No leaking, strings or pads and just empty and give a rinse in the shower. No Toxic Shock Syndrome.
Simples.
Do yourself a HUGE favour and get one.
Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
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To help you decide if this could be an option for you I will give an overview of the wedding in this magical location.
When planning the event we wanted to have a wedding that was intrinsically Italian – to celebrate our wedding the way an Italian family would. This we achieved and more………
We knew the owners of the Masseria Della Zingara, which is located just outside Triggianello, near Castellana Grotte in Puglia. So it was the natural choice of venue. The beautiful masseria sleeps 19 which was the perfect solution for us and our closest family to stay. In fact we hired the entire masseria for 2 weeks. The rest of our guests stayed in the other local guest houses or in the nearby stunning costal town of Polignano a Mare. We were able to utilise a local taxi company who used mini buses to ferry the guest back and forth for the celebrations.
Our wedding in Puglia, Italy at the Masseria Della Zingara
Our actual wedding (with 45 guests) lasted 3 fabulous days. We had a pre-wedding dinner on the night before, a noon wedding on the actual day and a post wedding pool party the day after. It was all magical. I wish we could do it all again! The entire two weeks, including all the wedding celebrations cost us the same as the average one day wedding in the UK. Great value for money I think you would agree.
The Cheese man makes fresh mozzarella at our pre wedding dinner held at the Masseria Della Zingara
Wedding pool party gets ready at Masseria Della Zingara
The civil service was held in the city commune in Castellana Grotte, 15 minutes drive from the Masseria. We were extremely honoured to have the Mayor perform the ceremony. All the guests were ferried back to the masseria for the celebrations while the mayor arranged for us newly weds to have some photos taken at the famous Castellana Grotto caves. Magic!
We then had the most incredible celebrations back at the masseria, a truly spectacular buffet reception and a blessing in the masseria’s chapel. The most amazing authentic local musicians and dancers entertained our guests (and us of course) . Our photographer (who I cannot recommend enough) whisked myself and my husband away to a local trulli to have some atmospheric photos taken – just brilliant. Later, we were all up dancing the night away and it was so much fun. And to finish the evening, fireworks!
I can truly recommend a Puglian wedding.
Where – The Masseria Della Zingara, Castellana Grotte, Puglia Italy.
Contact – Jan King (jan at masseria della zingara dot com.)
Photograhper – Rob Kennard.
Make Up Artist – (BAFTA awarded) Sue Howard (contact her via her Villa Silvana website) She can also recommend hairstylists.
Guest Accommodations.
Masseria Della Zingara
B&B Masseria-Cesarina
Covo dei Saraceni Hotel
B&B Casa Dorsi
B&B Santo Stefano
B&B Tra Le Mura
Masseria Capocaccia
Taxi company – Taxicar
Remember to enjoy your day.
Mamasimx
They are perfect for packing in the suitcase for upcoming summer holidays.The mini range includes:
I love the Radiance Bronzing Highlighter, it’s great for cheeks and eyes. It gives a lovely shine and warmth to your summer look and the Geranium BB Lips is an on-trend red/orange. It shouts summer. In the photo on the right I am wearing the bronzing highlighter on my cheeks and lids and the BB lips in Geranium on my lips. I also put a hint of the Geranium onto the apple of my cheeks for a little colour.
In the photo on the left I am wearing the Brilliantly Bare Beauty Enhancer with the Stay Perfect Superlight Foundation, Stay Perfect Mascara and the High Shine Lip Crayon in Tropical Beach which I also have on my cheeks. The colours are so flattering. I also have the Radiance Bronzing Highlighter on my cheeks and lids.
The nail collection is so pretty as well. I’m loving the pale yellow and muted orange. Perfect for summer. I would show you swatches, but my nails are in such bad condition I don’t want to compromise the lovely colours in any way!
Make sure you check this collection out and pick up a few items for your holiday.
No7 have some wonderful sun care, makeup and skincare for this summer. In today’s post I am having a look at some of my favourites.
Suncreams, after sun care, beauty balms, and some truly bright and beautiful liners, blushes and lipsticks are just a few of my picks from the great products from No7 this summer.
Anti-Aeging Sun Protection range
Firstly, the Anti-Aeging Sun Protection range. It consists of:
Another plus is the range is available in SPF 15 or 30 and the Anti-Dark Spot Facial Sun Protection comes in SPF 30 or 50 which is great. It’s 50 all the way for me!
No7 Body Shimmer After Sun (£9.50) and the Facial Recovery After Sun (£8.50) is a great way to treat the skin after a day in the sun. They contain antioxidants and vitamins so you can be sure that your sun exposed skin is in the best of care.
I just have to mention about the Shimmering Lip and Lid Eye Screen again. So good!
Next up is the *No7 Brilliantly Bare Beauty Enhancer (£12.50). I was a little unsure what this product would actually be, but was very pleased to see it is a primer for the skin. It is a colourless, lightweight formula that glides onto the skin. It leaves the skin feeling extra soft and very smooth, just like velvet. It reminds me very much of Benefit’s Porefessional but unlike Porefessional, this No7 product is colour free. As with all primers, Brilliantly Bare Beauty Enhancer will help keep your make up where you put it and not sliding down your face in the summer heat! This is definitely a must have product for summer if you like your make up to stay picture perfect all day. And there is nothing like the softness and smoothness that a really good priming product gives the skin. Bliss!
No7 Stay Precise Liquid Eyeliners
Now, onto my favourites things. Make up! No7 has some absolutely gorgeous colours and textures for summer. Starting with
these eyeliners. Take a look at the colours. I absolutely adore Sky High and Mermaid. There are also a couple of metallic colours, the Metallic Royal (pictured) is a gorgeous navy blue. Any of these colours would be stunning for beach wear with a bright pop on the cheeks and a slick of coloured gloss on the lips. You would be so good to go. These must have *No7 Stay Precise Liquid Eyeliners (£7.50) come in 8 very wearable colours. (The golden brown and green would be perfect for the evening too!) These do not budge. Great staying power.
No7 Stay Perfect Smoothing Eyeshadow’s
I’m loving the *No7 Stay Perfect Smoothing Eyeshadow‘s (£8.00) too. They are convenient to pop in your bag, easy to use as they glide on and can be patted into place with your finger or a brush. And when they are dry they do not budge. The colour selection is lovely too. There are 6 colours. Pretty Pink, Pale Green and Iridescent Purple are so pretty and summery and the Nude, Bronze and Pewter Shine are simply the best for an easy, quick sexy, smoky evening eye. I really rate these as they are so simple to use, do not budge once set and have a gorgeous shimmery colour that is very attractive. Don’t miss out on them. They really are lovely.
No7 Lash Impact Mascara
Now where would a girl be without a fab mascara? I’m always on the look out for a mascara that is a really good black, a creamy consistency that glides on and does not clump. Clumping really annoys me. There is nothing worse than having to take the time to comb your lashes through after you have applied your mascara. *No7 Lash Impact Mascara (£10) has gone straight into my favourites drawer. It fulfils all the criteria. It’s black (it also comes in brown/black). It does not clump and it packs a lotta punch. I love it and have been wearing it non-stop since I got it. It has knocked Maybelline’s The Colossal of it’s perch as my favourite, go to mascara. Thats really saying something. Great mascara at a great price.
No7 High Shine Lip glosses
Finally lips and cheeks! Well, as mentioned above, for the beach or by the pool you need some bright colours on the cheeks and happy, shiny colour on the lips. No7 has these covered too….. The *No7 High Shine Lip glosses (£9.00) come in 15 attractive shades. And there are some real candy and neutral shades that have to go in you beach bag this summer. Pink Sherbet, Tangerine Twist and Almost Pink are my particular favourites. They are high shine indeed with a lovely flavour that reminds me of sweets. You can’t get much better than that!
No7 Pop & Glow Cream Blush
To match these lippies, No7 have their new No7 Pop & Glow Cream Blush Stick (£9.95). (I reviewed them here.) The easy to use and easy to carry blushes come in 3 colours, Rose Blossom, an icy pink; Mango Sorbet, a delicious orange and Classic Rose, a deeper pink. Again, just throw them in your bag and you are good to go. These blushes really are the essence of convenience but it is the colour and formulation that really makes my heart beat faster. As you can see the colours scream summer and co-ordinate beautifully with the high shine lipsticks. The sticks do glide easily onto the skin and and are perfect for building if you want more intense colour. I like the fact they are non-greasy. The remind me of a cream to powder product though this is not mentioned anywhere in the product description. I recommend!
So that’s my round up. All the products mentioned I have tried and can absolutely recommend. Summer is just around the corner so get yourself ready!
I’ve added some pics of looks I have done with the products. Hope they give you some inspiration. Enjoy!
Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
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There are so many baby products designed to make life easier for new parents, it can be hard to know which will help and which will be a waste of money. To help you find the baby products most likely to make your life easier, we asked 2,005 parents to tell us which products they bought and whether they found them useful or useless.
Besides the essential baby products, such as pushchairs, child car seats and cots/cotbeds/cribs/Moses baskets, we’ve rounded up the 10 most useful baby products as rated by our parents.
If you’re in the process of buying a pushchair or child car seat, make sure you take a look at our pushchair reviews and child car seat reviews to find the safest and most comfortable for your child. If you’re not yet a Which? member, you can sign up for £1 and unlock hundreds of reviews across the site.
Stair gates were rated as the most useful baby product, with more than 70% of the parents we asked saying they owned one. If 
you’ve got stairs in your home, or a kitchen that you want to keep young children out of, a stair gate can be a safety essential.
Stair gates can range significantly in price from around £15 to £100. But a higher price doesn’t always mean you’ll get the best. See our stair gate reviews to find out which we rate as Best Buys, and check out our guide to buying the best stair gate.
You could use any old bag to carry around your baby products when you’re out and about. But the advantage of a specifically designed baby changing bag is that it usually has different compartments to help you find what you need quickly, and many come with a foldaway changing mat. The parents we surveyed certainly appreciated theirs.
You can spend as much as you like on a baby changing bag. Prices start from under £20, but you could spend over £250 on a designer one.
Audio baby monitors allow you to hear your little one when you’re not in the same room as them. There’s a wide range of baby monitors available, from basic sound-only monitors to video baby monitors (also in our top 10 list). Audio ones can cost anything from under £20 to over £60.
We’ve tested both audio and video baby monitors on sound quality, range, battery life and ease of use. Find the best one for you with our baby monitor reviews.
Using an electric steam steriliser kit can be a quick and easy way to sterilise your baby’s bottles, whether you’re using formula or expressing milk. Typically costing around £30 to £100, they are quick and fairly easy to use.
To find out more about baby feeding products, from bottles to bottle warmers, take a look at our guide.
As well as electric steam steriliser kits, microwave versions are also popular. Microwave steam steriliser kits are more compact and tend to be cheaper than electric ones. They typically cost around £20 to £50.
Video baby monitors are more sophisticated than simple audio monitors – not only can you see your baby, but some also have night vision and can be hooked up to your PC, TV and/or smartphone as well.
We’ve got plenty of advice on choosing a baby monitor in our guide how to buy the best baby monitor, plus you can find out which models we rate as Best Buy baby monitors.
Baby sleeping bags are ‘wearable blankets’ designed to be worn by your baby at night, instead of using traditional sheets and blankets. They typically cost between £10 and £20 and will last until your baby is around 18 months old.
Take a look at our guide to find out about baby bedding and other safe sleeping tips.
The ear is considered to be the most reliable place to get a consistent reading of internal body temperature. A digital ear thermometer can give you a quick temperature reading for your child, and help you identify signs of fever.
They typically cost between £10 and £40. Read our reviews and advice on buying the best ear thermometers.
A baby bouncer chair allows younger babies to experience a seated rocking motion, and some models are even suitable from birth. They typically cost between £20 and £70 and were much more popular with parents than door baby bouncers (which can be found in our top 10 least useful baby products list).
For buying advice and safety tips on play equipment for babies and toddlers, read our guide.
Travel cots can be folded up, placed in a bag and taken with you if you are travelling with your baby. They can cost anything from £20 to over £100 and can also be used as a playpen.
If you’re thinking of buying one read our guide on how to buy a travel cot.
Our research
We surveyed 2,005 GB parents aged 18+ with children aged under five. The survey was conducted online in February and March 2014. We asked parents to rate each of the baby products they’d bought on a scale on 1 to 10 for usefulness. These are the 10 baby products that were ranked as the most useful overall.
What do you think of this top 10 list? Are there other baby products you couldn’t live without? Let us know on Twitter, @WhichHome
If you would like to have your say on anything from baby products to bank accounts and help us with our research, join the Which? Connect panel. It’s open to all Which? subscribers.
More on this…
Make sure your baby is safe with a Best Buy child car seat
Choose the best pushchair for you and your baby with a Best Buy pushchair
Find out all you need to know with our guide to having a baby: what you need and when
Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
If you enjoyed this post you will also like:
20 Free Activities To Entertain The Kids
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I recently bought some pyjamas for Babygirl from Bambino Merino. When I received them I was reminded yet again why I have been buying baby wear from them for about 7 years. Sooooo soft. (100% superfine merino wool which is silky soft.)
The quality is outstanding. I. Just. Love. Their. Stuff!
I have bought many items including the sleeping bags, bodysuits, pyjamas, socks, hats, swaddling wraps, toddler sleeping bags and the gorgeous baby merino bundlers that I (and Babygirl adored).
They make beautiful gifts as well.
Can’t recommend them enough.
Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
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Look at these gorgeous portraits by Bill Gekas. A Melbourne-based photographer, Bill makes beautiful portraits of his 5-year-old daughter, posing in the scenes of the classic paintings by artists like Caravaggio, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Raphael or Velazquez.
Take a look. The are amazing.
Click through to Bill’s site here to see more of his truly special portraits.
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
Mamasimx About Me
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Norton Storm. In Black Magic.
This week I was going to be a Norton Storm Pushchair Review as the pram is a little known brand and there isn’t much information or many reviews about it on the internet. We had it for 12 or so months, bought by my parents as a gift, just before my youngest was born.
Planning to take lots of photographs I decided that this week I had better give it a good cleaning to ready it – the last thing anybody wants to look at in a photo is mashed banana! Not a very good selling point if the reader was considering purchasing a similar pram.
However, before I could organise myself, it was stolen – from right under the noses of my son’s nursery staff. They were in no way at fault. The pram had been parked in the designated buggy park area in front of the nursery behind a fence. The nursery is on a road that gets a lot of foot traffic, and I guess some awful person spied it as they walked past and thought – ‘that’s a nice pram, I’ll be having that’ and furtively scurrying in behind the fence like a rat (I imagine), stole it.
Does a thief think or care of the hurt they inflict when they steal that which does not belong to them? Would they hesitate if they knew that the pram had been a gift from my parents and how upset and angry we all are that such a thing has happened?
Unfortunately I think not. All the thief is worried about is making a quick quid and the danger of getting caught. Uncaring about insurance claims (that is if it can be claimed), or the hundreds of pounds that the pram cost – which will have to be forked out again to purchase a replacement – I am sure they would sneer or insult if confronted. I do wonder if they are dumb enough to actually use the pram about our small town. My 5 year old is on constant pram surveillance – having been overawed at the trip to the police station to report its theft.
Angry as I was, and upset as I am, all I can do now is say a few words in parting to my lovely pram that I will miss and would recommend.
It was a Norton Storm Pushchair in Black Magic. A fantastic looking pram with a light aluminium frame, it had an extending handle (great as I am over 6ft) and a seat that was able to be parent (rear) facing or forward facing. Any pram I have now must be rear facing. The pram we had bought for my eldest had not been, and an incident when a stranger informed me that my baby son was silently choking scared me half to death and I swore I would only have rear facing prams from then on. Such a good idea as at all times baby can see you and you them.
The pram comes with a complete travel system:
Pushchair with 3 – 7 retails for approx £300 – £350.
Complete system (1-7) retails for approx £500 – £550.
The reason I went with this pram instead of the iCandy Cherry, which is the other pram I was contemplating purchasing, is the guarantee, which is two years as opposed to the one year on the iCandy. Also, the Norton had sprung front wheels, which the iCandy doesn’t (the springs on the iCandy are for show only). It was also a little more competitively priced – which is always a consideration for most parents.
I had been lucky enough to compare the prams side by side at the Earls Court Baby Show which is always a good place to go if you want to see all the leading pram and pushchair manufacturers together under one roof. And you can usually pick up some good deals as well.
But back to the pram! There were only two suggestions that I would pass on to the manufacturers.
Also I would consider the following when purchasing:
Would I recommend this pram? Yes I would. It was smart looking, comfortable and light. Would I recommend getting a bicycle lock to secure it? Yes I most definitely would. I miss my Norton. Every time I see the rain cover, or the cosy toes, or use the pram bag around the house I think of it and curse the thief.
I believe in karma.
So watch out thief.
Please excuse the stock photos – as explained above – too late now to take my own photos!
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Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
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The finished product!
It was simpler than you think to make a fantastic feeding pillow.
I had a store bought pillow for my first two babies, and while it was adequate, it was too flat and kept riding away from me as I fed. This allowed baby to slip down between the pillow and me. Far from ideal.
What I wanted was a pillow that could be fastened to me and a pillow that was high enough so I did not have to prop it with cushions and other pillows.
So began my online search. And I came across a fantastic feeding pillow here. ‘Thrupenny Bits’ cockney rhyme for t**ts!) sell beautiful, trendy but practical feeding pillows that are also very portable and reasonably priced. (prices start at £33) I was instantly taken with them. However, and apologies to ‘Thrupenny Bits’, I had some left over Harlequin ‘Alina” furnishing fabric that would make a beautiful pillow and as I can sew a little I decided to try to make a feeding pillow myself. But if your not the sewing sort head over to ‘Thrupenny bits’ to purchase one.
I drew a template, half moon in shape with elongated ends that would become the ties, 65 cms across and 32 cms down.
I also cut 2 identical pieces from some tough wearing plain calico I had lying around. This was for the inner pillow.
I then sewed the pieces together for the pillow and the two covers, fitting a long zip to the inner curve of each.
I filled the pillow with bean bag beads. This was a messy job as the balls are so light! But once done I was very pleased. I was also glad I had put in a long zip into the covers as it made inserting the filled inner pillow easy and simple.
The bag was a little full when I tried it so I simply sat a few times on the pillow to flatten it a little!
*After using for about 3 months the pillows need topping up as the beads do compress. I found this to be a nightmare – messy and difficult because of the extremely light and flyaway nature of the beads. (My Mum who helped can attest to this!) So I recommend, as thrupenny bits does, filling with hollow fibre instead.
So I am really pleased with the finished product. And as it ties to me I can stand and move with her still feeding. Although I stress, and double stress, I never move around without holding on to baby and the pillow. Otherwise baby would slide right off! But so practical.
And if you don’t feel like making one yourself – hop along to ‘Thrupenny bits’ to purchase one. They would also make a great gift.
Mamasimx About Me
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.
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© 2013 Simone L Woods
The easiest thermometer!
Find it here.
A hammock for baby when flying.
Find it here.
A pacifier/dummy that closes when dropped.
Find it here.
Just a few ideas to make life a tiny bit more convenient. What top products can you recommend.
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The Top 10 Things Children Really Want Their Parents To Do With Them and
Praising Kids: How Proper Praise Helps Children
Mamasimx
Don’t forget to enjoy your day
Product Name: HippyChick Hipster Seat
Price: £25 – £39.95
Available from: Hippychick, Amazon and other baby goods suppliers
Main Claim: has been developed to allow adults to carry their children naturally on their hip without the usual strains on the back (as per Hippychick)
Age Range: 6 months and up (as per Hippychick)
Size: Suitable for a waist size of up to 48 inches or 120cm, extension available. (as per Hippychick)
Available in 7 different colours.
Overall Score: 10/10
Recommended? Yes.
My Length of testing: 6 years +
Overview of Product
Length: Approx. 115cm
Width: Approx. 13cm
Height of Seat Back: Approx 17cm
Height of Seat Front: Approx 12cm
Width of Seat (at widest point): Approx. 20cm
Length of Seat (at longest point): Approx. 13cm.
Length of Strap: Approx. 63cm. (Extension strap is sold separately)
Carrying a toddler on your hip for extended periods is a strain on the body, uncomfortable for you and for the toddler. Hippychick claim that this product has been designed to alleviate this problem; to allow you to hold a toddler on your hip for an extended period without strain on your back and in comfort for your toddler.
This product was recommended to me when I had my first baby 7 years ago. I used it well into both my two boys second year and will use it again for babygirl. Hippychick recommends that it is used for babies 6 months and up (they are then old enough to sit astride and hold up their heads, but with my second baby I have used it as a support for my arm when holding my newborn. Now that he is over 6 months I have it on permanently at home and also when I am out and about and he wants to be carried.
Hippychick claim that the seat enables you to carry a baby/toddler without putting strain on your back and I agree with this 100%, however, I will say that I do suffer from ‘arm fatigue’ from holding him against me if I carry him for an extended period. It is important to note that the seat does allow you to carry them for extended periods, because you are not holding them ‘up and on’ your hip tightly, rather you are cradling them to stop them tipping backwards (or forwards if they are facing out) from the seat/shelf.
Another plus is that baby is sitting higher than if they were on your hip and is more easily able to see your face, and you theirs, and whats going on around them.
My views on Hippychick claims for the Hipster Seat
‘Suitable for a waist size of up to 48 inches or 120cm, extension available.’ I would agree with this, I have not used the extension however.
‘Strong, hardwearing fabric.’ Made of canvas , I have found the product to be extremely hard wearing. I have also not noticed any fading of the fabric. See my photos below for condition of mine, which I have had for 4 years+.
‘Super light.’ It weighs 356 grams, so yes, it is very light.
‘Simple, practical and easy to use.’ I agree with this.
‘Inward facing pockets for safe keeping passports, cash, credit cards, car keys etc.’ It does have an inward facing pocket, but when the foam seat is in place you can’t get much in there.
‘Machine washable.’ I have washed it following the instructions with no problems. I have only washed it once in the 2+ years I have used it. I have found no need to wash it more often.
‘When the child is older you can remove the seat and use it as a bum bag/money belt or simply as a straightforward back support.’ As a bum/bag money belt it would be very durable and easily hold the items Hippychick claims above. However its pretty big and noticeable. Good back support as it is wide and strong.
To sum up, this is a product I have owned for over four years and has now had a good two and a half years use with my babies. I recommend it, and would go as far as saying that it is a must have product. The product is so well wearing and durable that I would have no hesitation in putting it on eBay when my babies are too big for it. Check out the Hippychick web site for the full range of colours.
MamaSim @ How To Parent Today.
Hippychick seat in action
Care Label. Wash @30degrees, Do not Iron or Tumble Dry
Close up of material
Seat Pocket for Foam Insert
Left Hand Strap
Right Hand Strap
Without Foam Insert
Foam Seat Insert
Foam Seat Insert View 2
Foam Seat Insert View 3
*Any information in this review that is directly quoted from the company I will note (as per…..)
Mamasimx
Don’t forget to enjoy your day.