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Posts Tagged ‘kids’
I’m a grocery bag hoarder. I go around grabbing free totes as well as purchasing them from supermarkets such as Village Grocer, B.I.G., and Jason’s Food Hall. Not that they ever go to waste; I keep a few in the car for work, food, or to throw baby stuff into, and I keep some at home for those same purposes. So I don’t believe that one can ever have enough grocery bags. That’s why, for today’s DIY post, I decided to make one out of a bolster case.
Most of the time, when I buy sheets in a pack, they come with two pillowcases as well as a bolster case. I don’t, however, own a bolster. Hence, they all sit in the closet collecting dust in groups of colors. Instead of letting them go to waste, I decided to repurpose them.
A lot of people use pillowcases for their projects, but I like bolster cases because 1) I can make two bags out of one, and 2) the drawstring on both ends of the bolster case allows me to skip making a closure for my bag. The first thing I did was to cut the case into half, and then stitch tabs on both sides of the cut seams to ensure that the seams don’t come apart from the cut. Then, just sew the newly cut line up to make the hem of your bag.
Next, I made a shaped template for my daughter to use as a guide to make a pattern onto the case. It was a fun process for her, and she managed to get them quite orderly! You can also make a potato stamp for this, but since I’m not very skilled at carving, I preferred using the template instead.
Now, the next step is quite simple, but I couldn’t photograph on my own. All you have to do is fold the upper part of your case down to a comfortable “flap” size. Once you’ve established your flap folding line, just cut slits on both sides of the case about 1″ down from your folding line. You must cut the slits right through to the other side of the case, as this will be where your sling will go. For the sling, I used a cloth belt that I had in my closet. You can just use a long strip of fabric to insert into the slits, or a belt like me. Tie a knot with both ends of your belt to secure in place.
And there you have it, a bolster case bag! What makes this one special to me is that my daughter made the patterns, and each time I use it on a grocery trip out, I am reminded to buy her something nice ;p I still have the other half of the case to make a bag out of, so I’ll get to it while you guys have a go at this! Happy DIY Wednesday!
Tags: diy, diy wednesday, gift ideas, kids, mommy stuff, prints
Posted in handbags & gladrags, you say i say / No Comments »
    
It’s Monday, and Jacqie’s in Japan spreading the Gin & Jacqie love around! Which brings us to this Monday’s perk-me-up about a Japanese boy and his French bulldog. Tokyo-based mother, Aya Sakai, has been posting up awwwwweeee-some pictures on Instagram of everyday bonding sessions between her boy and his best friend, and seriously, it doesn’t get any cuter than this. If you’re having a gloomy start to your Monday, we can assure you that your day – and week – will turn around after following Aya Sakai and her snippets into this amazingly adorable friendship. And if you’d like a peek into Jacqie’s journey around Japan, don’t forget to also follow US on Instagram!
Have a great week ahead, folks!
Tags: kids, love, mommy stuff, mondays schmondays, recommended links
Posted in little loves / No Comments »
This week’s Mother’s Day giveaway comes from none other than one of our favorite local handmade brands, Oh & Ah! We wrote about Oh & Ah wayyyy back when (click to read), but the brand has expanded heaps since then. With new products under their legally charming belts, Oh & Ah has proven that a little innocence and a lot of good design sense goes a really long way. We asked them to recommend three of their latest products for those of you who aren’t familiar with the brand, and here’s what they picked:
“Our Bus Series has been really popular among the Lapan crowd. There are three designs available for purchase: bus sekolah (a long yellow school bus for RM79), bus mini (a smaller model in pink at RM59), and our latest addition which is the zoo bus (RM79). Right now, the bus mini is sold out.”
“Another favorite among customers is our Elephant design light (retailing at RM230). These lights are made of clay, and are attached with a lightbulb AND dimmer. We love hearing what people decipher this clay guy to be; some have said monkey, others have thought of him as an odd-shaped man, the list goes on… However, to us he is an elephant!”
“These little guys sunbathing on patches of grass have been on constant repeat through our collections since the days of setting up shop at Art for Grabs. We love them because to us, they represent Malaysia’s hot weather, where so many enjoy a wonderful sunbathing temperature of 30 degrees almost all year round. Now they’re available on easy-to-wear rings, adjustable to fit all sizes. They retail at RM39 each, and are really fun conversation pieces to have on hand (pardon the pun!)!” <—EDITOR’S NOTE: Ellie couldn’t resist these adorable sunbathing dudes, and has bought a few already!
The generous peeps of Oh & Ah are giving away three Hello Marks (first picture of this post) to three lucky followers of Gin & Jacqie! There are two ways you can win yourself a handsome little bookmark by Oh & Ah:
Facebook: leave us a comment on our Gin & Jacqie wall and tell us about a favorite story or book your mom used to read to you when you were younger.
Instagram: snap a picture of your favorite childhood storybook as read to you by your beloved mom, and hashtag #ginjacqie #lovebooks so that we can keep track of all entries. Please note that if your account is set under Private, we will be unable to see your tags, so do leave us a comment on our Oh & Ah instagram pic to inform us of it!
This contest will run from today up ’til the 24th of May 2013. In addition to their generous prizes, Oh & Ah are also giving away a 10% discount to everyone! Simply type in “ iloveumom” upon checkout on their shopping site to redeem. This discount lasts up to the 30th of June 2013, so stop wasting time and get to purchasing some awesomely handmade stuff!
Tags: contest, deco, gift ideas, gin & jacqie, kids, local loves, love, mommy stuff, recommended links
Posted in local loves / No Comments »
       So sorry for the shortage of posts this week, we’ve been busy running around finalizing some new products and preparing for a big project that we’ve completely lost track of time! Still, we took a little time to DIY to ease our minds from the stress that has seemingly enveloped us and is squeezing us into an airless room made to torment claustrophobics with. Okay, I exaggerate… but I’m sure you’ve had those days. Anyway, back to they DIY. We bought some chalk paint, got busy painting some mini jars to organize our desks with, and now we have cute little chalkboard jars! Easy peasy! This would be the perfect customizable touch to your party treats or kids packs, although we must remind you to replace glass with plastic for fear of them dropping the jars!
Happy DIY Wednesday!
Tags: diy, diy wednesday, gift ideas, kids, mommy stuff, party ideas
Posted in handbags & gladrags / No Comments »
For those of you who are fans of homemade soaps (we are!), you’d be no stranger to this familiar name of the local homemade industry: The Kinder Soaps Company started its humble journey when mother Michelle Ho noticed eczema patches forming on her adorable little one. Having gone through the same when she was younger, Michelle knew she had to do something to ease the itchiness and sores of her daughter. So she took matters into her own hands. Upon Googling a “natural” product that could help with the situation, she realized that skincare formulations regularly include chemicals, be it in small amounts or damaging quantities.
With this newfound understanding and knowledge, Michelle started Kindersoaps in hopes of giving the market an all-natural skin brand that is made especially for the skin-sensitive among us.
  
We asked Michelle to recommend three products for newbies to the brand, and these were her recommendations:
A lot of our customers have dry or dehydrated skin for a myriad of reasons – ranging from minor dehydration, to being constrained in air-conditioned environments. As such the majority of our products aim to protect and rehabilitate dry skin conditions.
Summer Fizz has been a popular choice as the first step towards moisturizing dry, mature skin. Its refreshing lemonade-like scent comes from the use of rosemary, peppermint and sweet orange essential oils. Together with apricot kernel and camellia oils, plus the deep reef red australian clay, they work to pep up tired skin and ensure that you step out of the shower feeling comforted and revitalized.
Our 100% oil based Dry Skin Relief Skin Treats oil is a terrific, all-natural moisturizer which is best applied after a shower on damp skin, so as to ease absorption. Unlike cream-based moisturizers which are emulsions, ours has no water content, therefore enabling us to skip using preservatives entirely. The oil is light and sinks easily into the skin after 3-5 minutes after gently massaging it in. Customers are taken in by its creamy, vanilla-like scent, with hints of sweet orange. Just a few drops can go a long way in keeping the skin from drying out.
For even more intense, long-lasting moisturization on the go, our Double Duty Balm is definitely worth a try. It works wonders to heal dry, chapped lips, and can be used anywhere on the body where there is dry flaky skin. It also soothes and prevents sunburns and is a terrific alternative for people who are allergic to aloe vera (which is commonly used to treat sunburns).
This Mother’s Day celebration, Michelle has kindly donated a few of her bestsellers – the Summer Fizz soap bar – to our lucky readers! From the 11th to the 17th of May, simply describe your mom in ONE sentence on our FACEBOOK WALL to be in the running to win a luxuriously lathering bar of your own! On top of that, all winners will be notified with a discount code to enjoy any online purchases made at www.kindersoaps.com!
Good luck, and may you be kind to your skin 
Tags: gift ideas, gin & jacqie, kids, kindersoaps, local loves, mommy stuff, recommended links
Posted in he says she says / No Comments »
Since we’re celebrating Mother’s Day for an entire month here at Gin & Jacqie, we thought it’d be apt to introduce you to Emila Yusof, one of Malaysia’s talented and established artists. “….an illustrator, a children’s book writer, a blogger, and a seasonal traveler” is what Emila describes herself as, but first and foremost, she’s a loving mother. She has published many children’s books that bring to light our local cultures and heritage, and is currently working with big names to illustrate travel covers and advertisements.
  
While the illustrations are a great bonus to visiting her personal blog, it’s her posts as a mother and a traveler that keeps us checking in. Her recent travel log to Hong Kong Disneyland with her son was a helpful insight to parents hoping to visit soon.
So if you’re a parent looking to get to know another, we highly recommend Emila Yusof. Light, entertaining, and filled with loving illustrations, her blog and journey will keep you inspired.
Tags: inspiration, kids, local loves, mommy stuff, recommended links
Posted in local loves / No Comments »
For the whole month of April, we’ll be dedicating our blogs to the one woman in our lives that made the world for us: our moms! So expect our regular posts to be catered to moms, as well as fun DIYs that you could do with or for your moms for Mother’s Day. This Monday, Ellie, our in-house creative designer cum full-time mother of two, would like you lovely – albeit overworked moms – to get acquainted with Running from the Law, a blog filled with mommy confessions that are as hilarious as they are shameful. Think of it as a confessional booth, except you get to hear every bit of juicy secrets told as many women try their very best to be great moms, secrets that they wouldn’t otherwise admit to anyone.
With real posts from real moms, this is one blog that’ll remind us to take motherhood with a pinch of salt and a lot of liquor (we kid, we kid!)!!
Happy Monday, moms!
Tags: kids, mommy stuff, mondays schmondays, recommended links
Posted in he says she says / No Comments »
One of my favorite snacks to whip up for guests is my cheesy garlic potato balls. They’re simple to make, and addictive to the core! The ingredients required to make a batch for five people are:
1. 2 potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped into chunks
2. 1 tablespoon chopped garlic bits
3. 2 tablespoon parmesan cheese
4. 2 tablespoon butter
4. half a cup of milk (low fat or full cream is fine)
5. breadcrumbs
6. 2 eggs
Again, bear in mind that my recipe is based on what I have in my fridge, so you can always opt to do this without the cheese. I’m using the parmesan shavings that I used for my chicken parmesan wrap, and you will see by now that most of the ingredients used in my meals this week are on constant rotation, ensuring no wastage.
First, boil the potato chunks, and drain. In a bowl or container, smash them with a fork. To create a smooth texture to your potato mash, pour in the milk, and continue mashing. Throw the parmesan, garlic, and butter in, along with salt to taste. Keep mashing everything together until you’ve achieved smooth consistency.
In separate bowls, pour your breadcrumbs and eggs. By using a teaspoon, start scooping up some potato mash onto your hands, roll into a ball (it will still be very soft at this point, so don’t worry if your potato ball isn’t solid and in proper shape), and then dip into the egg, followed by the breadcrumbs. Repeat process again, rolling the ball into shape as you do. Do this until you’ve used up your potato mash, and set aside.
Heat a generous amount of oil in a pot (I use a pot because I don’t own a deep pan for frying), and once the oil is boiling and ready, gently place the potato balls into it. Do this in small batches. Once the balls are a nice golden brown, remove them and place onto paper towels, if any. Otherwise, just drain oil on a metal colander.
Serve immediately. For presentation purposes, you can serve them on a bed of lettuce. Again, I used the leftover from my chicken wrap, so nothing extra was bought for this recipe. The estimated total for a serving of at least 25 balls is RM5, which keeps me #belowtheline! These potato balls are also a hit with the kids, but if you have an oven, do bake them for a healthier option.
TGIF, peeps! And keep keeping #belowtheline!
Tags: below the line, kids, mommy stuff, recipes, UNICEF UK
Posted in he says she says / No Comments »
Today is a day of of toddler play. Some of my daughter’s friends are popping by for a play date, and I needed to whip something affordable up quick. So I turned to the trusty tuna can, RM4.50 and another necessity in my pantry for fast and easy meals. That, alongside the Heinz mayo used in my chicken parmesan wrap recipe and some pasta, saved my day of feeding five hungry kids!
  
All you have to do is cook half a bag of penne pasta (al dente is normally preferred, but since toddlers will be eating, I made mine much softer) in salted water, drain and place into a bowl, toss with a can of tuna (I opted for tuna in water rather than in olive oil for the kids) and a generous amount of Heinz light mayo, and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. This huge portion of half a bag of penne and a can of tuna cost me a total of RM6.50, and serves five mini meals (RM1.30 each) or three adult portions (RM2.20 each), making it #belowtheline!
One more day to go, but I’m loving living #belowtheline so much that I will probably continue way after this week!
Tags: below the line, kids, mommy stuff, recipes, UNICEF UK
Posted in he says she says / No Comments »
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