July 2017 - My Nametags

Ten of the Best One-Piece Swimsuits

31st July 2017

Suzie Skipper

We’ve searched high and low and found the best swimsuits on the market this summer. Go retro with florals or pastels. Bring the off-the-shoulder or the one-shoulder trend to the beach. Or opt for nautical stripes. or a block colour instead. Shop our edit of the best summer one-pieces.

Embrace Florals

Ditch the black. Florals are big news this summer. Zara has a gorgeous printed one-piece – £25.99 Floral Print Swimwear.

Stripes & Nautical

If florals simply aren’t your thing then embrace the nautical trend instead. A classic one-piece is just perfect for lounging around the pool. Seafolly Castaway Bandeau Swimsuit in Indigo £120 John Lewis.

Off-the-Shoulder

Bring the off-the-shoulder trend to the beach with this gorgeous floral swimsuit from H&M…it’s almost too pretty to go in the pool. Off-the-shoulder swimsuit £19.99

The One Shoulder

This swimsuit is bang on trend with the one-shoulder look…navy looks great with a tan but it comes in black as well as four other colours. Violet Lake, Caruso £150

Lace-it-up

Swimsuits with a lace-up feature are on trend this summer. M&S has a gorgeous print swimsuit plus hidden control fabric too. Secret Slimming™ Printed Lace-up Swimsuit in Mint Mix £39.50

Pretty in Pink!

Pink is this season’s must-have colour. We just love just hot pink swimsuit which will add some colour to wardrobe. Seaspray Just Colour Plunge Halter Swimsuit in lipstick pink £75 from Simply Beach.

Jungle Safari

Look for wild fabrics – tropical florals and animal prints – from earthy neutrals to lush greens. Figleaves has a great selection including this Maryan Mehlhorn Rainforest One Piece – Caribbean £189

The White Swimsuit

If you dare, a white swimsuit will show off your tan to perfection. Elegantly classic this Melissa Odabash number is designed to flatter. Phuket Halterneck Swimsuit White £200.00. Comes in indigo, dusty rose and black too.

Body Perfect

Many swimsuits have ‘secret support’ to flatter your figure. Heidi Klein has just launched ‘Body’ a range of swimwear to give you the sleekest of silhouettes this summer. Body Cornflower Blue D-G Wrap One Piece £240.00

2-for-1 Reversible

Reversible swimsuits are very versatile (less packing too!). Seafolly has a fantastic reversible swimsuit in vintage floral print one side and a soft candy stripe on the reverse. Seafolly Vintage Wildflower Reversible V Maillot Swimsuit – Iceberg £98 from Cocobay.

The Best Travel Toys for Kids

7th July 2017

Suzie Skipper

Travelling with children can stressful with children especially if it involves long waits at airports or lengthy car journeys. As a mum of four I have found that with a bit of planning you can have a stress-free journey…well almost! All my children from a very early age had their own backpacks into which I would pop a variety of things to keep them entertained and they too would bring a few of their favourite toys.

Most of these items do not involve any kind of technology or power as some of the best ways of keeping children entertained are often the most simple.

Travel Mobile

This lightweight, portable mobile is a must for babies who travel. The VTech Pack n Go Travel Mobile easily attaches to most cots, playpens, prams and baby carriers. The light-up button plays lullabies and melodies and has a multi-colour night-light to soothe your little one when away from home. Set the timer and it will automatically switch off. Suitable from birth £24.99.

Aquadoodle

Keep toddlers entertained with the added bonus of no mess with this portable Tomy Aquadraw Travel Drawing Bag. Simply fill the Aquadoodle pen with water and see your designs magically appear. Once the water dries the drawings fade away so you’re ready to start again. Suitable from 18 months. £13.05.

Books with added extras

Small children love being read to. Thomas is a favourite and this new book also has 10 magnetic characters to create adventures of your own with Thomas, James, Percy, Harold and all their friends. Thomas & Friends Magnetic Children’s Book £6.99. Babies and toddlers love pressing buttons and The Tiddler Sound Children’s Book £14.99 will bring the story to life.

Travel Train Set

My kids love a train set and this new travel version from Brio comes with a special carry-along case. Chunky plastic connector pieces help kids guide the train onto the tracks, and the train car polarity swivels so that the cars can be easily attached in any direction. My First Take Along Set £29.99.

Creations on-the-move!

Playdoh is always a winner in my book. This Play-Doh Activity Backpack is perfect for having fun on the move. Includes coloured doughs, tools, pens and a colouring book £6.99. Or try Playfoam – a lightweight modelling foam that never dries out. The Playfoam Go! set in a plastic carrying case includes 8 colours of PlayFoam, each kept neat and tidy in its own unique compartment £12.

Activity Cards

These brilliant cards from Usborne are a must for kids on any journey. 50 wipe-clean cards with 100 simple activities to keep young children occupied including games, puzzles and quizzes using everyday objects found inside the vehicle or seen out the window. Plus a special pen to write on the cards. 100 things for little children to do on a journey £6.99.

Playmobil Travel Sets

My kids love Playmobil and we’ve found these travel sets to be particularly good for entertaining them on journeys but will also provide hours of fun at your holiday destination. Playmobil City Action Take Along Hospital Playset £24.99.

Educational Packs

Add an educational twist to your travel toys with this portable pack which teaches children all about letters. There are ones on numbers and shapes too. Age 5+ Fundels Play & Learn Writing Letters £9.99.

Cards

Playing a game of cards whiles away hours while travelling and is fantastic fun when you get there too. As a family we love UNO. It’s easy to play, fast paced and quite addictive too. For 2-10 players £6.99.

Top Trumps

Top Trumps is a must on any journey. There are hundreds of sets to choose from to suit all tastes from Paw Patrol to Star Wars, Harry Potter and Football. Top Trumps £4.99.

Bananagrams

Banangrams is the perfect travel game as it requires no pencil, paper or board. All you need is a flat surface. Great for family fun and helps with vocab and spelling too. Age 7+ Bananagrams £14.98.

Sticker Books

Sticker books are just perfect for entertaining kids almost anywhere. Peppa’s Dress-up sticker book £5.99 is perfect younger children. While older ones would love this fantastic Big Dinosaur Sticker book £6.99

Meet Our New Baby Animals – win a free set!

7th July 2017

Suzie Skipper

We’ve been busy this summer at My Nametags HQ designing some super cute baby animal designs. To celebrate we are giving away a free set to one lucky My Nametags newsletter reader. See below for more information.

There are 38 new designs, all as cute as each other, from tigers and elephants to owls and puppy dogs. Which one will you choose? To give you a taster, we introduce some of our favourite baby animals with some amazing animal facts.

Will you choose a baby elephant? Did you know that when baby elephants are born they are covered in black fur? They can walk and follow the herd after just half an hour of being born!

Lion cubs start walking at 10-15 days old. The female lionesses teach their young to hunt as they do the majority of the hunting for the entire pride.

Did you know that there are three species of zebra: Grevy’s, mountain and plains. Plains are the most common. Baby zebras are called foals and they can run with the herd within a few hours of birth.

Baby dolphins are called a calf. As soon as the calf is born, the mother must quickly take it to the surface so it can take its first breath. The calf will stay with its mother until it is between 3 and 8 years old.

Cats and humans have been associated for nearly 10000 years and there are over 500 million domestic cats in the world. Cats conserve energy by sleeping for an average of 13 to 14 hours a day!

The tiger is the biggest species of the cat family. Unlike most members of the cat family, tigers like water. They are good swimmers and often cool off in pools or streams.
Image pf a cute tiger icon