By Kate Hodges
11th August 2021
MAKE MAGICAL HIDEOUTS This summer has been a little bit of a washout, but there is still fun to be had. Building a den when it’s sunny means there’s somewhere to hide when it’s wet. We asked the writers of The Den Book for their top tips for making a hideaway in a garden or nearby wood; read them here. For an even greener space try growing a bean teepee. If it’s really wet or you don’t have access to an outside space, create a cosy light-spangled space indoors, perfect for reading, plotting and dreaming. Find great tips here
Alternatively, be bold and build your own spectacular treehouse. These nine plans range from the traditional to the modernist – you’re bound to find one that takes your fancy, and, if you don’t have a tree, most work as free-standing buildings. There are more houses and decks here, and be inspired by some of the most spectacularly beautiful treehouse from around the world.
RECIPE LEAN AND GREEN Courgettes are well and truly heavily in season: the shiny, long vegetables are sprouting on allotments and in gardens up and down the country. Feeling a bit jaded by the jade-green vegetable? Try some new ideas. A courgette and orange cake or fruity courgette muffins, simple enough for little hands to bake. Spiral them into noodles or get more creative; zing them up into a pickle, chutney, or marmalade. Or try our recipes for courgette chocolate ice-cream, griddled courgettes with mint and lemon or iced courgette soup with yoghurt.
EVENT AND MAKE JUMBO-SIZED FUN Thursday is World Elephant Day, which celebrates one of the world’s grandest animals. Find practical steps towards protecting the magnificent creatures here. Join online events all week; perhaps a talk or a sketching workshop, or try elephant crafts. We love these toilet roll elephants or go large scale and create your own paper mache creature.
EVENT LEFTS OUT Friday is Left Handers Day; a chance to tell family and friends how proud you are of being left handed and to raise awareness of the issues that face lefties in a world designed for righties. Find out about famous left handers here and more fun facts about southpaws. Or head over to our site to read a piece about supporting left-handers.
DO GROW AND SHOW Do you have a much-loved patch of land? It’s National Allotment Week. You might like to enter your place or crops in the competition; you don’t even need an allotment to compete; there are prizes for the best garden in a cup, monsters made from veg, fruit and herbs and wildlife-friendly projects! There are also online talks that cover growing a plot on a shoestring, organic growing and no-dig plotting! Find out more here. Read more from us about how to make the most of your allotment here, allotment gardening tips here and the joys of composting here.
WHAT WE’RE READING Parenting guru Emily Oster: ‘My kids watch TV every night – everybody needs downtime’ “Should my kids do extracurricular clubs? How much screen time can I get away with? Oster’s data-driven advice has made her the current go-to expert – but can you really parent by numbers?” Read more here
WHAT WE’RE WATCHING Feral Families: More and more parents are raising their children with no rules. This 2017 documentary meets three families who are passionate about off-grid parenting. Despite the sensationalist title, it’s pretty even-handed… Watch here
