Mum In The Madhouse - Parenting without stabilisers

Two words guaranteed to send a flutter of fear through the heart of any 17 or 18-year-old contemplating their next life stage: “Personal” and “Statement.”

Utter the mere words and watch your children hug the wall in fright, retreat back towards darkened bedrooms or shove their hands in their pockets, shuffle a bit and mumble something only they can hear.

But let’s show some sympathy here. Come on. In front of them lies a confusing ocean of choice: what course to do; what city to live in; whether to go where their friends go; whether to follow in the footsteps of their elder siblings; whether to go it alone; whether to go at all.

It’s not an easy call to make at any time, not least at that hormonally volatile age. Remember? Tough, wasn’t it?

One way to help condense and focus those thoughts and cut through the all the cloudiness that the murk of all this choice throws up is to think it all through via the writing of the UCAS personal statement.

By thinking of the Personal Statement a good deal in advance, and how you might help your child to connect their extra-curricular interests, achievements and hobbies with their academic pathway of choice, you can steal a march on all of the rest of the university applicants.

Karen Martin, from the Admissions & Student Recruitment Department at the University of Dundee, explains: “Remember that your Personal Statement is the only piece of written work we will see when selecting the best applicants.”

Pretty crucial, then.

None of this is of course a direct substitute for quality academic performance but, done well and properly, the Personal Statement is often the deciding factor between so many applications of equal weight.

Outlined at the outset on the Personal Statement, there need to be cast-iron reasons for why your child has chosen that particular subject, that university and why exactly they want to go to continue in Higher Education in general. This is the Personal Statement bread and butter.

But, the essentials aside, what other ingredients can you think about in advance that could help boost your child’s application and save you all a whole world of heartache at a later, more stressful date?

Volunteering

Charity work, voluntary social contributions or a part played in a fundraising campaign can demonstrate a nice variety of skills and personal qualities.

The nature of the contribution may be organisational – like setting up a raffle competition to raise money for an African orphanage, it may be physical – like walking 47 miles in 24 hours to raise awareness of Cancer research, or it may be just taking part – as in something like Children in Need, for example.

Key thing is – and this is going to be a running theme here – make whatever the project is have a useful connection with the subject to be studied. For example, contributing to a wildlife conservation project on a Gap Year is going to help with biology, zoology or natural sciences, or organising an auction event for a charity of your choice is going to help with Management, PR or Communications courses.

Find the link and play it up.

Work Experience

Making a clear and relevant connection also applies to holiday jobs or part-time work.

It’s definitely a good thing to have some “real world” experience but make sure the link with the course is pointed out. As such, a newspaper round, though laudable (I know, I lugged luminous orange bags bigger than my bike around every evening for two years), is not that relevant to an undergrad course in pharmacology, but a part-time job in a chemists would be.

Music Learning

Most children at some stage will pick up a musical instrument, whether it be a ukulele or a violin or a tuba, and many will take music lessons (some enforced (!) and some not…).

Obviously music learning is of intrinsic importance of those going to study directly music-related courses but there is also a great cross-over with the patterns of learning associated with languages, the reasoning and practice behind science and maths, as well as the dedication and self-motivation which are crucial to studying things like management or business. The key here is to think laterally. Music learning is a real goldmine of different skills which can be applied to many courses.

Outdoor Pursuits and Sports

Another way to show useful skills and abilities is via sporting successes, passions or outdoor pursuits.

This is doubly interesting for Personal Statement readers when there is a genuine qualification like a Duke of Edinburgh award involved. Integral to activities like these involve teamwork, communication, organisation, resilience and adaptability.

Direct connections to subjects like Sport Science stand out, but they can also be relevant to Geography, Management, Human Resources and other areas of science or medicine – physiology for example.

So, sneak ahead of the chasing pack and give yourself some time to think about these little tips well in advance of the writing of the Personal Statement so that you can give it the turbo boost your child deserves.

I HATE ironing.  I HATE ironing with a passion, but……………………..

MadDad empties the bins, puts the washing on, mows the lawn and in exchange I do the ironing.   This is our agreement, always has been and I think I got a pretty good deal all in all.

Each week I ironing his 5 work shirts and the boys school shirts.  That is 15 shirts a week.

My mum also used to hate ironing and it was a job that she delegated pretty early on in my life.  I remember her sewing my clothes and me ironing them.  I remember her teaching me to iron, but I can not remember how old I was.  She would let me lose on the tea towels and the bedding first.  Then we moved on to t shirts, until I was finally left to iron everything.  She showed me how to iron a shirt correctly and taught me all the terminology, the collar  the cuffs, the yoke etc!

Last week I went to Tefal as I am part of their innovation panel and was introduced to  the Tefal Pro Express Turbo.  Now this is not an iron, no this is a steam generator and wow it is amazing, however, at £300 it really did need to be!

Normally on a Sunday I do my ironing whilst watching One Born Every Minute on catch up.  But alas the series had ended, so I decided to watch Paul Hollywood instead and you know what I managed to get the ironing done in that time.  Now those of you in the know, will understand this statement, but for the uninitiated OBEM is an hour long, whereas Paul Hollywood’s Bread is only 30 minutes long.  So I managed to halve my ironing time.  Which delighted me.  OK this week wasn’t the week that I do our bedding, which is super kingsize and yes before you ask I ironing my own bedding because I love getting in to clean laundered and ironed sheets, but still it was a lot faster than usual.

The Tefal Pr Express has lots of positives, you can fill it up at the tap, large water tank, anti calc spoon for hard water areas, safety catch (so you can store the hot iron) and an auto off facility too.  I do, however, need to get a new ironing board with somewhere to put the steam generator.

The thing that got me thinking about how old I was when I learned to iron was the fact the iron is a lot lighter than a traditional steam iron as it doesn’t have to have a tank to hold the water.

So when is the right time to teach my boys how to iron?  When did you teach your children?

This Easter holidays we have had a lot of time travelling., both in the car and on the train and I am also trying to reduce the boys reliance on electronics and screens.  So I adapted our travel eye spy cards and turned them into bingo cards.  Bingo is our game of the moment after finding a second hand game at the charity shop recently and also attending the Easter Bingo charity night at the school.

I might also consider letting the boys play online bingo if I could find a suitable child friendly site with no money or gambling involved.

These are really easy and simple to use.  All you have to do is click on the images below and enlarge them and then print them out in colour.    Then laminate them (we have a fab fellow Laminator).  I bought a pack of white board pens from the pound shop and the boys use them and wipe them clean with a tissue.

We give small prizes (snacks, pencils etc) for different things ie getting all four corners, a line or a full house.

By Andrew Tipp

It’s not difficult to find news stories of horrible things happening to young people on their gap years.

Whether it’s a bus crash, a robbery or even a murder, the mid-market tabloids splash multi-page spreads full of emotive and frightening reports when something bad happens to a young Brit abroad.

It’s usually an attractive white 19-year-old middle class girl that’s been attacked in India, or a group of friendly 18-year-old boys that have died in a road accident in Thailand.

The message is usually implicit from the reporting: this could happen to your child. Imagine this happening to your child.

Imagining the worst

It’s a horrible thing for a parent to think about, and instinctively it makes some parents think of ripping up their child’s plane tickets, cancelling their volunteering placement and refusing to let them head off on their gap year.

It’s an understandable reaction. Natural, even. Why let your child go off travelling somewhere dangerous when they could be safe and sound at home?

But let’s think about this for a bit. Just how dangerous is a gap year? How many of these reports are down to bad luck? Or even foolishness?

The truth is that gap years are relatively safe, worthwhile and fun. The chances of anything bad happening to your child on their dream backpacking trip or volunteering placement is incredibly small.

Putting it into perspective

Every year an estimated 200,000 British young people take a gap year of some kind. Of that number some will run into problems. It’s inevitable. But most of the problems are things that could happen anywhere.

It’s definitely not worth you or your child being put off the adventure of a lifetime because of some sensational news reports that highlight the few occasions when something bad happens on a gap year.

The right approach for your son or daughter is to seize the chance at a travel experience, take precautions, use common sense and establish an understanding of how you will stay in touch so they can let you know they’re safe and sound.

Taking precautions

There are certain things your child can do before their trip to reduce and manage the risk of anything negative happening to them.

There should be plenty of research before the trip. Make sure your child knows where they’re going, who (if anyone) will be meeting them at airports and bus stations, how to get between places, what hostels they will be sleeping in and who will be their contact locally (if they’re doing a volunteering placement).

Make sure your son or daughter knows some of the local language for where they’re going – especially how to ask for help in different situations. They should know who to contact if they get into trouble, and how to get in touch with the regional UK embassy.

While planning and before travelling, your family should consult the travel advice from the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Oh, and make sure your child buys adequate travel insurance – there are plenty of perfectly avoidable horror stories every year involving parents paying thousands so their child could be flown home after breaking a leg trekking in the wilderness without insurance.

Common sense

The easiest way for your child to avoid crime and danger abroad is simply by not making themselves an easy target.

Tourists wearing expensive clothes and dangling pricey cameras around their necks are calling out for someone to rob them; these things are like a sign that flashes in neon lights: “I have money, come and take it if you can.”

This isn’t too much of an issue for independent gap year travellers, as most of them genuinely have little money – either in the bank or on them. Even so, it would be a good idea for your child to segment their money – storing some of it in wallets/purses, some in bags, socks, hostel safes, etc.

Behaviour can make gappers as much of a target. What you do is as important as what you wear. Be sure your child knows not look too much like an innocent, naive and vulnerable fish out of water. Being able to ask for directions confidently and not looking lost with a huge map is helpful.

Locks for backpacks is an option to stay safe, but obviously it’s a good idea not to take anything that’s worth stealing in the first place. In terms of personal safety, rape alarms and ‘defence’ spray cans are good purchases – although be careful with the latter as in some places this is considered a weapon.

Control and intuition

Although drinking and having fun is part of the gap year experience, staying in control is important. Getting really drunk makes young people abroad vulnerable, so be sure to make them agree to staying with groups and friends if they’re heading out drinking.

Just as you wouldn’t wander into the wrong area of Manchester or Birmingham, it’s crucial your child avoids the dangerous areas of any city, but especially high-crime urban sprawls like Johannesburg or Bogata.

Likewise, it’s obviously no safer for your son or daughter to go home alone with any strangers on an evening of romance.

Staying in contact

Maintaining communication between parent and child is important during a gap year. It’s easy for parents to worry if their son or daughter drops out of contact.

It might be a good idea to agree on a rough contact schedule. Nothing too rigid, but maybe a clear but informal understanding that they will try and check in weekly or fortnightly by email, and let you know if they’re going on a trip to, say, a rainforest and will be out of contact for a while. You might also want them to let you know what hostels they’re staying in.

If your child plans to be very active online during their gap year, this could be an issue; if they blog and tweet and facebook every other day you might also worry if they suddenly stop. It might be a good idea to agree that they let you know if they’re going to cease updating their digital profiles for a while.

Ultimately, there’s no way of guaranteeing safety abroad. There’s no way of eliminating risk completely. Bad luck and being in the wrong place at the wrong time can happen to anyone, anywhere.

But if you have frank and thorough discussions about taking precautions, using common sense and staying in touch there should be nothing to worry about.

Read more about gap year foreign travel advice:https://www.gov.uk/gap-year-foreign-travel-advice

Learn more about volunteering abroad placements:http://www.originalvolunteers.co.uk/

Visit a gap year advice and community site: http://www.gapyear.com/

About the author

Andrew Tipp is a writer, blogger and editor. He’s spent more than a year backpacking and volunteering abroad, and used to work as a site editor for travel advice and community website gapyear.com.

If the slight change in temperature has got you hopeful for the summer you’re not alone. We’re feeling pretty excited about it too and in fact have started to think about holidays as a result. We’ve been dreaming about the type of summer holidays that we remember from childhood, where the days seem to stretch on forever, the beach is always in sight and you get to taste every flavour of ice-cream over the course of a week, going home with salt in your hair and a big grin on your face.

If you yearn after these type of holidays as well, and particularly if you want to recreate this kind of unforgettable summer fun for your kids, we’ve prepared a post for you about summer holidays in Cornwall.

When it comes to taking time out Cornwall really does offer the goods, plus, a holiday in Cornwall really doesn’t have to cost the earth. And in fact once you’ve booked and paid for your place to stay (some luxury accommodation providers also offer baby friendly holiday packages!), once you’ve arrived there are many cheap and even free things to do there. So if all of this talk of summer has made you want to dig out the swimsuits, buckets and spades read on. Here’s our guide to the best summer holiday hangouts in Cornwall…

Eat Roskillys Ice-Cream at Padstow Harbour

Nothing says summer holidays like a big, crisp ice-cream cone full to the brim with several generous scoops of creamy Cornish ice-cream. For the very best we recommend heading to Roskilly’s ice-cream shop which overlooks the picturesque Padstow harbour. They have more flavours than you’ll be able to choose between and each one is just as delicious as the next.

Spend the day at Polzeath Beach

This is one of our very favourite beaches in Cornwall, as it’s a lovely sandy beach which stretches out to meet the stunning Atlantic ocean. Polzeath beach is really close to the town too and as such means that a whole range of lovely cafes and restaurants are available to you come mealtimes – this makes it ideal if you have something other than sandy sandwiches in mind for lunch! The beach often gets good surfing waves too is is a fabulous place to have a go at this, plus it has the best sandcastle-building sand we’ve found! Heaven.

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Visit Tintagel Castle

Like us we’re sure that you’ll amaze and delight your kids with a visit to Tintagel castle on Cornwall’s north coast (adults will enjoy this trip just as much!). The remains of the ancient castle sit in a dramatic location on the cliff tops and the original dwelling is thought to date back in time as far as the Romans. Allegedly the castle was also the birthplace of King Arthur, so you’ll not run out of storytelling opportunities as you explore. Entry is very reasonable at £5.90 for an adult, £3.50 for a child, with under 5’s going free. They also offer a family ticket at £15.30 for 2 adults and 3 children.

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Take a Spooky Trip to Bodmin Jail

If you struggle to keep older kids engaged on a family holiday, especially boys, we think we’ve found just the answer with Bodmin Jail. A visit to the jail promises a chilling insight into Cornwall’s penal history and trip back in time to a more gruesome part of the counties past! Once there you’ll be able to visit cells as they would have been in the time of real prisoners and see for yourself how tiny the barred windows really were, as well as relieving tales of the time when the crown jewels were once hidden there at a time of great political unrest. A family ticket for 2 adults and 3 children is £30 but we’re sure you’ll find more than enough to keep the youngsters entertained for a whole day.
Take a walk along the South West Coast Path
If you’ve never felt the freedom of having the wind in your hair and the sea at your feet as you amble for miles along England’s South West coast path we recommend you do this as soon as possible. With over 300 miles of stunning paths to explore in Cornwall alone, this is a treat that will cost nothing and is guaranteed to please all ages. Kids will enjoy the freedom of discovering hidden beaches and running for miles in open countryside, whilst adults will love taking in the uninterrupted views and getting a good lung-full of fresh Cornish air. There are heaps of great routes to try and half of the joy is discovering your own favorite.Take a look at the South West coast path website and choose your own: www.southwestcoastpath.com

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Imagine a week stuffed full of wholesome and exhilarating activities and then add delicious treats and days spent on the beach. Cornwall is the place where family memories are made – so why not get down there and make some of your own this summer?

Get your passport and factor thirty at the ready and cast your eyes over this quick and dirty guide to the four top Spanish spots to visit this year.

 Barcelona

Barcelona is brilliant for a city break, and has loads of culture and history to take in, so it’s an ideal choice if you get bored lounging on the beach all day. Top sightseeing spots in Barcelona include the Gothic Quarter, with buildings dating back to Medieval and Roman times, and Antoni Gaudi’s Church of the Sacred Family, described as “a masterpiece of modernist architecture”.

Nightlife is big in Barcelona! If you’re into your clubbing then visit Razzmatazz or City Hall Nightclub. To sample a shot of absinthe (if you can handle it) then pay a visit to Bar Marsella in Carrer Sant Pau.

Benidorm

There’s a reason Benidorm’s been a popular holiday spot for so many years, and its four miles of gorgeous sandy beaches is one of them. If you’re after a relaxing holiday in the sun with enough to do at night then you can’t go wrong with a holiday in Benidorm .

You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to sunbathing and swimming spots here, and there are also great spots for scuba diving and snorkelling. The local seafood is delicious so make an effort to visit one of the many restaurants, such as the Agir or Casa Toni, both offering traditional Spanish fare and picturesque views while you eat.

Costa del Sol

When package deals first came to prominence, the Costa del Sol was the place to go. These days, travellers visit all areas of Spain, but the Costa del Sol still has plenty to offer holiday makers and remains popular as a result. As well as the beaches and of course the Spanish weather, the Costa del Sol has a great public transport system that makes it easy for you to visit other areas from whichever resort you’re staying in.

You can easily spend a day strolling around the ancient capital city of Malaga, taking in the historic streets and beautiful architecture of the churches and museums. Make sure you pay Malaga Castle a visit too, to soak up the history and enjoy some fabulous views.

Majorca

Holidays in Majorca are ideal for families and couples, with plenty to do if you need to be kept busy, but enough opportunity for relaxation if you choose to do nothing at all.

If it’s a family holiday you’re looking at, the dolphin and sea lion shows at Marine Land are a safe bet to keep the kids entertained. Couples can take advantage of the area’s many chilled out bars and fabulous restaurants serving delicious local food, such as the top rated Village Café in Deia.

Wherever you choose to go in Spain, you’ll be unlikely to have many problems with language, as all resorts are set up to cater for tourists and making yourself understood in English is rarely a problem. Having said that, taking a phrase book and learning a few key phrases, such as ‘please’, ‘thank you’ and ‘beer’, will be much appreciated by locals and might get you better service!

Me time.  What is me time?  As a mum of two boys I sometimes ponder this on a daily basis and although the school holidays are my favorite time with my chaps, it is also the time when I am stretched thinnest.  I learned when the boys were small that I need to have time out.  Just 10 minutes on my own in peace and hopefully quiet with a cup of tea.  There were times in the past when I was known to lock myself in the downstairs loo just to have 5 minutes without a child hanging off my apron strings!  I need to have this time each day just for my sanity and when the boys are at school it is the first ten minutes after the school run.  I come home and make a cup of tea and drink it in silence.  I do not even turn the radio on, I just enjoy the silence.

But you can not do that during the school holidays unless you are willing to get up before anyone else in the house and with an eight year old that is a very early riser it would mean getting up at 5am, which I can not manage!

So this week I have taken to running a bath and locking the door when MadDad gets home from work and letting him do the bedtime routine.

I am also well aware that Spring is hopefully on the way and my body will be more on show, so have been using this time to concentrate on looking after myself. I have peculiar skin and have reactions to SLA and parabens  so avoid those in products and one area that is really a bug bear is my eyes.

Since having my Laser Eye Surgery the area around my eyes has been really sore.  It seems that my glasses were acting as a protective barrier from all the wind, pollution and nasties around.  As soon as I stopped wearing them my eyes rebelled, which is just ironic as for the first time in 18 years you could see them clearly again!

So after numerous visits to my GP to rule out eczema and other skin issues, I finally found an eye cream that worked for me and didn’t irritate my eyes, but I am still having issues with makeup sensitivity.  A friend recommended trying Boots number No7 Lash & Brow Perfector, which is £8.50.

So tonight, I took myself off for my bath with my Eye & Brow perfector and the Vanilla Coke that I bought in Boots earlier today on my first Social Shopper insights study for Cbias.  Yes I did say Vanilla Coke, I did a happy dance when I saw it as It was and still is my favorite soft drink.

There is something really decadent in doing something for yourself that you wouldn’t normally do.  I would usually have a bath after the boys were safely tucked up in bed, but having one when it was still daylight was lovely as was laying there with the perfector on my eyes.  I have not had a reaction and they feel soft, but only regular use will tell if it works for me instead of mascara.

I think I really deserved a bath on my own after taking the two boys to Boots during the holidays, why not take a look at my Google+ Album to see how we got on.

What do you do for me time?

I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community. This content has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® #CBias #SocialFabric.

When was the last time you took a day (or even part of a day) just for you? If you’re a mum, this is a vital part of maintaining your sanity. No matter what you choose to do, ‘me time’ should satisfy three requirements. First, you should choose the activity. Secondly, you should choose whether you want to invite others along. And lastly, it should be totally fun and entertaining. Here are my favourite things to do just for me.

Take a spa day. I know a lot of mums who would feel guilty for dropping so much cash on an hours-long spa session…but I’m not one of them! To get away from the madness of having kids to look after (as well as MadDad), going to the spa is the perfect occasional treat. After all, as mums we are always waiting on someone; it’s nice to get waited on ourselves sometimes. My spa days usually involve a massage, a facial and lots of tea.

Go shopping. This activity serves as both functional and relaxing. Because I love ‘retail therapy’ so much, there’s no better way for me to spend a free afternoon than heading to my favourite stores. As a rule of thumb, I usually try to stay away from big malls, however, since they can be just as chaotic as my own house. There are several department stores that I like to frequent, however, whether I am just looking for scented candles (to help create a calming aura at home) or buying a black coat.

Stretch your mind and your body. Going to the gym may not sound like the best way to relax, but you may be surprised at how calm you feel after a workout. I like to do yoga classes every now and then because they help me feel more centered and relaxed. Yoga is also good for releasing tension and stress, which are two problems you may be carrying around without even noticing.

Enjoy a good meal–especially one that you didn’t have to cook. About once a month, I like to dine out with a few girlfriends so that we can catch up on what’s going on in everyone’s life. It’s my chance to vent about everything that frustrates me, and maybe even indulge in some gossip as juicy as our entrees. These evenings are always totally relaxed, so no one feels the pressure to get dolled up. It’s just quality time with friends, which is why I love it so much.

Treat yourself to a movie. There are a lot of advantages to going to the movies by yourself. You don’t have to grapple over which film to see (no more animated kids movies, please), and you don’t have to share your popcorn. This is exactly my idea of fun and entertaining ‘me’ time.

An environmental mindset has become stronger in society. Two main reasons are moral as well as cutting back on costs. For that reason, it is also the duty as an adult and guardian to demonstrate the importance of an ecological way of life at home and to pass-on these habits to others. The following tips may help families introduce some easy and some more sophisticated aspects in order to keep the home green.

Switch off the lights: Whether it’s forgetfulness or laziness, a lot of households aren’t too bothered with switching off the lights and multimedia devices when they leave the room. It can save a lot of energy which tends to grab people’s attention when they see how much they save on their electricity bill. With children, it is easy to raise awareness at an early age to make them care about resources later on as well. By regularly showing them to save electricity or water, by switching off the light (or turning off the tap), they will adopt this habit quickly.

Isolate the house well: When building or buying a new home for the family, it is sensible to look into the house’s insulation. Windows and walls alike should be strong in keeping the cold outside and saving the warmth inside. In that respect, heating costs can be reduced as heating won’t need to be used as much.

Separate the waste: City councils around the UK have implemented recycling into their waste collection strategies, so separating your rubbish is not a foreign routine. We know to separate glass, paper and plastic and – if possible – food scrapes for the compost. When everyone does their part to separate their recyclables properly, then we make the work of local waste management services more efficient. Labelling bins for children with images or colours showing what rubbish goes where is easy to do and also helps to train the importance of recycling. Going a step further by finding creative ways to reuse can also make for fun DIY projects as well. Sites like Pinterest have very creative craft sections for both adults and children, which heavily involve reusing and recycling. Careful though, there are so many ingenious projects that can make scrolling addictive!

Produce energy: It still might sound futuristic for some, but it is definitely possible to produce some energy with the right technology. As shown by solar businesses, an installation of their panels on the roof of your house is very energy efficient. As their technology has advanced over the years, they are now able to produce more energy than it makes to make them. This then makes the technology more appealing to purchase with their pros becoming a lot stronger than their cons.

Kids seem to grow up so fast nowadays, with many having their own mobile phone, laptop and social media pages. The world of kids fashion has also grown up and today many big designer names have created spin-off collections just for children. Many of these were showcased recently in London, at the first ever Global Kids Fashion Week, held in Covent Garden. The event was sponsored by online designer boutique Alex and Alexa, which features clothing by the likes of Armani, Burberry, Stella McCartney and Missoni. Stores like this allow parents to dress their children as well as they dress themselves, meaning children can now have a wardrobe to rival that of any adult!

However, kids designer clothing is not about dressing children beyond their years: clothing from designer ranges is instead intended to be cute, practical, smart and age-appropriate. Take Roberto Cavalli for example, whose racy and eye-catching dresses have turned heads on the red carpet for many years. The designer has created a children’s range which will make children feel grown up, but not make them look beyond their years. Cavalli’s trademark leopard prints feature in the collection, but always look cute rather than tacky. A high-neck dress with a frill hem detail is perfect for a party, whilst the leopard print leggings will instantly jazz up any of your daughter’s outfits.

Equally, designer clothes for boys will make them feel adult by sporting a grown-up label, whilst remaining age-appropriate. Armani Junior for example, does a great line of suits for kids, though the navy tones are less harsh and more youthful than solemn black. Armani ties also have a youthful streak, as pieces in the collection include star and polka-dot patterned numbers, as well as primary brights of red and blue.

Picking designer clothes for kids may sound like an overly grown-up thing to do, but many designers are playful in their collections and are therefore far more age-appropriate than many highstreet offerings. Stella McCartney’s collection is a great example of this. With an understanding of kid’s love of dressing up, her collection includes a pirate pyjama set, as well as superhero and pirate cat printed t-shirts. Youthful bright colours are also a signature feature of the collection, with a bright parrot t-shirt dress, yellow wedge sandals and jeans in a matching colour amongst the spring-appropriate items.

Designer shoes for kids are also given a child-friendly makeover. Hunter wellington boots are the must-have footwear for many stylish mums and dads, and are now a covetable item for sons and daughters wishing to emulate their parents. You can be sure that this type of footwear is child-friendly and on-age, with wellies available in fun finishes like pink glitter and glow in the dark.

So, although kids may choose designer labels to suit their grown-up way of life, parents can rest assured that the clothing and footwear is appropriate for their little ones, whilst remaining ultra-stylish.