Modelling for grown-ups

Posted on April 21, 2025April 21, 2025 by theplayfulway_v3ra6n

No… I don’t mean “adult modelling” – how rude of your mind to jump there!

There are many permutations of modelling for grown-ups, from model railways to dolls-house creation, Airfix to Warhammer, matchstick modelling to ships-in-bottles.

I’d seen a few Rolife kits in various shops and was very keen to give them a try, so requested one for Christmas. I got this one:

I had such fun making it, that last week for my wedding anniversary, Chris bought me this one:

Every evening, I’ve been gleefully clipping and sticking pieces together. This one was much more fiddly with little pot plants to put together. I’ve had a lovely time, and finished this morning.

So, this is just one way to bring some playfulness, creativity and joy into your life – what kind of model will you make?

Just one more note – there is no affiliate marketing in place and I am getting no money from Rolife (or anyone else) for this post. There are several other companies also selling model room kits.

Home-made Easter chocolate bark

Posted on April 19, 2025April 19, 2025 by theplayfulway_v3ra6n

Like most people, my family and I are pretty big fans of chocolate.

However, unlike many families, we haven’t really done much of the Easter Egg thing.

Over the years I’ve occasionally bought an egg each, but I’m switched off by:

There being more packaging than chocolate in the average egg
The fact that chocolate eggs start being displayed as soon as Christmas is over, or certainly once Valentine’s is packed away.

I prefer to buy a large bar of favourite chocolate instead, and celebrate the Spring weather, flowers growing and birds nesting in other ways.

This year, though, I fancied trying home-made chocolate bark. My intention was to make them to individual specifications, using each person’s favourite sprinkles or fillings, but in the end I just made them all the same.

Here’s how I did it (bark for 4 people):

I melted 3 large bars of supermarket own-brand dark chocolate over a pan of hot water, and separately, 1 bar of white chocolate.
I splodged the dark chocolate onto 4 pieces of baking paper and spread them out with a spoon.
I then drizzled the white chocolate all across them.
I sprinkled liberally with: sultanas, jelly beans, Tangfastics, honeycomb sprinkles and mini-fudge pieces. (You can use any sprinkles you fancy).
I popped them in the fridge to cool while I quickly made some origami boxes (A3 paper – with some very quick felt pen squiggles to decorate – if you have time, I’m sure you’ll make a better job than me).
Finally, I (with a little enthusiastic help from Isobel) broke the bark into pieces and put them in the boxes.

Happy Easter / Happy Springtime!

Scary cows!

Posted on April 13, 2025April 13, 2025 by theplayfulway_v3ra6n

I’ve been making the most of the sun shining this week with plenty of walks and gardening.

However, this particular walk gave me a bit more than I bargained for. I walked through a woodland, up a lovely stream and then the public footpath took me into a field of cows (young bullocks).

I hadn’t got far before the curious cows made their way towards me and the dog. My usual tactic is to clap and make a noise, which usually gets them to back off, but this time they just kept coming. Not charging or anything, but they surrounded us pretty quickly and made Blossom yelp with fright.

I’ve read a lot of stories about cattle trampling dog walkers to death, so I then had to make the decision to go forwards or back. I was about one third of the way up the field, so went forward.

The advice I’ve read is to let the dog off the lead, so if the cattle cause a problem, the dog will run, the cows will chase the dog (which will outrun them), and the person is okay. In my case, the dog decided to hide behind me. Thanks Blossom.

We made our way slowly and calmly up the field. I had my back to the hedge, my arms out, and was talking reassuringly to the cattle about how I was just going through the field. I’m not sure whether I was trying to reassure the cattle, the dog or myself to be honest. My heart was going like an express train, but I honestly believe that staying calm and slow kept the cattle calm.

It was only when I got through the gate and looked back that I realised just how many cows there had been. Once my heart stopped pounding and my legs stopped the jellies I made a mental note to take the longer route that avoids these boys next time.