Festive edition - How to get anything creative done (with a baby)

I had such a fun day yesterday, my friend came round and we've been photographing gorgeous rugs she's been selling through her Etsy shop, The Neon Finca. It was a perfect day to get me out of the creative slump I've been in this week. The cause of this slump, we had a friends Christmas at the weekend so the house has been decorated and a full Christmas dinner eaten so now I feel that the festivities are over but of course they have only just begun! 

Quite a few people have been saying to me how much hope I have been giving them in staying creative with a little one in tow. It's not easy (I don't show the hard bits) but you can still be creatively fulfilled and have bubba, the fun doesn't have to stop - you just need to adapt a bit. 

Last year Christmas was a messy stress but having had a run through already for 2016 here are some ways I've found to have a creative Christmas with a little one around.

Do one project a week - there's still three(ish) weeks until the big day so plenty of time to add a few handmade touches to your festivities. I made our advent calendar over a week of teething, a nasty sickness bug and chest infection, I assembled it in 10 minute blocks of wellness and by the end of the week it was complete. I might have gone a little crazy from being housebound  but I still got a project ticked off. A few minutes a day goes a long way.

Wrap as you go - this is a new one for me, I've always been slightly judgy of early wrappers but it's saving me loads of time wrapping presents before I take them upstairs. I'll decorate closer to Christmas but it's such a relief knowing everything is done.

Add fairy lights - everyday I unearth another set that I've forgotten about. Adding a string or two to any spare surface will definitely make even the most tired mama feel festive and just that little more creative. I really like these copper wire fairy lights from Papermash. 

Give yourself plenty of time - you might previously have got everything thing done in the week leading up to Christmas but things are different now. As any job takes approx 20,000 times longer with a baby. You know how it goes, just as you're ready to leave the house there's a smell or you spend 20 minutes finding the missing glove...just start buying food/drink/gifts/decorating the tree as soon as you can and like wrapping it's done before you realise.

Buy a Christmas outfit - last year I felt like a squashy blob, this year I've got myself a Christmas dress that I can wear to any festive gathering it's 100% manmade so it's easy to wash dry and requires no ironing - woohoo! Most importantly it makes me feel just a little more together. My online secret is Boohoo, scroll past the body con (unless that's your thing) and you can find some real treasures, everything I've bought from there is made in the U.K and due to its manmade nature is really baby wipe friendly ;-). Less time getting ready means more time for creative fun. This dress is very jazzy and this one is really pretty. 

Get braids - A curve ball but I had my hair braided by the lovely ladies at Prettly at the Papermash and Zeena Shah MakeWrapMingle event not only was my hair out the way for all the making but it lasted the following two days. I've booked again at a local place for Christmas Eve which means no more hair sorting and more time for laying the table!

Buy gift vouchers - if you're struggling to know what to buy, gift vouchers are always the best in my book. Just add to a bag or gift box and put extra effort into the wrapping you get an easy gift with a handmade touch - it's win win.

I hope you get the humour in which this post is intended I frequently get motherhood wrong and generally make everything up as I go. As a rule I don't tend to share the hard bits here but I do write from experience. The most important thing to remember is not to worry about being perfect just enjoy making if that's what you want to do and if not then just have fun with your little one, time is too precious to waste worrying about what everyone else is up to and what you 'should' be doing. X

SaveSave