SINGAPORE – Make family time all the more special with these ideas and activities.

Bond: Istana open house

This Deepavali, explore the vast grounds of the Istana, which will be open to the public from 8.30am to 6pm.

Kids can try sculpting balloons and making candles at activity booths to celebrate the Festival of Lights.

Enjoy dance and band performances by students from schools such as Bowen Secondary, Punggol Secondary and CHIJ Katong Convent.

You can also sign up for a nature walk organised by the National Parks Board and a tour of the main building by the National Heritage Board.

Before you leave, check out the merchandise booths for limited-edition Istana and President’s Challenge souvenirs, such as notebooks, caps and umbrellas. All sales proceeds go to charities supported by the President’s Challenge.

Entry to the Istana grounds is free for Singaporeans and permanent residents. All other visitors pay an entrance fee of $2.

For programme details, go to str.sg/wVXq

Donate: Pre-loved items to raise funds

Get your kids to pick out toys, clothes and books, among other family belongings, for donation.

Non-profit organisation Peace of Art wants pre-loved items for The Sustainable Christmas Market. All proceeds from this charity sale, which is also supported by City Developments Limited and Singapore Red Cross, go towards helping children in Pakistan.

The country was recently devastated by severe floods, leaving many families without medicine and clean water to treat conditions like typhoid, cholera, malaria and dengue.

Pre-loved items in good condition can be dropped off by Nov 15 every Wednesday and Sunday, 11am to 4pm, at the Singapore Red Cross, 02-08 YWCA, 6 Fort Canning Road.

If you are donating items valued above $500, you can arrange for collection. Send Peace of Art a direct message on Instagram (instagram.com/peace.of.art.sg).

You are invited to shop, too, at this charity event on Nov 27, 10am to 7pm, at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel.

The fund-raising efforts continue thereafter at @redcrossshop on Carousell (carousell.sg/u/redcrossshop), where unsold donated items will be put up for sale.

Shop: Matching family outfits

Local women’s label The Closet Lover now offers outfits for children and men. Co-founder Bertilla Wong, who has two young sons, says there are few options for boys when it comes to “affordable, quality clothing”.

That is why her #KidsByTCL line, which comes in sizes for newborns till seven years old, is designed for both genders.

Ms Wong says every piece in the collection is comfortable for young ones with sensitive skin, like her sons who have eczema.

The kidswear’s first drop, priced from $19.90 to $66.90, is now available at the brand’s flagship store at B2-40 Takashimaya S.C and online (theclosetlover.com).

Shop the matching pieces for mums and dads, too. The adult range can be found at the brand’s three outlets and online.