hoppyloo

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I LOVE TO DO ONE TO ONE SWAPS - It makes things a bit more personal I think :) If you think you have a great idea to share, let me know - I will probably love to swap with you! Just send me a PM :)

I am married with 2 children...a son of 13 and an 11 yr old daughter.

My husband is a teacher, which he has recently trained for..he used to be a designer. Just about to start at a new school in January..Im very proud of him and love him loads!

My son is 13 and a little actor! he loves comic heroes, dragons, Pokemon, anime and cool clothes! Oh, and he grumbles a lot, being a typical teen!!But hes a great kid and still manages a hug for his mum!

My daughter is 11 and a junior eco warrior!And a little hippy!(I wonder where she gets that from?!) She doesnt much follow the trend, prefering to be herself, which I think is great. She loves animals of any kind (especially horses), drawing, writing and pink/lilac colours

I am a stay at home Mum again (spent the last 4 years working as a doctors receptionist so DH could retrain) We are skint, but a much happier family this way. My daughter very tellingly told me that I was worth "way more than money" Says it all, doesnt it?!

We have a dog and 2 cats.

I love to craft...paper crafts is where I started my journey. And through some excellent friends I discovered altered art.... and have never looked back! I am always looking for something else to create, and to swap ideas and creations is fab :) My daughter also loves to craft and at the moment is really enjoying making dotee dolls and ATCs

My current obsession is vintage pyrex...the coloured glass and patterned types. I have also got a nice collection of vintage Phoenix glass too. I love anything vintagey.cottagey, and garner nearly all my little trinkets from boot sales and charity shops.

I hate waste, and prefer to recycle/reuse where i can. Im not brilliant at sewing and would LOVE a handmade tote bag :)I am learning to make these and having such fun! I dont use plastic bags anymore, and am trying to build a collection of "cool" reuseables!

I try to be happy, but have a bit of a tendency to look at the dark side until proved otherwise. But generally happy smiley

Mulchy greens, purples,blues, brown and dusky pink vintagey colours are mine at the moment :)But I love all the vintagey colours.. green (like my almost complete pyrex dinner service!) custardy yellow, blue etc, also darker, muted shades(olive green,raspberry etc)

I looove tea,(nothing fancy - good old English breakfast is perfect!) But I have to confess to having developed a real taste for vanilla, hazelnut and chocolate tea - the kind you add milk to - I cant find it here in the UK) but hate coffee in all guises (apart from the smell of fresh coffee which I love - strange eh?!)

At this time of year I just love curling up with a big mug of hot chocolate (anything but cinnamon or mint flavour) and my daughter who is the best snuggler! We both love to try new flavours - favourite at the moment is butterfinger!

I am a lousy gardener, but adore flowers..especially those with a scent, and big blowsy roses!

I love to be snuggled up in cosy things when the weather is cold... scarves, gloves, hats and especially thick wooly socks! No good at knitting tho....... (tiny clue there!)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Christmas! And one of our best traditions is that we only buy one or two decorations for the tree every year, and write the year and the name of the person who chose it on the bottom. I started this the year we were married, and now the kids just love to check our family history every time the tree goes up! Obviously the tree is a real mishmash of colour and style, but thats just the way I like it!

I love anything vintage... but not necessarily for display...I like to be able to use my pieces for their original purpose if possible.(like my pyrex, we only use that now..the kids love choosing what colour to eat off!)

At the moment longing for a vintage apron to wear in the kitchen...the kids and I cook a lot..they have personalised aprons that I made for them, but I have a "need!" for a real old fashioned "housewifey" one!

I dont do makeup really... am very much an "au naturel" kind of girl! (except when going somewhere special!) But lips balms are the exception.. I cannot live without lip balm and love to try different types. But I love to smell nice, so bath/shower smellies and perfumes/EDTs are great!

As for favourite "smells", I love flowery scents... especially sunflower, rose etc. I also love the kind of "baking" scents...vanilla, etc! I like my home to smell good, so I usually have a candle burning (my favourite is Yankee Candles when I can) or failing that, oil in a burner

I dont like "cutesy" stuff...cartoons etc just dont do it for me Im afraid! Although my daughter loves all that, so it wont go to waste if it does land on our doorstep :)

Anything else you might need to know? just ask!!

Everyone in the family does Bento now... you swapbot lot are responsible you know! We love it all, but its incredibly difficult to get here :( [the collection is slowly growing tho!]

Almost anything goes...except rap,garage etc (I guess that just shows my age hey?!) I really enjoy country/folk music and meatloaf (both of which I am only allowed to listen to when noone else is home!) John Martin has to be an all time favourite..hes not too well known, but has the most haunting voice I think im stuck in a bit of a time warp really!

Rarely get to the pictures unfortunately. Cant remember the last film we saw at the cinema! And when we watch a dvd I usually fall asleep and miss the end anyway!!

Never seem to watch anything regularly... always forget whats on! the tv doesnt play a huge part in my life...unlike this here computer!! But I have to admit to a bit of a penchant for reality TV..big brother etc...strangely addictive dont you think!

Altered art (ATCs, altered books, shrines etc) Anything vintagey/retro..but I really dont do "cutesy" stuff (unless its headed my daughters way!) cooking papercrafts Basically I love to "cut and stick"and paint and ink.... the messier my hands are the happier i am!! Simple sewing - since I joined Swapbot I have learnt about dotee dolls, which I love to make, and have tried my hand at simple aprons and bags too :) I am also rediscovering the art of writing "proper" letters .... its so nice to receive something personal in the mail! So, that has started another collection.... pens of all descriptions and colours!!

All four of us enjoy cooking and trying different food. I am at the moment using my slowcooker loads. We are meat eaters, but looking to cut down our meat consumption a lot. So recipes that help us in this endeavour would be great! My husband ADORES savoury peanut flavour snacks! (we cant get them here in the UK) In fact all nutty things are loved in my house...(could there be a reason for that do you think?!) Chocolate always goes down a treat (especially with DD and myself.. its a girly thing, isnt it?!) and the kids just love to try candy they havent had before. The kids and I cook a lot together - they LOVe to bake (helps that I do to!) So any baking/cupcake supplies are always welcome - they love to experiment!

My kids also have their special likes! My daughter is 11 and obsessed with all things Japanese/Chinese! Kawaii, Hello Kitty (are they the same thing? I have no idea!) Pucca, anime (?) Bento.. all of it really. She also loves to ride. She is also a little eco warrior! Which is great most of the time - she gets off her soapbox sometimes! But its fantastic watching her put all the grown ups "in their place"!

My son is a typical 13 year old teen! he loves his bike, his mates, comic books, cats, music, etc. He loves to act and belongs to a couple of drama groups locally. He is very good at acting and has a lovely singing voice (but dont tell him I told you that, its not cool!)