Elmer and the Monster

For the last 25 years Elmer the Patchwork elephant has been bringing magic to many children across the world. Andersen Press has made the Elmer fans happy yet again, having released a new book in the series called Elmer and the Monster.

If you've read Elmer stories, you know that most of them begin with Elmer the patchwork elephant just starting his morning walk, when something happens. This time there is a great hullabaloo and pandemonium in the jungle. All the animals Elmer meets on his way are running in the opposite direction from where he goes. They are all terrified of a loud roar of a mysterious monster.

Nobody is brave enough to venture forward and investigate. It is up to Elmer to discover just who is this terrible creature making such a racket. I'm not going to spoil the story and reveal the identity of the monster, you will have to find it out yourselves.

Just let me tell you that we thoroughly enjoyed this new book. As The Times declared "David Mckee is a genius", and I wholeheartedly agree.
We love his style of illustration: humorous, entertaining, amusing, affectionate and sympathetic. The animals have antropomorphic features, just look at their facial expressions. The colours are bright and vibrant. Go through the pages of the series and marvel at the variety of the flora and fauna.
My guys have enjoyed our "spot the animal" games. We also like to count the monkeys or the birds as we read along.

Eddie loved the monster in the story, and had fun trying to roar as loud as the monster.
The latest story teaches is a lovely addition to the much loved series.

Lovable Elmer is always surrounded by friends. Eddie and I discussed his family recently: he has a cousin Wilbur, Aunt Zelda, Grandpa Eldo, then there is a little pink elephant Rose and a cute flying Super El. I wonder if he'll ever have a girlfriend or wife and a family of his own. Wouldn't he make a wonderful Dad?

To find out more about Elmer and discover all the books in this excellent series, check Andersen Press Elmer page.

Elmer-mania: our favourite elephant is 25 years old!

Did you know that Elmer the patchwork elephant is celebrating his 25th birthday this year?! This classic childrens' book, created by multi-talented David McKee, is one of the most widely read books for children in the UK. This colourful series has sold over 7 million copies since its publication in 1989 at Andersen Press. That's a lot of happy children.
Elmer has been such a big part of my children's lives, that he's almost a member of our family.

We first fell in love with him when our older son was a little boy. He absolutely adored the series, and I kept buying all the books as well as toys. Our first Elmer book is a battered veteran, it has been chewed, torn and scotch-taped, but I treasure it as this is the book which my kids and I enjoyed reading again and again.
Sasha is 12 now, but having autism, he doesn't feel he should be moving on and abandoning his old favourites. Nowadays he's as happy listening to me reading an Elmer book as he's watching a Fifth Gear video on Youtube.
If anything, quite often when I read to my younger son before bedtime, Sash would tag along and sit with us on the bed, listening to one of the wonderful Elmer stories which he has most likely heard hundreds of times.
When my younger son picks up a book to read before bedtime, there are times when I inwardly groan "Not again", but with Elmer books I never get tired of reading them aloud because I love the stories and marvellous illustrations so much.
And Eddie is very fond of Elmer books as well. Some of them I read so many times, that I can recite them by heart.

Our Elmer collection (incomplete in this photo)

We are such Elmer enthusiasts, that we've got not only books and toys, we have an Elmer rug, Elmer framed art print, a couple of years ago I painted an Elmer mural in my younger son's bedroom and also decorated his room with stickers, and even made an Elmer pancake once (as you can see from my blog header).
Imagine my delight, when we were offered a selection of Elmer-anniversary-themed products and a new book to review. Yippee, what could be more exciting?!

We received a lovely Elmer creative activity pack with colouring sheets, which my little man is working on.
We read a new book "Elmer and the Monster" (watch this space for a separate book review) and appreciated it.

Eddie is a big fan of puzzles, and he was very pleased to play with a new Elmer Floor Puzzle.

This 24 piece puzzle comes in a sturdy box with a red rope handle. The pieces are chunky and perfect for little hands. It is double-sided. One side is a colourful illustration from Elmer and the Lost Teddy, with Elmer and Wilbur finding the lost teddy (by the way, this is one of my own personal favourite books in the series, a perfect read before bedtime). The other side is a black and white colouring sample of Elmer, for your little people to colour in.

Elmer Colouring Felt Pens is a set of 6 felt pens in a lovely storage box. Each pen is double ended, so you have 12 colours in total to colour in Elmer and his magic world.

Elmer Tabard is perfect for little artists or chefs. You can wipe it clean easily. Eddie thought he looked like a musketeer.

Elmer Snowglobe is a delightful souvenir for the Elmer fans of all ages. Shake the snow globe, and the sparkly stars float around the elephant. Tilt it to the side, and the reflection makes it look like there are two Elmers inside. Pure magic! What's more, there is an insert on the other side for your own photo, so you can make it personalised. How smart is that?

Eddie loved all the Elmer goodies but the snowglobe made him giddy with joy.

If you love Elmer and would like to wish him a happy birthday, how about decorating an Elmer mask from Andersen Press? Go on, you know you want to join the Elmer's Day parade! (<-the site has a link to download lots of colouring sheets and create your own Elmer mask).

After all, in Elmer's Special Day Elmer said:
"Let's begin... From now on everyone can join in the Elmer's Day Parade... as long as they wear an elephant mask! This will be the best elephant parade ever!"
"And everyone", said Elmer, "means everyone!"

Eco-friendly with NaturePaint

The time has come to refresh Eddie's bedroom. It didn't look too bad, but I never had a chance to redecorate it when I was pregnant, as I was feeling quite unwell, and now I had no excuses not to give it a new look. By coincidence I saw that NaturePaint has been looking for bloggers to review their new range of paint. This was the necessary push for me, I have emailed them at once and they have kindly provided me with enough paint to decorate the room.

Elmer mural

What NaturePaint promises? "NaturePaint is the first paint brand in the world to be proudly labelled as Zero VOC, meaning their paint contains absolutely no toxins and doesn't produce those dreaded fumes that are bad for everyone's health.
Really family friendly as this means that after painting a room it is immediately safe for children to inhabit - so no having to put them to sleep elsewhere or cordoning off the painted room from them. It also has great environmental creds and disposing of left over paint has never been simpler - you can simply add any unused paint to a composter or throw away just as you would milk.
We only use artist-grade natural and non-toxic pigments and these include various earths, ochres, umbers, oxides, and rutile titan white. Wherever possible we buy pigments that are extracted using low environmental impact, non-polluting processes, even if that means we have to pay more money for them"


Sounds fantastic, doesn't it? I have contacted NaturePaint, saying that I would love to try their products as I planned to decorate Eddie's bedroom, and that ideally I would like to do a small size mural for him. My boys love Elmer the patchwork elephant, and I knew I would enjoy painting it on the wall.

I went online to NaturePaint to look at their full colour range. It was not an easy choice, as I wasn't sure whether to go for Basking, Cotton Dusk or By-the-wind-sailor, in the end I have chosen the Sunfish, a beautiful pastel blue shade.

You can see how the mixed paint is full of microscopic bubbles, and I followed the instructions precisely. It was also way too runny when I was painting the walls (in comparison to the other standard brands). The first coating was quite uneven, and I had to use both the roller and the brush to achieve the right effect. Thankfully, once dry, the bubbles disappeared and the coat of paint looked even. As per instructions, you need at least two coatings.

The pros:
- all the environmentally-friendly credentials
- the paint doesn't have an odour, and you can use the room on the same day it is painted (unlike some other paints that smell awfully toxic).
- The paint is supplied in powder form – allowing you to easily mix the amount you need and save any excess for future decoration.
- It comes in 63 colours, so a pretty good selection to choose from.
- provenance: I love the idea that all the paints are produced in Cornwall, using the local materials
The cons:
- as the paint comes in powder form you will need quite a big container to mix it in and the precise scales, as you need to follow the suggested ratio of paint to water. I did have the kitchen scales but I don't expect everyone to have them, so I think a plastic measure scoop to come with the paint would be a good idea. Also I didn't have a big enough container with the lid. I usually paint in stages, as I don't have a chance to complete the room in one go, so I needed a container that would keep the paint from drying for days. Hence I was mixing a small amount of paint every time.
- I found it too runny to my liking

The photo above (the jar) shows the actual shade of the paint, as the photos of the finished painted room are different, I tried to edit them to show the real colour, but didn't quite manage.

That's Eddie's soft toys corner, we have a low futon with a mattress on the floor, where he loves jumping and playing with his teddies and dogs. He doesn't sleep here (just thought I need to clarify, he has a bed at the opposite side of the room, where I was standing).

Eddie's delighted with his Elmer, he watched the progress with great interest, as it took me many days to finish it. I used the acrylics for the mural, as NaturePaint selection didn't have all the necessary primary bright colours for my project and I am more confident with the art materials. I should have first put the primer once the outline of Elmer was drawn, as the colours kept changing on the pale blue background. I had to repaint the pink twice, and mixing red and blue gave me a very dark purple which was almost black, so I had to do another trip to the art shop and buy a purple colour.  Then I realised my old black paint was too dry, so I had to buy a new one. Once the mural was finished, Eddie and I had fun adding the Elmer stickers which I bought a long time ago on amazon, they are wonderfully cheerful and bright, and easily removable once we get bored with them.

If you'd like to read more about the NaturePaint and see what you can do with it, please visit Mummy2Five blog and admire her fantastic Peter Pan mural. She's one talented lady, and I can imagine her son was ecstatic.

I'm adding my post to lovely Verily Victoria Vocalises' blog linky #PoCoLo