A must for mums... Arnica Gel

 SBC Arnica Gel 

  Hi all, just thought I would do a quick review on this wonderful gel.  I had to use a little this morning on my oldest daughter and thought I need to share this.

Having two adventurous little girls who just love playing outdoors at any given opportunity calls for some sort of medical back up, in my case plenty of Arnica.  Usually after about ten minutes of play, one will always come running up to me because of an argument or fall.  Sometimes, a cuddle and a few gentle words will be enough but in some cases a little more is needed, out comes Arnica.

  Those of you who haven't heard of this wonderful gel before, it's basically a plant often used to prepare homeopathic remedies.   The common uses of Arnica is to treat bruises and general aches and pains, in fact there are many different uses, just too many to list here.  I mainly use this on the girls straight after a bump or on myself, when my shoulders and neck tense up.  I wouldn't recommend a product unless it worked and this gel works for us.

  I tend to apply this straight after a fall.  You only need a small amount, hence a 500ml bottle lasting a long time.  Gently massage a pea sized amount over the sore area, but, you don't have to massage you could just leave the gel to absorb into the skin on its own.

  Arnica has been a part of our lives now for over two years, after a family member recommended it to me.

  I'm onto my second bottle now, just shows how long this stuff could last you and I've noticed less swelling and bruising and it's done wonders for my neck and shoulders.

  The great thing about this gel is that is doesn't leave a sticky/greasy residue like some other gels and it has a pleasant aroma to it.

  Arnica SHOULD NOT be used on broken skin so in those cases where there is more of a cut to the skin I tend to use an antiseptic cream like Savlon or Sudocream.

  Overall, I like the idea of using a herbal product rather than an over the counter bought medicine.  This product does work for us and I would recommend that it's something you try.
  
 Arnica Gel can be bought from many online stores, like QVC, Ebay or Amazon.  It comes in a bottle with pump for easy application.  Like I mentioned earlier, a little goes a long way.

  There are many different products within the Arnica Gel range.  All focusing on different parts of the body. the one I own is for external use only.


  I bought my 500ml bottle from Amazon  £14.50 and at the time when i purchased my bottle there was free p&p.  But, I'm sure with a bit of searching you could probably find it for a lot less.  You can find it on Ebay for a little less here.
  The label on my bottle simply reads 'SBC, Arnica gel' and on the back it reads:

'Arnica Montana is one of the oldest and most widely used forms of herbal treatment in the world today.

Arnica gel is ideal for both adults and children, to assist in easing general aches and if applied immediately after a fall or blow, can help to soothe the discomfort of bumps and bruises' 

  

Hope you found my mini review helpful  

Take care

 X

Gift idea for under £5

 Hot Chocolate in a Mug Gift Set

It's that time of year again when the kids are just about ready to break up for the xmas holidays and my little girl wants to give a Christmas card to almost everyone, even though we are Muslim and don't really celebrate Christmas I still enjoy this time of year and the atmosphere.

Probably just like a lot of other people out there I am on a tight budget but wanted to give my daughter's teacher a gift she would really enjoy but had a personal touch to it...

After searching online for ages to find the perfect gift I came across pictures of drinking mugs that had been personalized.  So decided to do the same and fill the drinking mug with all things chocolate...

And when I break the pricing down each mug will cost just under £3

Here's how I did it...

Step 1: 

Your shopping list

Mugs (I bought a set of 4 for £1.79 from my local super market)

Cellophane wrap

Decorative ribbon/bows

chocolate bar (I used Dairy Milk)

Marshmellows

Sharpies markers 

House of Dorchester - stir in hot chocolate (from local supermarket £1)
5 Pack of Ferrero Focher (on offer £1)
Colored card
Hole punch
Pencil


Step 2

Design

My daughter started off by drawing a pattern on the mug using a pencil so we could rub out any mistakes before going over the pencil lines with the markers as shown below.
She needed a little help doing this (she wanted it to be neat)

Step 3

Bake
Place the mug(s) in the oven at 240°C for 30mins
Remove from oven and leave to cool completely

Step 4

Make your own gift tag

Cut out a gift card template and simply follow this step with smaller bits of card and layer up

Hole punch one end of the card so we can thread through the ribbon.

Step 5

Marshmellow cone

I could only find a large bag of marshmellow and couldn't find any smaller bags 

So I decided to make a cone out of the cellophane and fill with some marshmellows and tied together with ribbon.  Also this worked really well cause it would fit into the mug much easier.

Step 6

Fill the mug

I found this hot chocolate mix at my local supermarket and thought it was just perfect

House of Dorchester- stir in hot chocolate

they come in a various flavors and include a spoon

Step 7

Wrap

Make sure you add the tag and plenty of ribbon, a few bows

and viola 

Yummy Hot Chocolate in a mug gift set

Made one for my daughters teacher and teaching assistant

Hope they like it 

X

And so it begins....

Intro...

So I have finally decided to do it... I've decided to become a blogger.  

For such a long time I have wanted to set up this blog.  I have contemplated over and over in mind what I was going to blog about and I always came back to the same thing.... D.I.Y.

I just love looking at something and seeing how it was made and then challenge myself, if whether or not I could recreate it at home.  Well in some cases I did and in others, well lets just say it wasn't meant to be.

I am sort of kicking myself right now for not starting this blog earlier and show some of my creations.  I really wish I did, so at least I would have an online catalogue detailing my trial and errors and an inventory of some of the stuff I have enjoyed making over the last couple of years with the kids (I have two little girls).

I'm a sucker when it comes to stuff I read online, I either read about or will see something and try giving it ago at home.  Sometimes it will work and we will all gain some enjoyment out of it or most of the time it would be a massive flop, but I intend on sharing all of that right here on my blog.

.............................................................................................

My first blogger project...

(Please forgive the poor layout and pics, hopefully they should get better in time and with more practice)

D.I.Y. The Moustache Necklace

I've seen these necklaces everywhere so decided to make my own and here's how I did it....

You will need.... 

Felt

Scissors

Old necklace chain

Fabric glue (I recommend gem-tac)

Rhinestones- Silver and Black

Paper/pencil

Toothpick and some play dough

Step 1...

Start off by drawing your template onto a piece of folded paper

Step 2...

Cut out the template

Step 3...

Place template over felt

fold the felt in half and then fold the template

and cut out

leaving you with the felt moustache (you will need two of these)

Step 4...

Take the chain from the necklace 

Fold in half and cut

Step 5...

The tricky bit... you will need to open up the bottom link and pierce a hole through the felt using your scissors and then loop the link through the hole (it can get fiddly, all depends on the size of link) then close the link using the scissors.

Step 6...

Time to decorate

You can use any method to decorate your moustache, i decided on using some rhinestones (i had some leftover from when I added some sparkle to a pair of heels).

Apply the glue

Take your toothpick with with a small ball of play-dough stuck to one (makes it easier to pick up the gems)

and start applying the gems 

Step 7...

Leave to dry

When dry take the second piece of felt moustache from earlier and sew onto the back, it will just provide a little more structure and hold the tash in place

Step 8...

Enjoy your necklace

..................................................................................................................................................

Hope you enjoyed my first post and return when i take on some more projects.

Take care

X