My dream bathroom

Today I was driving through the Derbyshire countryside when I drove past an imposing Georgian residence. It was tall, attractive and surrounded by a hedge crafted into animal shapes! Unfortunately I haven’t won the lottery, so I’ve got no chance of owning such a grand home for the foreseeable future. But that doesn’t mean I can’t improve my own modest and much loved home.

While I’m not in the market for building a billiard room any time soon, making my house feel a little grander is always an appealing proposition. Unfortunately I am actually very sentimental about many items within my home and the only room which I could happily gut is the bathroom.

I’ve written about our bathroom before and how I wanted to create a Victorian room complete with roll top bath and butler. Thankfully I never saw my ideas to fruition because I have been changing my mind and that might have been an expensive mistake. I wondered if a Victorian style could appear too cold and stark, making the room uninviting? Perhaps a modern look complete with clean lines and curved edges might look more relaxed.Tiles

While mulling over several options and annoying my husband with a huge batch of catalogues I had acquired, I watched a movie about a couple living in Morocco. Instantly I knew just how to redecorate! Moroccan style mosaic tiles, bright colours and jewelled fittings. Of course this would be a decadent design, but surely that’s what everyone wants within a bathroom!Mira Galena Shower

Shiny taps, atmospheric lighting and soft furnishings would set the scene. I currently have a telephone mixer tap which is lovely to look at, but does have its downsides. It’s directly connected to the taps and water pressure can suffer as a result. An electric shower would solve that problem and working independently from the taps sounds like a really great idea. I’d like a shower like this one called the Mira Galena, you can view the Mira electric shower range here. Mira also claim their showers last 50% longer, and as we do suffer from lime scale in our area that would be quite reassuring.London Bath

For the bath I’d love a super deep design, maybe freestanding to give an impact as you enter the room. I found this gorgeous one called the “London Bath”. Then I would hang soft draping curtains around the tub to add to the luxurious effect.house

Of course if remodelling is not an option (I’m working on my husband but he hasn’t agreed yet) and buying a new home is not on the cards, then you could always sew yourself a dream home until you can afford the real thing. I made this little beauty from wool felt and tweed fabrics. I’d build it in real life if I could but for now a cushion is as close as I’ll get.

A Day Out – Thomas Land at Drayton Manor

 

As I mentioned in my previous post, my family and I were invited along to Thomas Land at Drayton Manor. We viewed a special screening of Thomas the Tank Engine’s new movie ‘Thomas Tale of the Brave’. After the film we headed out into the park.Thomas Land

We began our day out with a ride on Thomas himself, complete with moving eyes!

IMG_0251Despite the traditional age of Thomas fans the world over, the park caters for just about everyone. My youngest is shy of most rides but there was plenty of non threatening fun which didn’t scare or concern. His favourite was Terence’s Driving School where he was let loose on a moving vehicle, it’s a good job those friendly theme park assistants have quick legs!

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My daughter’s favourite was Jeremy’s Flying Academy where she could control the height of her plane as she spun around.

IMG_0049For my son (who is a thrill seeker in training) there was the family friendly Troublesome Trucks roller coaster, he squealed with glee as he sped along the rails. I on the other hand (less keen on rides) actually felt very brave that I managed to join him!

IMG_0016While I enjoyed every ride that I went on, the children were even more impressed with the large selection that they were allowed to ride on alone.

IMG_9938We also managed to explore the rest of Drayton Manor and were pleasantly surprised by just how much there was to see. There’s a wonderful zoo complete with Panthers, Meerkats, Monkeys and even a tiger settling in.

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We pretended to be pirates and my kids were caught by a Great White Shark! We truly had a fabulous day and can’t wait to return to Drayton Manor soon.IMG_0118IMG_9925

 

 

 

Thomas Tale of the Brave DVD Review & competition!

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Thomas the tank engine is a beautiful blue steam engine which recalls Britain’s mastery of the rails and the age of steam. My whole family has grown up with him through his books, toys and TV shows. Now my own children enjoy watching his antics (now CGI based rather than animated) and own a huge collection of Thomas trains. Despite this we have never visited Thomas Land at Drayton Manor before, so when we were asked along to a special screening of Thomas’s brand new movie we just couldn’t say no! So today I am bringing you our Thomas Tale of the Brave DVD review and over the next few days I’ll pop up a post about all the fun we had at Thomas Land.

TOTB movie still

The films begins with a terrible storm which causes a landslide at the Sodor China Clay Pits. Thomas notices some strange footprints, but who could they belong too!? The engines of Sodor are divided in opinion on whether there is a real live monster stalking the rails of Sodor but one thing’s for sure it’s going to take one brave engine to solve this mystery!TOTB movie still 3

The movie also introduces some brand new trains to the Thomas world including Gator, Marion, Timothy and Reg. Without revealing too much of the story and giving away the mystery here is what my kids thought of the film.TOTB movie still 2

Engine N – I loved it, I like James best, he’s funny and naughty.

Conductor G – It was really exciting, I particularly like Thomas, he’s always been my favourite!

Driver I – I thought the film was brilliant and my favourite part was when Thomas meets Marion the digging train, she talks a lot and made me laugh.IMG_9964

From a parents point of view all three kids were transfixed for the full hour and entered into a state of blissful silence, you can’t really ask for more.

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There have also been some new toys released to coincide with the movie including Marion, Timothy, Gator and Scrap Heap Monster trains and a new Take-N-Play Roaring Dino Run set including Thomas.IMG_9956

Competition

Thomas&Friends _TOTB DVD artwork

To be in with a chance of winning your own copy of Tale of the Brave on DVD enter my brand new competition!

How To Enter

Entering couldn’t be simpler, just pop over to the Angel Eden Blog Facebook page and hit ‘like’ then either click the widget below or the ‘Competition’ tab on the Facebook page to register your entry.

For extra entries either:

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The competition will end at midnight on 20th September 2014 (UK residents only please).

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Make sure you leave me a way to contact you should you win.  Good Luck!

DVD Details

Release date:                    1 September 2014

RRP:                                     £12.99

Running time:                  68 minutes

Find out more about Thomas on the Thomas & Friends website www.thomasandfriends.com. You can keep track of all the latest Thomas & Friends news on Twitter and Facebook.