Author Archives: Abi

Halloween Ghost Decoration Craft for Kids

Posted on by Abi

halloweenbosmain

Boo!! Did I scare you?? Probably not but as Halloween is nearly upon us I thought I better give it a go. I’ve never been keen on the gory side of Halloween and my children don’t particularly like being scared but we’re all for Pumpkin carving, apple bobbing and other child friendly activities. As a Bostik craft ambassador I get to create child-friendly crafts every month, so this month it had to be a Halloween Ghost Decoration Craft for kids. This one (made by my son) has been named ‘Bounce!’

To make your own spooky pal you’ll need

Some fabric

Polystyrene ball

Bostik Glu dots

Bostik Sew simple glue

Buttons

Felt (to make a mouth)

Decorations – we used pumpkin ribbon and fusible beads

Elastic cord

Keyring

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Step 1

Start by cutting a rough square out from a piece of fabric. We used pinking shears as it prevents fraying and give the ghost a wiggly edge. Turn the fabric over so that the wrong side is facing up.

halloweenbos3Step 2

Nest cover half of the polystyrene ball with Bostik sew simple glue. Stick into the centre of your fabric and then gather the fabric around to stick into place.

halloweenbos4Step 3

Using a cocktail stick or sewer make a hole through the fabric into the polystyrene ball (might need an adult to do this bit). Stick in some elastic cord using the sew simple glue. We used black cord so that it wouldn’t show up at night. Now leave to dry.

halloweenbos5Step 4

Stick two buttons onto the fabric using Bostik glu dots. We used one larger and one smaller and two different colours to give our ghost a bit of character!

halloweenbos6Step 5

We used a moon shaped felt sticker to make the mouth, you could of course cut one out.

halloweenbos7Step 6

It’s time to decorate! My son cut small pumpkins off pumpkin trimming and stuck to the ghost using the sew simple glue.

halloweenbos8Step 7

Next he made some simple shapes from glow in the dark fusible beads (which Mummy ironed!) and these were stuck to the ghost using Glu dots.

halloweenbos9Step 8

Tie the elastic cord onto a keyring and your new friend is ready to play!

 

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What is there at Drayton Manor if you don’t like rides?

Posted on by Abi

PanoramaDraytonTheme Parks are great if you love the thrill of white knuckle rides but if a park doesn’t offer anything for people less keen to scream, then it can make for a disappointing day out. Standing on the side-lines or even worse acting as some kind of human coat-stand while your friends ride the rails of terror is absolutely no fun! Luckily I am an ambassador for my favourite theme park so I’m pretty familiar with all they have to offer. Today I’m talking to those chaps and chapettes who likes their days out to contain less g-force. So what is there at Drayton Manor if you don’t like rides? Absolutely loads! Plus you never have to step foot on a ride if you don’t want too.carouseldrayton

In the Main Park

The Carousel – Probably my personal favourite, ok it’s still a ride but it’s a pretty sedate one and it’s an awful lot of fun for big kids like myself.

Polperro Express – a cute little steam engine that drives around the lake. Watch the swans, ducks (or herons if you’re lucky) and relax safe in the knowledge that you’re not on Stormforce 10 (a water ride) that drips from above.

Drayton Queen Boat – take a leisurely boat trip across the lake aboard the Drayton Queen.

The 4D Cinema – Currently showing Yogi Bear in wondrous 4D! The cinema is so much fun for all ages and is bound to get you laughing.

Bryan’s Works Machines – Take some pennies and play on the old penny slot machines.

The Chairlift – Depending on your sensitivity to height then this one might be out, but these chairs take a gentle pace as they glide into the air so you can view the park from above.

Big Wheel – Another one not for the height sensitive, the big wheel is a relaxing ride of fun.

Various Games Stalls & the Arcade – these do come with associated costs, but hook-a-duck and basketball are always pretty easy going and lots of fun.

LizardThe Zoo

The zoo is full to bursting with all kinds of wonderful animals, including Lynx, Tigers, Monkeys, parrots and much more! If you watch my video at the end of this post you can see a few of my favourites.

RheaThe Farm Park

The farm park has quite a few more animals including Flamingo, Ostriches, Reindeer and more. Plus there’s the wonderful Discover Thomas exhibition where all the adults can reminisce watching the original Thomas the Tank engine ride around the track (he’s animated these days).

Video

My kids and I made a little video to show some of our favourite non-ride fun 🙂

Events

Drayton Manor hosts wonderful events all year round and they are bound to excite even the most ride resistant visitor. The next event is the epic War of the Worlds Firework spectacular!DraytonFireworks

The event takes place Friday 30th October, to Sunday 1st November. The fireworks begin at 7pm (last admission is 6pm), and a whole host of rides will remain open until 9pm. Plus there will be the amazing Firework display set to the War of the Worlds soundtrack.

Plus…

There’s Thomas Land for the smaller visitors with plenty of gentle rides or you can take a walk through the Dinosaur Trail and learn some new facts about your favourite dino friends.

Finally it would be remiss of me to mention the nature trail at Drayton. I must admit I haven’t managed to do this one myself as there is so much on offer at the park there just hasn’t been time… yet!

For more information pop over to the Drayton Manor website.

 

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Photography Wishlist for Bloggers

Posted on by Abi

Photos are important! They document the most important moments of our lives and if you’re a blogger they illustrate the story that you’re trying to tell your readers. But getting a photo to look just as you want can be quite another story altogether. The right equipment is vital to producing the best result. Unfortunately the ‘right’ equipment doesn’t always come cheap, so today I’m posting up my basic photography wishlist for bloggers looking to improve their photographic skills.

1. First on the list has to be the all-important camera! Don’t make the mistake of jumping the gun and investing in a DSLR unless you have some idea of how to control it manually. Mirrorless cameras often produce fabulous results. Consider video quality too if you don’t want to carry a separate camcorder. A good all-rounder for all skill levels would be something like the Panasonic Lumix GH4 4K camera, it’s even sealed against water and dust (yey for those used to the British weather!)Lumix4K

2. Get ye a decent camera phone! Trust me when I tell you that this is an important step. No matter how often you take your camera with you there’ll always be that perfect moment/picture that gets missed if you don’t have a viable alternative at your disposal. As most of us carry our phones at all times it makes sense to pick a model with a decent camera. Earlier this year Tech-Advisor did a great run down of the best models currently available, so pick one that meets all your phone needs.iphone6

3. Software! We all love producing amazing photos but sometimes it just doesn’t happen. Maybe the sun disappeared just as you pressed the shutter button, perhaps artificial lighting or flash washed out all the colour. Whatever your photographic ailment the right software can help. Start out by using a free software such as PicMonkey and see just what an improvement you can make. The skies the limit in terms of what you can achieve (and the money you can spend!) so make sure you trial any paid software before committing. Adobe offers trials on some of their most popular photo editing software and they are definitely worth a play with.picmonkey

4. A fast SD card. If you want to take a quick succession of pics or even a video then you need to invest in some decent SD cards. Consider both speed class and transfer rate. This is one area were skimping on a cheaper card will cost you in the longer term. Take a look at Alphr.com for a more thorough explanation.SDcard

5. Accessories!!! Have some fun with your new kit and invest in some fun and functional new accessories like a fabulous new camera bag or phone case.camerabag

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