As parents, we often find ourselves torn between wanting a space that reflects our sense of style and ensuring that it is suitable for our little ones. With these simple yet effective tips, you can craft a living room that strikes the perfect balance between sophistication and functionality.

Durable Fabrics and Playful Patterns

Opt for durable fabrics that can withstand the inevitable spills and stains that come with having children around. Consider incorporating playful patterns and textures that not only add depth to your decor but also cleverly conceal any minor mishaps.

Multifunctional Furniture Magic

Embrace the versatility of multifunctional furniture. Invest in ottomans with hidden storage or stylish coffee tables that can double as a play area. These pieces not only optimise space but also add an element of practicality to your living room.

Rugs for Comfort and Easy Clean-up

Area rugs can be a blessing in disguise when it comes to a kid-friendly living room. Look for rugs that are not only soft and cosy but also easy to clean. They provide a designated play area for your children while effortlessly tying the room together.

Calling in the Experts

Despite all precautions, carpets can take a beating in a kid-friendly living room. In case of stubborn stains or thorough cleaning needs, don’t hesitate to call in professional carpet cleaning services.

Expert teams like the aptly named Carpet Cleaning Pros have the necessary tools and expertise to ensure your carpets remain fresh and clean, maintaining the overall appeal of your living room.

Strategic Storage Solutions

Keep clutter at bay with strategic storage solutions. Consider open shelves for toys and books, stylish baskets for quick clean-ups, and sleek cabinets to stow away larger toys. By integrating these storage options, you can maintain an organised space without compromising on style.

Kid-Proof Your Decor

Secure valuable decor items and fragile accessories by placing them out of reach of little hands. Alternatively, choose items that are child-friendly, such as unbreakable vases or wall art that adds a playful touch to the room.

Create a Kid-Friendly Corner

Dedicate a small corner of the room to your children’s activities. Set up a small table and chairs for drawing or crafting, and display their artwork proudly to foster a sense of pride and belonging. This not only encourages creativity but also adds a charming touch to your living space.

A Splash of Colourful Accents

Infuse vibrant and colourful accents into your living room to create a lively yet sophisticated ambiance. Experiment with vibrant throw pillows, funky wall art or a statement rug to inject personality into the room, making it a welcoming space for both adults and children alike.

Kid-friendly and stylish

By implementing these practical yet creative tips, you can transform your living room into a stylish haven that effortlessly accommodates the energy and joy that children bring. Remember, a kid-friendly living room doesn’t have to compromise on style. Embrace the chaos and let your living room reflect the beautiful journey of parenthood.

The post Crafting Chic Comfort: The Art Of Creating A Stylish And Kid-Friendly Living Room appeared first on The Parent Social.

Traditional wet wipes

I used countless wet wipes when my children were babies. Then I used many more to clean bums properly as they got older. Most recently, my eldest uses them by the dozen to freshen up now she’s started her periods. They’ve been a bulky staple in my bag for many years.

Despite being a fan of their cleaning power, I’ve always known wet wipes are bad for the environment. I didn’t realise quite how bad though; the UK throws away 11 billion of them each year. They also cause 300,000 annual sewer blockages. We’ve been there ourselves after a couple of incidents where the children have thrown them down the loo by mistake.

Wype: eco-friendly toilet wipe gel

Wype is a convenient, eco-friendly alternative to wet wipes. You apply the vegan, cruelty-free gel – which is made with 99% natural ingredients including aloe vera, camomile and coconut – to your regular toilet paper and it transforms it into a biodegradable and flushable wet wipe. 

The gel has a good consistency and one squirt/pump is enough for a single piece of toilet tissue. After folding the paper (to spread the gel), it has the perfect moisture level and leaves you feeling fresh and super clean after use.

Wype product details

The 100ml bottle contains enough gel for 200 pumps, which the makers say, on average, lasts one person 4-6 weeks, but hey we’re all different It is also gentle enough to use on babies.

The bottle (recyclable aluminium) is really nicely branded so isn’t embarrassing on display in your bathroom or in your bag if you’re out and about and using public loos. At £9.99, it works out at 5p a wipe; the refill at £5.99 brings it down to 3p per wipe.

Boots now stocks the Wype starter kit online.

Find out more

Visit https://wypeuk.com/ for more details on the range and the company, which won the 2021 Monaco Ocean Protection Challenge for preventing 3.5 million wet wipes from polluting the environment.

The post Wype: Eco-friendly wet wipes that are peachy appeared first on The Parent Social.

Milk delivery and grocery delivery

It’s not just the nostalgia of the iconic glass milk bottles sat on your doorstep of a morning that makes this a great service… it’s the fact that it’s so damn convenient.

Milk delivery is just one part of the service. Aside from delivering the white stuff in every variety I can think of, milk&more delivers bakery products, dairy, fresh food, pantry items, drinks (you can even get Fever-Tree tonic water for your gin), snacks, home & garden bits and gift boxes and hampers. It also has a huge organic range in addition to gluten-free, dairy free and vegan ranges. There’s even a section dedicated to award winning products.

You can manage it all – very easily – from your online account, but customer services are easy to get hold of by phone.

What I love:

• I can set up a regular order – I do this for milk, bread, eggs, butter and orange juice. This means that I always have a set amount of these items arriving a week. I can change this at any time
• You get deliveries three times a week
• I can amend, delete or add to my order up until 9pm the night before delivery
• It is eco-friendly as you can shun the plastic. I get my milk delivered in bottles, which are reused many, many times. I’ve just switched over to orange juice in bottles too. milk&more also has a ‘plastic alternatives’ range
• There are always special offers on everyday items
• Customers get sporadic free samples of new products to try
• I can emergency order stuff I have forgotten at the supermarket
• It’s really simple to suspend your orders if you’re going on holiday

The joy of broken biscuits!

Some of our favourite things

Like I said it isn’t just milk. We get a lot of last minute groceries and we have a number of treat items that we get from time-to-time. We’re big fans of the cakes and my three love the smoothies. However, the pièce de résistance is the Bumper Box of Broken Biscuits… You get a whopping 1.3kg of biscuits (which actually aren’t that broken) for a mere £3.95. The girls absolutely love this treat as do my husband and I!

Milk&More Christmas 2020 

The Christmas products are now available and there are plenty of goodies for the festive season including gorgeous Cartwright & Butler hampers.

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I can honestly say milk&more is a fantastic service, which I wouldn’t be without.

You might also like:

• Three Ways to Save on Your Household Budget
• Lockdown Shopping List (and no, toilet rolls aren’t included)

The post Milk Delivery Service – a Review of milk&more appeared first on The Parent Social.

I have had the opposite problem whilst decorating my five-year-old daughter’s room. Sofia has very definite ideas about what she wants.

Colour choices for a child’s bedroom

For Sofia, like for Aerosmith, pink is the love she’s discovered. I hate pink (and frills; I’m more a minimalist kind of a person). We compromised on a vibrant purple, Sofia’s second favourite colour, and something that doesn’t make me heave. We put down a  wooden floor and have white plantation shutters on order, so it’s fairly neutral.

Furniture

Then it’s all been about clever detailing, so that we’re both happy with the look and the room has a long enough shelf-life, but can easily be adapted along the line.

We got a white wooden mid sleeper cabin bed, which has a play tent and pull out desk with book shelf. It’s very versatile and the idea is that it’ll grow with her. At the moment she doesn’t use the desk, but uses the play tent. I’m sure the opposite will be true in a few years, and at that point we can dispense of the tent and add another mattress underneath for sleepovers (by the way Sofia has been badgering me about sleepovers since she was four). Similarly at the moment Sofia has a bed set with butterflies on, which could be changed later on for a more grown up look. It’s a great bed, the only downside is, it’s a bugger to make as the duvet doesn’t fit well within the frame; probably why the promotional shots don’t have a bed spread on.

We also got a white bookcase from Vertbaudet, which looks good in the room and has very handy, deep pull out drawers on wheels at the bottom and compartments; perfect for storing bits and bobs.

Details and finishing touches

Sofia loves butterflies (and fairies), so I also got a butterfly rug to put by the ladder. It gives the room a cosier feel as a wooden floor can look a bit cold.

Continuing the butterfly theme, we got giant wall stickers from JoJo Maman Bebe. These were really good value. They’re really easy to remove (we made several mistakes when applying them!), yet stay well-attached to the wall once you’ve got it right. They’ll be easy to remove when she grows out of them.

One of the many designs from Candy Queen Designs

Her existing light dimmer switch is grotty and boring so I hunted online for a new one. I came across the fabulous Candy Queen Designs website. As the site says, light switches rarely evoke a strong reaction when it comes to style and design and often get overlooked but it’s the small details that make a difference in a room. Too right! These are really are original and quirky, and a fantastic finishing touch. The switch itself  is clear resin with real candy and biscuits embedded inside!! I thought they were brilliant so immediately ordered one of the fairy designs. Sofia was absolutely thrilled with it! After Tweeting my feedback they kindly offered to send me another one for PR purposes. I gladly accepted knowing that we’d be decorating the twins’ room next.

Sofia’s fairy door

Our other little finishing touch is a Fairy Doorz. These are cute, handmade, little wooden ‘fairy’ doors, which attach to the skirting boards and can be personalised. I bought one for Sofia’s room and then decided that they’d make great gifts as well, so ordered another one.

Next project

We’ve now started on the twins’ room and have opted for a nice neutral colour. It’s going to be about the details once more. We’ve gone for wall stickers again (see below), and of course have our fairy light switch…

Flowers of Spring Wall Stickers by Djeco in the twins’ room

The post When tastes clash – decorating a child’s bedroom appeared first on The Parent Social.