Xen-Tan Moroccan Tan

Happy Thursday and Happy Halloween!! Hope you all have some spooky fun planned!

Any signs of any summer tan i had have well and truly left the building! So whilst the pale zombie look will be very apt for today i am not one of those girls who can pull off pale and interesting. I'm more pale and frightening! So theres only one thing for it the fake tan is back out of the cupboard.

When i went to Belfast a few weeks ago i stupidly took some of my He-Shi fake tan in my hand luggage and forgot about the liquid limit so got it confiscated! Along with showel gel, deodorant toothpaste etc etc. Doh!!

So after i finished the tiny bit i had left at home i thought i would give another brand a try! I have been fake tanning since i was probably around 15/16 Rimmel Sun Shimmer being my tan of choice and it always makes me smile a little when i see it on the shelves of Boots still.

Ive tried soooo many fake tans but my faves have always been He-Shi and Piz Buin foams. But i thought i would try out Xen-Tan having seen nothing but rave reviews.

I opted for the Moroccan Oil tan as it boast a super dark tan with a silky moisturised feel. Well i have to say it certainly lived up to the hype! Its by far the best tan i have ever used in terms of the colour and how long it lasts! 

Theres not a hint of any orangeness (i know thats not a real word but i like it so its staying) its the most natural looking tan i have ever used.

Saying that though, this is after a shower! When you put it on its dark and i mean DARK! But this washes off and your left with a natural looking tan afterwards. 

If your thinking of trying this tan i would 100% get a mit to protect your hands and also make sure you wear dark clothing as it does get everywhere till you shower it off!

The results last for a week which is fab if your short on time! Its deffo my no.1 tan now i think its super-de-douper! I ordered mine from Amazon (shock) for £17.00. With only having to apply once a week it will last quite a while.

Let me know how you get on if you try it!

Christmas Wish List

Good Morning Magic peeps.  

Today i thought i'd make a little start on my Christmas Wish List! 

Now this isn't my full list and by the time Christmas comes i'm sure lots of things will be off and lots of new things i see on!! But as of Wednesday 30th October this is what i'm asking Santa for.

I love Boux Avenue! I only recently found a shop and i bought the bestest dressing gown ever! 

So these PJ's £30 (and they are on buy one get one free hope the candy stripe ones come as my free ones haha) and these slippers £14 are my must have new christmas pj's.

www.bouxavenue.com

Still my all time favourite foundation! I absolutely love this! Makes my skin feel amazing! 

£31 www.houseoffraser.co.uk

I also need a running jacket and a new outfit and i really like the look of these from H and M 

both £34.99 www.hm.com

I do love a book and this one looks fab! Tamara Mellon was the co-founder of Jimmy Choo and this looks like a fab read! 

www.amazon.co.uk

£13.20

This dress looks fabulous! with tights without tights with boots with heels etc! 

£69.99 www.zara.com

I love a personalised calender! I make 4 different ones for grandparents/godparents etc and i would really like one for me this year! 

www.funkypigeon.com £9.99

I do love a notebook and this one i saw in Urban Outfitters! 

£26 www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk

Now we have a puppy (more about him on Sunday!) i feel like i need a new pair of wellies!

I'm so undecided on which colour though! I do love these Mint ones £69 but i also love the Red and the pink glitter kids ones £38 

www.hunter-boot.com

Louboutins - my favourite shoe! 

I really wanted a pair of these last year but they sold out quick so i'm hoping i'm in luck this year! 

Pigalle Patent £395 christianlouboutin.com 

And i've decided this is my pick of the parkas i think haha! Well this one if i get red or green wellies and the Green Parka if i get Pink wellies haha! 

£205 www.asos.com

All material things aside because realistically there is nothing i really need - i thought i'd put my 3 Genie wishes in here too! (these can't include cures for illnesses or world peace etc just selfish wishes because obv the first two would come top two!)

So if a magical genie gave me 3 wishes i would wish for

1. I wish for my children to always feel happy and loved

2. I wish for Nick and I to be in love and together forever and ever 

3. For my family and friends to live long healthy lives

What would your 3 wishes be? 

Paper Heart Garland

Happy Tuesday!

And most importantly i wish my mummy a very very happy 70th birthday! She is my hero x

So Its half term!!! Hooray!!! If you are anything like me you are nearly finished your main Christmas shopping but still need those personal touches!

Whilst reading a Christmas magazine i came across these DIY Garlands!

This is so effective and so easy for our little people to make too!

Prepare:
1. Cut out 8 strips of card, each the length of the paper and 3.5cm wide.

Create:
2. Fold each strip so that the short edges are together, and crease the lower edge.  If using patterned card ensure its print faces out.
3. For each strip, curve the short edges inwards and match up to one another, then use a stapler (or glue dot) to fasten about 0.5cm in from the edge. Repeat to form 8 hearts.
4. Take 2 hearts and line up their folded bottoms.  Staple about 4.5cm up from the creased edges.  Repeat this to connect all the shapes in a line, then join the outer 2 in the same manner to produce a circle of hearts.

Finish
5. Cut 2 lengths of ribbon and staple an end of each to the curve of a heart, on two neighbouring ones.  Tie the free ends of ribbon into a bow, then hang to display.

I think i will sit with Honey, Nick and Rocco and each write a wish and put in our kitchen as a decoration! These also make nice grandparents gifts from the children.

I also love this type of Garland too

I love this garland for a little girl's bedroom or even like a ribbon when wrapping presents! 

Operation Christmas Child

Monday again! Why do the weekends go way to fast? Hope you all had a lovely one and are ready for another week.

Yesterday whilst at church there was mention of 'Operation Christmas Child' during the service.

Operation Christmas Child is the worlds largest children's Christmas project run by the charity Samaritan's Purse. They have been sending gift filled shoeboxes around the world since 1990 to over 100 million underprivileged children.

This is a lovely way to help children who are less fortunate at christmas time and a nice activity to involve your own children in too.

To get involved you will need an empty medium sized shoe box and wrap your box in some festive paper.

You should decide if you are sending your box to a boy or a girl and print off, complete and attach to your box one of these labels from the Operation Christmas Child website here

You will then need to fill your shoe box with new gifts such as:

A cuddly toy

A toothbrush, toothpaste, bar of wrapped soap & flannel

Notepad, drawing paper, picture and comic books

Pencils, pens and pencil sharpener

A set of crayons or felt pens

A hat, cap, gloves or scarf

A small ball or tennis ball

A puzzle (small Jigsaw)

For boys: a toy car, truck, passenger plane or similar and football cards

For girls: small jewellery set, doll or skipping rope or hair accessories

A greetings card and or a photo of yourself

Wrapped sweets (sell by date must be at least March of the following year)

There items that you cannot send such as:

Chocolate or other edible item e.g crisps, biscuits, tinned food etc. (due to Customs in receiving countries)

War related items, e.g Toy guns, play soldiers or knives

Clothing (other than listed above)

Glass containers, mirrors or fragile items

Liquids of any type, e.g. Blow bubbles, shower gel, shampoos, toiletry sets

Marbles or sharp objects

Anything of a political, racial or religious nature

Medicines

Books with many words

Handmade or knitted stuffed toys

Once you have wrapped and filled your box you should secure the box with an elastic band and you will also need to add a £3.00 donation to help cover the costs of sending your box. You can also pay this online and print off a barcode which will enable you to track your box and see where it ends up!

Then you will need to take it to your nearest drop off point, which can be found via the Operation Christmas Child website http://www.operationchristmaschild.org.uk along with all the information you need!

You can drop them off between 1st and 18th November so you have a couple weeks to complete them!  

We can't wait to fill our boxes with lovely gifts! 

Have a fabulous Monday!

Birchbox - October 2013

Hey there hi there ho there! Its Sunday whoop! We are off to church then shopping and family time! I love Sundays they are the best because all my family is together for the whole day!

Anyways moving on to todays post - The Birchbox!

Birchbox is a monthly subscription beauty box. So its the same principle and price as Glossybox where you get to try different beauty samples but just a different company. After not feeling to enthusiastic with Glossybox recently I decided to give it a try and cancelled my glossybox subscription. My first box arrived this week and i love it!

I love the packaging design the brown kraft paper coloured box is really nice and a nice size too. Its a little smaller than the Glossybox and theres a cute little bag everything comes in which will come in handy.

In this months Birchbox i got the following:

DR BRANDT® MICRODERMABRASION SKIN EXFOLIANT 

EGYPTIAN MAGIC ALL PURPOSE SKIN CREAM

KMS CALIFORNIA CURL UP WAVE FOAM

DR. LIPP ORIGINAL NIPPLE BALM FOR LIPS

THE CHIA CO. CHIA SHOTS 

LAURA MERCIER FOUNDATION PRIMER – RADIANCE

THEBALM® COSMETICS STAINIAC IN BEAUTY QUEEN

Theres nothing here i am disappointed with! It all looks fab and i can't wait to try everything. I can't believe how much there is too in comparison to Glossybox. I'm not sure if this is because its my first box I'm sure ill find that out next month.

So far so good, loving everything about Birchbox!

Happy Sunday have a lovely day

Gluten and Diary Free Saturday

Happy Saturday! 

Its a huge day in the Tsamplakos house - we are already on the road on a treasure hunt! For a magical treasure filled present! 

Rocco has recently been diagnosed as having a gluten and dairy intolerance!! 

Hes been gluten and dairy free for over a week now and to be fair its actually been quite easy! We are so lucky to have so many gluten and dairy free choices in our supermarkets!

However some of the biscuits are just gross! yuk! So i'm going to start trying to make my own and see if they taste any better! 

There are so many websites out there! Also look back at our Carrot Cake recipe which is gluten free and could be diary free if you substitute.

I am all for an easy treat to go in Rocco's lunch box and i also love Tiffin!!!! yummmm

So here goes - my first adaptation of a Gluten Free and Dairy Free Tiffin

You will need a 7 or 8 inch square baking tin. Make sure the tin is greased with dairy free butter and put some greaseproof paper on the base to make it easier.

The following quantities can be upped or downed to suit - they don't need to be accurate! This is why its such a good recipe to make with young children! If you don't have any intolerances you can off just remove the words dairy and gluten free and taadaa its a lovely tiffin recipe! 

125g dairy free soya butter

250g gluten free digestive biscuits
4 tbsp golden syrup
3 tbsp high quality cocoa powder
75g raisins
250g dairy free plain/dark chocolate

1. Pour the golden syrup into a bowl with the dairy free butter and melt in a microwave on high heat for about 1½ minutes (you can also do this on the hob in a pan).
2. While the dairy free butter and syrup are melting, put the gluten free biscuits in a plastic bag, seal it and bash them up. You don’t want them to crumble to a powder. The chunky bits are the best bits in the tiffin.
3. Add the cocoa, the raisins and then the gluten free biscuit to the melted dairy free butter and golden syrup. Pour the mix into the tin and spread it evenly, flattening it down as you go.
4. Melt the dairy free chocolate in the microwave for 2-3 minutes (it will depend on the power of your microwave) – or melt it in a bowl sitting on a saucepan of barely simmering water. Spread the melted dairy free chocolate evenly over the biscuit base and then simply put the dish in the fridge.
5. The cake will be set and ready to eat within one hour (and gone within two!)

If you have any Gluten dairy free recipes to share as i'm such a newbie at this please please please email me at alittlemummymagic@gmail.com

I will be tweeting/instagramming our treasure chest surprise later today! Eeeeeekkkkkkkkkkk

Hope you all have fab weekends xxx

Its getting parky and i need a parka!

I would really like a Parka for this winter! I think i may be putting on on my Christmas Wish List! 

The real decision begins when i have to choose which one i want to pick!!! 

Massimo Dutti £195

Asos Alpha-Industries £220

Asos Alpha-Industries £205

Ted Baker £229

Barbour £199

I think i know which one i like most but its a hard decision! Parka's are such good coats - and to be fair they are good for autumn, winter and spring (and some summer days).  Some can be worn really smart like the Massimo Dutti one and Ted Baker and the others are for those everyday jeans, trainers, perfect days! 

If you need a jacket/ coat this winter a Parka is so universal! 

Hip Hip Hooray its Friday!!! 

Happiest of Weekends to you all 

Statement furniture piece!

I do love an Ikea shop - as in a full wander around browsing and thinking how i can change my kitchen, lounge, lighting etc! It always seems affordable and cool all in one!

So when i saw this amazing piece i instantly knew i need it in my home!

How cool is this!!!!

Its like a dream come true for me! I have so many bits i like to display but literally nowhere "safe" enough from the children's reach!

I truly feel like this cabinet could go in any room in my whole house!!!

In Honey's room with her first ballet shoes, Christening gifts, first photo etc all those keepsakes that get hidden away!

In my lounge with our framed wedding photos, my heirloom family china, our engagement Swarovski champagne flutes, our Tiffany crystal bowls (all those things i hide from the children)


In my kitchen with glasses, cook books, my mums special tea cups and saucers, my nan's tea set which takes pride of place above the aga but i'm terrified of it falling!

In my bedroom with my wedding tiara, photos, jewellery box, things my mum has passed down to me.

I just love the idea of everything being displayed in such a lovely unique way!

So the bad news is when i looked at the price i was a bit shocked! I mean i'm sure its the most expensive thing in Ikea at £395! i know its expensive!!! But to justify i think its a piece that would last a lifetime and somewhere when i'm old and still brunette (hair dye) that i will still treasure all my favourite things in!

www.ikea.com you can see it here on the Ikea website!

If any of you have seen anything similar for maybe half the price please please please let me know!!!

Tomorrows Friday!!!

Gifts in a Jar

Hey Hey! Its Wish for Wednesday again and today we are bringing you gifts in a jar!

Cute little DIY gifts you can make that don't cost the earth but will still impress with the effort you have made!

Here are some of our fave gift in a jar ideas!

Christmas Cookies, a fab little present and activity in one! Fun for kids and would make nice teacher gifts for the end of term too! You could put any sort of recipe ingredients in a jar (as long as it fits) Hot chocolate ingredients would be nice too! Tutorial here

If measuring out a recipe is too much effort you could bake some cookies or cheat and buy some and pop them in a jar! Everything looks cuter in a jar! Recipe here

I love this Spa in a jar! I'd love this as a gift to myself, what woman doesnt love a little pamper session? This would be a fab little gift for female relative's, or even your other half if you have beauty loving hubbys like me and Jade haha! Tutorial here

How fab is this! A wedding day emergency kit! Filled with everything you need to avoid a crisis! A perfect thoughtful gift! Tutorial here

These are brilliant! Homemade candles in a jar. How expensive are candles? Here is a fab tutorial on how to do them yourself, i'm deffo going to try and make some of these!

Last up is a sewing kit. Everyone needs a sewing kit in their life! This would make a nice little present for someone who is leaving home for the first time! Tutorial here

You can pick up Kilner jars in lots of places but i have bought mine in the past from Amazon.

Let us know if you decide to make any of our suggestions or if you have any cool suggestions of your own!

Have a lovely Wednesday

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Mini Me - Mango

Your opinions on this post might be a bit like marmite - you will either love it or you will hate it!

I have to say i love it!!

You may or may not know about Mango's new clothing line for children? It launched in the summer this year and i really love it!

This Autumn they have created looks for mummy's and daughters to match! I know some people will find that totally cringeworthy but i think the looks are really cool!!

I really love them and i think you only have a small window in life for this to be cute so you may as well take it whilst you can!

You can find all these looks at mango.com and the girls clothes start at age 3 to age 12! They also do cools boys stuff to in the same age range!

Have a fab tuesday everyone

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