidays and concentrate on nothing more than having fun, making memories and enjoying the time spent with my family.

I was so happy to have all three of my grown-up children home over the holidays. Having all five of my children together is definitely one of my greatest pleasures.  It makes me feel complete. I love the dynamic of the relationships, the laughter and the love.

Adding my gorgeously cute little grandson Ted to the mix adds to the fun.  I was overjoyed this Christmas, to feel that little Ted had really bonded with his McDonald family. He was so happy and comfortable in our house, giving us hugs, saying our names and playing with us. He reminded me so much of Joe when he was a toddler, especially when he decimated the chocolate Santa tree decorations, searching for them among the baubles and proudly declaring that he had 'chocwot' every time he found one!  Ted also bonded beautifully with his Great Grandad.  Watching them having fun together was so heartwarming.  The oldest and the youngest member of the family united through the power of play!

We continued with  lots of festive family traditions this year.  From doing lots of arts and crafts activities in the run up to Christmas to baking lots of festive treats including our gingerbread house.

Choosing the tree that would be brought into our home for Christmas is a serious business and this year we found the perfect tree in our local garden centre and enjoyed a warming hot chocolate in the cafe afterwards.  We decorated it together using the baubles I have collected over the years, each one holding memories of Christmases past.  The children also get to choose a new bauble each year.  This year, Disney princesses and felt covered deer were added to the eclectic collection.

The gifts were spread out this year with a present each on Winter Solstice that paid homage to Ian's Scottish ancestry.  We bought McDonald tartan inspired presents for everyone, which included a shirt, a scarf, pyjama bottoms and a nightshirt.

As usual all the Christmas dinner prep was carried out on Christmas Eve whilst the South Park Christmas CD was played!  I also made a hearty, wholesome vegetable soup for our lunch.  Something healthy before the onslaught of Christmas Day excess.

Christmas Eve gifts included matching onesies for the girls and Minion pj's for Freddy along with a new mug for hot chocolate, slippers, Christmas pants and socks along with a new teddy to hug, all wrapped in a festively decorated box.

The kids designed a plate to leave Santa's snacks on and Freddy sprinkled reindeer dust in the garden.

Christmas stockings were left on the children's door handles ready to be discovered and brought into our king size bed in the morning to be opened.  The door to the living room was covered in wrapping paper for Freddy to burst through to discover all the goodies that Santa had delivered.

But before the unwrapping commenced we sat down to a breakfast of freshly backed croissants and Buck's Fizz to set us up for the day ahead.

My mum and dad joined us on Christmas day which was a real honour and made the day so special. They loved their presents and I managed to make my wonderful dad shed a tear or two of emotion when he opened a framed family photo montage that I made for them. I love doing nice things for my parents and sharing Christmas Day with them is right up there in those things I enjoy.

Dinner this year was a vegan feast including a homemade nut roast.  I looked at so many recipes but couldn't find any that really ticked all the boxes. So I made up my own recipe incorporating all the elements I liked, tweaking it to suit our needs.  So the Lentil, Cashew Nut and Chestnut Roast was born (recipe to follow soon.)  It was a huge hit, especially with my dad who ate tonnes of the stuff!  I served it with a vegan 'sausage' and chestnut stuffing, which was like a main course in its own right, and all the usual Christmas dinner trimmings (including vegan pigs in blankets).

This year we had a Big Christmas Challenge after dinner, which I had spent weeks working on.  It included questions on 2014, news, films, music, Christmas traditions, carols, anagrams, picture quizzes etc plus each family member wrote 5 questions based on their own 2014 experiences to test everyone on.  It was a lot of fun and kept us all busy in the post dinner lull!

We got to do Christmas all over again two days later when Joe, Jade and Ted visited for the weekend. My parents came back again too to see them all bringing four generations together under one roof. Ella's boyfriend Frank also came to stay and we enjoyed another roast dinner and even more presents.  We discovered that Frank is one of the most thoughtful gift givers ever and that he makes my daughter so happy...definitely a keeper!

Thankfully, the illness that has plagued me for the past 8 weeks did not spoil my Christmas in any way.  I battled through and refused to let it get  the better of me.  I'm still not 100% better yet, but feel revitalised and ready to take on 2015!

Christmas was definitely pretty chaotic and hectic this year, but it was tonnes of fun and filled with hundreds of happy moments that we will remember for years to come.  Family means everything to me and spending the festive season with my loved ones was a simply perfect end to the year.

A marriage carved in stone - Happy 59th anniversary Mum and Dad

My dad was the handsome Coldstream Guard who swept my beautiful mum off her feet when they met on a night out in Windsor.  Love blossomed  and 59 years ago on Christmas Eve 1955, they got married.

My parents have shared fifty nine years together as man and wife.  As with all marriages, there have been some bad times as well as some devastating experiences to contend with, but any heartache endured has only served to make them stronger as a couple.

Now, in their eighties, my parents are a shining example of the sanctity of marriage.  Their love for each other is just so obvious as they openly show their affection for each other. My dad said he would marry my mum again tomorrow and he genuinely means it.  They are the sweetest, most wonderful people and I am so proud to call them my parents.

The longevity of their marriage is the benchmark towards which I compare my own marriage, and I hope that in the future Ian and I still love each other as much my parents do.  They make me believe that relationships can and do work and that they are worth investing in.  Their example has made me see that love is the most wonderful and selfless gift that we can give to one another.  If everyone was as happy together as my mum and dad are, the world would be a much happier place!

Happy 59th Anniversary to my wonderful parents.  I love you so very much.

A Festive Gingerbread House for Christmas

Aldi sells enough gingerbread houses to measure the height of 20 London Shards!

Aldi’s bestselling gingerbread house has seen impressive sales since it launched in store for the festive season.  The 14cm tall house comes ready built and comes with a large tube of royal icing and all the sweets and candies needed to transform it into a beautiful, festive centrepiece!

Aldi has sold enough gingerbread houses to measure 6,370 metres, which is the equivalent of 20 London Shard’s – the tallest building in the UK – or  425 double-decker buses, 66 Big Ben’s, 40 Blackpool Tower’s or 1,158 Giraffes!

That is a lot of gingerbread houses!

We were sent one and were really impressed with it.  Freddy and Ella had some festive fun together decorating it. Having it ready constructed made it such an easy project and the end result was very good.  At just £4.89 it is a great buy, taking all the hard work out of making a gingerbread house for Christmas.

To celebrate their festive food sales, Aldi erected a giant replica of the Aldi gingerbread house in Manchester’s city centre, standing over 9 ft. tall, 10 ft. wide and 16 ft. deep.  A ‘Mrs Claus’ and jolly team of Aldi elves were on hand to welcome Christmas shoppers with a taster of some seasonal Aldi Christmas treats too – including gingerbread men.

Joint Managing Director for Corporate Buying at Aldi, Tony Baines, said: 

“We hope our giant replica of the gingerbread house kit brought some festive fun in the midst of one of the busiest shopping days in the lead up to Christmas and that our Aldi elves inspired shoppers to discover and enjoy all that Aldi has to offer.”

For more information about Aldi’s Christmas range, please visit www.aldi.co.uk.