Children's Bedroom Ideas

My friend has recently become a grandma again and is looking to decorate her spare bedroom. As her daughter-in-law is looking to go back to work she will be looking after her new baby grandson on occasion and also her granddaughter who is two. She has therefore asked me to help her plan her new nursery and look for some cute furnishings. Here are some design ideas for a baby and toddler bedroom.
Unisex Bear Themed Bedroom

Buddy Bear Rug - Next
Buddy Bear Curtains with Bear Motif - Next
Bailey Sleigh Cot Bed - Room To Grow

This super cute bear themed bedroom is decorated with a gorgeous soft 'Buddy Bear' rug and neutral bear themed curtains in beige, both from Next. A design suitable for both girls and boys.

The 'Bailey Sleigh' cot bed by specialist children's furniture retailer Room To Grow has a classic stylish design that can grow with the child. It easily converts from a cot to a toddler bed to a day bed. What an excellent idea! With three base heights, this cot bed is super value for money and includes a teething rail too. It also look supremely well made. A great addition to any nursery.

Girls Butterfly Bedroom

Butterfly Duvet Cover - Ollie and Leila
Girls Butterfly Rug - Next
White Personalised Bed - Oillie and Leila

For real girlie girls this pink butterfly duvet cover from Ollie and Leila is super sweet and made of soft 200 thread count cotton that won't irritate a little ones skin. A pretty design that any little girl would love.

To match the butterfly theme, this rug from Next is that perfect pink accessory. 

The beautiful 'Leila' heart petal bed from Ollie and Leila can be personalised with your child's name at the base and has a heart motif. What little girl wouldn't love to have their name on their own bed? What is extra special about this bed is that it is made in the UK too, and with a 5 year guarantee and choice of colours too, you really can't go wrong.




Boys Space Bedroom

Kids Space Mission Toy Box - Dunlem 
Space Duvet Set - Debenhams
Thuka Trendy 4 Cabin Bed - Room To Grow

To fit with a space theme, the kids 'Space Mission' toy box from Dunlem is great for storing all toys and clutter away. Made from solid lacquered wood, it is a fun accessory to any bedroom.

The space duvet set from Debenhams has a reversible print and is a super choice for all the budding astronauts in the world.

This 'Thuka Trendy 4' cabin bed from Room To Grow is made from solid European pine whilst the optional play tent is brilliant for making dens. Another add on is the tower which is perfect for imagining adventures in space. Available in a range of colours from white and natural to blue and purple - I think you will agree that this bed is very versatile. 

Tell me, what do you think of the items I have chosen? 

* A PR collaboration, all words and opinions are my own

Top 10 Things To Do In Nashville

Next year I have a special wedding anniversary so we are planning a trip to the 'Deep South' of America. Whilst we are there we will be touring New Orleans, Memphis and Nashville. 

I have been researching what to do and what to see when we are there. If you are planning a trip to Nashville, affectionately known as 'Music City', here are some ideas on what to fill your days with while there…



Copyright f11photo Shutterstock.com

1. Tour the Grand Ole Opry

By far the most iconic structure throughout the state, a trip to Nashville would simply not be complete without a visit to the Grand Ole Opry, where live shows are broadcast on radio every week. Take a tour and get a behind-the-scenes look at what makes this place so special and who has been lucky enough to perform there - everyone from Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers to Garth Brookes and Taylor Swift.

2. Explore the Belle Meade Plantation

Known as the “Queen of the Tennessee Plantations” and constructed back in 1853, an exploration of Belle Meade will allow you to take a journey back in time with guides dressed up in periodic costumes and pillars are spotted with bullet holes from the Civil War.

3. Discover the Johnny Cash Museum

Gaze at the world’s largest collection of Johnny Cash artefacts and memorabilia which include handwritten notes, letters and films showcasing his life’s successes.

4. Wander Through Cheekwood Botanical Gardens

For nature lovers, this is a must; where you can wander about the many greenhouses, a sculpture trail and a chromatic flower display throughout 55 acres of land.

5. Catch a Show at the Ryman Auditorium

With recent guests like Eric Church, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Don Henley seeing a show at the Ryman Auditorium is an incredible experience. If you can’t make a show, opt in for taking a day tour!

6. Marvel at the Parthenon



Copyright f11photo  Shutterstock.com

A full-scale replica of the one found in Athens, Greece, the Parthenon is a great place to visit, take pictures at and marvel at its pure size and beauty. 


7. Browse Through the Country Music Hall of Fame

For both music and history lovers, this is an ideal way to spend some of your valuable time in Nashville. Hundreds of plaques dedicated to country music’s best artists along with several artefacts, it is a must.

8. Take In A Ghost Tour

If you are looking for something different, try a Nashville ghost tour. Learn about the hidden history of Music City, and you never know you may get a scare or two!

9. Tour Music Row

Visit RCA Studio B, where Elvis recorded over 200 songs and get a better understanding and feel where the heartbeat of Music City is found.

10. Hit the Honky Tonk Highway

A place where legends such as Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson began their careers, grab some drinks and listen to live music from artists trying to make their way to the top. For a small, intimate venue, a 20-minute taxi ride away is the Bluebird Cafe as featured on the TV Series Nashville. Book in advance to hear aspiring singer/songwriters - you never know you could find the next big music star.

Digital Marketing Tips For Bloggers

People blog for many reasons. Some blog to help and inform others, others for catharsis. Some blog because they love to write, and others to review products. Once a blog is established with a readership many bloggers look to monetise their blog. This is when S.E.O. and digital marketing becomes important. 



Copyright: Creativa Images Shutterstock


What is S.E.O.?

S.E.O. or Search Engine Optimisation is the practise of actively trying to improve your search engine ranking.

Why Is It Important?

It is important as all the major search engines such as Google and Yahoo use a ranking procedure to place websites in order. Those at the top of the rankings gain more exposure. If you think about it, most people don't scroll past the first couple of pages of a search engine.

There are many factors that can improve your search engine rankings and a blog or small business can get many benefits from doing their S.E.O. and digital marketing themselves.


Some Simple Tips

Domain

Call your blog something relevant and easy to remember. Will the blog address be relevant to you in ten years' time? Short and easy to spell blog addresses are preferable.


If you are a blogger it is especially important to own your own domain. Owning your own domain reinforces and promotes your brand. Having your own domain allows you to have your own domain authority. Domain authority or D.A. is a metric used to calculate how well a website is likely to perform on Google. Many P.R. companies look at a blog's domain authority - the higher it is, the better it is to link to for S.E.O. purposes.

Content

Write interesting original content that people want to bookmark, share and link back to. It is important to write original content as Google can penalise sites with duplicate content. This can mean your blog not appearing in search results. 


Link to your own content from within your blog post. Internal links help with S.E.O.

Photos

Name your photos something appropriate. This helps search engines find and index relevant images. Make sure your images are optimised and quick to load. Photo editing software such as Photoshop and Picmonkey are great to reduce image size.

Backlinks

Create natural backlinks to your blog. This can help 
raise your domain authority. You can do this by making relevant comments on other blogs and linking to your blog address. 

Guest posting is a great way of getting a backlink to your blog. Many fellow bloggers will be happy to give you a follow link for a guest post - after all you are doing them a favour by writing new fresh content for them.

Sharing

Don't forget to share your post. It can be the most awesome post in the world but if you don't share it how will people see it? It's worth having social media accounts for your blog to share content. Share the content of others and they will be more likely to share yours. Tag the company you are working with in a post so they can retweet for you. Use relevant hashtags to spread the post and get it seen.

These are just some simple tips. 


For a more in depth analysis of your blog consider a targeted S.E.O. and digital marketing course. The best digital marketing companies have engaging, easy to understand courses for people of all levels of knowledge. The worst digital marketing companies are expensive and can actually cause your blog to be penalised by Google. 

To choose a reputable company look at the results they have attained, the brands they have worked with and the testimonials of others.

Tell me do you have any digital marketing tips?

* PR collaboration

Chantelle Lingerie Review

I'm a woman that likes nice underwear, don't we all? I am a pretty underwear gal, bras and pants have to have detail, be it eyelash lace, made of a silky satin material or have a cute pattern. A bra also has to lift and shape my curves.

Chantelle fits my style beautifully.

Chantelle is a French brand that you can find in recommended underwear stores and online from the likes of Figleaves.com and House Of Fraser. They are steeped in history and heritage with a tradition of excellence in their design and craftsmanship. Made in France for over a hundred years their expertise is reflected in the quality and femininity of their products whilst still producing underwear that is supremely comfortable. They also keep up-to-date with trends and innovation, to produce the best fit and support all wrapped up in a pretty underwear package. Every year they test over 200 new materials to bring new designs to market.

Attention to detail is important for the company. When I was asked if I wanted to review a set of underwear I was advised I needed a proper bra fitting first by a store that was a stockist. This was a great idea as I would have ordered the wrong size! The fitting in this brand was slightly bigger than I would normally take so it was useful to get a fitting in the independent store, Madam Foner in Swansea.



Madame Foner is in one of the small arcades in the centre of town. It's a little treasure trove of beautiful underwear from all the leading brands and is definitely worth a visit. The staff appear welcoming and knowledgeable and were extremely helpful. 

I have an ample bust so I usually go for an underwired bra with no padding. I also like underwear in neutral colours that I can mix and match.

Looking through the Chantelle brochure I spotted a set I really liked the look of. from the Opera range. The Opera demi bra is made of pretty lace and is underwired, with a delicate flower and petal lace.  The staff at Madame Foner let me try on the bra and I loved it straight away. Although they didn't have the size I wanted, after being measured I was told to get a bigger size than I normally wear. Apparently, French designs can be slightly smaller than British designs. 


I like shorts and french knickers so I picked the Opera shorty to go with the demi bra.



So I ordered the set and waited for it to arrive.


Firstly I was pleased with the size of the bra. The fitting in Madame Foner was accurate, the bra fitted me perfectly and was a bra size bigger than I would have normally picked. Sizes can alter in brands and styles so this is an important point to note. If you have lost or put on weight it is especially important to get a new bra fitting as it is highly likely your size will be different.

The shorty again comes up a little small in size so I would recommend going for a size bigger than you normally wear. It has a little stretch and is fairly low-rise, but is comfortable on.

The quality of both the shorty and the bra is excellent. There is no uneven or unfinished stitching anywhere.


As you can see above the lace design is stunning and is reminiscent of flowers and leaves. The semi-sheer mesh and lace is sexy but also girlie and feminine. Perfect for a date night in my opinion. This set also comes in aubergine, a lovely purple and the colour milk which is white. Bra styles in the Opera range include a push-up and strapless bra and a basque which would be ideal for a bride. The pants also come in other designs such as a tanga.

Would I buy Chantelle in the future? Yes most definitely. Gorgeous designs mixed with French craftsmanship make stunning underwear.

Tell me, what do you think of the underwear I have chosen? Have you heard of Chantelle lingerie?

There's No Place Like Home

We love our home and over the years we have worked hard to transform it into a place that we love to spend time in. After all, it’s true what they say, there’s no place like home.

Although my husband and I have invested lots of time perfecting each room into a space that reflects exactly how we want it to look and feel, there’s still so much to be done. It’s a sad fact of life that home improvements do not come cheap, especially if you’re renovating areas of home such as your kitchen or bathroom, as we have quickly found out. I live in a flat and hope to move one day to a larger house but before then I need to renovate and decorate our home.



My Dream Home 
Image Creative Commons Pixabay

We’ve been meaning to renovate our kitchen for years now, and despite being one of the most used rooms in our home, it has kind of taken a back seat. I guess the costs involved in taking on this scale of home improvement project have always put us off! Getting reliable workmen too is incredible hard where I live.

We were right to be wary, having started to look into the costs involved, we quickly realised that this was one home improvement project that wasn’t going to happen financially overnight… With this in mind, I decided to do some research into how we could be in the best financial position to fund our dream kitchen. Here’s what I found out.

Credit

If savings are not an option, or if they don’t quite cover the amount you need to spend, it might be worth looking into taking out a credit card or loan to finance the cost of your project. Just make sure that you shop around for the best deal, check out and compare the Annual Percentage Rate (A.P.R) for loans and make use of offers like 0% balance transfers on credit cards. 





Image Creative Commons Pixabay

However, before relying on credit as an option and to avoid disappointment before applying, it’s always a good idea to check and make sure you understand your credit report. You credit report is important as you need to check the information on it is correct, as if not it may affect your chance of getting credit such as a loan, mortgage or credit card in the future. It is recommended that you check this once a year for inaccuracies so you can put it right. The higher your credit score the more likely it is you will be given credit.

Savings

As a family that has always saved, we have managed to save a substantial towards the cost of the project. One thing that is important to account for is unexpected expenses.


Before starting any home renovation project you should always overestimate the costs involved, and make sure that you have the money set aside to cover them. Sit down and write a list of all of the costs involved from materials to installation, then add 10% on top for unforeseen costs. It might even be that you have to take time off work to oversee the project, make sure you factor this into your costings too!

Mortgage

Another option to help fund large home improvement projects is to look at re-mortgaging your home, particularly if you are going to be renovating rooms in a bid to increase the value of your property.

These often include rooms such as your bathroom, kitchen, and extensions to your home. You should also check whether or not you have any equity tied up in your home, this could also allow you to free up some cash to cover the costs of your home improvement projects.

We are well on our way to funding our dream kitchen and I hope in the next few months to report back with photos of our renovations....If I can find some reliable workmen....


Tell me if you own your own property have you ever thought about home improvements? If so how did you manage to fund it?

*A collaborative sponsored post

Top 5 Tips For Spreading The Cost This Christmas

With Christmas just around the corner, you are probably already wondering how you are going to pay for the gifts and items for everyone on the gift list. With this said, there are a number of ways to spread the cost over the holiday season so that you aren't burdened with one giant bill to pay off at once.

These are the top 5 tips for spreading the cost this Christmas, and affording everything you want (and need) to buy.




1. Catalogue shopping

With many online catalogues offering to finance for up to 36 months (or longer), you can truly spread the cost out. Not only that, but most catalogues sell a variety of items so you can buy several gifts on the shopping list, all in one place, rather than having to visit several department stores. Some offer interest-free credit too.

2. Online Surveys

Ever done online surveys? Seems foolish to many, but many companies are willing to pay you for your opinion or enter you for a prize draw. So, if you get a survey after shopping, consider doing it. Survey sites are worth signing up for and not only will many companies gift you gift cards or money back options, they will also offer free gifts in many cases as well.



3. Credit cards

Sure, you don't want to use them, but for many, this is an option they need. Many credit cards will offer the option for 0% interest-free financing, especially for a balance transfer. So, if you qualify for free financing, and pay off the entire balance by the promotional period, you won't have to worry about high-interest charges looming over you either. Watch out for an arrangement fee though.

4. Department store cards

They are typically very easy to qualify for, and most stores offer free promotional periods, meaning no interest if you pay the item off (typically 6 to 12 months with most stores). Some department stores offer an additional percentage discount (5 to 10% off) when you use their store card too. So, it is a double bonus as you don't have to worry about interest, and you receive an additional discount simply for using the store card.

5. Layaway

Many retailers offer the 'layaway' payment option for their shoppers. If you are purchasing a large gift, like a gold necklace, a gaming system or pricey electronics, you can pay it off over time. Some retailers offer weekly payment options, others offer monthly options. If you visit stores now, not only do you have about three months to pay off the entire purchase, most retailers offering the layaway payment option do not charge interest as long as you pay off the entire item prior to picking it up. I know when I had my own jewellers we did this and it is often seen in independent stores.

These are a few simple, and creative ways for you to go about holiday shopping this year. Not only will it allow you to buy all the items and gifts on your holiday shopping list, but it also allows you to save on interest, and receive great promotions and discounts when shopping. Consider shopping early, and getting these purchases out of the way now, so you can take advantage of these different methods of spreading out the cost of holiday shopping this year.

Do you use any of these methods wisely to spread the cost of Christmas?