Valentines Day is approaching fast, the 2nd biggest card buying event after Christmas. We're never been big on Valentines in our household. We exchange cards, have a nice meal at home and that's about it. As a teenager I loved it, what better way to tell the gorge guy I'd been admiring from a far that I fancied him, albeit anonymously. This got me thinking about what Valentines means to me today, as a mother of 2 girls and wife to one who is in love with another (you can read about that here).

Christmas can be a hugely expensive time so we’ve been thinking about creative and thrifty ways to spread the festive love without blowing the budget. Here are a few ideas that have inspired us. We’ve chosen simple things so that you can get the kids involved in too. Wrapping paper This is a great activity [...]

I felt inspired to make damson vodka as a Christmas gift but was distressed to find it needed 3 months before it was ready for consumption. Grrrrr! If you felt inspired too, worry ye not, after a little research I found that if you're using just a litre or two of vodka there are other fruits/flavours that work in a fraction of the time.

Cherish & Cherubs, the new Online Boutique for vintage inspired gifts has really got mumzine talking. There are lots of websites out there claiming to source unique gifts away from the high street but I am yet to find one that has such a beautiful range of genuinely up-cycled and vintage inspired gifts. Cherish & Cherubs are offering mumzine readers 10% discount of all products (detail at the end of the post).