We are delighted to have launched The Charming Angels Children's Jewellery Making Parties and Craft Parties Directory. The children's entertainer directory  is aimed at helping parents find the perfect party entertainment in their area. We know parents and their children are moving away from the clown, magician and juggler as party entertainment. Activity based parties are on trend for kids. Messy play and creative beadwork are very popular.

If you're a children's entertainer, you can advertise your services free on this site. Joining the directory is easy just contact us at charmingangelsparties@yahoo.co.uk

Children's Jewellery Making Parties  are fun for all ages. A great alternative entertainment for your child's birthday party or special occassion. Your child will make their own piece of jewellery while being supervisioned by a   professional. What is more they get a chance to take home their new found skill.

Children's Craft Parties  are popular with boys and girls alike. Whether at home or in a venue arty, messy, creative parties are perfect for all ages. Paint, glitter, glue, fabric, ceramic and fun are in abundance at these parties.

Checkout our directory here www.charmingangelsparties.co.uk/page8.htm  

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Being prepared for the unexpected!

Charming Angels we delighted to find out from Robin West of PoGo Pack how to prepare girls for puberty.

There has been considerable coverage in the news in recent years about girls reaching puberty at an early age, and many parents will be acutely aware of early development in their own daughters. It is not until their daughter starts her periods, however, that the impact of puberty really begins to hit home.

The average age at which girls start their periods is 12, however, an increasing number of girls are starting as young as nine and ten – which means the latter years of primary school. Understandably, parents are being caught out by this, and a phone call from school to say that their daughter has started can come as a shock.

Most schools will give the lesson on puberty at the end of Year 6, but this is too late for some girls. As a business dedicated to giving girls a positive start to puberty, PoGo believes that girls benefit from learning about the physical and emotional changes of puberty before those changes start to have a significant impact on them. It can be confusing and upsetting for a girl to start her periods if she has no understanding what's happening to her.

We encourage parents to think about this and take action before their daughter reaches this stage.

The subject of periods can be a difficult one for many families to discuss. For mums, their own experiences growing up will have a major influence on how they approach this subject with their daughters. For single dads and guardian grandparents, this topic is particularly tough. We know, too, that many girls become terribly self-conscious once they start developing and don't want to discuss this subject with their mums. So where can they turn?

To help with this, PoGo has developed an online resource for girls aged 8-14 where they'll find a wealth of age-appropriate information that will help them to understand the changes they'll experience in the coming years. Parents can tap into some helpful advice too.

We've also created the PoGo Pack™ – a complete period kit for girls that contains everything they need to handle their periods with confidence. It's the perfect conversation-starter and saves busy parents time and confusion about what to buy.

The business came about because of my own experiences as a mum. I wanted to put a little kit together for my own daughter to take away on holiday and it was such a frustrating (and unsuccessful) shopping experience that I decided to create one that would help lots of families. The response from girls and parents has been wonderful! Health and education professionals have also been impressed with how PoGo is helping young girls.

For more information please visit www.pogopack.co.uk or contact Robyn West on 01727 762443.

Xmas is almost upon us yet again and who can't get that little bit excited.

So what is going to be the most sought after Christmas Toy for 2010?

Argos has revealed that The Real Construction Deluxe Workshop featuring 'Kid Wood', which can be nailed and cut just like the real thing and transformed into various projects using the tools that come with the workshop, is going to be a BIG HIT. http://www.realconstructiontoys.com//index.php

At Charming Angels Parties we have extensive experience of working with Kids and REAL WOOD, so there are no surprises that they are going to love this Xmas toy.

Vocational skills are being encourage in our children - which is a great life skill to have.

The construction kit will most certainly be popular with boys, but as living proof that this isn't just a boys toy I am sure more girls will be loving it too.

Even girly girls can get involved - after all a girl needs a jewellery box to keep all her necklaces in!

If the wood kit isn't your style, then check out or stocking filler priced jewellery making kits in our store. http://www.charmingangelsparties.co.uk/page13.htm 

The full article on the Top Xmas gifts for 2010 can be read here -

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20101003/tuk-construction-kit-will-be-top-toy-6323e80.html

We see some utterly stunning outfits at Charming Angels Parties. So we have spoken with EdgyKid to give you the low down.

Summertime Parties

Parties in the summer, whether it’s a birthday, barbeque, wedding, or christening, every event gives us the fantastic opportunity to be outdoors enjoying the sunshine. Ok, not always true in this country but we’ve had some pretty good weather this year.

Kids absolutely love looking forward to a party and the whole getting ready for the party thing adds to their excitement. They want to look good and feel special and as parents we take great pleasure in seeing that happy look when the present is wrapped and the outfit is chosen.

Girls love a pretty dress to make them feel special and in the party mood.

Boys just want to look cool and will most likely be the one’s digging up your garden, or climbing anything they can so maybe white shirts at a party are not the best option.

For a bit of a smater look, this shirt only loolks like it has a tie, made with a gorgeous teaxtured fabric. Complete the Summer look with a pair of stone coloured trousers. Both brought to you by boutique brand You by Mo.

The main thing is to have fun at all your summer parties because there’s nothing sweeter than the sound of laughter.

www.edgykid.com

big brands for little people

hello@edgykid.com

Gone are the days of heavy fruit cakes for Weddings or Christmas and the iconic Gateux for your special birthday.  You are far more likely to see a giant stack of Cupcakes, an asymetric stack of vibrant coloured cakes, a sculpture of a object or a creation from chocolate taking the centrepiece at your wedding or party.

Choice is limitless when it comes to style, size and colour of your cake and while we were more constrained with the royal icings and the soft buttercream toppings this can no longer be said with the fashion of using fondants and flavourings.  Like modelling clay, fondant can be coloured, cut and manipulated into countless colours and textures to create jaw

• Bunny Rabbit cake inspired by a child's favourite teddy.
• 3 tier Wedding Cake with intricate monocrome decoration   
• Comedy Wedding Cake
• Dracula's Tomb for a halloween party
• Naughty Santa cake

Charming Angels talks to Nicola Currie of Barefoot Books as she reflects on kids books.

 Perhaps it’s the long, hot summer days or perhaps it is the fact that I don’t have the heating on full blast and I don’t have to wear my kagool all the time – but there is something about summer that makes life that little bit easier and I have a bit more energy for getting things done or more time for relaxing. Having embarked on a large clear out yesterday (oldest daughter with hardly any ‘stuff’ finally gets own room whilst youngest and middle daughters with huge amount of ‘stuff’ get crammed into the same room) I have to decide which books to keep and which to pass on. I have spent a bit of time reflecting on which books we love, old and new, and what makes books timeless but relevant to young readers today.

I’m sure we all remember our childhood favourites, for me - Miffy, Topsy and Tim, Harry the Dirty Dog, My Naughty Little Sister, Milly Molly Mandy (or was it Mary Mungo and Midge – no that was cool TV!), Richard Scarry, Dr Zuess and Just William (for the boys!). I think 99.9% of the books I enjoyed as a child were based on traditional families with mums staying at home and dads coming in from work at the end of the day. With many the feel good factor was about everything turning out fine in the end, good morals and nice safe bedtime stories. The choice of books now is completely open, Dads feature more in books and families are portrayed in all sorts of set ups. Because the issues that kids are dealing with today are so varied, there doesn’t seem to be any taboo subjects any more. In fact, it seems that believable characters and themes are much more likely to interest kids now than happy ever after stories.

I find baby and toddler books the most bamboozling group to choose from – there are so many out there of wildly differing quality and often when said baby or toddler is in tow you don’t get a chance to look at them properly. This is where experienced relations and friends come in - I love receiving books from my older sister for the girls, she has tried and tested many. What remains important is that they have stimulating pictures and lovely sounding words that are fun and interesting to read and hear. Poetry is making a comeback, especially for young children with rhyming and gently repetitive phrases adding to the lullaby feel of bedtime or naptime books. Great present idea - ‘I Spy the Sun in the Sky’

Books now have to compete with the endless excitement of TV, computer games and the internet. This is where fantastic graphics and great art can come into the fore, sometimes less text can mean more of the eye is drawn to stimulating surrounding artwork.

Adventure books and story collection folk tales are still popular for those who like being read to but can also read on their own. I find these great fun, you can often dip in and out of them as the stories are not too long and the story lines not difficult to pick up when you are tired and keeling over after a day with the kids or at work, or with the kids and at work! Some even have CD’s so someone else can do the reading for you….Magic! We like ‘The Barefoot Book of Princesses’

I wasn’t a big reader once I hit my teens (well except for Jackie Magazine of course – any reading is better than none, right?) Few books at school interested me and life was a little too hectic to really buckle down and concentrate on books, not helped by extremely dull teaching methods! I have hope for my kids though, the oldest at 11 seems to be zipping through books especially ‘real life’ stories and the new style of books that combine fiction and non-fiction which help with subjects such as art or history, have a look at ‘The Genius of Leonardo’

Multicultural and Eco message books are popular now for all ages. This I love - it opens up so many more story lines and avenues to explore with ethnic characters and captivating tales from other cultures. For eco activities try ‘The Barefoot Book of Earth Tales’ And for all grannies out there, our Granny loves ‘My Granny Went to Market’

So enough reflecting for one clear out – I still love my old favourites and I love lots of the new books that are keeping our 21^st century kids entertained. Think I’ll just stick them in a box just now while I decide. Might leave the sorting out up to the kids, that should keep them busy!

 www.nicola-currie.barefootbooks.com

I am delighted to announce that not only have I been nominated for the Mumpreneur Awards, I am also featured in the book Working 5-9: How to run a successful business in your spare time. For those of you who have voted my sincere thanks. If you would like to own a copy of the book click the link below as Charming Angels customers get a  £4.55 discount. 

TIPS FOR KIDS PARTIES

Remember first off that the party is for the benefit of the child, it doesn't have to have lots of intricate detail.
Kids just want to play, and they want to have fun.
Of course it is only courtesy to consider the adult attendee's but it should really be all about the kids.

Start Planning Early.

This will allow you to get the

- Venue you want

- Suppliers you want

- Entertainers you want

It will also allow you to have plenty of thinking time for creative ways to make your party the best it can be, and for supply shopping.


Theme

With a small child, keep theming simple.
Sometimes cake and boxes is all it takes to keep the child amused.
With a toddler or older child, they will have very specific ideas of a particular theme they want, so ask them.


Decide The Venue.

Whether it is
- A hall
-Soft play centre
- At home.

This is often age dependant.
Younger children usually like a more intimate, home based party, while the older child usually wants something with a bit more space and activity.

Decide the guests.

- Younger kids usually are happy with just  a few guests, mainly close family like sibling, cousins, parents, grandparents etc.
Too many guests may be intimidating for a small child, and the focus is them so better to keep the guest list small.

- Older children may like to invite playmates from nursery or from school.

Don't Go it Alone

- Childrens parties can be wild, and you can't be every place at once.
Enlist the help of family and friend's and the parents of party atendee's to pitch in.

Safety

- Ensure any party loot bags have age appropriate items in them as some can be a choking hazard. The same can be said of burst balloons.

- Have a list of all children and contact numbers, especially if the party is outside the home.


Activities

Make sure there is enough to do

- Plan party games

- Crafts

- Quiet time / story telling to refocus for if the party guests get too over excited

Food

Kids like simple food like cake, sausage rolls, cocktails sausages, pizza.
A childs party is no place for fine dining.
Remember to include lots of the childs favourite food.

Get Outside

If the weather is good, and the party is at home, get outside.
Running around is fun and the best way to blow off steam.

Alison Tinlin www.plansandpresents.co.uk

Thought I would do a bit of reflection for all the parents. Thinking back to what kid's parties were like in the 1980's it was predominantly based at home with traditional party games, although occasionally parties were held in McDonalds. This new concept that held parties in their restaurant and had a clown come and visited your party. Was Ronald McDonald a Clown - I think so!

The birthday cakes took on a whole different shape - with crinoline ladies being in fashion. Strange how each era looks back and revives trends. So how did the crinoline lady cakes of the 1980's come about. Infact what were crinoline ladies?

Crinoline was the petticoat that ladies had worn since 1837 but had changed through fashion. In fact the 1950's saw a revival of it. So in the 1980's big underskirts were back in fashion with a nod to the 1950's. But like everything else the kid's party cake took on a modern twist - there was no china doll making up the crinoline lady cake. NO this was replaced with Barbie.

Yes I had one just like this! www.marthastewart.com

We aim to compile a list of venues that would be suitable for the use of parties

Please note we have not been to or used all these venues - so please vist them in advance.

Glasgow City Council venue hires are here http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Residents/YourCommunity/CommunityFacilities/communityletting.htm

Renfrewshisre Council Venue Hire

http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/ilwwcm/publishing.nsf/Content/els-ls-example-hire-charges

East Renfrewshire Council Venue Hire

http://www.eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk/business-trade/venue-hire-hall-bookings.htm

• Ask your child what they are interested in and then set a budget.

Finally we have a dedicated blog for all things Charming Angels.

So some birthday facts for you - March & April and Sept & Oct are the most popular months for birthdays.

So for those having a spring birthday here are some ideas for you - unfortunately we can't quite get outside as believe it or not we still have snow!

MOVIE STAR

Most little girls dream is to be in the movies. So why not give her the full star treatment.

After making her Charming Angels Jewellery she will be all set for her premier -

 Movie Star Birthday cake 

 Below

 Party Bag Gifts - notebook and pen for    autographs,sunglasses and their gift bag with their Charming Angels Jewellery!

Images from www.marthastewart.com