My Sunday Photo 30/11/14

On Friday Billie Faiers launched her 'The Signature Collection' pram range with My Babiie and I was invited along to interview her. You can read it here if you fancy it.



The Signature Range - Interview With Billie Faiers

When an email landed in my inbox asking if I'd like to interview Billie Faiers at the launch of her Signature Range with My Babiie, I of course said yes. What mum doesn't like to scope out the latest set of wheels for tots?!

Billie teamed up with My Babiie to produce a range that reflected her personality and her 'passion for cutting edge design'. As a new mum herself Bille strove for high quality products, as parents we all want the best for our children but they also needed to look stylish, which I certainly think they do!

I was most surprised by the prices of the range, I expected the starting price to be over £100 but prices start at £59.99 which I think is excellent value, especially as the pushchairs have features you would pay extra for with other brands.

 

What Billie said about her range in the press release...

"Designing my own range and working with the team at My Babiie to create ‘The Signature Range’ has been a dream come true. I've had so much input and created products that I'm really proud of and products that I wanted to use – I love them!

“Before Nelly arrived I wanted to make sure she had the best of everything as all new mums do and I soon realised that it doesn't always have to come with a high price point. I've created a range that people can use again and again - I'm keeping hold of all my items as I would love more children and I will be able to use it again soon as it would be great to give Nelly a little brother or sister – I really want to have another soon so the children are close in age."





 I was a bit nervous about interviewing Billie especially when I realised it was not behind the scenes as I thought but on the shop floor. It was fine though, Billie was lovely, very friendly and came across exactly how she does on TV. Below are the questions I asked about her range.

 

What gave you inspiration for your designs?

Billie said that she worked closely with the team at My Babiie to incorporate the things she loved. As a fan of Chanel she pointed out the quilted design on her cream pushchair. She wanted them to look great and not be gender specific.

 

If you had to pick one, what would your favourite design be?

This was an easy answer for Billie, pointing to the cream stroller again she exclaimed that was her favourite. I told her I loved the look of it too but it wouldn't be practical for Mr E as he is a messy little chap.

 

Are there any plans to create more baby products?

Billie said there were definitely plans in the pipeline for more baby products and that they were looking to expand the range at My Babiie.

 

And last but not least...

What one tip would you give mum's to be?

Billie thought long and hard about the answer to this one and exclaimed it was hard as there are soooo many things she could say. But her tip would be definitely buy a cot mobile, she said her daughter Nelly absolutely loved the fisher price one they had. Billie exclaimed Nelly would stare at it for ages and it would comfort her.

 

So there we have it, I probably could of squeezed in a couple of more questions but I could hear Eliot having a meltdown somewhere in the background and at the moment they are pretty bad so I wrapped up with a photo.

You can watch my vlog here http://youtu.be/-POJ2fARQDA

Looking very un-glam next to Billie

 What do you think of The Signature Range?

Polagram Personalised Calendar Review & Giveaway CLOSED

 A few  weeks ago I was contacted by Polagram and asked if I'd like to review one of their products. If you haven't heard of Polagram they are a company that print photos directly from your smartphone, it really is as simple as that! I'm always taking photos on my iphone whether it's to the camera roll or to upload to Instagram or other social media sites, so this sounded like the perfect option for printing those photos easily.

Once you've downloaded the app you can choose what product/s you'd like to order. You can choose from a selection different sized prints, including polaroid style prints, the polaroid prints are also available in a giftbox of 36 prints. A poster is another option which displays 35 images, along with iphone cases and a photobook. Seeing as it's coming up to the end of the year I decided to select their personalised calendar to review.

Once I'd selected the calendar option I needed to choose 12 photos to upload. I gave permission for Polagram to access my Instagram and Facebook account, this enabled me to have a larger range of photos to choose from.

I chose a photo from that month the year before (if that makes sense), they are mainly of Eliot! I found the easiest way to select the photo for the month I wanted was to choose the pictures in order. So the first picture I selected would be January and so on. It does also give you an option to organise you photos once you have selected your images.

Once I'd done this I chose four photos from my selection that I wanted on the front cover. Polagram gives the opportunity to 'shuffle' these until you're happy with the four photos. Once you're satisfied with your calendar layout you can add more products or go through to the checkout.

When the calendar arrived I couldn't wait to see it! Unfortunately there was an issue as there had been a problem with the printer so another one was sent out.

When I received the amended calendar I was really impressed with the finished product, the quality of the calendar is great and I love all the photos I chose!

December is a few days away which means Christmas is almost upon us! If you're still thinking about a gift for someone the personalised calendar would make a perfect pressie. It can be personalised and tailored to an individual/couple/family in a few simple steps. You can purchase for £16.90 and other currencies are available to pay in.

I do have one personalised calendar to giveaway to one lucky reader! You will need a smartphone to be able to download the app. Just enter the rafflecopter for your chance of winning!

If you can't wait though here's a code for £2 towards Polagram products PG5EL1FO

*Disclaimer I was sent a personalised calendar in exchange for my honest opinion



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Parragon Book Buddy Review Peek-A-Book & Count To 10 With A Mouse

Back in June at Britmums Live I signed up to become a Parragon Book Buddy. The two books I'm writing about are the September and October books for babies/toddlers. I have been so swamped with work, moving stress and general day to day stuff  I've been delayed at getting this post up!

The September book, 'Peek-A-Book' by Malachy Doyle was out of Stock when it was due to be sent, so it was sent along with the October book. After reading it myself I could see why had been out of stock. The teacher in me immediately saw the opportunities for discussion on each page, it is a book that will appeal to all fairy tale fans. It is a story I imagine reading to a whole class and the children being excited by it, especially when recognising some familiar characters.
The two main characters in the story are a cat and a dog. The dog chases the cat on to different pages, each page has a part cut out or is shaped differently. As the cat jumps on to a new page, she also jumps into a different fairy tale. The illustrations are bright and colourful which are very inviting for children. As a story it's obviously too old for Eliot to enjoy at the moment but he has loved flicking through the pages and looking at the pictures. I envisage it as a book we will enjoy together for years to come and eventually Eliot being able to read the story to me!
I highly recommend this book for older tots and children in key stage one, it would make a great stocking filler and you can buy it here.

Enjoying Peek-A-Book before bed!

The second book we received was 'Count To Ten With Mouse' by Margaret Wise Brown which came in a gorgeous gift set complete with cuddly mouse! Although I must admit I can't look at the book in the same way after my own encounter with a real mouse at the weekend but I won't get into that!

This again is a book Eliot has picked up and happily flicked through, with a bit more ease as it's smaller and the cover is hard back.
A key element of the book is that it features a mouse size hole on each page, the idea being the mouse hs crawled through which I think is cute.
The book has rhythm and rhyme which will draw in children to listen to the story along with the repeated pattern of the book.
I think it's a lovely book that has a bit more to it than most number books for tots, which often just feature the numbers. It has a story to it too which adds depth to it.
As it comes in a lovely gift set this is a fab Christmas present, children can never have too many books! To order click here.

*Disclaimer we were sent the books in exchange for a review as part of the Parragon Book Buddy Programme.

Trotters Milo Body Review

 I was contacted by Trotters Childrenswear and asked if we'd like to review the Milo Body, an item Prince George has recently been seen wearing. If it's good enough for royalty I was definitely more than happy for my own little prince to try it out!

The Milo Body is made in the EU from beautifully soft jersey. With its traditional piped Peter Pan collar, this body is bound to become a wardrobe staple for your little ones. Team this basic body with stylish dungarees, or with trousers to complete the look. The fastening with poppers down the back and along the leg seams ensures that dressing will be easy.

When I unwrapped the Milo body the first thing I noticed was how soft and cosy it felt. Made from 96% cotton and 4% elastane, the quality is excellent and the stretch means it could give your little one that bit of extra wear out of it. I ordered size 18-24 months as Eliot is 18 months on Boxing Day and most of the clothes he wears now are in 18-24 months. I think the next size up would have been a better fit for Eliot as there would be more room for him to grow into it. 18-24 months fits him but I'm not sure how long it will last. Eliot is big for his age though and looks about 2 already!

I LOVE that the Milo Body has poppers at the back! I don't know about you but I often find it tricky getting clothes over Eliot's head, so this feature is a big plus point to avoid mini tantrums when dressing your tot.

If I'm honest I thought the Peter Pan collar might look a bit 'girly' but I was wrong and I really like the look. It adds that 'something' to a simple, yet staple item in your little ones wardrobe.

I think the Milo Body looks great teamed with dungarees, the collar detail stands out in a subtle way (if that makes sense!) to give the outfit a different look from the usual round neck collar. With it's long sleeves (also available in short sleeves) it's ideal for layering up in the colder weather. I think it would look fab under a wolley jumper with the Peter Pan collar visible over the top, as below.

With Navy Trim Collar

 

I definitely recommend the Milo Body if your looking to add to your tots staple collection!

Have you bought any items from Trotters?

 

*I was sent the Milo Body in exchange for an honest review