Thanks to coronavirus, many of us are self isolating, schools are set to close, and small businesses are in need of support more than ever. With that in mind, I've compiled a guide to some of the best boredom-busting craft kits Etsy has to offer. 

Affiliate links used throughout. Prices correct at time of writing. All photos are the property of respective sellers.

Laugh Embroidery Kit

£19.95

NellyMakesEmbroidery

This uplifting design is quite intricate, meaning it will give you hours of screen-free entertainment. Once finished, you can sew the finished embroidery onto a cushion cover, bag, T-shirt, or keep it on the hoop. 

If the idea of of intricate designs is scary, but you still want to use this time to learn about embroidery, NogPepperMe's Beginner Embroidery Kit, starting at £11, is ideal for yourself or older children.

DIY Bath Bomb Kit

£15

Little Shop Of Lathers

If you are showing symptoms of coronavirus, a soak with a homemade bath bomb may help you feel a little better. This kit contains all the base ingredients, strawberry and lime scents, colouring, moulds, and even an apron and gloves so you can make 8-10 bath bombs from your kitchen. 

You can also use the bath bombs as a science experiment if your little ones are at home. Drop one into cold water, one into hot, and time them to see whose dissolves faster.

Natural Lip Balm Making Kit

£18.95

Nutleys

Available in 6 fruity flavours, Nutleys kits are like HelloFresh, but for lip balm! They contain premeasured ingredients so there is no waste or faffing, and they are easy to make with children. Unlike cheap commercial kits, Nutley's include nourishing, all vegan ingredients in their kits, to make lip balm that you'll be happy for your family to use.

Chocolate Brownie Baking Kit

£15.95

homebakeshop

A food tech lesson in a box! Or just a much-needed treat for when you're on day twelve of self isolation, I won't judge. As long as you have eggs and butter, this seller's kits allows you your chocolate fix without risking a trip to the shops. Even the tray and greaseproof paper is provided! 

There are tonnes of indulgent flavours to choose from, all featuring popular chocolate bars. Think Malteser and white chocolate brownies and Mini Egg rocky road. Yum.

Scarf Knitting Kit

£22.50

CastawayKnittingScot

Once you've got the knack of knitting, it's easy to create a scarf while working your way through a new Netflix series. This kit gives you everything you need to get going, and I especially love that the stylish, muted colour schemes they offer mean that the result is a scarf that you'll be happy to gift or wear yourself.


Block Printing Bag Kits
From £14.90
I Do Handmade
Mother and daughter team Becky and Wendy make up these kits, with the star feature being the beautiful wooden blocks which are handcarved in Delhi and fairly traded. Use the stamps to decorate a drawstring bag, tote, or makeup bag, then you could further embellish with beading or stitching for something totally unique.

Once your masterpiece is finished, you'll have the blocks and paint left to create many more designs on items around your home, making this a great value, low waste kit.

Unicorn Card Making Kit

From £4.50

IddyBits

Whack out this kit and you are guaranteed at least 8 minutes of peace! A great screen-free activity that will suit a wide age range, this kit could also be an ideal for using as a maths lesson- for example, if they want to put 2 of the green heart stickers on each card, how many cards will they need? How many more star stickers are there than unicorns?

Cress Growing Kit

£2.99

ThisPaperGarden

We all loved growing cress on paper towels or in egg shells as kids, and this is a really fun way for your children to try it while they're bored indoors. Each day they'll be able to see it grow a little more, and they could take photos to put into a slideshow as a quick IT task. At the end, they'll be rewarded with cress that they can eat!

I hope my round up can help bring some fun to this scary time. Make sure to look after yourselves, and please support the small sellers who need it most if you can.

Well, it's fair to say this Christmas was cracking for me and my beauty drawers! Santa stocked me up with all kinds of glittery goodness and skincare treats to enjoy. I always love receiving makeup because I think of the person and occasion whenever I use it- just me?

Despite me firmly telling him not to, my lovely boyfriend splashed out on this gorgeous TooFaced gift set, comprising of an eyeshadow palette, pressed glitter palette, cheek trio, and miniature Shadow Insurance Primer, Better Than Sex Mascara, and Gingerbread Man liquid lipstick. 

The details in this set just make it for me, with a sweet cookie scent filling the box, gingerbread men on the lipstick, cute characters on the packaging, and punny names like 'Hot & Coal' and 'I Love Yule'.

Colourpop is raved about on every beauty blog and channel going, so naturally, I've always wanted to try it, and my sister kindly gifted my first items! 

I showed her the Disney Designers release months ago, and was absolutely thrilled to unwrap the lux liquid lip in 'Wonderboy'. Sassy Megara is probably my favourite Disney girl, and this rosy berry lipstick looks like it will be a favourite in my collection.

My sister didn't even know who Kathleen Lights was when she bought the Zodiac palette, but she soon found out when I opened it and shrieked "Kathleen Lights! I watch her videos all the time!". 

The colour story of the palette is very unusual and not something I would usually go for, but the packaging is just gorgeous and I'm very excited to dive into that shimmery aqua Pisces shade.

My brother-in-common-law knows you can't go wrong with LUSH products, and gave me a citrussy Happy shower gel which is packed with seaweed shimmer, blue raspberry scented Galaxy lip scrub, and some Boom toothy tabs. 

They taste like cola, which feels very strange to brush your teeth with, but they do work brilliantly. Toothy tabs are one of my favourite LUSH bits, and these are definitely the nicest flavour I've tried. 

Continuing the LUSH love, my boyfriend's parents gave me a Relax gift set. As soon as they handed it to me the beautiful scent of real lavender hit me, and inside are four treats full of it: Dream Cream, Sleepy shower gel, Twilight bath bomb, and A French Kiss bubble bar. 

You know how there's always something you won't use in a gift set? Not the Pink It Up set my cousin and her boyfriend bought me from The Body Shop! A strawberry shine lip oil, rose hydrating face mist, and pink grapefruit shower gel make up this trio and they're all things I'd choose myself. 

They also gave me the Vitamin E hydrating toner which sounds dreamy for my desert-dry complexion.

Said lizard-like skin will also enjoy the Weleda Skin Food that my boyfriend gave me! I've sworn by the original for years but it is rather sticky, so I'm looking forward to trying the light version. It came with a free REN BB cream too. 

When we saw the Cover FX custom cover drops for something like a third of the price in Beauty Outlet, my mum snapped them up for my stocking. The sales assistant gave me a great tip: buy a cheap foundation and boost the coverage with these. 

Finally, it wouldn't be Christmas without sparkle, and my sister added to my Collection Glam Crystals with this grey version in 'Hustle'. It's full of holo glitters and super pretty.

Have you tried these products? What did you get for Christmas?

Etsy is one of the best places to find meaningful, personal presents that are truly made with love. When you support a small business, you're already making a big difference to the person behind it, but with lots of Etsy items giving a percentage of profits to charity, your money can go even further and help great causes. 

Prices and information correct at time of writing. All images belong to respective sellers.

The colourful glass charms on these necklaces are made in Ghana from recycled glass. All the Ghanain glass from textile Candy is ethically sourced on trips to Africa, and the necklaces come in little patterned pouches handmade by a seamstress there. 

Mental illnesses almost always take away the sufferer's confidence and replace it with hundreds of negative thoughts about themselves. This print is a lovely way to remind a friend of their good qualities, and a percentage from the sale goes to MIND charity, so more people are supported in their fight.

All money from this little cutie goes to the Scottish Refugee Council! Every time you reach for your keys or go through your front door, you'll be reminded that you've helped someone to find a home here. Lovely stuff.

£5 BotanicalUK

This chic soap is named after Doreen Robinson, who sadly passed away from cancer in 2018. In her honour, £2 from this bar goes to Marie Curie. The bar is scented with uplifting, citrussy bergamot, and I think it looks just as good as a LUSH one!

A really touching, beautiful gift for anyone whose life has been affected by Alzheimer's or dementia, this pin donates £2 to the Alzheimer's Society to help them find a cure for this evil disease. I think it would be lovely to give to someone alongside a framed photo of their loved one.

'Kind Candles' was the perfect name for this company. Recyclable metal tins, sustainable, vegan rapeseed wax, and best of all, a percentage from the sale of each candle benefits a charity. The Winter Spice candle supports Fresh Start, an Edinburgh charity which helps people who have been homeless to transition well into their new homes.

Gifts That Help Animals
Dachshund Screenprint
£20+ Hatchling Makes 
Whether your recipient owns a sausage dog or simply adores them, this hand printed poster is a great way to make them smile this Christmas. 10% of all sales are donated to wildlife conservation charities. 

10% of sales from ThePunkyBunny go to a local animal charity, which perfectly suits this vegan-themed business. This mug is a great present for a plant based friend or anyone with a dairy allergy, as it quickly answers what milks they can have in their drinks and makes ordering much easier.

Badger and Bee Wooden Pins

Pins are always popular, and these wooden ones, with their sweet character designs, are a gorgeous stocking filler for any nature lover. £2 from the badger design goes to Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, and £2 from the bee is given to Friends Of The Earth.

It's official, the plant trend is (thankfully) going nowhere, and you can show your love in two ways with these beautiful, handmade earrings. 100% of the profits from them go to the Amazon Conservation Team, so while you show off these green and gold gems on your Instagram grid, you're funding vital work to save the rainforest. 

The bright colours in this relaxed scene really drew me in, and would work for pretty much any space or home. All of Isabella's prints give a donation to a fitting charity, and for this one she has chosen the Canal and River Trust. 

Featuring postcards, a handmade drawstring bag, and a Liberty print bracelet with silver Manta ray charm, this box is ideal for any wannabe merpeople who love anything aquatic. £3.33 goes to the Manta Trust to look after the oceans.

Whether you love spookiness all year round, or you're just shying away from mass-produced plastic to decorate your home, Etsy has lots of items ideal for making your Halloween spooktacular. If you're after a more cosy vibe this season, you might like my Shop Small: Autumn On Etsy guide instead!

Prices correct at time of writing. Pictures are the property of respective artists. Affiliate links used throughout- shopping through these will not cost you more but I will receive a very small payment.

£11 SoSweetOnline

from £2.75 RosieLeaTeaUK

from £10 EponineChocolate
Made with real pumpkin blended into caramel for a grown up treat.

from £8 CreativeMumUK

£1.50 SoSweetOnline

£5 MapleMollys

£1.50 FaerytailsTreats
Even your hell hounds can join in the fun- do a trick, get a treat!


Aaargh!ccessories
Mickey and Minnie Earrings
£5.95 BlueMangoBoutique
Silver Halloween Earrings

£2 ManchesterCandles
Tartan Wool Pumpkin Cushion
£35 ThistleSewNicely
A quality investment piece to decorate your bed or sofa year on year. This seller also has different colourways, bats, and haunted house designs available.

£5 Emma Inks

from £15 BakedBeanBaby

Skeletal hand Embroidery
£23 CrimsonPins
Happy Halloween Wreath
from £9 VictoriasStitches
Available in natural wood or orange colours, this sturdy wreath can be personalised with your name.

£2.12 KMPrintableshop

Adult Halloween Riddle Game

£3.25 MissPartyPerfect

£15.95 SIWellness
Ideal to give as prizes, or fun treats for children who can't have the usual sweeties and chocolate

£3.50 Garlandsandgifts

These pieces look super cute scattered on a table but could also be made into a game- whoever collects the most in 30 seconds wins a prize!

Rainy afternoons are the perfect excuse for the little ones (or you) to get creative. Pop Hocus Pocus on and have fun designing your own invitations, bunting, or decorations.

from £4.99 InfiniteCraftsDesign

ATinyMew £16.79

I couldn't resist adding this brush pack from talented tattoo artist, Tore. They're perfect for creating your own cake toppers, colouring sheets, or even printing onto temporary tattoo paper to complete your costume.

from £2.75 PrettyDieCuts

Embroider or bead these pumpkins for a garland that can be kept and reused for years to come.

£8.50 KnitKnotCrafts

£7.50 ColourSplashSupplies

£12 iheartbuttonsuk

Ladies, gentlemen, and those of you who are yet to make up your minds... welcome to my review of Kinky Boots The Musical, a feel good, heartwarming show based on an incredible true story of self belief and acceptance. The show is currently playing at Winter Gardens Blackpool until 12 October 2019, tickets available here. 

When his father passes away, Charlie Price reluctantly returns home to Northampton to take on his failing factory. Orders are being cancelled, business is looking bleak, and jobs are on the line, until a chance encounter with glamorous drag queen Lola leads Charlie to make kinky boots to withhold the weight of her and her angels. With the Milan trade show his chance to prove himself, can Charlie come through for the factory and his friends?

Despite being written by 80s queen Cyndi Lauper, the majority of songs were no Defying Gravity, but then again, even Elphaba would have a hard time belting out lines about brogues. 

Lola's songs, on the other hand, were brilliant, with a sexy dance feel to most of them, and a real Whitney-style diva vibe to Hold Me In Your Heart. Kayi Ushe blew me away with Lola's powerful numbers and softer songs alike. Joel Harper-Jackson also hit the higher notes and key changes beautifully, and their harmony together was a highlight of the performance for me.

The Set

The set design for Kinky Boots really caught my attention, with simple industrial pieces switching to suit every scene. I particularly loved that the factory's conveyor belt split into pieces and became a central prop for the dance routine in Everybody Say Yeah, reflecting the change and fast pace the factory was undertaking as it prepared for their new line of boots and the Milan show.

In the film factory lout Don challenges Lola to an arm wrestle but Playful Productions wisely changed this to a boxing match for the musical, which is much easier for the whole audience to see and appreciate. 

The set became a boxing ring with just two pieces of rope across the central unit, and the lighting quickly flashed to imitate photography while the actors performed the show in slow motion. It was a clever, engaging way to illustrate the scene, and both the set and lighting design coloured me impressed.

Speaking of fast pace, the angels' dance routines were certainly that. Half incredible choreography, half acrobatic display, they brought so much fun and sparkle to Kinky Boots The Musical. I can honestly say this is the first show I've seen where my jaw has literally dropped, when one angel leapt high and landed in a perfect box split!

I was astounded to learn after the show that the actors playing the Angels are not full time drag performers, because they pulled it off perfectly, with help from their amazing makeup and costumes. The budget for sequins and gems in this production must have run into the thousands!

Whether in sequins as Lola or suited as Simon, Kayi Ushe was a stand out for me. The script was very similar to the film, in which Chiwetel Ejiofor portrays Lola, so it would be easy to compare the two, but Ushe developed the character for the stage beautifully, exaggerating her words and actions so she really was a larger than life queen strutting before our eyes.

Every character had an element of comedy, which is partly what made the musical so fun to watch, it felt like the audience were invited into the factory banter. The only performance that jarred for me was factory worker/Charlie's love interest, Lauren, portrayed by Paula Lane. 

Having seen Lane in Coronation Street I don't doubt her talent, but the character and her songs just seemed very awkward and pantomime-esque. Maybe it was the direction, or perhaps the fact I've never been to Northampton, where the musical is set, but I struggled to understand why her accent was different to the rest of the cast, too. 

Kinky Boots is one of my favourite films, and I really hoped that seeing it sexed up on stage with tonnes of songs and sequins would live up to it. I'm happy to report that it did, and every piece of the performance tied together to create the perfect feel good show about acceptance and courage.

I had my own lesson in acceptance too, when I looked around and saw all kinds of people in the audience. I had wrongly assumed that middle aged men wouldn't be the target audience, but my dad came along and loved every minute just like the rest of the crowd, who packed out the seats and filled the room with roaring applause. 

Have you seen Kinky Boots The Musical?

Call me a basic b, but Autumn is undoubtedly my favourite season. I love pumpkins, hot chocolates, conkers, pumpkins, the whole shebang just brings joy to my cold little heart, and luckily, there are loads of beautiful Autumn accessories on Etsy to indulge me.

As the evenings get dark and chilly, it's the perfect time to crack out the cosiest candles and melts and scent your home from the season. Whether you love spicy, sweet, or smoky, there are talented crafters cooking up something perfect for every room.

Soy Wax Bonfire Bar £2 MagnoliaBlossomUK
Roasted Chestnut Soy Wax Melts £2 ManchesterCandles
This seller also has pumpkin pecan waffles, pumpkin spiced latte, and toasted marshmallow melts, which made my mouth water just looking at them

Toffee Apple Soy Wax Bar £2.25 CalmingScentsUK
Gran's Pumpkin Pie Candle Jar £6.90 Sarah's Little Attic

Gingerbread Soy Wax Melts £3 CraftyLittleHive

Blackberry Jam Wax Melts £1.50 EmilysWaxHouse

A wreath on the front door, pumpkins on the dining table, and orange and mustard cushions for your bed are easy ways to turn your home into a cosy retreat.

Autumn Food Felt Ornaments from £6.82 ReadySteadyFelt
These would be a sweet, unusual addition to a seasonal centrepiece or hot chocolate station.

Fox and Owl Cushion Cover £6.95 SimplyDivineThings

Set of 2 Navy Tweed Pumpkins £12 ShopWillyNilly
The tweed adds a rustic texture to these sweet ornaments. Add a drop of essential oil to the bottom of them to make them smell as good as they look.

Pumpkin Wreath £21 CraftyLilyMay

If it's not enough just to drink hot cocoa and spiced lattes, Etsy will let you bathe in them, too.

Autumn Fire Perfume Oil £10 ScreamingMandrakePf
6 Pumpkin and Rhubarb Bath Melts £9.50 BahariBlossom 

Vegan Pumpkin Spice Bath Set £8.95 NaturesGenie

Autumn Fashion
Dressing for Autumn is my favourite. Bring on the burgundy, the mustard, the corduroy, and the cosy knits!

5 Autumn Scrunchies £12 ukpigtailsandpompoms

Pumpkins. Candles. Hot Chocolate. Embroidered Sweatshirt £30 NoodleAndStitch 

Knitted Earwarmer, Cowl, and Coffee Cosy £35 TheCraftyElfStore

The colours in this warm woollen set are a great way to cheer up a grey, rainy day.

What's your favourite thing about Autumn?

Since I work on a very warm ward, I tend to come home sticky, sweaty, and ready for a cool shower with fruity products to freshen me up, and I Love Cosmetics fit the bill perfectly with their affordable range of cruelty free shower gels and scrubs, and bath salts and cremes.

I always opt for fruit scents to awaken my skin and senses, and the I Love Elderflower Fizz Body Wash (£6.50) does not disappoint. I was worried it would be a sickly floral, but the elderflower has cleverly been combined with apple for a crisp and refreshing scent.

If I'm feeling especially gross, I reach for the I Love... Raspberry and Blackberry Shower Smoothie (£3.99), which smells absolutely mouthwatering. For a full, fake tan routine scrub I still prefer my good old exfoliating gloves, but if you have sensitive skin or just like a gentle polish the tiny particles of walnut shell should float your boat.

After my shower I like to take a minute to moisturise my body with the I Love English Rose Body Butter (£12), as I feel that little bit more body confident when my skin is smooth and radiant, and it has been keeping my eczema at bay nicely.

If you think you don't like rose scents, this rich butter will prove you wrong. Instead of a heavy, powdered rose, this is a fresh floral blended with pear, red berries, jasmine, and amber to produce a beautiful fragrance that lingers lightly on the skin while the shea butter base sinks in quickly and leaves skin feeling nourished.

I Love Cosmetics have blended shea butter with coconut oil in their exotic I Love Mango and Papaya hand lotion (£2.99), too, making it a deeply nourishing formula. It does take a while to sink in, so it's ideal for massaging into hands or feet before bed to wake up to silky smooth skin.

To further treat your feet this Summer, dissolve bath salts in hot water then letting it cool for a soothing soak. I have been trialling the Violet Dreams variety and found them perfect for pampering my poor feet after a day in sandals.

I Love Cosmetics are rightfully so proud of their scents, they've made it easy to layer them on to ensure the fragrance lasts on your skin by offering full product ranges of every scent. Start with a soak in the scented bath salts or bath creme, apply the Body Wash or Shower Smoothie, then finish with a spritz of body spray. 

Even your home can smell sweetly, with I Love Cosmetics candles and reed diffusers delivering a burst of your favourite fragrance for up to 40 hours. Alternatively you can pop some of the bath salts into small bags and hang them in your wardrobe or sock draw to waft the scent over your clothes.

From the fresh and floral to the gourmand Mango Cheesecake and Minty Choc Chip, it's hard to choose which fragrance to try! Luckily, I Love Cosmetics have a handy Find My Fragrance Tool, and plenty of offers on their site to help you stock up.