New HobbyCraft Workshops

Hi bloggers, well I finally have some new workshops taking place at HobbyCraft in July. I wanted to experiment with some evening workshops this time round because I know how frustrating it can be when workshops are hosted in the middle of the week during the day. These small workshops will give you an insight into the type of vintage workshops we host if you are a beginner and if you consider yourself a professional, its nice to have a break from the humdrum of work and chill out with like minded crafters.

The first of the workshops is an A5 notebook which we will vintage up using papers, distress inks, lace and embellishments. Make your note taking more enjoyable with a notebook that looks the part.

 

For more details, check out the HobbyCraft workshop page

The second workshop will be another evening class, this time making a vintage trinket which you can either use to hang as a decoration or add a chain or long piece of ribbon to create a necklace. My example includes a picture of my best friend on her wedding day, making this trinket a perfect way to capture a lasting memory.

 

For more details, check out the HobbyCraft workshop page.

My final workshop in July is for a Vintage book made from papier mache. This is the longest workshop out of all of them and will be taking place during the day on a Friday. We will vintage up a plain papier mache book which when opened will reveal up to two photos that you will bring with you so you can either display it closed or leave it open. This book makes a great present and you could even put another present inside the book as a form of gift wrapping.

 

 

For more details, check out the HobbyCraft Workshop page.

I am still planning some more workshops for the future in other venues as well as HobbyCraft so keep checking back for more details.

Vintage Follie's 2nd Birthday

Hi bloggers, well we have officially made it to two years and it has been a fantastic ending to a great week. Even though today was not full of big celebrations or vintage outings we did have some chill out time and made this beautiful homemade marble cake as a celebratory dessert. Lovely!

                                 

I haven't had time to post about our last day in St Ives but if you follow us on Facebook you would have seen how beautiful the weather turned out to be which made it even harder for us to drive home! I took lots of photos to share with you so sit back and take in the beauty that is St Ives, Cornwall.

                                

                                

                                

                                

                                

                                

                                

                                

We've had a fantastic time over the best week and have come back renewed and refreshed and ready for another year of creativity, workshops and lots more exciting adventures and vintage trips. We would like to thank everyone for their support, those that have attended our workshops, family, friends and of course our followers and anyone who has been inspired by the blog. We hope to keep you inspired for many more years to come.

   

   

 

   

Scrapbook Magic at Mullion

Hi bloggers, today we got back to our crafting ways and headed to Scrapbook Magic at Mullion. We first visited this craft shop last year and were so happy to see that it was still there. I have to say this is probably the best craft shop in Cornwall because even though there is a small selection of craft products they are all by our favourite designers and manufacturers. Margaret, who owns Scrapbook Magic recognised us from last year and it was nice to have a good chat about new craft products and ideas. Scrapbook Magic host a range of craft classes from card making to scrap booking and altered projects which are right up our street. If you are on holiday or live in the area then you must check out this craft store. Also surrounding the shop is Trenance Chocolate shop, a coffee shop and some other gift shops and Mullion Cove is just a short walk away.

                                     

Of course we couldn't walk out the shop without buying some craft supplies. I bought one of Tim Holtz assemblage clocks which I can't wait to fill with vintage imagery, lace, flowers and steam punk pieces. I also got a Graphic 45 matchbox which has an open window on the front so you can see into the tray. Finally I picked up a clear plastic frame which can be sprayed around and you could even use distress inks to reveal the frame shape, perfect for scrap booking and then a lovely 12x12 sheet of paper by Prima. Mum also bought some bits including one of Tim Holtz worn covers, some ring fasteners, buckles and a sheet of 12x12 paper by Kaisercraft. If you like Tim Holtz products this is your ideal shop and I can't wait to visit next year or sooner to take one of Margaret's altered art classes!

For more details about Scrapbook Magic, check out the website at www.scrapbookmagic.co.uk

Sunshine and bargains galore!

We finally got our glorious sunny day that we had been waiting for and it was the perfect day to head over to Marazion and take in the breathtaking views of St Michaels Mount. Before we got there we had planned to visit a local boot sale being held in Rosudgeon, just down the road from Marazion and my goodness the Cornish folk had definitely been waiting for a sunny day to grab the bargains. The boot sale was heaving with sellers still trying to set up their pitch when we were walking round and packed with buyers ready to catch a bargain! 

Our first buy of the day was a set of gorgeous plates with a beautiful gold decoration all over, perfect to use for a tea party for a special occasion and only cost us £4.50.

                                  

From the same stall we also bought a set of two beautiful cake tins which were basically brand new and only £3.50!

                                  

Since a lot of people were still setting up as we were walking round we decided to take a coffee break, heading to the Car Boot Kitchen set up downstairs in the social club adjoining the field of the boot sale and enjoyed some lovely homemade cake and was a nice break from the heat and sunshine outside. There were many refreshments available, even a chocolate van selling pots of chocolate with treats to dip in it. So if you are ever in Rosudgeon on a Wednesday, be sure to check out the boot sale, if not for the bargains, come for the food!

After our break we came across the biggest bargain of the day, a whole set of teacups with saucers, plates, jug and sugar bowl for £5! The woman selling the set didn't even realise she had got it out and said she hadn't used it for years but clearly didn't really realise what a gem she had, so we snapped it up with no hesitation! The pattern is very similar to a tea set we bought last year, but would fit in perfectly with the rest of the tea sets we have at home.

                                

Yet another addition to the china we had already snapped up, we found this cute little pot which matches a tea set we have at home and for £2 it's a delight.

                                

A few other bits and bobs we picked up include an old wooden ruler for 25p! Mum also got some old Silko cotton reels for 50p each and we also found some brooches, £2 each. So all in all not a bad day at the boot sale.

                                

                               

After the boot sale we had a quick stop at Goldsithney to return to a furniture/ junk shop we found last year but was a little disappointed to find that he had merged with another antique shop and had only furniture to sell now rather than the bric a brac and junk we wanted to rummage through. So it was now time to move onto Marazion for some lunch.

                               

We enjoyed our packed lunch with St Michael's Mount in view and the whole thing still amazes me now, I just find this island outstanding and so beautiful, can't stop looking at it when I'm there. Unfortunately the tide was in whilst we were there so the causeway was closed to walk over, however we did decide to take a short boat ride over to the island, although I'm not a big lover of boat rides and was quite happy when we returned back to shore.

Before we headed home we wanted to make the most of the sunshine, as the forecast for the next 2 days seems to be rain! Therefore we headed to our favourite sea view, Gwithian, near Hayle. If you have not visited this beach you should put it on your to do list as it is 3 miles of golden sands and dunes and is the most beautiful view you could ask for on a clear day. When I'm there it feels as though all your worries disappear and your dreams could become a reality. Time just seems to stand still and you just get lost admiring the natural beauty, the pictures that follow do not do its full justice.

                              

                              

                              

Only two more days to go and I really don't want to go home or back to reality!

   

 

   

 

 

     

Time to create

So today the weather has brightened up a little bit. After a very wet beginning to the day we headed down to Falmouth for a bit of shopping and did not necessarily pick up any vintage bargains but a few odds and ends that we thought we needed. I found a great Vintage Wedding Ideas book which will be perfect when planning a certain sisters wedding and also as ideas for party favours for perhaps a future in the party planning business. On our way back we popped into The Range in Truro as we don't have one of these shops close by to us in Crawley so made the most of it. I bought a fantastic mirror and I have plans to use it as a photo-booth set up for my Mardi Gras vintage party, simply just going to take out the mirror and hang it in the garden and at £19.99 I couldn't resist. I will share pictures of the mirror at a later date, just think antique and ornate!

So what have we been creating on our holidays I hear you asking............

Well mum has been focusing on making some vintage cuffs, using calico as a base and then layering up lace and different bits of fabric with jewellery and fabric flowers as embellishments.

 

                                   

Mum has also been playing with some Media Mixage products by Spellbinders using ice resin to fill up jewellery findings with many different embellishments. The resin does take about 24 hours to completely set but it looks so good when its finished.

        

                                   

So far I have created another jewellery trinket for a workshop I have coming up in Hobbycraft on Friday 12th July (more details will be on the blog next week, but I am taking bookings now, just send me an email). This time I have used a picture of myself and my lovely sister with a simple paper background with a few jewellery charms to decorate.

                                   

                                   

Well that's it from us for now but I will be back with some more stories of our retreat around Cornwall.

            

A Perfect day for a Bargain

Hi bloggers, so today is the first official day of our holiday in Cornwall and lets just say the weather is a little less than perfect. However on the upside we did find ourselves immersed in bargains down at the Cornish Market World near St Austell. An antiques fair was also being held at the market today which was great for us to find some treasures. We first picked up some lace for 30p a bundle in shades of pink and purple. 

                                      

We also managed to get 5 books of music sheet paper for £1 - now that is what I call a bargain! This will definitely come in handy for our workshops. 

                                      

Another great bargain we found were some vintage watches for £1 each so we picked up five of those, not sure what we have planned for those but at that price we just had to get some. 

                                     

     

Finally this is not so much a vintage find but a bag fulfilment of mine. I had been wanting to buy a cute satchel bag for a while, after seeing that advert on the TV about that woman who made satchels and started a business online, I think the advert was for Google maybe. Anyway we found this small stall near the back of the market selling cute little purses and wooden hangings for the home. She was also selling lots of satchel bags and as soon as I clocked this bag I knew it was something special. Being the indecisive person that I am I couldn't decide straight away and had to walk away for a few minutes to think about it. But literally 5 minutes later we returned as mum talked me round into buying it and I definitely won't regret it. It's the perfect size to fit my trusty iPad in and matches lots of different outfits that I wear. 

                                     

 

The company that makes the bag is called LYDC London and the name of the stall was Dotty Teapot Gifts who you can find on Facebook and can also make an order for any bags or purses by sending her a personal message. 

So far so good on our crafty retreat, although it would be nice if the weather perked up a bit!

Holiday Prep

Hi bloggers, this evening me and mum are on our way to a hopefully sunny Cornwall. This year we are staying in Porth, just down from Newquay and is such a tranquil spot to stay in. We are revisiting the same apartment we have stayed in on previous occasions and it is the perfect location to reach all the different areas we hope to cover over the next week.

Today I have been adding the last bits and bobs to my craft stash that I am going to take with me as we love to do a bit of crafting whilst we are away to make the most of this creative place.

My craft stash consists of a lot of jewellery findings and embellishments as I hope to make a few vintage accessories and hopefully will design a few workshop ideas along the way. Of course I aim to blog on most days to keep you guys informed of our journey and all the vintage treasures we find. We plan to hit a lot of bootsales, junk shops and craft markets, so fingers crossed we find some beauties.

Now just the rest of the packing to get started with!

Photobooth Style

Hi bloggers, have you ever wanted to recreate that photobooth look to your photos for a scrapbook page? Well now you can with this awesome website I have found after coming across an image on Pinterest. Photoboother allows you to upload photos to create them into a photobooth strip and it takes seconds to create. All you need to do is click on the four upload buttons and you can choose from 6 different styles that you may wish to apply. Once you've finished you can either share it on your blog or social media site or click the 'develop' button and either get it emailed to you or download it - you can then print it and use on a scrapbook page. Such fun!

Fancy planning a party?

 

So if any of you have been following me on Pinterest, you may have noticed my obsession with pinning party ideas, tablescapes and anything vintage party related. This mainly started when I was planning my last birthday party which was a Cinderella inspired vintage tea party, please see post for party details. Since then I have also created several other pin boards for Craft Parties, Vintage Parties and the one I'm most keen to keep filling up is my Vintage Mardi Gras party, which is going to be the theme of my birthday party this year, and it is definitely going to be bigger and better than last year. As a massive Disney fan, most of my ideas usually build on an idea from a Disney film and this next party will be based on the New Orleans style from the Disney film, Princess and the Frog (if you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend!)

So to keep me inspired with new ideas I recently purchased two Somerset Mingle books by Stampington and Company and they are absolutely fantastic. Its lovely to read other people's stories of how they came up with a theme and how they also love to plan parties and occasions. This could be my calling in life. I have included a few snapshots from the books below, to give you an idea of the types of party themes you can find in these books. And at £ 7.95 from Rainbow Silks, they are a complete steal!

 

 

 

 Have you planned any parties recently or flicked through a Somerset Mingle book?

Wedding Trinket

So today was suppose to be about tidying up the craft room, however when you are surrounded by craft it is definitely hard to resist sitting down and making something. When my eye caught a glimpse of a page in a Somerset Memories book I simply couldn't resist and I had to get out the tools and create.

This beautiful trinket features my best friend Bobbie on her wedding day and I think it may be a future present if she catches sight of this post as I'm sure she will want to have it. These trinkets are perfect for capturing a memory or a moment in time and can easily be worn as a necklace as well. Though I think they are quite precious and look much prettier hanging amongst jewellery or even underneath a lampshade (which is where this beauty is hanging until a certain someone's birthday).

It could also be added to some wrapping around a present, instead of using a tag attach one of these trinkets.

They are very easy to make and I am very tempted to make it a project for one of my upcoming classes, so watch this space.

A little bit of a refresh

Hi bloggers, I hope some of you have been enjoying the sunshine this week and making the most of the dry weather to create any of those projects that need doing outside. I have been enjoying a bit of the sunshine, whilst also making a lot of small adjustments to the blog indoors with a box of tissues by my side as I have managed to catch a cold during this sunny spell, typical!

Anyway please make some time to scan down the right side bar to notice the changes. I have finally added a social bar to make it easier for you guys to follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest and remember you can always send us an email. I have included a 'Labels' section so you can now find posts specific to that project area and also find examples of all our previous workshops in one place. If you are on Bloglovin you can follow me on there as well with the new added link.

Finally, and I think the most exciting news, I have now added a 'pin it' button to my images in the blog posts. So you can now hover over any image and share it via Pinterest, so what you waiting for, get pinning!

Brighton Inspiration

So since university is now over and finished with I am a free bird and since the weather was also sunny, I thought why not have a meander around the Brighton lanes to spark off some creative inspiration.

My first stop was Bluebelle & Co. I have visited this shop on many occasions on my visits to the Brighton lanes and absolutely love the collection of products they have, specifically those designed by Disaster designs as they are so vintage and adorable and on this visit I simply couldn't resist buying something.

 

Love Letters Make Up Bag - £16.99

 

The detail on the front and back of these designs are so beautiful and it took me ages to decide which design to buy and what item to buy. I must have been in the shop at least half an hour. But finally I chose this make-up bag, whether I will be using it for make-up is another story altogether but for now it will just sit on my dresser to be admired.

A visit to the lanes would not be complete without a browse around Snooper's Paradise, which is a must see for any vintage fan who loves to meander around old bits and bobs, you could find absolutely anything in here. I managed to find a couple of old postcards that will definitely be put to good use in some future projects.

 

 

There were many other items that almost tempted me but the reminder that I was going to get the train home made me cautious to how big an item I could physically carry home.

One final mention is for a shop called Silverado, who sell the most stunning collection of jewellery by a range of different designers. Their prices were a little over my budget today but I have to say my favourite piece would have to be this gold bicycle necklace, but at £210, its a little out of my league for now. Definitely worth a browse though!

 Before going back home I did venture into the hustle and bustle of the city centre, although I wasn't too impressed with the selection of clothes available in most stores. Now I don't usually comment about fashion on the blog but it is part of how we express our creativity but at the moment I am having such a tough time finding any items that I actually like. Perhaps its time to start making my own clothes, eek, would have to learn how to sew!

 

 

Back in Business

Hi bloggers and hasn't it been a long time! The past month has been a blur of revision and deadlines and I can now finally scream with excitement that university is finally over. These past 3 years have gone past so fast and I have honestly learnt a lot about business which has helped contribute to the type of business that I would like to create. If that will happen in the near future, I am not sure, but for now I am enjoying this free time to be creative, design some new workshops and teach others the beautiful art of crafting!

Talking about teaching others, yesterday was our first Vintage Follie workshop at the house this year and I think everyone was craving some creative time. So we set up the tables, got out the vintage china and had a glorious day of crafting, drinking tea and eating plenty of cake.

Project:Vintage Hanging Pocket

 

The best way for me to tell you the story of the day is in pictures so sit back, relax and scroll down through the pictures.......

  Table of inspiration -  full of books to get those ideas flowing

 

 

 Tables set up with the essential tools

 

 Trolley set up with papers, paints, old pattern papers and more......

 

Table full of fabric, lace, ribbons and trims

 Vintage Brooches

So what were the results of this fantastic day............

 

The first to finish was Julie B with this beautiful wedding inspired hanging pocket

 

 

Next to finish was Pauline, loving this floral finish

 

 

 

This beautiful hanging pocket by Lynne definitely has a vintage romantic look about it

 

 

 

Joanne added some Paris chic to her hanging pocket

 

 

 

Craig's vintage classic gentlemen pocket worked really well and I absolutely love the added touch of the vintage pocket watch.

 

 

 

Mum also got to finish off her pocket on the day and the rosette is the perfect finishing touch

 

So thats a wrap for another craft day and a step in a more creative direction.

I now have a lot more time on my hands to get back to grips with the blog, so expect some changes and a lot more blog posts.

I want to finish off this post with a message of Congratulations to the girls at Trends with Benefits who won Best Crafting blog as part of the company blogger awards, well done girls! I would like to thank everyone who voted for me and it has definitely been a boost to be recognised and shortlisted.