Comfort & Joy... My Christmas PJ Picks

Hello!

How are you doing? I hope you enjoyed my last Christmas themed post.  I am here with my second festive themed post tonight.  I have been spying some great PJs on the market but this year (as am turning 30) I really fancy some, 'grown up' PJs.

So with that in mind, here are my festive PJ picks:

I decided to include 2 different styles that have caught my eye.  The first are dreamy pink PJs.  I love both pairs that I have included here.  I love the pair with black piped edging and the shorts for bottoms.  Shorts would work really well for me living in the Middle East and actually I always loved short PJs in the winter in the UK because the heating always made me hot anyway! The star print on this pair is a fab nod to the festive season without adorning the words, 'elf in training' across your chest! 😂

This gorgeous pair are from Topshop and you can find them here https://m.topshop.com/en/tsuk/product/clothing-427/lingerie-nightwear-6914422/pink-star-jacquard-shirt-8240114

The second pink set of PJs are from Victoria's Secret.  These are a perfect example of a classic stripy satin pair of PJs.  I love how traditional yet luxurious they are.  I can just imagine sitting round the tree on Christmas morning wearing these! They are a great alternative to going the whole hog with festive PJs.  These will certainly see you into 2019 and beyond.  You can find them here  https://ww.victoriassecret.com/sleepwear/shop-all-sleep/the-satin-pj?ProductID=299752&CatalogueType=OLS

Now on to my favourite pairs in the post.

The first are if you're feeling particularly fancy as they are from the exquisite Liberty of London.
Aren't they just beautiful?  A classic, traditional pair of Christmas Pajamas which I have no doubt would see you through many a Christmas because after all they are from Liberty. Enough said.
You can find them here https://www.libertylondon.com/uk/liberty-christmas-tana-lawn-cotton-long-pyjama-set-R246045006.html?dwvar_000608213_color=31-NAVY#sz=60&start=61

Finally my absolute favourite pair from Marks and Spencers.  I just love how quirky these are.  They are traditional but modern and I just LOVE them. I mean come on, who doesn't love a festive flamingo?!
You can find them herehttps://www.marksandspencer.com/satin-safari-print-long-sleeve-pyjama-set/p/p60197761?image=SD_02_T37_1923J_F4_X_EC_90&color=NAVYMIX&prevPage=plp&pdpredirect and you are totally free to blame me for enabling you to buy these! 😍

There we have it some of my favourite PJs out on the market this festive season.  Check in again soon for another festive post.

Thanks for stopping by,

Shop small in 2018.

So,  I wasn't sure whether to write about this now or save it for February (I am longing for pay day don't know about anyone else).  But, after watching so many lovely ladies on Instagram supporting small brands over the Christmas period, I really wanted to write a post about which small brands we love and why.

All my life, my dad has run his own business.  It's a football merchandise business and I spent many a weekend working for him.  He, pretty much, works every day of the year with really long hours so I have seen first hand the blood, sweat, tears and passion that goes into running your own business.  This is why I think it is so important to support small brands and help their business grow if you can. At the end of the day,  supporting the brands I am going to feature in this post allows a mama to keep doing what she loves and spend more time with her children too - whilst allowing you to enjoy amazing products.

I hope you enjoy this post; let's get into it.

Brand 1.  Birdies and Bearcubs http://www.birdiesandbearcubs.co.uk

This is a brand I have been admiring for about two years now.  They are a children's clothing brand and do a few items for adults too... after all twinning is winning!  They stock tees, sweaters, hats and hoodies.  Our most favourite items are the tees and sweaters.  Most recently,  we purchased their special edition Santa tees. For Christmas,  Posey received the gorgeous red 'we both matter tee' and Lochann got the Mumma's boy tee in a beautiful burgundy colour.  I also have my eye on the, 'darling you're different' tee for Posey and the, 'I am enough' tee for myself.

The quality of this range is really brilliant, I honestly cannot fault it.  The clothes are really comfortable and my children love wearing them.  In fact,  my son often strops if his momma's boy tee isn't clean! I often size up when I buy for my littles from this brand but that is purely because I want them to fit them for as long as possible as we love these items so much.  They wash really well too, which is a winner!

Jade, the lovely lady who runs Birdies and Bearcubs, is really friendly and super stylish.  She also gives me major hair envy as she has gorgeous locks and a fringe to be proud of! 😊 You can follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jadelarrah/

Tops: Birdies & Bearcubs.  Shorts Cribstar 

Tops  Birdies & Bearcubs 

Brand 2. Cribstar https://www.cribstar.co.uk

Ok, Cribstar is another stylish children's clothing brand run by a lovely mama.  This is my go to shop for trendy little tops for birthdays.  Last year,  I got my children matching ones that said, ' not your basic 2 year old and not your basic 3 year old.'   This year, we went for something slightly different and bought the candle tees which both the children love.  Again, the quality is great and the prices are reasonable.  For P and L's birthday outfits this year, I also treated them to a pair of matching shorts each.  They are comfy little grey numbers with a leopard style print on them.  I love Lochlann's little bottom in his and Posey looks super stylish in hers.  I like to team these little outfits with their converse.  Honestly my children are far better dressed than I am!

Top Birdies & Bear cubs Shorts Cribstar 

Top: Cribstar Shorts: Next from a pack of three.

Brand 3.  TeddyandCo http://teddyandco.bigcartel.com

This brand is a little different as it isn't a clothing brand.  This lovely lady sells prints and wooden peg dolls.  I have followed her instagram shop for a while now and have often sat and thought about how much my two would love the peg dolls.  I love the fact they are not plastic- fantastic, much more pleasing to my eye!   Plus I love the idea that these are custom made.  I decided to buy some for Lochlann's third birthday.  We are now the proud owners of Batman, The Joker, Woody and Buzz!  Both Posey and Lochlann love playing with the dolls.  They are brilliant quality and look lovely sat on the top of our Ikea play kitchen too!  Another fabulous thing about this brand is ' Fiver Fridays.'  Every Friday,  you can grab yourself a peg doll or a print for just five pounds.  How great is that?
I am planning on adding to our peg doll collection very soon.

Photo credit  Teddy and Co. 

That's it.  There are LOADS more small businesses that I could mention but these three are my favourites at the moment.  Three great quality brands, three lovely mamas and lots of beautiful products.

I know there is a general consensus that buying from small brands is too pricey and I do sometimes understand where people are coming from.  In all honesty though, the brands I have bought from have produced some lovely things that are really great quality.  I plan to buy less ' stuff ' and spend more wisely in 2018.  I am going to shop small in 2018.  I love so many small businesses and what they are all about.

Which are your favourite small brands?  Share yours in the comments!

Thanks for reading.

Lots of love,