Skribbies - the trainers YOU design

The other day I was invited to POP at HOF.  A number of pop up stalls in House Of Fraser in Oxford street. They will be there until 26th May, so if you fancy a visit, check it out!

I was there to meet Jenny from Skribbies! A new hi-top trainer for kids!

When I walked up to the stall it looked exciting from the outset! Lots of bright colours & characters from the brand.

Skribbies are hi-top trainers kids can design themselves! They come in a choice of 3 trims, pink, blue & black with neon. The main surface of the trainers is white, ready for your child to be as creative as they possibly can. Whether it be writing their name, their favourite band, or drawing pictures! Their imagination can run wild!

While I was there, I had a play. I'm not the most imaginative of people, but here's my efforts.....

Skribbies sizes range from 10-3. I ideally wanted a 9 for Mstr J, but 10 was the smallest. I asked why, and their explanation was, that they thought parents would feel, that with smaller children, it might be hard to get across to them that they could draw on these shoes, but not anything else! I must say, I agree! I have never bought into the 'draw on yourself' or 'draw on your doll' toys, as I think exactly that, how does a small child understand when drawing on something is allowed & not!  Starting at a size 10 means they are for from roughly a 5 year old upwards. By that age, they know & can understand what is allowed.

Jenny herself said she regretted them not going up to a size 5. And again, I agree. Stopping at a 3, cuts off before you reach your 'expressive' teens, & even those adults like myself who can still fit into a child's size 5, & may of bought into the brand!

I got a size 10 in the black neon for Mstr J. In the box, they get the trainers of course. But also...... Some fun stickers that can be stuck to the trainers, or wherever they like. A pack of pens which can be used to write on their Skribbies. And a wristband/sweatband which can be worn for fashion & is great for rubbing off your designs!

The great thing about Skribbies is that nothing is permanent! When your bored of your design, or if you go wrong while drawing, you simply rub a bit, or all of it out & start again!!  The fun is endless!!

Mstr J's opinion...

Mstr J was super excited when I picked him up from school & told him what I'd got for him! His face when he opened the box was a picture! He loved the stickers & spent ages looking through them all & picking his fave & asking me which was mine. Then we checked out the pens. He was a bit disappointed that he got 2 pink pens in his lot, but no blue or red! "I don't need pink mummy, why they given me 2!".  He loved the sweat band, swaggering about the room in it stating "I'm a cool dude!". Then the trainers, his face lit up! "They're big boys ones mummy" he said!  I think his only disappointment was that him being only a size 9 still, he wouldn't fit into them yet.  We had a little play.....

My opinion.....

I think they could definitely rethink their sizing structure, and maybe go down to a 8, or at least 9 for those petite 5 year olds like Mstr J.  And of course I think they should go up to the 5, instead of stopping at a size 3!

Price wise, they were £39,99. For a mum like me who mainly shops in Tesco & Asda for Mstr J's footwear, this was a lot of money. But for parents who are used to buying in higher end footwear shops for children, like Clarkes, this price is inline.

The trainers themselves feel & look strong & long lasting. At this age children's feet don't grow as quickly, so they will last them a fair while.

The box itself with the characters & all you get is fun & exciting for kids. Who doesn't love some goodies inside.

But best of all is the trainers themselves! I think the idea of designing & redesigning over & over again your own unique trainers is fantastic! Which child wouldn't want to do that!!  I can see an army of girls in their 'I love 1D' pairs, & boys with their super hero designs etc! Awesome!

You can check out & order your Skribbies from their website...

Www.skribbies.com

Or pop along to House Of Fraser Oxford Street & visit their stand until 26th May!

Im off to play with Mstr J's Skribbies now..... Shhhhh don't tell him!!! 

Stromboli - pizza wrap! Baking with kids

Now I'm back at work part time, I try to savour every moment I can with Miss Iz & Mstr J.

So, today I decided me & Mstr J would make a dinner. I've taken a real liking to Pinterest lately, & the wonders you can find on there! I've been 'pin'ing things left right & centre!  I had a browse last night at my recent dinner pins & wondered which we could attempt! Then I spotted the Stromboli! Or as Mstr J named it when I showed him what we were going to make, the Pizza Wrap!!

There is so many versions on Pinterest that I decided to make our own dough, & wing the rest of it! My usual baking style really!!

So, I found a recipe for some dough.....

1 cup of warm water

2 & 1/4 teaspoons of yeast (roughly a sachet)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 & 1/2 to 3 & 1/2 cups plain flour

Yes this was an American recipe, so it's in cups! You can either find a converter online, or buy a cheap set of cup measures. Think mine came from a £1 shop!

So, here you go....

Put the warm water & yeast in your bowl & stir to activate it.

Then add the salt, oil & 2 & 1/2 cups of the flour.

Use your mixers dough hook to mix.  

Once all mixed together add up to 1 more cup of the flour. (Think I used slightly under & it was prob still a lil too much).  Then mix again.

Give it a nead with your hands, & cover bowl & put somewhere warm to rise for about 1 hour.

Once it was risen I actually stole a little of the dough & made some little balls to have with some garlic butter! Yummy! The rest we split in 2 to make our 2 Pizza Wraps!!

The First half we rolled out into a rough rectangle.. (Ok, not much of a rectangle, but we tried!).

Mstr J spread with our homemade sauce. This being, some ketchup, some BBQ sauce & some tomato purée mixed together.

Then I grated some cheese on top! We didn't want any bits of little finger in our wrap!

For our filling, we used some sliced chorizo & some bacon lardons. (The second one we even added some sliced thin chicken mummy found in the fridge).

Now the fun part! Rolling it!!

Mstr J loved this! You don't just roll, you lift & roll if that makes sense. If you just roll it you will push all your filling out! So lift & roll & kinda tuck it in.

When you get to the end, fold in either end & put upside down (with your rolled edge on the bottom), onto a lined baking tray.

You then repeat for your 2nd Stromboli.

2nd half of dough in the bowl.....

Once both made, cut a few lines in the top to release any air while cooking.

And in it goes. About 30 minutes at 200.

I'd spin your tray half way through so the back Stromboli is then at the front.

And...... Ta da!!! Enjoy!!

Here is a picture of the inside!!

It was very yummy!  You could do any number of different fillings. A few I saw were using pesto, mince, etc.

We all enjoyed it. I ate mine with a knife & fork, but daddy picked his up just like a Wrap & munch his way through it!