Accidental Vix

I’ve had a lovely week with my fab friend Jess from Jessie G visiting, so of course we both had the week off and it was time to be a tourist at home! Apart from the fact it was great not to be working for a few days, I never tire of plenty of creative chat time with Jess, and we had a cultured week whilst keeping up the natter. I grew up a mile from the Bronte Parsonage in Haworth, and like most things took it for granted as it was on my doorstep, so it was great to go round the Bronte Parsonage with Jess and be reminded of the fab Bronte sisters, which brings me to this week’s Friday Faves:

Pemberley Pond – Wuthering Heights Poster (they say never judge a book by it’s cover but I would buy Wuthering Heights 10 times over if this was the cover!)

Gardenmis - Linen ring pillow (if only I’d found this for our wedding!)

Jezebel Charms – Heathcliff and Cathy earrings (you can’t have Cathy without Heathcliff)

Thanks Jess for a great few days, and here’s to finding Heathcliff in the summer! Have a great weekend, whatever your plans and if you’re in London please pop on down to Spitalfields market and visit Jessie G Designs for some fab handmade goodies.

Xx

Well as Handpicked Hall opens in Skipton today there can be no other choice for this week’s Friday Faves. I will be there tomorrow with my baby bits and illustrations, but until then if you are heading down for the opening day today then here are a few of my personal faves, who also happen to be fellow Craft Soup creators:

Rose Cottage  Crafts  - I was lucky enough to meet Christine at last night’s premier , and after spending time chatting to her via Craft Soup it was great to see her granny chic creations in person and I am envious of anyone who can crochet as it’s something I haven’t tried yet for fear of being addicted and already lacking hours in the day! So, if like me you love a bit of vintage inspired crochet that would sit perfectly in any home then check out Rose Cottage Crafts’ website or pop by and say hi as she will be at Handpicked Hall on Fridays

Little Shop of Lathers – It’s always great to catch up with Claire as she is as bubbly as her handmade bath and shower creations. Last night I even learnt about Claire’s clever idea of a bath bomb equivalent for those who prefer a shower! The only problem I have being within 100 metres of Claire’s gorgeous products is that I can’t resist buying quirky things as presents. I can’t reveal too much about my purchase last night as it is a soon to be Easter present but I can say that if you want an Easter alternative to chocolate then this is your girl. If you’re in the area tomorrow then pop by and be tempted by the chocolatey aromas as you reach the Little Shop of Lathers stall.

Ruby Spirit Designs – Tracy is actually one of the first people to introduce me to Craft Soup when I met her at an event in Haworth, and I always like the chance to catch up with her as we cross paths on the creative circuit. As with Little Shop of Lathers I find it very dangerous going near Ruby Spirit Design products as they have a quirkiness and style that I have not seen elsewhere and I know that any products (yes, none of them have made it as far as presents as I have kept them all) will stand out as being unique. I even managed to find some gorgeous earrings at Handpicked Hall last night that match my brand colours, so I think I’m justified in buying them to wear on Saturday, right??

If you are in Skipton today, tomorrow or any other day please pop by to Handpicked Hall and suport local designers, sellers and businesses and enjoy this breath of fresh talent that is a welcome change to what is becoming a standard selection of high street chains in most of our towns and cities – celebrate local, handmade and British.

Xx

Anyone who knows me, reads my blog or knows of my wedding last year will know I have a love of hats, especially of the handmade kind and I’m very excited to have found this gorgeous collection from Padesign:

• From simple yet elegant bows to striking bold hats and fascinators I think there’s a style to suit everyone
• Some of my fave items from Paula’s collection would look fab with my 50s prom dresses, or remind me of the 20s and my fave headwear era
• For such fab handmade headwear they are very reasonably priced, and I know where I’ll be going for my next big event

Better start thinking where I can wear a new hat, need a wedding or two, hmmm or maybe my leaving do on Friday!

Xx

I’m still amazed by the amount of talented people that I find in my everyday creative life, from friends and family to complete strangers, many of whom are now friends. Hence, me deciding that Tuesdays will be the days to shout about them! I’m going to start of with Julie from Moaning Minnie, for many reasons but here are my top 3:

• She’s originally from my hometown in Yorkshire
• She makes the most amazing hats in my size (I normally have to buy children’s sizes)
• I got 3 of her hats (above) for my birthday from my friend and hubby, and I love them all – they’re so unique!

Please take a look at her etsy shop and you won’t be disappointed.

Xx

To all the fab mums out there… Happy Mother’s Day! Although we’re in London at the moment and my mum back in Yorkshire it’s never too far away to tell her how fab she is. As is a tradition now, I had to make my mum something that is personal to her and that is a new challenge for me. This year it was a cushion cover, with a book and flowers on one side as my mum is absolutely addicted to reading, and a wine bottle and glasses on the other side as she likes a glass or two… this one’s for you mum – Love you!

Xx

Well apart from it being Friday, it’s a special Folksy Friday today as I’m also using it to do my Folksy Finds Handmade Love. All of today’s picks are chosen with the theme ‘made for you’ as I love my husband to bits and in our first year of marriage I always try to make an effort and create him things that are personal to both of us, especially after his Folksy proposal! As it’s a leap year today’s picks are all wedding and engagement related as I wonder how many ladies will take this opportunity to propose:

Made with Love x – Personalised notebook (these notebooks have played such a big part in our life and engagement that it’s at the top of the list)

Old black hen vintage – Floral and lace wedding book (this could make a great guest book but in my opinion an even better wedding planning book, why not use it to think up some proposal ideas ladies?!)

The leaf press – Personalised wedding journal (every bride needs a wedding book, mine was actually the proposal and is bursting at the seams now)

Joy Nevada - Personalised salt and pepper shakers (I can just imagine the proposal – will you pass the salt please darling…)

xx Bags of love - Shabby chic personalised engagement picture (After my own engagement I would encourage anybody to use handmade items in their proposal, and you can keep it forever)

Ink and stylus - The dressing room (this is such a gorgeous and romantic style of illustration)

Zygotegifts – Valentines card (Although unfortunately some of our hearts were misplaced on the day we had some of the 30 newspaper hearts hanging from our pom poms, and BB even made it to our wedding to see them for herself)

Morning Mr Magpie - Cutout heart necklace (This is beautiful and similar to the necklace I commissioned Sal to make to match my bridal earrings)

Artisan silver – Valentines silver necklace (Traceyann made all of my bridesmaids necklaces and personalised them)

Dottie designs - Personalised guest book (If I hadn’t made a message tree canvas for our ‘guest book’ I would have def got a book from Dottie)

Quernus crafts - Love mouse couple (These are too cute for words, they look like a couple who are announcing their engagement!)

Beadazzle designs – Wedding kiss guest book (Love the fun nature of this, and the fact that no 2 are the same)

Imogen’s Imagination - Ivory small fascinator (Sophie made all mine and my bridesmaids’ hats and fascinators, and this one was worn at my hen do)

Atelier 22 - Wedding/engagement card (Love screen printing and the vibrancy of this is perfect for anybody)

Geneva silver – Eco Bridal Bouquet (I made felt flowers for our wedding but these paper ones are fab)

Wall envy art – Personalised wedding vintage book page (Beautiful personalised momento)

By Poppy with love – ‘I DO’print (Beautifully simple, and reminds me of my own ‘I do’ moment last year)

Artyadz - The best is yet to come print (This one’s for my fantastic husband, we’ve had such much bad luck in our first year of marriage but I truly believe the best is yet to come!)

I’m off to reminisce and look at our wedding photos now

Xx

As I’m having a blue day today I couldn’t help browsing Luulla’s fab shops to cheer me up so here are some more of my faves from the supplies category as my mind wonders off to a happy creative place:

Ayarina - Ninja turtle buttons (I’m always up for customising clothes, and these would be perfect on my hubby’s coat – whether he would agree is another matter)

Kitties Closet – Stitched wool felt flowers (I wouldn’t change anything about our handmade wedding but these flowers would have saved me hours of cutting, worth considering if planning your own handmade flowers)

Sweetest Charms – Gingerbread Cabochon (These are so cute, and I don’t know what it is about gingerbread men but they always make me smile)

Better go and create now so I don’t spend more money on supplies until I’ve used at least some of my existing stash!

xx

I have been selling on Folksy now for 2 years and there are things I love, the main being that it is UK based, and things that I am falling out of love with but I will continue to stock my shop as I believe in supporting British handmade and independent businesses. However, I decided to expand my horizons and attempt to sell on Etsy as it reaches a much bigger audience, but I am definitely still a needle in a haystack. Then the New Year approached and I stumbled upon Luulla which is a relatively new site, I think that because it is invite only the standard remains high, and I haven’t yet found any sellers on Luulla which I am not keen on.  There are too many of my favourite items to share all at once so I’m going to do a series of blogs with my top 3 from each category on the site, starting with Housewares:

Linentree – Bunting (this is such adorable bunting that would make any room smile!)

Bella Bobbin – Let it snow hoop (again this is too cute for words, and a great addition to any home)

Efilandia – Cardboard birdhouse (another fab item perfect for cheering up any room)

Here’s to a successful 2012 for all at Luulla.

Xx

Let’s start with Happy New Year! New year, new aspirations and new challenges lie ahead so here’s my first adventure (notice it’s not a ‘resolution’) to write the equivalent of one blog each day in January inspired by a tweet about #blogboost from Creativesque. Admittedly I’ve missed the first 2 days so will have to catch up, but it’s been a not-so-easy start to the year with getting ill on New Years Eve and then the long battle to get back to London from Yorkshire on crutches yesterday but now I’m back there’s no excuses.

I guess it’s customary to think at this time of year about new business adventures and what you want from the year ahead but one step at a time for me. The first thing on my January ‘to-do-list’ is to get more views and sales to my folksy, etsy and luulla shops (more about Luulla later this week.) In order to do that I need to start thinking about making enough stock for all 3 shops, and there are plenty of ideas spinning through my head, but the first is to think about adult slippers as an addition my baby booties. Here is my first festive adult pair of elf shoes for my sister-in-law this Christmas following on from a custom request for baby elf shoes, but don’t worry there will be some more mainstream designs on the way so watch this space!

Xx

I love going ‘home’ to the rolling Yorkshire hills, fresh air and friendly locals but my trips home are even better when they include visiting craft fairs and meeting fellow Folksy peeps. Hence, this weekend being a good one. I happened to be at home only a mile from Haworth when I heard that handmade Haworth was on, and there was no stopping me. After our usual coffee trip to a fab place called Wells in Ilkley I dragged my husband to Haworth with the promise of cake! I was very happy to have finally met Tracy from Ruby Spirit Designs selling some gorgeous jewellery, perfect for many a Christmas present or treat for yourself, and Kirsten from Quernus Crafts who makes the most adorable polymer clay animals and I definitely fell for one that involved chocolate and will be winging it’s way to a great friend of mine very soon.

Haworth and Ilkley are definitely 2 places I want to do some craft fairs in the future but for now back to reality of London life.

Xx