Berries & Barnacles

Simple Homemade Poufs

Why homemade poufs are the perfect pieces of furniture. — *The surviving pouf from Tangier.*

Our weather-beaten and well-loved poufs came from our first kid-free holiday after Max was born. We were living in Ireland at the time and had decided to spend Christmas in Málaga with my family flying in to join us.

With Tangier, just a boat ride away, Brad and I decided to head over for a few days on our own. It certainly was easier to explore the narrow alleys of the Petit Socco and walk up the staircases of the Medina without a stroller.

We drank mint tea, ate tagine and rocked the casbah. We also did some shopping and came home with two leather poufs.

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What projects can you do for homeschooling while travelling

When Claire and Tom set off for a year of travelling with their kids, they’d intended on spending 6 months in France and enrolling their kids in the local school system. It would have been a pretty amazing opportunity, and a great way to solidify the kids’ French immersion education.

Simple and Sturdy Loft Ladder

Tips and tricks for building your own ladder.

Here’s how we built a simple loft ladder out of scrap material for our tiny self-built shabin. It is part of a series of posts on building our shabin (shed+cabin). You can find all of the currently available posts here.

Taking A Year Off to Travel

How to afford to take a year off to travel with your kids.

Most people take a year off to travel either in their early twenties or after retirement. When you’re mid-career with kids and a mortgage, ageing parents and volunteer commitments, it’s hard to imagine taking a whole year off. However, that is just what my friends Claire and Tom did!