I have the great privilege of taking the reins of the @Ireland Twitter account this week, from this morning until Sunday evening. The account is given to a new person every week and I think I'm the first from Northern Ireland to have a chance to tweet for the whole island.
If you have Twitter you can follow @Ireland this week and see what I'm up to.
Does anyone else find their kitchen's supply of knives seems to disappear over time? I think it's a symptom of husbands using them for repairs (mine fitted our car radio with a knife and fork). If the knives are there, they blunt very quickly, so I'm glad my new Stellar Colourtone knives come with their own sheaths. It also makes them safe to bring on picnics or BBQs.
They are very reasonably priced from £4.00 with a set of three for only £14.50 on Amazon. Plus, they are pretty. There will be a ban on these being used for DIY purposes.
Most images from www.LegoGameofThrones.com
If your a night out, or big event coming up, it can be tricky picking something unique to wear, without being dressed the same as someone else. Here's a handy, little store to bookmark, www.Zalando.co.uk
It's the UK branch of German department store Zalando, and it stocks absolutely everything, in well known brands as well as chic brands you might not have seen before. European style is classic, sassy and everything is well priced.
I picked up myself a gorgeous, petrol colour bangle from a brand I hadn't come across in any UK originating department stores. I also treated myself to a handy, little bowed, elastic waist denim colour skirt for pulling on quickly should the sun return. Lastly, because Zalando also has a wide range of household goods, I replaced our poor weather-beaten door mat with a comical moose-print one.
Give them a visit yourself- Zalando.
Hand Drawn Creative is Neal McCullough, another Bangor Northern Ireland resident who's illustrations I absolutely love. He is a few sales off reaching 500 sales on his Etsy Store and promises the 500th customer a surprise along with their crisp, handsome print. Check out the store here http://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/handdrawncreative.
Neal also has t-shirts available this week of the Hand Drawn Logo via http://www.misterdressup.com/
Go Splash are handbag sized, low calorie water flavourings. Basically juice dilute for on the go. I don't really do 'bad' reviews, but to tell you the truth I'm stuck trying to get my head round why you would need to carry dilute. If you are buying a bottle of water out and about, you can just as easily buy a low calorie juice. Likewise, ordering free tap water in a restaurant and whipping out the Go Splash! isn't going to endear you to the staff. The only thing I could come up with would be if you were somewhere like a theme park. You could carry a bottle to fill at water fountains, then add your squirt of Go Splash! to encourage your child to drink if they aren't keen on plain water. I suppose it might also be good for glasses of water in the office, without having to store a giant 1 litre bottle of dilute in your drawer.
But at £2.45 for a tiny bottle, it's expensive compared to larger bottles of dilute available for at home. Maybe I'm missing something really obvious, but its not something I would use. Available at supermarkets.
A bit of a local blog post today, but for all my North Down readers, this could be a useful one.
Happy Town, Newtownards' biggest & best soft play area is offering a super package of unlimited visits through out July and August for a set cost of £50, and £40 for each additional child. When I saw this on their Facebook page I breathed a sigh of relief, as that's my summer sorted.
My son is an only child, and I'm a stay-at-home blogger. The eight weeks' holiday we get from school here in Northern Ireland is an awfully long time to fill with entertainment for one child who hasn't siblings to get up to no good with.
My plan is to use the unlimited pass not just for his enjoyment, but with Happy Town's free wifi and delicious cafe, I can get my normal amount of blogging done while he's busy with new friends. It's the ideal set up. Happy Town is very spacious, even on a Saturday visit you'll always get a seat and table. Uniquely for a soft play area they also have a stage set up, and the enthusiastic employees are more like a Butlins' troop. They have the children gathering to the stage with dance demos, talent contests and games.
So that's my summer plans sorted out, anyone else local joining me for a Happy Town time throughout July and August? Email Lauren@HappyTown.uk.com for more details, otherwise simply sign up for your pass on your next visit.
As heard on BBC Radio 6's Lauren Laverne Show.
