Wilderness Festival 2012

Last weekend I did something completely out of character. I closed down my email, switched off my computer, packed the car and I forgot about work. Really forgot about work and I never do that. My inability to switch off is quite possibly the trait I dislike the most about myself but I'm my own boss and the buck stops with me. I have a family to support and I do what I do to provide for them. That's what I tell myself at least.

I packed the girls into the car and off we went to the stunning Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire for the Wilderness Festival. 

This was to be my first festival experience with children but even more epic than that, this was to be my first camping experience with children.

Luckily we were spending the weekend in the company of a seasoned camper with a tent big enough to accommodate us all. (Us all equals, Biba, Betty and me and camping Jedi Claire with her mini me, LL thrown in for good measure.) 

What she failed to tell me was that she usually turns up after her strapping husband had dealt with the tent creating and the beer has hit the perfect temperature for consumption.

We didn't give up though (because we had no choice) and after battling with the tent for over three hot and sticky hours, victory was ours and the Wilderness called.

By Friday evening the site was already buzzing and we flitted around before settling with some friends outside the amazing Bubble Inc emporium, complete with a bubble master who could have easily given Johnny Depp's Willy Wonker a run for his money. The girls were hooked. All three of them and time flew past.

Biba playing bubbles

The big Friday night event was Secret Cinema's Bugsy Malone. Yes, we've already seen it twice but this promised to culminate in the biggest splurge fight ever. It's what attracted us to the festival in the first place but kicking off at 11pm was simply too late for families. We were disappointed to say the least.

On Saturday morning our first priority was to fill up with food. We planned to head straight over to the dedicated children's area so that the girls could unleash their creativity for a couple of hours whilst we showed minimal input and had a good old gas.

Sidetracked by a sign for THE VINTAGE FESTIVAL, we changed direction, took in the cool vintage market and chanced upon a tent dedicated to children's craft activities. Free children's craft activities and the girls were off in a flash.

Making stuff 

Betty and LL went off to make stitch-less tu-tu's but eagle eyed Biba spotted a Dr Marten's T-shirt that was about to be cut up and 'up-cycled' into a knitted, faceless, brand less, scarf. She swooped like a true fashionista, fluttered her eyelashes at the knitting circle and in under a minute the T-shirt, in its oversized glory was residing about her person.

It's interesting to see this brand love blossom in her. Earlier this year she sketched out a boot design idea, found Dr Martens address online, put her drawing in an envelope and posted it off to their head office. 

As a parent you presume that's that. But not only did she get a reply via email. She also received a handwritten letter from the head designer and a bag of Dr Marten's goodies. 

Because of that I really do believe that she will be brand loyal for life. I know that I would.

Saturday evening after an exhausted LL was tucked up and snuggly in her pushchair we headed back over to the Vintage area. The girls went to their first ever roller disco and we drank cocktails whilst nodding to 80's disco in the dark. Happy days...

When you are 2, the party only lasts as long as you do...

After a spot of vintage tea dancing we were ready to drop and once again missed out on the Secret Cinema show. We trundled back to our tent as eager party goers, dressed to impress passed us on their way to the secret masked ball by the lake.

No Cinders moment for us though. Back at the tent, we toasted marshmallows, giggled and flaked out for the night.

Sunday morning and we were off for a swim. We'd used diversion tactics for most of Saturday but there was no getting out of it. Tent packed, cars packed, off we went, following the woodland trail down to the stunning lake.

Wilderness Lake

The girls were in like a shot. I abstained, but then I know how cold and grim lake water is and I have no wish to put even a toe near it again - ever!

Wilderness swimming

If I'm honest, Wilderness Festival was over too soon. We had a really good time just chilling and chatting, with no agenda, no work, no phones and no worries and it really was just what we needed. We were so slack that the pictures here are THE ONLY ones we took and we always take photos, of everything. 

That said, there were things that weren't perfect like the emphasis on late night activity, the lack of toilets, advance schedule information, the fact we didn't see Bugsy Malone and... well that's it really.

It's quite something to witness a festival from the absolute, polar opposite, demographic than you are used to and as the late night party animals started to surface late on Sunday afternoon, I wouldn't have swapped places with them for the world.

Will I go back to Wilderness Festival next year? YES, absolutely and as it was sold out this year I suggest you think about getting your tickets now. You won't be sorry.

Read Claire's review over on Bambino Goodies.

Disclosure: I attended the festival on a family press pass. All words and views expressed are my own unless I stole them from Claire or the girls.

Philips PerfectCare Silence Rocks!

Sometimes being a blogger is just plain awesome. 

Being given the opportunity to test the Philips PerfectCare Silence Steam Generator Iron was one of those moments (what can I say? I'm a bit anal when it comes to the crease of my clothes).

You clearly get what you pay for in the ironing stakes because at around £300 the PerfectCare Silence is quite easily the most expensive piece of ironing kit that I've ever laid my hands on but now I've tried it I would never go back to my bog standard iron.

Why is it so great?

The blurb promises to make ironing a more relaxing experience but I was so excited I kind of missed that point altogether!

I did race through the rather gigantic ironing pile in a whizz as the steam makes banishing creases effortless. 

Having a designer in the house means that our iron gets quite a workout when its sampling time and the PerfectCare gets Yan's seal of approval too.

The large water tank gives you around 2 hours ironing time, without having to refill and you can use it vertically on curtains and hanging garments.

The downside, not that it's an issue for me is the size. The unit is quite a lot bigger than a standard iron and it's arrival did force a full scale sort out of the utility room, but it needed doing anyway.

My love for the PerfectCare Silence is so strong that I created a Pop Art portrait in her honour. And for the record, we will never, ever be parted, so don't even suggest it.

Thank you to Philips for sending me this amazing bit of kit and for making me tidy the utility room.

Sunset : Silent Sunday

For Silent Sunday.

The Gallery : Trains, Planes & Automobiles

I've just spotted this week's theme in The Gallery and I couldn't really not post could I? If you follow me you may already be aware of my dedicated London Underground Lover blog, if you haven't stopped by please do.

Kings Cross St Pancras, Picadilly Line. My entrance point to London town.

For The Gallery.

Need a phone? Visit Dial A Phone

Despite being a family of gadget lovers, I've resisted letting my children have mobile phones of their own. They have iPads and the ability to message and email through various apps on them and as they don't go anywhere on their own they really haven't needed phones of their own. But with Sonny getting ready for high school I've relented!

Sony Ericsson Experia Ray

For the last few weeks we've been trying out the Sony Ericsson Experia Ray. This super cute smartphone stands out from the crowd with its candy bar design that reminds me of the old Sony Ericsson W800 Walkman phone that I so loved back in 2005.

Old School Sony Ericsson W800

It uses the Android Gingerbread operating system which in all honesty is a bit of a mystery to me (being the Mac girl that I am) but the kids took over and were downloading apps and linking Twitter and Facebook accounts in no time.

The screen feels small to me but the speed that it switches between apps, the awesome battery life and the 8.1 megapixel are all pretty impressive. 

I can't get to grips with the ancient feeling Half QWERTY keypad, it feels so slow and clunky when you are used to racing around an iPhone or Blackberry but I am just being picky - the kids love it.

Its also surprisingly sturdy and doesn't seem to mind being dropped at all (which is pretty important as its been dropped too many times for my liking).

The good bits : Small, light, amazing battery life, crisp beautiful screen, camera

The bad bits : Fiddly keyboard, not great for large hands

Do your children have mobile phones? How old were they when you bought them and do you have any make / model suggestions? 

Thank you to Dial A Phone for sending this sim free Sony Ericsson Experia Ray that I've simply added to my own business contract with O2. The Dial A Phone ordering service was simple and delivery was swift. They work with all the major phone networks offering contract and Pay As You Go options across a wide range of mobile phone manufacturers, making it the perfect one stop mobile phone shop.

www.dialaphone.co.uk