The Perfect Outdoor Party

You may have heard recently, it was pretty big news, I had my 5th birthday! Yes, I am FIVE! To celebrate, me and a few of my besties had a woodland party. If you are looking for something pretty cool to do for your next birthday then read on to find out more about the perfect outdoor party…

On the hunt…

Wild in the Woods

After a LOT of deliberating, I decided on a bush-craft party run by Green Aspirations near Balfron. They are a woodland-based social enterprise with a mission to inspire outdoor learning so we are completely on the same wavelength!

Hanging about being 5!

You can choose what sort of activities you want to do at your party and there are lots to pick from such as den building, bow and arrow making and bush-craft arts. We picked a treasure hunt for our main activity which was loads of fun! We had to find lots of cool “treasures” in the woodland and what a beautiful setting it was too with babbling rivers and carpets of snowdrops everywhere!

A beautiful carpet of snowdrops

We then had to hunt for a box of wood cookies which we then decorated and made into special birthday necklaces which my friends all got to keep and take home with them.

After some yummy snack we then toasted marshmallows on the bonfire which was LOTS of fun.

Finding treasure!

Thank You Gifts

And finally, to thank my friends for coming I gave each of them a cool “Grow Your Own Tiger Stripes” seedbom from Kabloom to help brighten up a gloomy corner somewhere.

A seedbom from Kabloom

Pop along to the website of Green Aspirations to read more about cool party ideas and workshops for everyone to enjoy. There is also the lovely cafe, shop and holistic centre at Tir na nOg to visit while you are there.

Lulu x (aged 5!)

Beautiful Butterflies

I love butterflies (unlike my Auntie Kathleen!) They are so pretty and great for the garden too. This week we have been releasing butterflies at nursery which is great fun. In my latest blog I tell you some fluttery facts as well as three (yes three) cool butterfly related things I have been doing in my garden. Come on, join in…

Look – a butterfly!

Fluttery Facts

Now, we have all heard that butterflies are good for the garden and we should try and encourage them in. But do you know why?

Like bees, butterflies are essential for pollination. The diet of adult butterflies consists mostly of nectar from flowers. While gathering nectar, the butterflies pick up pollen on their feet and wings and transfer it to neighbouring flowers and plants, continuing the life cycle of many plants that other animals depend on for survival.
As caterpillars, some butterflies eat aphids in addition to leaves, removing the destructive aphids and helping to control their population. Some adult butterflies eat rotten fruit, helping to break it down and assisting in the composting process.
They provide great pleasure to people in the garden which is an added bonus.

Upcycle Your Own Butterfly Garden
M&D love to do a bit of upcycling and I have decided to have a go myself. Daddy recently had to replace the wheels on his trailer. He used the old tyres to make this funky container for our deck:

The tyres were turned into a funky planter

So we were left with the wheel rims and I was sure we could do something cool with them too. We turned them upside down, found a pot which fitted perfectly in the hole in the middle and then filled the pot and the ridge of the wheel with compost.

We sowed butterfly seeds in the rims!

We got a packet of butterfly seeds and sowed these and waited for the magic to happen. We didn’t have to wait long – soon our wheels were filled with pretty flowers to attract both bees and butterflies!

Kabloom – Throw a Butterfly Bomb!

The wonderfully clever people at kabloom make really cool “seedboms”. Not only do you get to throw a bomb in your garden (that doesn’t happen every fay, does it?!) it is filled with lots of lovely seeds which grow into pretty flowers which attract butterflies.

Kabloom have a great range of different types of “bombs” and they make lovely gifts too. You can even buy a catapult to sling your bomb with – cooooool! I will be telling you more about the “Catnipbom” in a future blog.

Butterfly Clothes Pegs

Anyone who knows me knows I love a good ole craft project. And what better than to take advantage of this lovely summery weather and to make it in the garden. Here’s how:

You will need:

A wooden clothes peg
Paint & brushes
Card
A pencil
Scissors
Colouring in pens, sequins or whatever you want to use for decorating your butterfly
Glue
Googly eyes
A pipe cleaner

To make:

1. Paint your clothes peg whatever colour(s) you wish and leave to dry.

2. Draw wings on your card to suit the size of your clothes peg. It’s easier to attach the wings if you draw them on one piece of card with a space in the middle which you can glue your peg onto (rather than trying to attach two separate wings.)

3. Decorate your wings using your pens, paint, accessories or whatever you wish.

4. Once dry, glue your clothes peg onto your wings.

5. Make two antenna out of the pipe cleaner and tuck it between the peg and the wings before the glue dries.

6. Add your googly eyes.There you have it, a gorgeous butterfly to cheer up the inside of your home too!

Our pretty butterflies in the sunshine

So, have I persuaded you to love the butterfly yet Auntie Kathleen?…

Lulu xx