Showing posts with label crafts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crafts. Show all posts

7 Feb 2010

Fairy is 50


Fairy is celebrating 50 years of suds and soft hands!

On Feb 8th Fairy brought back their original iconic white bottle, the bottle design will be on sale for a limited time to celebrate Fairy's 50th Anniversary.

So what does the bottle remind you of?
The advert with the little girl asking why mummy's hands are so soft?
Running around the garden squirting each other with an empty bottle filled with water?
Waiting for what seemed like months for mum's bottle of Fairy to be empty so that you could use it to make something crafty from Blue Peter?

When I think of Fairy I sing the 'Hands that do dishes are as soft as your face' song (or however it went, I am a nightmare for making up my own lyrics!). Then I start to wonder if a Fairy bottle was used in making Blue Peters Tracy Island .... http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/classic/bluepeter/makes/tracyisland.pdf OMG it was :)

I like the original packaging, the tall white circular bottle was sturdy and didn't topple over like these new fangled ergonomic designs. The contents were simple and cleaned your dishes, you didn't need to work out how much to squirt into the bowl (like the new concentrated formula) .. you just gave it a good squirt!

The school junk box was full of Fairy bottles, you could write on them with a permanent marker and even if you were useless at crafts you could cut one in half to make a pen pot!

I am going to stock up on Fairy, everyone knows that one bottle lasts for ever ;) I'll never have to buy washing up liquid again!! Plus my young daughter will be able to learn patience waiting for my bottle to empty just like I did when I was little while her mind is thinking up great imaginative ideas for what to do with the empty bottle. Good times :)

11 Nov 2009

Panduro Hobby

Panduro Hobby

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/ccc7b6ae#/ccc7b6ae/46 << Link to catalogue

Since it was established in 1955, Panduro Hobby has developed a unique concept for giving people possibilities for their own creative activities.
With a comprehensive range of more than 9,000 hobby items, they offer everything required for making unique and personal articles.

Quite simply, they enable people to experience the satisfaction of being able to create something beautiful with their own hands.

I was asked to review a product from the Panduro catalogue, being very arty I was thrilled and started looking trough the pages and pages of beautiful kits, projects and materials ... I have never seen such a range of wonderful creative products! Each and every item is 'want-able' and simple to create, my daughter Emma eventually asked if we could make some candles and so I chose the BeesWax Sheets.

The products arrived quickly and well packed, if you spend over £50 on the website they offer free delivery which is great!

Just before bed (after a lot of nagging from Emma) I relented and agreed to help her make some candles. In our pack we received 5 sheets of honeycomb sheeted beeswax in yellow and some wicks. We read the instructions and Emma got to work.

First up was a simple straight candle. It was really easy to make and the kit gave us enough wax for us to make one each (I am convinced mine is better but Emma disagrees).



We then decided to be a little more daring and following the comprehensive well described instructions (including pictures with measurements) we made two spiral candles.



Finally as we still had two sheets left and lots of wick we attempted the more 'posher' stepped pillar candle. I'll have to admit that when Emma was moaning "No Mum its not like that you need to use this part!" I ignored her and swore blind that I was doing it correctly .... I wasn't it looked odd, luckily being wax you can unroll, flatten and start again :)

This time Emma took the lead and created a lovely stepped pillar candle - she has decided to give all five candles to her Gran for Christmas :)



Then it really was time for bed. The candles have stored really easily in the bag that the wax came in ready to be wrapped for Christmas.

Panduro have many many kits suitable for all age groups, boys, girls, Mum's, Granny's etc... I have posted the link to the Christmas Catalogue above but obviously throughout the year they will have different products available.

Prices are fair and the quality is high, I am very impressed with the wax that we tested and will definitely go back to the catalogue to have another browse (possibly for stocking fillers for 'you know who' above ;) as she enjoyed the candle making so much).

Our rating: 10/10
For more information please visit: www.pandurohobby.co.uk