Ace Apparel Test Drive: Waddler

Jen introduced me (and all of you BT readers) to Waddler back in October. In her words: ''(Waddler is) a beautiful range for girls and boys, that uses Alpaca in many of their garments. Knitted in Bolivia, they support the local women there and work to fair trade practices and age old traditions.''  Of course, I was instantly interested.  

#1 They're based in Scotland  

#2 They make a wolf suit that's very Maurice Sendak-esque  

#3 They have some of the most inspiring photography out there.  

I also appreciate the slow fashion approach...one collection a year, and if you follow their blog, it's wonderful to see where your clothes are coming from and who is making them. 

So, we've been putting their grey hooded poncho and teal Lila cardigan through their paces. Waddler knits come in super handy in the strong Glasgow winds!

Our Ace Apparel test drive for Waddler was extremely successful!   I love the clothes.  The colours are perfect and the pieces are fun. They're warm but delicate and could be worn nearly all year round here...  Although they recommend hand-washing, I have accidentally thrown that cardigan in the wash a few times on cold.  It's still beautiful.  I will say that Hugo has managed to partially unravel one of the pom-poms from obsessively pulling at it...I think the Wolf & Bear hooded jumper probably would have been better for him (He just can't leave things alone!!).  

This might sound weird...but my favourite thing about their clothes is the way they smell after being washed.  There's something really nice and earthy about the alpaca wool.  Yes, that sounded weird.

Moving on...
To see more Waddler + flannery o'kafka in action, visit the current issue of Babiekins magazine (page 141) and look for the 'Tip-Top' editorial.  I really enjoyed pairing Waddler with some other great designers.

Happy Waddling!
Andrea
flannery o'kafka 

Markets, Moons and Moustachios's

One of the great things about working at the MoMa markets is discovering all the creative talent that shines through this state. In between our kids food tasting workshops I get to walk around and meet the other stall holders. Last Saturday it hit 100 degrees. I mean seriously, it was HOT. I had to hide the boys away in Vinnie's office with his laptop and movie so as to avoid any risk of heat exhaustion. I was enough to deal with I can assure you!
Anyway, I managed to meet two lovely girls who shared a stall in the crafty end and accidentally managed to purchase an item from each. Charlie picked out a little rainbow birdy from Moon Unit as a souvenir of his first 40 degree day, while I picked up a very cute Tasmaniana t-shirt from new label Moustachio for a certain little somebody in London...
I tell you, markets are here to stay - so much more fun that a crowded, noise popping, money macho shopping centre ANY day.

Easter Treats - Toto style

Ok so by now you must be thinking that I am in major cahoots with Andrea over Toto Knits. Honestly I'm not, I just love these guys! I just received an email from Erin to share yet ANOTHER terrific deal that I just couldn't not tell you about right?! So if you missed out last time, here's another chance to grab some major bargains.

Toto Knits have just launched their knitted Easter egg collection. Really fun for decorating an Easter table, egg hunts and eco friendly as can be, they are also a nice alternative to chocolate eggs. I mean, do the kids REALLY need 3 tonnes of chocolate every year? 

Toto Knits are also offering their 'Bunny' and 'Chick' items at discounted prices- sweaters are only $25, hats are $6.50, booties $8 and blankets $20. This offer is valid til March 6. As always, they ship internationally.

Storybird - your turn

Remember a few weeks ago we tried out writing our own story on Storybird? Well here's a fabulous effort from our friend and contributor Aimee's little son Oscar. If you animals, this one's for you!
Remember if you'd like us to feature your story, send me an email at jen.at.brotherstrimm.dot.com

Our Kindy Kid

First day at Kindy. DONE. Not a tear shed, a few nerves hugged out, some careful words shared and off he went. Our parting shot was a happy wave and intent play with playdo, while parents and teacher flitted past his smiling gaze. My boy has started school and I'm so proud of him.

So you liked this one?

There I was pinning away as I do of an evening, blissfully unaware that more than 250 of you guys repinned this image across the world! Holy Pinterest I say! Who would have thought!!! I have to give credit to the source - no it's not my house, I found it on Babble.
I was researching bookcases for Kidstylefile at the time and just love the idea of spreading the books right across the room, the lower shelves for small hands, the higher ones for the more precious books. The ceiling accent is pretty cute too don't you think?
You can see more of what I like on Pinterest right here...

Tweet Tweet

Meet Ruth, Pop, Otto, Kay, Peter and Sunshine - the Bojesen Songbird Family. Pleased to meet you. Would you like to come and live with us?

Nearly Pancake Tuesday

I'm now officially THE pancake chef in our house, and am pretty fabulous at tossing a crepe or two. Here's my favourite recipe, used only last weekend, thanks to our favourite 'forget the city and love the country' chef Hugh tongue twister surname Whittingstallishnish.

YUM

 

Prep 10 mins

Cook 30 mins

Makes 16

INGREDIENTS

• 250g plain white or fine wholemeal flour
• Pinch of sea salt
• 2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
• About 600ml whole milk
• A little sunflower oil
• Caster sugar and a squeeze of lemon, to serve

Method

• Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour in the eggs, add about 50ml of the milk and start to whisk, gradually incorporating the flour into the wet ingredients in the centre. When you have a thick batter forming in the middle, add a bit more milk and whisk in a bit more flour.
  
• Keep going in this way until all the milk has been added, all the flour is incorporated, and you have a smooth batter, about the consistency of single cream. One of the mistakes people make with pancakes is to leave the batter too thick. So if your batter is still more double than single cream, whisk in a little more milk. You can also make the batter by whizzing everything up in a food processor. Either way, let it rest for at least 30 minutes, then check the consistency again. If it's thickened up a bit, add a dash more milk to bring it back to the right consistency.
  
• To cook the pancakes, heat a non-stick frying pan or crêpe pan, around 20cm in diameter, over a medium heat. When it's hot, swirl 1 tablespoon of oil around the pan, then tip out the excess. Add a small ladleful (around 50ml) of batter - just enough to coat the base of the pan - and swirl it around quickly until it covers the base. Cook for a minute or so, until lightly coloured underneath, then flip over and cook for a minute more. Depending on the pan, you may need to loosen the edges of the pancake with a palette knife before you flip.
  
• Almost without exception, the first pancake will be a bit rubbish. Don't worry, this is normal; the next one will be much better. Dole them out as you make them, so they can be eaten hot - sprinkled with caster sugar and lemon juice

Let's get this giveaway started!

Hello Brothers,

Andrea here (flannery o'kafka) to tell you about the best giveaway I could imagine.  Jen and I have both test-driven Ada Ada's clothes on our boys and loved them.  All the way from Israel, they're soft, they're beautiful, they're manufactured ethically and these clothes are in my family colour (or colour-less) scheme!!  

With really simple designs, they've managed to create collections of mostly knitwear that looks extremely stylish and unique whilst being the sort of thing you can throw on and run around in the garden in!

  (Hugo is wearing the Ada Ada moon print sleeveless hoodie under his blazer.)

As you can see, 200 is the magic number.  The wonderful sisters at Ada Ada have decided that once they reach 1000 likes on facebook...they're at 800 as I type...they will give one lucky liker 1000 Euros worth of Ada Ada ace apparel.  Honestly, I love these clothes and I'm obviously hoping we'll win, but I'm also just happy to spread the word about the clothes and the great people behind them.

So to be one of the last 200 to enter, go to Ada Ada's facebook page and click LIKE.  It's that easy.  Let's get this party started!

While you're there on facebook, feel free to like The Brothers Trimm and Flannery O'kafka.
(sorry, no prizes involved for liking us besides virtual friendship...)

p.s. I've found their clothes really good for my daughter's eczema.  They have super soft fabrics, hems and tags.

Puddle Jumpers

I'm a sucker for cute wellies, gumboots or galoshes. Call them what you will, I fancy a pair of these for my boys this winter! Hmm they say this style is for girls, but I say baaaa to that, they're awesome!

All you need is love

Happy Valentines Day x

Face Maker Fun

Simple, brilliant, easy, clever, funny, cheerful, FUN. Thanks to our pal eilo in Ireland who is always a creative inspiration.

 
Instant Face Maker from FaceHeads on Vimeo.

Storybird Project

A little boy stood at the counter, his blue eyes electric with excitement and vigour. Particular with his choice of book his conversation steered towards his own writing, a budding author right in front of me...
It's this lovely fellow in the bookshop one day,  who steered me towards the fantastic Storybird -  an online resource that brings family and friends together through the simple act of storytelling - 21st century style.
I was so taken by this that I immediately sat down with the boys to create our very own story. Choosing their own illustrations our eldest took on the task of chief writer and pride aside, I reckon he made a pretty great attempt at creating a beginning, middle and ending.
So without further ado, here's a sneak peak at his efforts...

to be continued....over here!

If you fancy having a go, email me at jen.at.brotherstrimm.dot.com and we'll share your story on The Brothers Trimm. We've just received a Flannery O'Kafka original - can't wait to show you...

Warm Hands, Warm Heart

It's pretty chilly up in Europe right now and with Valentine's Day fast approaching here's a little helping 'hand'. Glovers - just totally SUPER cute, n'est pas?

MoMa Markets

Jo and I are having such an awesome time at the MoMa markets every Saturday.  Our MoMa Minors food workshop has been drawing quite a crowd and it's a lot of fun meeting the local kids and sharing the joys of food with them. Apart from the wind, the weather has been blissful and I'm also loving the local produce we're taking home. 

MoMa Markets are on until April and our workshops run at 2pm and 4pm. 

 

Ace apparel: a toto-ally great discount for your little monkey!

I can't sing the praises of toto knits loud enough!  We not only designed our own sweater, Hugo's also been test-driving one of their fantastic monkey cardigans.  It's great for layering, super soft, organic, fair-trade, and most importantly: fun.  

I'm passing on to all the Brothers Trimm readers a special extra reason from toto knits for buying your own today:

All the best from our monkeys to yours,

Andrea

flannery o'kafka

Colour our home

We're in the thick of house hunting and my dream would be to put this wallpaper up and have a 'colouring in' party. Seriously, how fantastic would that be...as long as everyone kept within the lines of course...