Reviewing Business Cards with StressFreePrint

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I've been to several blogging events now and on both occasions I've been asked for a business card so people can find my blog after the event. It never occurred to me that people would ever want to actively seek out my blog and stash away a card with my details on so I never bothered to order any. Turns out people are interested in your cards and I certainly have picked up a fair few at the 2 events I went to.

In the past I have sat down to several sites but never got passed the design stage because well, I could never settle on anything I liked. When I was offered to review StressFreePrints business cards for my blog I jumped at the chance to completely use their experience and when offered the choice between doing the cards myself or having them do all the work you can guess which option I chose!

A few emails later I had sent information I wanted on the cards (blog name, blog address, tag line and email address) plus a colour scheme and of course, a cupcake had to feature. It took a couple of hours to get an attachment file with my design which I loved instantly. On their recommendation I went with a matt finish on silk art paper and I must say I'm very pleased.

All my cards arrived 4 days later in plastic boxes (I had 500 made for me. Lord only knows what I'm going to do with that many!) I also received a small business card case to carry a few around in my bag without causing any damage to them.

I've shown Mr B, the children and my mum my new cards and all had really positive comments saying how bright and attractive they are. I was worried the pink might be a bit too much but then I thought, I love pink, they look nice and are my business cards so what the heck?

You can order your business cards from StressFreePrint.co.uk and don't forget you can design them yourself or go very stress free by using their excellent services and having them designed for you like I chose to do.

So, what do you think of my new business cards?

*I was sent 500 business cards from StressFreePrint of my choice in return for an honest review on my blog. All words and images are my own.*

Cupcake Mumma

Freeing my Boobs with Mish Lingerie and Panache! #FreeTheSqueeze

About a week ago now I was invited to attend a blogger event here in Cornwall by Mish Lingerie with Panache. I was super excited to be invited and couldn't wait to find out more. We were to have a talk about Mish Lingerie and Panache, see some beautiful underwear and swimwear by Panache which Mish stocks and then see some more underwear in their upcoming Autumn/Winter range. We were also told to look forward to a Cornish lunch and a professional fitting! I was concerned that no bra would fit  being a 36B (or so I thought!) but after I checked online I knew they'd carry ranges for the smaller busted woman as well.

The day arrived and I was collected from the station by Stevie aka A Cornish Mum. We quickly clicked and had a nice chat before finding Mish Lingerie without too much trouble. Inside I met Mish and her fab team, Zehra who was there to represent Panache (and who did my bra fitting) and the other ladies attending the event ranging from bloggers and WI members to willing volunteer models! 

First Zehra spoke about Panache, which was first established in 1982 and has grown massively over the years. We started by looking at one of its ranges. (Panache has many ranges including Panache Black, Cleo by Panache, Sculptresse and Panache Swim) The Panache Sports bra has won several awards in 2012 and 2013. Mish talked about how comfortable they are as a wearer herself and demonstrated their fit and flexibility. You can read Sam's post about Panache Sports Bras below. These sports bras go up to a H cup but are going up to a J cup for the A/W range. There are now more colours to choose from and I liked the racer back style for more support. There is now also a sports swimsuit available too!

Next we got to view some lovely swimwear and lingerie both available and some sneak previews of the A/W range coming soon. All the lingerie looked very supportive and pretty! I'd like to say a big thank-you to these lovely ladies for modelling the lingerie for us, everyone had great fun and it was great to look at the underwear and swimwear on women that are more my size and not airbrushed. 

Penny in Cleo by Panache Lucille Bandeau bikini I really loved this bikini, was one of my favourite items on the day.

Bikini Elle by Panache modelled by Jocelyn  and  tankini being modelled by Claire. Hidden bra in the tankini to give you that extra support and confidence.

Nautical swimwear Claire in a bikini (you can move the bow!) and Penny showing off the tankini. Claire in a longline bra. I nearly bought a Panache longline bra but went with my t-shirt bra instead! They are very comfy. All sets to come!

Tallulah by Panache Swimsuit with bra for that extra support!

The ladies showing off the coming soon Autumn/Winter range. 1) Tango bra and knickers 2) Kitty by Sculptresse with high wasted knickers. Gorgeous colour 3) Cleo Baby doll, beautiful. All by Panache.

Mish spoke to us about her store in Bodmin and we had a chance to ask some questions. Mish then spoke to us about bras in general and in particular about fitting and caring for our bras. A few things I picked up, about 80% of women are most likely wearing the wrong bra, Mish reckons by their experience this could be more like 90% which is sadly not surprising!

When wearing your bra you should not feel like it is extremely tight. The band should not ride up your back and if you can fit your whole hand between your band and back then you need to get it checked! Your boobs should not be squashed, your straps shouldn't pinch you and you should be able to only lift them about an inch- so if yours reaches your ears, again, get those boobs fitted! A woman's body changes many times in her life and anything from medication, breastfeeding, pregnancy, losing weight, gaining weight, hormones can change the size of your boobs so it's important to get fitted properly if you notice any of the above. As for bra care, avoid washing bras in the washing machine, especially moulded ones. Instead, opt for washing in the shower!

After lunch (which was yummy!) we had a bra fitting. The lovely Zehra fitted me. So here's the moment you were all waiting for yes? I walked into the event wearing a horrible looking 36B bra and came out a...34DD! The difference! I think all of us were wearing the wrong size and we all left feeling pretty chuffed with our new sizes and with the knowledge we were going to be supported and more comfortable in future!

I'd like to say a big thank you to Mish and all her staff at Mish Lingerie for inviting me, catering for me and for their gifted items (which will be blogged soon), also to Panache for their goodie bag, fitting and for making beautiful lingerie!

Goodie Bag!

Please read these other blogs all about the #FreeTheSqueeze event!

Stevie - A Cornish Mum- Does my Bra Fit?

Elle - Garden of Eden- Free The Squeeze!

Sam - Sofa Dodger- Why I Love my Sports Bra

Jo - Slummy Single Mummy- TBA

Alison - Shut The Frock Up- Panache Bloggers Day with Mish Online

Cupcake Mumma

Happy Birthday CupcakeMumma!

Yes! CupcakeMumma is 3 years old! The only thing I've ever stuck to is child rearing (and lets face it, I don't have a huge choice there wink wink) so I am thrilled to still be here 3 years later and enjoying blogging.

As a thank you, I've put together a little gift for my faithful readers. Just leave comment on my blog, perhaps tell me what you like, if you'd like to see something in particular on here or your favourite post?

Here's what I've put together:

Retro sweets (which have been placed into a more attractive tin), mini marshmallows, mini notebook, woodland embellishments, cherry keyring, pencil case and an iron on clothes transfer. It's not much but it's a thank you.

Here's to another year!

Cupcake Mumma x

The South West Blog Social with Yves Rocher

I recently blogged about the South West Blog Social, my very first blogging event held in Exeter. I was super excited about going, had a really good time and came home with a very generous goody bag. I'm still to blog about my goody bag (and make my way through most of the contents!) but today I'm sharing with you some items, perhaps we'll call it a review, of one of the main sponsors: Yves Rocher.

Yves Rocher is a top beauty brand. I have used various products before but not for a long time so what a treat to find not one, not two, but FOUR full sized products in my goody bag. The products are pictured below with the goody bag, also from Yves Rocher.

First of all I want to share with you this gorgeous exfoliating shower gel. It is 200ml of 100% natural fruit seeds and raspberry scented goodness. 98% of this product is made of natural ingredients and the seeds are so gentle on my skin I feel like I'm having a lovely, relaxing shower rather than feeling like I'm rubbing sand into my skin. I have very sensitive skin but I have been able to use this shower gel every day so far which is unusual for me when it comes to these particular shower products because sometimes they irritate my skin. I'm very pleased with this product!

The second item in my goody bag was this Yves Rocher Elexir 7.9 This doesn't smell as divine as the shower gel nor the Argon Oil Balm, but it still gives off a pleasant aroma. This product I have used almost every day (a question of remembering rather anything else) and I can definitely feel the difference to my skin. Whilst I'm not quite ready to testify to how it works on wrinkles (but I'm getting there!) I can say without a doubt my skin feels smoother and looks brighter. When applying the cream, which isn't too thick nor too runny (so the perfect consistency) the product simply feels wonderful to gently rub in, making my skin feel smooth and soft.

Again, this product has more than 90% natural ingredients mainly made up of a combination of 7 plants with 9 patents which are recognised for their anti-ageing properties. The cream is developed for normal and combination skins which suits my skin just perfectly.

Next we have Nourishing Argan Balm which is amazing. Honestly, it's the best smell ever. Yves Rocher select organic argan oil from Morocco, which is then used with orange blossom oil (the reason behind the beautiful smell as soon as you open the lid) There are other ingredients listed in this balm such as Shea butter, olive extract and rose water which are all known to be very good for the skin.

I have been using the Yves Rocher Argan Balm after my long, hot showers and it's the perfect way to end my me time. I don't use a lot of the balm because I believe a little goes a long way with this product and after a few weeks I still have a fair amount left.My skin feels smooth, fresh and I feel incredibly relaxed thanks to all the wonderful scents (which don't fade straight away might I add.)

I love how the packaging and product reflects the colour of freshly crushed argan oil (gold if you couldn't guess) and is in keeping with where argan oil originates. The product is actually titled 'Tradition de Homme' which I think refers to the women in various countries extracting the oil in a very traditional way, even until this day.

Finally, last but by no means least, I give you the best mascara I have honestly ever laid my hands on. I have incredibly long eyelashes and even a good eye lash curler and all the tips and tricks have failed me. However, Yves Rocher's Sexy Pulp ultra-volume Mascara has ended my beauty problem! The mascara itself is thick and jet black. The wand is slightly shape to ensure no lash is left behind and you can get right to the base of your lashes, giving you the volume that this product promises. Below I give you my wonderful face with one eye made up and the other left in its sad, long lashed state so you can see the difference (without curlers) and another photo once I had applied the mascara on both eyes.

As I said, I have absolutely not used my curlers to add anything to these photos and that is why I am raving about this product so much. It looks good and it does good and I'm over the moon.

A massive thank-you to Yves Rocher for getting behind such a brilliant event and for providing us with such wonderful and generous items to take home with us. I feel spoiled rotten! 

South West Blog Social 7/6/2014

Recently I attended my first ever blog event. There were less than 100 bloggers attending the event and I was travelling up with my sister Issy so I wasn't throwing myself in too deep.

We arrived in Exeter a little early, both very nervous and not sure what to expect. We had a quick look around some shops just in case we fancied a break later on then headed back to The Oddfellows Bar which was situated just outside the town centre and looked incredibly tiny! Once inside it was clear the bar went back and had an upstairs, so it wasn't too bad.

We collected our coloured bands and attempted to settle ourselves in, pretty much failing! We both felt very overwhelmed and contemplated leaving there and then but strangely for me, it was I who insisted we stuck it out. So we perched our bottoms at a spare table and watched the goings on. It was clear a lot of people were arriving in groups, or at least couples. A lot had met before and were greeting each other like old friends. I'm not going to lie, it was incredibly difficult and I realised if I was alone I would've been out of the door quicker than you can imagine. Sliding up to people or trying to poke your head into a circle of chatting women is so very difficult and I'm not sure people are aware of how it looks to those of us who are more quiet and anxious. There were plenty of smiles exchanged my way and everyone was totally friendly, so it really does just rest on a confidence issue.

Pretty soon we were joined by fellow Lifestyle blogger Aimee (Twenty Oddball) who we chatted with about blogging and family amongst other things. Shortly after we were joined by the lovely Jenni and Louse from Quiz Clothing (check them out! Seriously lovely clothes an a lovely site!) we spoke about Quiz and briefly about other work they were doing at the event before receiving a cute biscuit each and having our photo taken.

We sat down to eat a bit of lunch which was very nice. Being Free From it's always a worry and it may have been chips and salad but it was a lovely portion of homemade chips and a fresh salad with a yummy dressing on top. I was nicely full before heading upstairs to catch the first chat (and briefly bumping into the lovely Alexander from Medicated Follower of Fashion) by Maria. This session wasn't of personal interest to me, I was merely sitting in to take notes for a friend but I was really drawn into the discussion and some interesting questions were asked. I stayed for another session then headed out for a breather when I realised I just wasn't able to mingle very well. My sister and I ventured out to browse a couple of shops and settled in a book store (heaven) with a hot chocolate!

We returned a little later to grab the ending of a speech which included some good tips on being yourself and organising your blog management. I've made a Pinterest board inspired by the talk titled 'What makes me, me' do stop by.

I went downstairs after the talk because there were a lot of people in a fairly small room for the raffle draw and unfortunately that was a recipe for a near panic attack. All held together I browsed the business card section and signed a big pink card with my blog name in the media room. I thought this was lovely and I'm glad I had the quiet time to look through all the cards properly. Little did I know I won a gorgeous set in the raffle!

The day ended with an overall positive feeling, possibly helped by the break we took. We took home a fabulous goodie bag each which I will blog about separately because this post is long enough already!

All those goody bags!

Massive thank you to the hosts of this event, A la Jode and Dippywrites who were both so friendly and did an amazing job. A big thank you for bringing something closer to Cornwall!!

Cupcake Mumma

Back From Holiday and Cheerful!

Hello! I am back from our 5 day break to Cambridge with family and feeling very good indeed! I'm missing the countryside a little but am grateful for the town today as I have had some success with my charity shop scavenger hunting. There is such a thing as being too far out in the sticks after all!

I thought I'd ease myself back into blogging with a lovely Reasons To Be Cheerful post. You can check out the rest of this weeks happy blogging community, by heading over to Mummy From The Heart.

1) We had a fabulous holiday, so it seems fitting to have this as my number one reason to be cheerful this week. We got back in the early evening of Wednesday and have been all go today. It was so wonderful to see my family,who I miss so very much already. I loved being surrounded by green, green and more green! There were birds to listen to in the morning, owls to hear at night. The caravan was comfy after day 3 (when my parents vacated the larger one!) and the children had an absolute wonder of a time!

The bottom field where the 'Beyond The IceHouse' music festival was held

2) We have a new addition to the Cupcake House! Meet Missy, our lovely kitten. She's very playful and
always up to no good so her original name 'Petal' was quickly thrown out in favour of a more fitting name for her! I am in love already...she doesn't know her jabs are due next week and that she's on the list to be 'done' as soon as she's ready and I'm sure once she finds out she won't be loving me so much for a while!

3) My Little A is talking more and more since he has come back from holiday and Midge has gained confidence with animals since being surrounded by them for days on end. She used to be really frightened of dogs, but since the holiday she has been a lot calmer around them and so have I come to think of it.

So, short but sweet (I like to think!) I've come back wanting to get started on my garden, to sort the children's bedroom so it is finally a perfect place for them to relax and rest. I also have plans to freshen up the rest of the house, start some homemade gifts to maybe sell in the future and get started on at least 2 Holistic Therapy courses. Phew!

Hope you all have a wonderful Friday.

CupcakeMumma

CupcakeMumma is Nearly One So....

CupcakeMumma will be 1 on the 19th September so to say thank-you to all my followers and to those who perhaps may not follow but do regularly click through Twitter and Facebook, I fancy having a little giveaway!

Now, I don't have anything wonderful from some top notch brand to give you but what I do have is my thoughtful mind and creative hands. So, as I often like to have a bit of a chill out and relax I shall be making up a little surprise gift (or maybe 2) for the lucky winner to indulge in some 'me time.'

If you fancy winning yourself a little treat, simply leave a comment (please don't follow me just for this purpose, it really isn't a requirement!) telling me what you would spend some 'me time' on. Would you paint your nails in your favourite colour? Eat a bar of chocolate without little ones pestering you for some? Or simply soak in the tub knowing someone else is on bedtime duty?

I'll keep this going until September 18th at 9am where Midge can come home and pick a random name (or two) from a hat after school. I'll announce the winner on Twitter but please leave an e-mail address just in case!

Goodluck! And thanks for reading CupcakeMumma for a whole year and hopefully many more!

CupcakeMumma

XxX

Making A Start

We made a start on our bucket list yesterday by having a baking day! We picked up a girls baking book from our local library and had a good look through. Little Miss chose some cupcakes and I chose whoopie pies (they were a disaster so i'm not even going to blog about them any more than this!) The cupcakes however were the best I have ever made, icing included.

We baked vanilla cupcakes in my new heart shaped silicon cake cases The Man bought in a closing down sale and added some strawberries to match this summery weather. Little Miss was really hands on and to my surprise our baking day was completely stress free!

We managed to go on a family walk this week as well which was really nice! We went to Wetherspoons for a late breakfast, very tasty and at just under ten pounds it was a nice treat which didn't totally break the bank!
Here's a lovely photo of The Man with his babies. Makes me smile every time!

Today Little Miss had her cousin over to have their wedding dress fittings. They look so adorable and will totally steal the show in that church (fine by me- they look adorable!) My Mum is taking in their dresses to save money and they are very happy with their outfits which is the most important thing to me. My Mum stayed a bit to help me finish the service booklets my mother in law to be has kindly made for us. They're looking great. Maybe I'll tweet a sneak preview?

I got a surprise in the post today. Recently I subscribed to a crafting magazine and wasn't expecting my welcome gift until the end of August so I was really pleased to have the gift arrive out of the blue! Just waiting on my swap gift and my new stroller now!

I can't wait to get my hands on this soap making kit! I might save it for
Christmas though?

Finally, I took part in a Twitter party tonight. I don't join in very often with these things as they do clog up time lines but StoryOfMum does such good work, especially this month getting Mums to love their post baby bodies. We had to make a little model of an area of our body we'd perhaps like to improve, submit it online and wait for others to see our real bodies or our crafty mummy makes!

Yep, here's my play dough version of me! The arrows show where I'd like to improve things mainly my under arms and my tummy/under bust area. In general though I'm a happy post baby body Mummy. I'm pleased with my skills here though, I tried to detail my wobbly tummy and stretch marks with mild success!

Hope you're all having a great week, enjoying the sunshine and if you took part tonight on Twitter hope you had as much fun as me!

CupcakeMumma

Day 31 Why Do I Blog?

After I had Little Man I had really bad anxiety. Eventually I received help and from there on I felt stronger, like I could do things I always made sure I would never do before. Simple things like wearing make up, paying for items or even going out on my own.

I discovered blogging in August 2011 when it seemed to be the topic all over the magazines. I thought how cool it would be to blog, but I didn't think i could write anything..after all, I always thought I was really boring.

With my confidence building I realised blogging could like a dairy. Just a less personal one and one with plenty of pictures to look back on. I started to not worry about that fact some people might find me boring and enjoyed seeing my followers build up.

So I started blogging for me. In September 2011 and I haven't looked back since! I love CupcakeMumma and I'm really proud of it.

Cupcake x

As I type from my bed...

I'm listening to the cars buzz past in their merry way, the sun is shining through my window which is very pleasant. I don't feel bad for having a lay in as it is so cold out there my hands are freezing up as I type.

Other Half is breakfasting the children before I get up and we start a major house cleaning day. It's difficult with both children so we're just going to go halves. As it is I do all the house work bits and he is in charge of the DIY. Maybe sexist but that's the way it is in my house unless you want pictures and shelves on your head..thought not!

I'm finally going to get my book shelf up in the kitchen today which is where all my recipe books are going to live. This is all part of my 52 days to an organised home challenge. As I have no couponing to do I have given myself (Other Half) 2 weeks to put said shelving up rather than 1 week. I have no idea what I'll be organising next week. It's a surprise.

I've been thinking about my blog recently and having a bit of blog envy. When I started I wanted this blog to be for me, and I still do but I guess a lot of new comers to the blogging world have made me  feel a bit useless at this blogging lark. I started my CupcakeMumma last September and it seems I have scrimped and scrapped to get followers. Now I'm reading these wonderful new blogs (and they are wonderful, honest) but they have the same followers and more in the space of a couple of months.

Now i sit and question my blog. I have to remember that those readers I have I am grateful for, I really am and it really is quality over quantity. I have some wonderful readers who always hang about to comment. I just wonder if I'm boring. There is no controversy in my life, I don't do it. I don't agree with writing about controversial topics just to up my readership. The blogging world is full of great blogs of all varieties and it's crammed to the very top. It's very hard not to compare yourself to others but it is something I am well known for. It really has to stop before I shut my laptop lid down for good.

Ah I needed that out of my system. I know it's silly, unfounded nonsense but meh, we all have some! So anyway, I have photos to take, diy to oversee, a house to spruce and children to craft with. Maybe I could slip a power nap in before though hey?

Cupcake Mumma