You may have already read my post about my trip to Manchester last week for the Ideal Home Show at Christmas, which this year had decided to co-locate with the Cake and Bake Show. This post is all about the Cake and Bake Show element of the day, as my first visit to one of these I really enjoyed it, although it was a little smaller than I expected.
Here are my highlights.
The Great British Bake Off Live
We were lucky enough to see Flora Shedden from this years GBBO cook her Sugar Free Pistachio and Apple Cake. She gave a brilliant demonstration and answered questions. There were some TV's so you could see what was going on on the stage.
Last week my mum babysat while myself and hubby took ourselves off to Manchester for the Ideal Home Show at Christmas, which this year had decided to co-locate with the Cake and Bake Show. With hundreds of cooking at Christmas ideas to explore of course I had to go.
There was so much to see and do, 4 different stages of talks and demonstrations that fitting it all in was going to be tight, so I had to be selective. Here's my favourite things that grabbed my attention from the Ideal Home Show at Christmas (I'll add another post for some top pics from the Cake and Bake Show).
Spacerframe
If like me you get bored of looking at the same pictures on your wall Spacerframe have the solution - an innovative picture framing system which uses clear acrylic pockets. The frames are fitted with a specially formulated re-positional self-adhesive tape, giving you the flexibility of being able to move and reposition your display. They also have a spacing tool which means you can consistently space your frames with your choice of either a 10mm or 30mm gap and enables you to ensure that your frames are always level by using the spirit level incorporated in the tool.
Spacerframe's come in a variety of sizes too.
I wasn't allowed to buy any but have definitely added them to my Christmas wish list.
Check them out here: http://www.spacerframe.co.uk/
Twitter: @Spacerframe1
Riverco Trading
I love furniture and this kids bench was soo cute (excuse the blurry picture). At £199 it was a little out of our budget (and may have been interesting taking home on the train).
You can find them here: http://www.riverco.co.uk
Twitter: @RiverCoUk
sorry for the blurry picture, silly auto-focus/ broken screen camera
Bus Bar
The husband spotted this and told he to pick him up when I'd finished..... no chance .... who's carry my bags.
The Bus Bar Company own and operate two 1960’s Routemaster buses which have been converted to fully functional mobile bars. They have a fully licensed mass serving bar on the lower deck and on the upper deck there is an open top hospitality seating area. A great idea to book for a party as they are fully licensed, insured, come with all their own equipment and have hard working reliable staff on hand to take care of your event.
Their website is: http://www.busbarcompany.com/
Twitter: @RoutemasterBar
StudyBed
The StudyBed is amazing. I saw this in June and tried to explain it to the hubby, but this time he could see it with his own eyes.
The StudyBed combines a full-size bed with a very large desk and converts quickly and easily in just a few seconds without the need to remove any items off the desk nor any of the bedding.
The boys are in bunk beds at the moment but what a great idea for when they are older.
Laurence was back for the Christmas show to tell us how to decorate our trees and tables in a coordinating but nontraditional way using wallpaper as a starting point.
I was sceptical but the results really worked and I came away with loads of ideas to try from snow in baubles to home-made crackers and napkin rings.
A great day out and have promised my mum she can come along with me next year.
Disclaimer: I was offered a pair of tickets to the Ideal Home Show, Manchester in return for writing a couple of posts, All opinions are my own, the companies mentioned are my own selection and have not been consulted about this post.
4 months ago I was packing my day bag and heading off to Manchester for the Ideal Home Show, I was just a little (ok a lot) excited.
I had a great time, looking at homeware stalls, watching celebrities in the Ideal Super Theatre where I learnt about colour, organisation and clutter. I came away with plenty of ideas to re-decorate my new home, I'm just waiting for the money fairy to drop by. You can find out more about the brands I saw over here.
At the Ideal Home Show I happened upon an impromptu 'cooking' demonstration on melting chocolate and it gave me a great, messy, treat idea for the kids......
... combine that with the fact Ben has suddenly got a passion for cherries, don't ask me where it's come from but suddenly they are his newest obsession. Every time we walk past the greengrocers he asks for them but they are really expensive and personally I don't like them (which made him even happier when Tesco provided us with some vouchers to try theirs for free). We also picked up some British strawberries with our vouchers.
WOW what a day out ........ but where to start .......... the beginning??
After a delayed train from Sheffield, getting lost in Manchester and missing the bus and disorganised security staff at Event City I finally made it to the Red Tape (well green ribbon) opening of the Ideal Home Show 2015 for the start of their 4 days.
Whilst Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen entertained the crowds with his great sense of humour Amanda Lamb did that posing nicely for the cameras thing (ok yes I am very jealous of her ability to wear such amazing heels all day long!) The ribbon was cut and we were in......
It's not often an opportunity pops into my inbox and makes me eeek and rush to my manager asking for the day off (yes I have to work a real full time job and blog on the sidelines).... even more rare is for her to say "yes".... so now I can tell you the exciting news (if you've not guessed from the title of the post) .... I'm off to the Ideal Home Show in Manchester on 4th June.
And it couldn't have come at a better time as by then I'll either be living in a new house or in a cardboard box on the street corner (depending when the contracts are completed) and will need some inspiration for making the property into our home.
1983 poster
Technically the show has been going since 1908 (formally called the Ideal Home Exhibition) based at Olympia in London. It's always been the leader when it comes to showcasing new inventions or home improvements - the toaster and electric kettle (1920), the microwave (1947) and the electric grass mower (1970). The show has also been at the forefront of environmental concerns, unveiling the first 'energy efficient kitchen' in 1989 and in 1997 a rainforest was created and visitors could experience a tropical downpour every hour from the shelter of a tree house. Despite changing ownership from the Daily Mail to Media 10 in 2008 it has continued to bring in the crowds.
