Category Archives: Reviews & giveaways

Bonding over gingerbread cookies

December 11, 2011 By in Reviews & giveaways Tags: , 12 Comments

I was so excited when my Nutcracker’s gingerbread cookie kit arrived at my door. And guess what, the box actually doubles up as a drum set, and it comes complete with a pair of drumsticks! So cool!

I’ve decorated a gingerbread house before, so I was bracing myself for the mess. But I was pleasantly surprised when I read the instructions for the icing sugar. It was actually quite simple, and didn’t require me to dig out my electronic beaters. I just used a fork to beat the egg white (of half an egg) in a large bowl until it was bubbly and frothy, and then added the sifted icing sugar.

When you’re done mixing the icing sugar, just pour it into the piping bag provided and cut a small hole at the tip, and off you go! The icing acts as the decoration for the cookie as well as the ‘glue’ to hold the gummies, mini-chocolates, and silver sugar balls in place.

*Note: It’s harder to decorate when the icing is too thin and runny, so do make sure the mixture is stiff enough.

Big hands and little hands. This activity is fun for both little ones and adults! You can see some fine motor skills at work here, particularly when it came to the tiny silver sugar balls. For Vera, these gummies were relatively easy to handle.

This must be the hottest gingerbread beach-babe mama ever seen. Goodness me…I think daddy was having a bit too much fun decorating this one!

Here’s Vera giving the icing sugar a go. You can tell she’s pretty happy being able to play with the sugary gummies. Took quite a bit of willpower not to stuff them into her mouth first. So, this activity actually helps to train your toddler’s ability to defer gratification too! Hmm…

Here’s daddy drawing a cross on a heart-shaped gingerbread. How apt for this special season.

Here’s a Christmas tree decorated with the initial V - for Vera!

Here’s our little family. From left: baby Javier, mummy (ahem, you can stop laughing now please), daddy, and Vera. And of course, Christ as the head of our household.

The best part for Vera? Getting to munch her handiwork. This is one fun and yummy family activity that involves all 5 senses. Great for kiddie parties too, I reckon.

And what a lovely gift tag to remind us of the real meaning of Christmas.

I didn’t know that the simple act of decorating gingerbread cookies could be so much fun and enriching for the entire family.

I think this makes an excellent gift / family activity this Christmas. If you’re keen to find out more, you can visit GingerBells on Tumblr and Facebook. Besides gingerbread products, they also do Christmas mince pies and cake lapis. They also have a store at Lau Pa Sat, number 63A, that is open during the Christmas season, so if you’re in the area, do drop by.[Just received an update that GingerBells will be at Northpoint Shopping Centre (1st floor) till 17th December. Do check them out if you are around the area!]

Happy decorating! =)

I received a personal set of this nutcracker gingerbread cookies for the purpose of this review. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own.

Looking for personalised gifts this Christmas? Try Tolalu.com

November 10, 2011 By in Reviews & giveaways Tags: , 1 Comment

Christmas is just around the corner, and you may have already started to look around for gifts. If you have little ones to shop for, a personalised something would probably make a nice gift.

Well, you can now shop for these personalised somethings from the comfort of your own armchair. Enter Tolalu.com. The new e-store on the block stocks puzzles, stickers, notebooks, story books, calendars, placemats, wall stickers, and more. What’s special is that all items can be personalised with your child’s name, and you can even customise select items with your own photo.

When you enter the site, the first screen prompts you to enter a child’s name.

Once you have entered a name, you can start shopping! Simply select a category, for instance, stickers, and each of the designs will display your child’s name so you can have a good idea of how it will look like.

Aren’t these monster stickers cute?

At first, I tried to order two sets, one with Vera’s name, and one with Javier’s. But I wasn’t too sure how to go about doing it. In the end, I realised that it is quite simple. On the item’s page itself, click the ‘Customise’ button just below the item and ‘Add another Name’. Then adjust the quantity to make sure the right item is matched with the right name.

Once you’re done, and happy with your purchases, enter your details and delivery address, and proceed for payment. (Tip: ‘LIKE’ their Facebook page to get a 5% discount.)

Quite a fuss-free affair, right? ;)

Anyway, I decided to get a puzzle in the end. Can you guess which one I chose?

Bonus points if you guessed the monkey.

Here’s Vera, beaming happily after finishing the puzzle. (Of course, with good ol’ mum helping her along.) I found that the puzzle pieces are quite large and sturdy, making it easy for small hands to handle them. However, as all the jigsaw pieces actually fit in any hole, unlike traditional jigsaws where only the right piece fits, I reckon the puzzles are more suitable for an older child, perhaps 3 years and above.

Vera enjoyed putting it together all the same. It also helps that she has recently started to recognise her name. The first time we completed it, she was so amused by the fact that her name was on it. She kept repeating “Why the monkey write my name!?”

If you fancy some personalised gifts and a fuss-free shopping experience this Christmas, do check out what Tolalu has to offer.

Oh yes, if you spend $60 or more, they will waive the delivery fee of $7, otherwise applicable for all purchases.

Happy shopping!

Note: The product in this review has been sponsored by Tolalu. However, all opinions expressed here are my own.

Winners of the Art Bug giveaway

September 22, 2011 By in Reviews & giveaways 3 Comments

Here are the lucky winners of the Art Bug giveaway!

  1. Apple
  2. Madeline
  3. pc
  4. Beanbean
  5. Jasmine

Congratulations! The organizers will be contacting you shortly via email regarding the collection of the vouchers. I hope you and your kids enjoy the classes! =)

Do stay tuned for more fun giveaways. And do remember to LIKE my new Facebook page so that you can get more updates there. :)

Note: Winners have been selected using random.org, after eliminating comments that are not related to the contest.

Art Bug is contagious (Exciting giveaway!)

September 13, 2011 By in Reviews & giveaways, Toddler Tags: , , 12 Comments

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up. ~Pablo Picasso

The quote above sums up my thoughts after I attended Art Improv - a social art event hosted by Art Bug over the weekend.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. The email invite had written ‘social painting’ and ‘art jam session’, so I was wondering if I was supposed to party with paints (something my daughter loves to do), or if I was supposed to make jam with some new friends.

Well, it was closer to the former. Except it was more like making new friends while partying with paint.

So I was infinitely glad to meet mummy-blogger Sandra and daddy-blogger Edmund there, along with their mini-mes.

The theme, we were told, was food. Ahhh, glorious, something so close to our hearts. But still, inspiration doesn’t quite happen automatically; I sat and stared at the empty square canvas set neatly like a plate in front of me.

And it stared back.

I looked over at the kids table, and they were busy painting their ice-cream boards already!

Hmm...sesame and green tea ice-cream?

Thankfully, the people at Art Bug were really nice. Jaelle, the founder of Art Bug, told us we weren’t going to get graded. *whew* And Jo-rain, the friendly art teacher, also gave us some tips.

Just get started! She said.

Sigh, we adults have too much baggage on our minds. I walked gingerly to the colourful paint pantry, which seemed to be beckoning to me (or was that the buffet table?)…and I started to dish out some pretty colours onto a plate.

Empty canvas and paintbrushes, paint and...ketchup?

Something about the colours helped to get the gastro-creative juices flowing - of course the food and conversation around the table helped. (I can never work on an empty stomach.)

Where all the 'budding' adult artists sat

My first attempt was a steak and potato dish, which ended up rather blah, so that’s all you’ll ever hear of it. I quickly got a new canvas and started another piece, inspired by my recent visit to Vineyard restaurant - mm-mmm, the lemon lava cake! Sorry if mine doesn’t look half as delicious…

My rendition of Vineyard restaurant's lemon lava cake. Erm...not quite there yet. Pass the chocolate sauce please!

There’s something quite liberating about doing art the way I like it, and not caring about what the world thinks.

Think like a child.

Paint like a child.

And…have FUN!

I think I was getting in touch with the child-artist in me again. :P

Here’s a video of the event.

You can also view more pictures on Art Bug’s facebook page.

Here comes the exciting bit.

Art Improv is a curated single-session experience perfect for a child’s birthday party or a corporate networking event.

and…

Art Bug is offering a special giveaway to 5 mamawearpapashirt readers! Simply choose from the following to win:

A) 20% discount for a birthday party for 15 children held at Art Bug (This means savings of $225 off the usual price of $1125!)

OR

B) $30 Art Bug voucher redeemable for art classes

All you need to do is:

  1. Comment on this post stating your preferred choice (that is, A or B)
  2. Subscribe to my feed, by clicking this link
  3. Pass the art bug on by clicking the Facebook or Twitter share button at the end of this post

That’s it! =)

Hurry now and give your child a chance to catch the art bug!

The contest ends 21 September, 9pm. Winners will be selected randomly, and informed the next day, 22 September!

Terms and conditions:

- Art Bug’s birthday party package is tailored for a minimum of 15 children, and includes food & drinks, paint buffet, event photography and 2 art educators experienced with children.

- Bookings need to be made before 31 October 2011, and is valid from now till 31 December 2011.

Thanks, Art Bug, for hosting such a cool event, and for breaking some of the barriers in our heads about art.

*Art Bug is a social enterprise focused on making art sociable, accessible and addictive. Profits from the centre are channelled back into research and curriculum development of arts education for the young, as well as art outreach and partner projects.

P.S. I will be doing another post on art for children soon, so watch this space! =)