Author: barbara

Halloween is fast approaching. For those who are unaware, it happens to be on the 31st October. This year it falls on a Monday, so no doubt there will be some celebrations over the weekend. Halloween is one of those holidays that is just starting to become something in the UK. Sure children use to knock on doors trick or treating, but now there is more decorations and ideas out there on how to celebrate the spooky holiday. With that in mind, I thought I would share with you some fun ideas the whole family can get involved in.

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Organise a party

A great way to celebrate halloween, is to organise a party. It’s one of those things that lots of people will enjoy getting involved in. From deciding what you will wear to how you decorate the party location. Thankfully, there is plenty of inspirational ideas on websites like Pinterest. However, make sure you get those halloween invites out in plenty of time to ensure that you have plenty of guests to celebrate with. It’s a great way for the whole family to be involved and offers a safe environment for young children to celebrate as well.  

Make your halloween costumes instead of buying them

Another family friendly activity you can do together is to create your halloween costumes from scratch. Instead of just buying them from a local store. While store bought costumes are time saving and often great, you might find that your children and even yourselves match in with someone else. So be a little unique. It’s a great way to pass the time together while doing something crafty. There are plenty of tutorials online if you are unsure where to start.

Co-ordinate your halloween costumes

It may seem a little corny, but there is a trend sweeping the nation where families co-ordinate their halloween costumes. I think they look fantastic and it’s a great way to be involved in something together. Whether you decide to create something or just head to a shop and buy some costumes, matching makes you look that little bit different.

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Go trick or treating

It’s possibly the most common and popular way to celebrate halloween but it’s still a firm favourite for all the family. However, it might be worth getting your heads together with others on the street and organising it a little better. A great idea would be to post an envelope through the doors of anyone you may wish to trick or treat that evening. Include in it an item that you could distinguish that they are happy to be disturbed that night. It could be to hang a balloon or display a piece of ribbon. That way you leave the people alone who don’t want to be involved and get some great treats out of it.

Make and bake halloween treats

Finally, it’s not just about the dressing up and sweets, you could also make and bake some halloween inspired treats. From rice krispie pumpkins to ghostly biscuits. There are plenty of ideas you could come up with.

I hope these fun ideas have inspired you to have fun this halloween.

We are all learning how to become more eco-friendly together. From recycling and saving energy to protecting animals and reducing our carbon footprint, never has there been a more prevalent time to start saving our planet. Making more ethical decisions can only help make a positive impact on our planet. We have a personal stake in protecting the rainforests far away. And also conserving the amount of energy and fuel we use and reducing the amount of landfills we load into. There are many ways to go greener in your life, but today we are going to focus on one you may not yet have thought about. And that’s the interior design of your home. Did you know that the flooring you choose could also have an impact on the environment? If you’re thinking of renovating or remodeling a couple of the rooms in your home, then you’ve come to the right place. Today we’re going to take a look at the eco-friendly flooring choices you can make for a more ethical home.

Picture found on Pixaby

Bamboo

Natural bamboo floors that look just like real wood are a chic and popular choice as a material to use for the flooring in your home. It’s easy to maintain, adds a touch of the exotic boutique hotel to your space, and as a bonus, it’s also ecologically friendly. Sustainable bamboo flooring is made from the plant of the same name and is a renewable resource that matures in as little as three years. It’s a great choice instead of solid hardwood flooring, if you want to go green.

Picture found on Eng.wikipedia.org

Cork

If you want a floor that is warm, stylish and pretty unique, then why not opt for cork? Never heard of cork flooring? Well, it’s increasing in popularity due to its environmentally friendly properties and cool look. No trees have to be cut down to harvest cork. Therefore there is minimal impact on the environment. It’s also a great option if any of your family suffers from allergies as it doesn’t absorb dust and is resistant to bacteria.   

Rubber

Think rubber flooring is only consigned to the gym or playground? That’s just not the case anymore. Companies are paying attention to our demands for sustainable products. And rubber flooring is now available in all sorts of industrial style finishes. It can look great in the bathroom and kitchen. Choose recycled rubber is the if you want to go eco-friendly. It is also slip-resistant, durable, water resistant, super easy to clean and looks pretty awesome.

Picture found on Unsplash

Wool Carpet

There’s no denying that carpet feels luxurious underneath our feet and brings a superior cozy touch to our living ad bedroom spaces. But many carpets are also made using compounds that can be toxic to both the environment and our health. However, choose a wool carpet as a more ethical choice. Wool is a natural resource and can be spun into a thread that can then make a beautiful carpet. Not only is wool grown naturally but it is also sustainable and recyclable. This means when your carpet has run its course it can mulch into the soil and used as a natural fertilizer. Therefore extending your ethical practices one step further. And once you’ve got your floors sorted you can work on some great DIY ideas for dressing your home. There are lots over on my blog too!  

I’m sure we all know one of those people, the ones that seem to have everything. They can be tricky to buy for, when something like their birthday or Christmas comes around. So it is handy if there is a go-to guide for those people. I have saved you the trouble and put a list together. Hopefully they will make a unique and different gift, from the standard ones that you could give. Making them perfect to get for that person that has everything!

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Personalised Items

If a gift is personalised, then it makes it completely unique for that person. I think one of the best things about personalised items is that it means you have taken more time and effort to think of them. You will need to plan ahead for this kind of thing, as personalised items can take a little longer to get. You could get or make them a personalised photo frame. It could be filled with photos of the two of you or of major events in their life. You could also get something else made for them. It could be a personalised life planner or stationery. Something else for the home might be a good idea too. How about a personalised retro record to add to their collection? Somewhere like Nationwide Disc would be the place to look for that. When you know something is one of a kind, you know they won’t already have anything like it.

Hamper

It is easy to order in a hamper from a department store. It will come filled with food and wine, most likely. But it is a little generic and boring. What you could do, is put together your own hamper for the recipient. A basket or box is quite cheap to buy. Then you can just fill it with lots of their favourite things. It could be a book or magazine that they love, their favourite chocolates and bubble bath. Just think of them and what they would like. Then you can make it really personal for them.

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Experiences

If they have lots of things, then the chances are they might not need any more. So to get them something really worthwhile, getting them an experience is the way to go. A voucher for something on their bucket list is a great idea. If you don’t know what that is, you could always ask them. It might be skydiving, a hot air balloon ride or even a bungee jump. They might prefer something less adrenaline fueled and prefer a lesson or course. A cooking class or a wine tasting event might be more to their liking. Otherwise something like concert or theatre tickets are always a good idea.

A Membership

Similar to the experiences, you could get them a membership or subscription to somewhere. You could pay for their membership to something like the National Trust. You could cover their membership for a gym for a set period of time or get them a magazine subscription. Choose something that they don’t already have but that you know they will love.

Duchess Kate of Cambridge, together with her family are on an 8-day tour of Canada right now.  I am having a great time looking at what the fashionable Duchess is wearing.

I love this autumn green dress from Dolce Gabbana.

A pretty red and white McQueen frock.

source : USA Today