Kate Lawler has responded after she was accused of “abusing” and “bashing” small businesses.
The This Morning star, 43, attempted to create her own balloon arch for her mother-in-law’s 70th birthday.
But after sharing her DIY skills with her 517,000 Instagram followers, she faced unexpected harsh ridicule and heavy criticism.
Wanting to make the celebration special, Kate wanted to do something extra for the event, but after being quoted £250, she thought of a brilliant and inventive alternative.
Kate thought she would put her DIY skills to the test and save money by making one herself.
Kate Lawler responds after being accused of ‘abusing’ and ‘bashing’ small businesses
The This Morning star tried to save money by creating her own balloon arch for her mother-in-law’s 70th birthday and shared the results on Instagram.
She admitted that she knew her work wouldn’t be as polished as a professional’s, but she wanted to try anyway, since her party was only for 20 people.
The blonde beauty proudly showed off her £67 creation on Instagram, but professional balloon artists quickly attacked her in the comments.
One of them wrote: ‘As a balloon/accessory/decoration company that does exactly these types of setups, I think you’ve just highlighted why the professionals would cost £200. Yours does the job, but it doesn’t compare.
You get what you paid for and I think you seriously shortchanged all of us balloon artists. Our costs include luxury brand balloons, skill and labor.’
‘I guess if you’re happy then well done, BUT it seems terrible to me, so many mistakes, but hey, whatever floats your boat!’
‘Thanks Kate, considering you obviously know nothing about a professional balloon artist and how much our job entails. Not only do we put our heart and soul into our business, but it is also our time. How do you expect us to work for free? Maybe people want to think carefully before criticizing how much it actually costs.’
‘Hahahahahahahahahaha, are you serious? That’s horrible. You haven’t even inflated the balloons well enough and companies usually charge 3 times the retail cost, but you clearly don’t understand that either. Jesus, my neck shines for you. Embarrassing’
‘& that’s why it looks like that. Let it be, Kate, we charge what we charge because we do it for a living, for people who value beautiful things and their own time. It’s like saying you want to pay wholesale prices for next year’s clothes.
But after sharing her DIY skills with her 517,000 Instagram followers, she faced unexpected harsh ridicule and heavy criticism.
Wanting to make the celebration special, Kate wanted to do something extra for the event, but after being quoted £250, she thought of a brilliant and inventive alternative. Kate thought she would put her DIY skills to the test and save money by making one herself (pictured with her partner and her daughter).
After receiving a number of harsh comments, Kate created a video to respond to the haters and trolls, sharing that she “can’t cope” with the backlash.
Looking defeated and upset with her head in her hands, the mom said: “Guys, I’m completely tearing myself apart on Instagram and I can’t stand it.”
After receiving a number of harsh comments, Kate created a video to respond to the haters and trolls, sharing that she “can’t cope” with the backlash.
The mum said: ‘Guys, I’m completely tearing myself apart on Instagram and I can’t stand it. I have to give my opinion, I have to defend myself.
‘All I did was buy an easel from Amazon, a welcome board from Etsy and some balloons from Ginger Ray UK. I am being annihilated.
‘I am ‘abusing’ and ‘bashing’ the balloon arch community. Oh, the Karens are going strong!
”You should be ashamed of yourself, Kate, for not supporting small businesses! You just showed the internet what kind of person you really are, Kate! ”I just made my own balloon arch!
‘I honestly can’t stand it! There are also people who can’t afford to pay £250 for a balloon arch if they’re just having a small gathering at home for 20 people, like I did for Sue’s birthday.
“The average age was 70. They don’t give a damn about big balloon arches.”
She then shook off the criticism by dancing with balloons she used to make the bow while singing Don’t Let The B*stards Get You Down by Kris Kristofferson.
This isn’t the only time Kate has had to defend herself on her social media pages, as she was shamed in November 2023.
She responded to a troll who shamed her on Instagram after learning that her daughter Noa still sleeps on a cot.
A video of Noa, who will turn three in February, singing under her crib mattress sparked some guest comments from a follower.
Leaving not one, but two comments, the user commented: ‘To be fair, a bed would be better darling!’
Kate simply replied, “She would never be able to lift the mattress off a bed, though.” So no. (in a video of her lifting her small mattress)
The follower commented again: ‘That thought is over (sic) and she will feel like a bigger girl in a little bed!!!!
This isn’t the only time Kate has had to defend herself on her social media pages, as she was shamed in November 2023. She responded to a troll who shamed her on Instagram after learning that her daughter Noa is still sleeping at home . a cot
A video of Noa (pictured in November) in her crib on Instagram sparked some unsolicited opinions from one of Kate’s followers.
The follower commented: ‘That thought has passed her (sic) and she will feel like a bigger girl in a little bed!!!!
Kate replied: ‘She doesn’t need a bed to feel like a “bigger girl”, please don’t tell others how their children will feel when you don’t know them.
‘Also, this was not a post to ask for advice on how to sleep Noa. She is the happiest when we say goodnight and leave her room, extremely happy in her crib, she sleeps all night, she never wakes us up and sleeps until 7-8 in the morning.
‘Why the hell would I trade it for a bed? When he doesn’t have enough space to sleep or move around, I’ll buy him a bed.’
The rest of Kate’s fans supported her and shared stories of their own children acting strangely in their cribs.
It’s a far cry from a previous video from November, where a restless Noa was knocking items off her cot and all the comments I liked suggested Kate buy her a bed.
‘I feel like I might need a bigger bed now. That’s what we just did with our 2 year old daughter and she sleeps so much better now,” said one polite fan.
“She’s probably ready for a real bed now,” said another, and a slightly passive-aggressive fan said: “Her bed is so small!” Is it a travel cot?
A more blunt fan said: ‘Does he need to be in a normal bed???’
Kate argued with the fan and told her: ‘please don’t tell others how their children will feel when you don’t know them.’
In a previous video from November, a restless Noa threw items out of her crib, and the most liked comments suggested Kate buy her a bed.
Noa (pictured in November) settled under her mattress and sang the nursery rhyme Frere Jacques.
In December 2022, Kate shocked the internet when she shared a video of Noa, then 22 months old, identifying different dog breeds.
Kate gave birth to her first daughter, Noa Daisy Ilse, in February 2021 and Kate admitted she was worried she wouldn’t be able to conceive due to her low egg count.
Noa’s father is Martin Bojtos, a podcast producer, whom Kate married in 2022 after nine years together.
Kate became the first female winner of Big Brother in 2002, when she won the third series of the show.