Magpie Monday and Art (daaaaaaaaahlings!)

It seems I only have time to blog once a week at the moment! How lucky that I should choose a Monday to blog. This weekend there may have been trips to the rather fabulous Worthing Open Houses Art exhibitions (don't panic it's happening again next weekend and I strongly advise you to visit some of the houses if you can) and much admiration for some fantastic art. we especially enjoyed to modern take on art at Gallery26 (who you can also follow on twitter) , some delightful seaside paintings by Brenda Brooks and the amazing sculptures by Alan Tobias-Williams.


But it wasn't all culture, oh no, I did find time to buy a large, yet smart 'mummy bag' at a charity shop for the princely sum of £4.99. Perfect to fit a myriad of mummy goodies in yet still smart enough to use for business. The only downside was DD ensuring I sent at least 4 handbags I already own, to a charity shop in exchange. (I may have a handbag habit, don't judge me)

So here is the beauty

Posted as part of Magpie Monday - Hosted by the super MissieLizzie

Magpie Monday

I hope I’m not going to get into trouble but today’s Magpie Monday is not something I bought but something I desire. Like the magpie I must have been in a former life I am drawn to the shiny, the glinting, the beautiful and like the woman I am in this life, I’m drawn to the frugal, the 2nd hand and the unusual. I adore retro items, beautiful things that conjure memories of past times as well as feeding my love of the fabulous in the ‘now’. And while at the Nineveh House in Arundel at the weekend, all these desires were fulfilled in some jewellery that has to be seen to be fully appreciated. The jewellery of Jenny Shutler at www.numerous-aspects.co.uk/

If I told you that you would wear a fork as a bangle you’d probably think I was crazy, but if it was a gorgeous silver 50s cake fork, beautifully curled into a thing of pure loveliness, or a set of sugar tongs to clasp your wrist in a warm embrace, or even the sharp silver tines of a fork to dangle from you ears and catch the light like mini chandeliers you may change your mind . So today‘s Magpie Monday is a true ‘Magpie Moment’. I am adding these to my own personal wish list and hope to carry one off to my nest very soon….


Posted (with special permission!) as part of Magpie Monday over at missielizzie-meandmyshadow.blogspot.com

The one where Mr Tumble made me laugh til the tears ran down my leg ...

OK so to start I need to make something clear. I love Mr Tumble. I love Justin, and DD also loved watching him with Sarah Jane in the Higgledy House. So I was delighted to see him at Camp Bestival last year (and even....squeee! ... shake his hand!) and hope to see him there again this year, we like to learn makaton and he is very good at entertaining the children.....so now you know my admiration for him i can share my laughter at taking some of the Something Special magazine (the Mr tumble magazine by the BBC) out of context. If it doesn't make you snigger I shall wonder if we should still be friends.

Without further ado i give you................inappropriate Mr tumble picture No1

In case you can't see it - Grandad Tumble (and a work colleague described him as 'more creepy uncle than grandad) has a speech bubble asking you to 'Touch Me!' Nice! well as you know I have touched Mr Tumble so I moved with delight to see what else the lovely Mr tumble was up to.

I'm not sure any explanation is needed for the other pictures. I think they speak for themselves, enjoy.

so there you have it ladies, gentlemen and assorted Mr Tumble lovers!

And to show how much I really love him I bought the magazine and am giving it away to the person that makes me laugh hardest with a comment on this blog.....................go. (open to any country you like, but not posting to the international space station....) This offer now closed. Magazine sent under plain brown packaging to the lucky winner

A smile is an inexpensive way to change your looks.

Bloggers will know that sometimes companies ask you to review things and sometimes you think it is a good idea and review it and sometimes you don't. PR companies and representative (I assume) have various approaches from the 'just ask everyone', to the tailored, 'find someone that sounds from their blog like they are suitable for this product'.

I hope that the reason I was asked to review a revolutionary new toothbrush was because I'm a keen camper, and because I'm known to be trustworthy in my reviews - if I like it I'll say so but I'll be honestly critical if I don't. I am truthful, keen and friendly.........I would hope for world peace in the future, enjoy working with children and animals and will be back later in a swimsuit (dazzling smile).....sorry I was distracted - this isn't Miss World?

Where was I? oh yes the revolutionary new toothbrush.

Well, I was offered the brush to test as I'm a keen camper and the brush is supposed to work without toothpaste or even water! if those items are not to hand (eg festivals, travelling light, trapped at the office, at your lovers house etc etc) personally I find if I remember to bring a toothbrush I tend to remember to bring toothpaste (or my new friend Lush Tooth Tabs) and water (even if bottled) is normally around, however - i thought it sounded fascinating. mainly I thought 'it sounds mad', if I'm honest. I mean *ionic toothbrush* really??

Just Look

"The Ionic toothbrush works on the principle that every element in nature has a positive or negative charge. This is called polarity. When the polarities are opposite, the two elements cling together. That's why dust sticks to your coffee table and why plaque, which has a positive charge (+), clings stubbornly to your negatively charged (-) teeth.

Dyna-Dental's new hyG Ionic Action toothbrush temporarily reverses polarity of the tooth surface from negative (-) to positive (+), drawing plaque towards the negatively charged hyG toothbrush head.

When you brush with a hyG toothbrush, a constant flow of positive ions (+) from the lithium power source temporarily reverses your teeth's polarity. This makes your teeth reject plaque, even in areas that aren't touched by hyG?s bristles."

I mean...really? sounds a bit....well.......

So I received the toothbrush. decisions decisions, should I wait to camp or test now? with or without toothpaste/water? what is a fair test? am i barmy? surely it is just a toothbrush?

 I waited a few days then could wait no longer. For 3 days I didn't use any toothpaste with the HyG Ionic Brush, just water - I followed the instructions and brushed...and 

Well it pains me to say this because I still don't really believe the science but....... my teeth felt excellent! Really shiny and smooth and clean, my mouth felt fresh and clean and no bad breath even with out any added mint!

I've since tried the HyG Ionic Brush with toothpaste and Toothy Tabs and to be really honest, I prefer it alone, it seems to work better. 

Would I have bought it from the product blurb?...no way! It sounds ridiculous. Would I buy one now?....well yes because it really does appear to super clean my teeth! So camping or not, I'd say it's worth a shot if you need a new tooth brush.

A smile is an inexpensive way to change your looks.  ~Charles Gordy

The hyG toothbrush costs £10.25 and is available from John Bell and Croyden, independent health food shops, independent pharmacies and dentists.  It is also available online from www.pharmacy2U.co.uk,  www.freshbreathonline.co.uk  and www.natural-alternative-products.co.uk

• Looks 7/10 
• Value For money 7/10 
• Usability/Usefulness 8/10 
• Fun 6/10

Just a reminder..

That Vosene are still giving away fabulous prizes in their competitions based around the theme of families and this month the prize is........

Your very own chef!!

and still the chance to win a fabulous family holiday - so mosey on over to http://www.vosenefamilies.co.uk/ and see what you need to do....cameras at the ready!!

Good Luck!

Magpie Monday - Mr Tattooed Mummy strikes again

 What a nice chair, how delightful to have it for the new computer chair, fits beautifully into the office/spare room that houses the futon and the computer (and freecycled TV and PS1)

It's slightly smaller than a usual chair so fits just right. And Mr Tattooed Mummy (who found the bargain) also sanded it and distressed it.

What a lovely Magpie find for Magpie Monday. Do go and look at the others....

The Painting of the Tent

After finding advice online I decided to risk painting my tatty, second hand, poly cotton tent. I used fabric paints (Dylon make them and there are other brands) after I painted on the design it was left to dry, and then I ironed each painted section of the tent on the hottest setting the tent would stand to fix the dye. Once dried and ironed I sprayed over each painted area with   Fabsil waterproofer (you can see what looks like a wet patch around the painted areas, it dries clear and invisible) and now all I need to do is test the tent in the rain! 

Wish us luck! The tent will make it's debut at Camp Bestival this year.

Phase 2 of tent painting

thinking i could give tracey emin a run for her money!