Our greatest dreams* have just been realised.
*To be a mermaid, but also to never have to move from the sofa.
For one genius Etsy-er and crocheter, CassJamesDesigns, has finally created what the world has been so desperately waiting for. A crocheted mermaid tail blanket.
It’s a blanket. But it makes you look like a mermaid. This is the most magical thing available for purchase on the internet right now.
We need it. We want it. Once we have it, we’re never leaving the house again.
Before you have kids you might dream of your future offspring as a sweet newborn gazing adoringly into your eyes, a toddler playing happily at your feet, or a child venturing happily into the big wide world of school.
The reality of motherhood isn’t always quite like this – I’m thinking colic, sleepless nights and tantrums for starters – but it’s an incomparably wonderful experience nonetheless.
Here are 12 reasons why being a mum is the best job in the world.
1. Cuddles
Whether they need comforting, they’re sleepy or just fancied a hug, it’s pretty awesome to always be at the top of someone’s ‘people I’d like to cuddle’ list.
2. Meeting your newborn
Honestly, nothing beats… Read the full story
The holidays have come to Lincolnshire.
Barrie Hall has spent eight months turning his mobility scooter into a mini version of the Coca Cola Christmas truck.
Barrie, 73, from Lincolnshire who has been battling leukemia for more than five years, worked on the mobility truck in between trips to the hospital.
Several local businesses helped him build the exact replica of the world’s most famous truck, festive flashing lights and all.
The scooter is fully road-worthy and even comes with breakdown cover.
Goodbye rich, passionate, earthy marsala. Hello peace and calm.
Pantone has announced its colour of the year for 2016, and this time, there’s a pretty major twist.
Rather than selecting one colour to represent all that’s going on in the world, they’ve chosen two – for the first time ever.
So, *drum roll*, here they are. The colours of the year for 2016 are Rose Quartz (PANTONE 13-1520) and Serenity (PANTONE 15-3919).
This video of an orangutan transfixed by a video of orangutans is surely what YouTube was made for.
The footage of a boy showing the orangutan the video on his phone was taken at Toledo Zoo in Ohio earlier this year.
At one point, the orangutan reaches round and grabs her blanket to make herself more cosy as she leans against the edge of the glass to watch the screen.
‘She’s going to stay here all day now,’ one of the onlookers is heard saying, ‘she brought the blanket.’
The footage was posted on YouTube with the explanation: ‘My family and I visited the Toledo Zoo… Read the full story
Being in a coma is one those experiences we all wonder about.
It is a state of unconsciousness, caused by a various medical conditions including severe head injuries, alcohol poisoning, low blood sugar in those with diabetes and brain infections.
It can also be medically induced to protect the brain during neurosurgery or as a last line of treatment for extreme trauma.
Someone wondered what it was really like and took their question to Reddit, asking users to relate their experiences – what did they remember? What was the recovery like? Did they have any weird dreams?
Christmas is all about stuffing your face with food, oh and goodwill to all men (and women), whatever.
But your chocolate loving friend knows not all food is made equal.
Not even Xmas lunch with all the trimmings will satisfy their taste buds like a swirl of ganache or a bite of cocoa dusted truffles can.
So give them what they really want this Christmas, which is a bounty of presents that will fulfill all their chocoholic cravings.
Don’t fret if you’re running low on ideas – we’ve got eight to bring chocolate joy to their life.
Christmas is the season to be merry, and there’s nothing quite merrier than taking a break from that punishing diet to treat yo self.
A new study reveals that 9.58am on 4 December is the very exact moment we start working on our annual Santa bellies.
The findings show that 16-29 year olds, who make up the biggest scoffers, could consume up to an extra 30,000 calories between December 4 until Christmas Day.
So what exactly is it that makes our self discipline go straight out the window come Christmas time?
Unsurprisingly, comfort eating is the… Read the full story
‘Tis the season to be jolly and, most importantly, wear Christmas jumpers.
And not just for humans either.
There’s nothing we love more than animals looking cosy in knitwear. And they need it too – it’s getting pretty chilly now Christmas is just round the corner.
We’ve rounded up the best and cutest animals in their winter woollies to brighten your day. Prepare for your heart to melt.
Gordy Yates is living the dream. He’s a single blogger living in Taiwan, having fun and following his dreams.
His sister Meredith, meanwhile, is a married mother of two, working hard and being all responsible.
Gordy and Meredith live pretty different lives. They love each other, but Gordy admits that he hasn’t been the best brother around.
He wrote on his blog: ‘My twin sister Meredith is so great and I am so bad. Every year on my birthday, she gets me something cool.
‘And I’m the worst brother because I never get her anything for… Read the full story
Forget kissing a girl, if you really want to cause a stir in 2015, try using reuseable sanitary towels.
I have to admit that when I first heard of their existence a couple of months ago my initial reaction was something along the lines of ‘You what? But how? Ew!’
But then I remembered I’m not Donald Trump, had a firm word with myself, and decided I had to try them out at my soonest menstrual convenience.
I turned my back on ‘traditional’ throwaway sanitary products (i.e. sanitary towels and tampons) years ago, and have been… Read the full story
Even if you’re a total Scrooge, you can’t deny that Christmas is a special time of year. Stuffing the turkey, cramming stockings with sweets, and carefully decorating your home are all part of the magic.
Mind you, it can all get a bit stressful at times. That’s when a Christmas getaway provides a special treat and some much deserved you time. It needn’t cost you your Christmas budget, either. There are some wonderful places on our doorstep in the UK.
1. Loch Lomond, Stirling
With the Trossachs National Park close by,… Read the full story
If your little girl asks for a Star Wars cake for her birthday, you know you’re doing something right.
Especially if she also wants a princess cake and is so clear in her convictions, she sees no reason she can’t have both.
Little Sophie celebrated her birthday with a Star Wars party in November. To make it extra special, her parents decided to try to turn a Chewbacca doll into the classic Barbie cake.
They set out to find a baker but were turned down a few times, as Chewbacca wasn’t a proper cake kit.
But thankfully a friend… Read the full story
Melissa Jefferson, better known by her stage name Lizzo, has dropped a new music video that’s getting a lot of love online.
Called My Skin, Lizzo’s video challenges the assumptions people make when they see the colour of her skin.
On Facebook, where she first posted the video, she wrote:
My Skin literally matters. It matters because it’s the largest organ on my body. Because it’s my exterior. It’s been stretched, sunburnt and covered in glitter. It’s the first thing you notice about me. My skin is dark brown, but if you asked someone they would say it’s black. My blackness is my largest assumed “accessory”.
Simply because of the colour of her skin, Lizzo’s experienced many misconceptions about who she is, from people assuming a ‘ghetto-ness’ about her to being told by boys that she’s not black enough.
Well, sort of.
He doesn’t actually have scissors for hands. But he may as well do.
Spanish hairdresser Alberto Olmedo has taken hair-dressing to a whole other level by using samurai swords and fire to cut hair. Seriously.
Alberto uses this sword technique to make sure both sides of the hair are even. He says: ‘Hairdressers usually cut one side, and then the other. And one side is always a bit different than the other.
*If you’re about to let someone under the age of 13 read this, don’t. There are spoilers*
A Facebook post from an impassioned mother has sparked debate by asking parents to take a democratic approach to Santa.
She is urging parents to spend less on gifts from ‘Father Christmas’ and more on the gifts they admit are from themselves.
The reason the mother gives is that not all parents have enough money to buy modern gadgets such as a PlayStation 4 or an iPad – things that many children note down on their Christmas lists to Santa – so when children compare notes after Christmas and find Santa brought one of them an expensive… Read the full story
This is the story of a banging night out, told over 500 pictures and 40 years.
Lost in Music promises to be the most comprehensive collection of pictures from the UK club scene ever compiled.
Five hundred gloriously sweaty pictures take us from the beginning of dance music and club culture, through the madness of the 90s club scene, right up to present day.
Curated by theprintspace, the exhibit ‘is a tribute to the obsessives, the hedonists, the musical eccentrics, and the dancers who were the founding members of the dance music institution and those who continue to fuel its… Read the full story
Making your kid a packed lunch every day must get a little boring. Especially when they’re in that ‘nope, never getting bored of this one specific sandwich’ stage.
One parent decided to make it a little more entertaining. Sure, their technique might not be as creative as the guy who drew on his children’s sandwich bags every day for five years, but still. It’s pretty cute.
The parent, who goes by Roboguzu, keeps it simple but effective, taking a felt tip pen and writing a few words on their daughter’s sandwich bag every day.
Press the cute chicken button on this farmyard-themed children’s toy and it shouts cock at you in a posh, strident voice.
Mum Joanne Evans, 27, from West Derby, bought the toy for her seven-month-old daughter Mia online.
It just so happened to be the first button she pressed when she got it out of the box this week.
While the toy was meant to be a present for her daughter, Joanne admits it’s now a firm favourite with the whole family.
‘Me and my mum have been in hysterics. We can’t stop pressing it. Every time we press the button we laugh and then the baby laughs at us,’ Joanne told the Liverpool Echo.
Hannah might go by the name Domestic Gothess, but she’s brought a whole lot of light and joy to our lives.
Because this goth girl has done the seemingly impossible: She has improved upon the red velvet brownie.
Which is clearly no mean feat because red velvet brownies are already one of the most delicious things to grace this planet.
But Hannah was not satisfied with merely whacking on a cream cheese frosting before scoffing the sweet treat.
Nope, Hannah created a cream cheese mousse. And not just any mousse – an Oreo cookie mousse.
