This time it’s for you

Ulster Tatler in association with Carolans Irish Cream focuses on our local ‘Yummy Mummies’ who bring pure style to the art of balancing family life and career! This month we chat to karen marshall and rachael harriott.


Karen Marshall is Manager of Bangor’s Flagship Centre on Main Street. Karen, who is 37, lives in Newtownabbey and is married to Stuart. They have two beautiful children, Claudia (aged 8) and Jack (aged 4).

How do you feel about being chosen as Carolans Yummy Mummy of the month?
I was thrilled at being chosen for this, it’s a little bit embarrassing but you can’t help but feel a tiny bit chuffed too. My husband and brother found it quite amusing.


Describe a typical day at the office -
if that’s possible!
Every day at the Flagship is different, which is why I enjoy my work so much. It usually starts off with a ‘to do’ list, and by the time lunchtime comes the list is pushed aside because there are always so many different people and issues to deal with. The days’ activities can include marketing and promotional activities, personnel issues, cleaning, security and maintenance issues, organising events and on-mall activities and also a lot of administrative work. We aim to please so it is vital that the centre and car park are presented to the highest standards at all times.


As a Yummy Mummy, what’s your daily
routine at home?
It is more like daily chaos! The routine starts the night before with getting uniforms ready, making packed lunches, sorting out what is needed for any after-school and homework club activities and then packing a bag with a change of clothes for when they get home from school. Getting the kids out of bed is getting to be a daily struggle as they love their sleep. I am very lucky that my mother and mother-in-law both help out with the childcare, so depending on what day it is I either drop them off to my mum or my mother-in-law comes to our house to collect them.


Balancing your career with family life must sometimes be quite a challenge! Any tips on the art of multi-tasking?
For me getting the balance right is all about pre-planning, making lists, setting reminders on my phone and computer calendars (and synchronizing them daily!) and getting as much help as possible from family or friends. Another important thing is to make time for yourself, which I do once a week on a Tuesday night with the girls.


Do you have a well-favoured beauty routine you’d like to share with other mums?
I used to sell cosmetics as a hobby and that was when I got into a cleanse-tone-moisturise routine, but I have to say that my real secret to staying young (apart from good genes – thanks gran!) is a good night’s sleep – eight hours if I can manage it.


Dining out! What’s your favourite restaurant?
This varies between Barnaby’s in Ballyrobert for a nice family meal and for a special occasion it would be either Cayenne or Aldens – delicious!


Describe your fashion style. Where do you like to shop?

I normally wear suits to work so when I am not at work I like to dress down in nice comfy jeans and a casual top. My style is very much high street fashion, which I am surrounded by daily in the shopping centre, but my favourite shops at present are Jane Norman and Principles.


How would you spend a yummy weekend?
This may sound strange but for me it is all about staying well away from shops (after having spent all week in a shopping centre) and having a family night every weekend where we all do something together like minigolf or ten-pin bowling and then have a nice meal. I also love to try out some of my favourite cooking recipes from one of my many cookery books.


How do you like to spend your time with the girls?
Myself and a few girlfriends have what we call the ‘Tuesday Club’ so every Tuesday night is our time. We usually go to see a good movie, or out for a bite to eat and a few drinks and a good catch up.


Taking time out, how would you spend a yummy ‘me-time’ session?
Towards the end of last summer myself and my girlfriends took a few golf lessons so I hope to spend some time golfing this year if I can squeeze it in.


Finally, as a yummy mummy, where’s planned for holidays this year?
This year we will be spending 2 weeks in Lanzarote in August. I am also hoping to squeeze in a girlie trip to France.




Rachael Harriott from Belfast has been with partner Craig Bishop for eight years. They have been married for 2 years. Rachael is Account Director at Juice Consumer PR and mum to Jake (5) and Evvie (6 months).

How do you feel about being chosen as Carolans Yummy Mummy of the month?
Extremely flattered. I remember reading about the other yummy mummys in Ulster Tatler and thinking how amazing they all were – I never imagined that anybody would consider me to be like them and it’s lovely.


Describe a typical day at the office -
if that’s possible!
I have just returned to work after maternity leave, I had my daughter Evvie in August, and I have also started a new job as Account Director with Juice Consumer PR, which is a division of MX Brandcom. It’s been very busy and as you can imagine I am also going through a settling in period - meeting clients, planning campaigns, training staff and getting to grips with new systems.


As a Yummy Mummy, what’s your daily routine at home?
It’s really manic in our house weekday mornings. My husband Craig gets off to work around 5 a.m. I am up around 6.30 a.m. and have a few minutes to myself to catch up on the morning news with a bowl of porridge, then I have to try and get Jake out of bed – he loves his bed and it’s hard to get him out of it. Once Jake is eating breakfast it’s time to wake Evvie, we have been blessed with a baby that sleeps! Then everyone is washed and ready and then packed into the car. Evvie is dropped at nursery and Jake at school and then last but not least I get myself to work


Balancing your career with family life must sometimes be quite a challenge! Any tips on the art of multi-tasking?
That’s a good question! Perhaps the best thing is to think calm thoughts and don’t try to do everything at once– break it down into manageable pieces and don’t panic, it all works itself out.


Do you have a well-favoured beauty routine you’d like to share with other mums?
I found that each pregnancy brought its own set of skin problems and the way I look after my skin has had to change each time. My skin became really bad while I was pregnant with Evvie it seemed like everything I used irritated it and still does. At the moment it’s just very basic cleanse and moisturise.


Dining out! What’s your favourite restaurant?
That’s a hard one… if it’s just myself and Craig we love to go to Clenaghans on the old Soldiertown Road, Moira – cosy wee pub with a gorgeous restaurant attached. Steeped in history and you learn a lot about Sir John Lavery.

How would you spend a yummy weekend?
I just had a yummy weekend. It was just the four of us. Bowling, dinner and cinema – yes, we took Evvie to the cinema and she slept while Jake cried because he thought the hero of the film had been killed – it was a PG so he wasn’t and he sailed into the sunset.


Describe your fashion style. Where do you like to shop?
To be honest my style mantra is wear what suits your body, your colouring and, most importantly, wear what makes you feel good. I tend to shop at all the most popular high street stores including Oasis, Warehouse and Topshop.


How do you like to spend your time with the girls?
Just getting time to spend time with the girls is great – it would be mainly catching up, so a lot of talking and if it’s not talking it’s eating or drinking… a bit of wine.


Taking time out, how would you spend a yummy ‘me-time’ session?
Being the centre of some fantastic pampering attention, which takes all day – things like massages, facials, hair and nail treatments – pure indulgence.


Finally, as a yummy mummy, where’s planned for holidays this year?
My grandfather lives in Brighton and he has not seen the kids yet so we might visit there first and then perhaps hire out a cottage near the Cotswolds and spend a lot of time doing things as a family.