Christmas Shopping

Despite heading off to Newbury to celebrate the 40th birthday of a good friend this weekend I did manage to find some time to fit in a little Christmas shopping. Looking for inspiration I decided to avoid the main line shops and I headed for some antique/second hand shops for something original.

A few presents later, which obviously I can't talk about, I stumbled across a small selection of christmas decorations which were calling out for a new home.

These ones were such lovely colours and grabbed my attention due to the feathered glitter accents on them. I'm not sure how well they'll compliment the decorations on our big tree but there's always the 'Christmas Twig" to contemplate.

And I thought this collection of small glass balls might work really well with them.

These ones grabbed my attention due to the great mix of bright colours and the silky finish. I'm still contemplating where they might work but I know they will somewhere!

We popped out this morning and bought the tree, a big 7 foot one, and it's sitting outside the back doors waiting until we are all together tuesday to decorate. My only fear is how well behaved Caoimhe is going to be when she see's all the sparkly things! She's been growing at quite a rate and it won't be long before Cait or my lap just isn't big enough.

I have uploaded a couple more things on to my Etsy Store now (link on the right hand side bar) and have taken lots of photos to list more over the course of this week. Last week was mad with social and work commitments but it's calmer this week so hoping to get a bit more done.

Advent - the countdown

Great excitement in our house this morning when Niamh realised that it would be time to open the advent calendar. Simple design this year for Niamhy........ the trick will be for her to find the numbers that are all jumbled up

Different for Cait as hers are become more and more sophisticated!

She has been into origami recently and taught me a few things... so this year hers is based around origami boxes! We've rather busy bookshelves but you can just about make them out. Must get a close up photo tomorrow morning.

So the countdown begins and I can't wait.

Birthday Decorations

It's been a tradition for as long as I can remember that I decorate the house on Caits birthday. I can't remember when/how it started although I think something from "Fairy things to make and do" may have been involved. I seem to remember fairies made from cardboard and straws dangling from our fireplace.

As is the way with traditions they grow every year and the same can be said of birthday decorations! We've had everything from painted flowers and stars with dots on them to cut out birds inspired byPetra Boase.

This year I challenged myself to stick to the bird theme, which incidentally reigned also last summer for Niamhs birthday. This time though I found something three dimensional to have a go at.... bird cages!

I stumbled across a blog called the the BridesCafe which has a fab tutorial for the following birdcages and they are so simple.

I got busy over the weekend and came up with my own versions.

One nice thing was that they were simple enough that Niamh was able to help and she made the one all in pink in the middle of the shot. The most important thing though was that Cait liked them!

Birthday decorations down.... just two advent calendars to sort now!

Light Up Hassocks

I managed to cram everything for the stall into three large bags and had the handy help of my folks to carry it all round for set up time. I draped a few vintage tablecloths over the trestle table and I was in business. Everything fitted on just perfectly and all my little props and baskets seemed just the ticket for adding a bit of character to the set up.

My beautiful cushions.

The bits and bobs end, including my popular decorations.

These are Caits fab rag dolls but I can't work out how to rotate the photo so you'll have to tilt your head!

The whole evening was such fun with a little procession down the main street. The lights were switched on by Harry, the son of one of our friends, and the school choir, including little Niamh, sang a selection of festive songs.

My stall was in a really good place in the main hall and I had lots and lots of people come to browse and buy. It was great talking to people and getting good feedback on the items. The best sellers by far were the rings and decorations, with the brooch kits coming in third. I had as many requests for the bright version as I did the vintage and have made some kits up over this weekend. I aim to get up and running on Etsy this week (lots of people asked if I was online) and they'll be one of the first things I post. 

I manned the stall with Cait all evening bar the school choir moment when we had the fantastic help of the Watson family on the stall. A glass or two of mulled wine seemed to keep me going. The second half of the evening was quieter but it was still quite fruitful in the sales stakes and there was more time to talk to the browsers. On top of all that it was lovely to see everyone I knew that stopped by to say hello and give me a little support.

It was a great experience and I am really glad that I did it. It's got me thinking about doing a little more locally. 

Between now and Christmas my personal challenge is to get the Etsy shop stocked with some of the main things. For 2012 I'd like to think I could do this again somewhere else.

What fun

What fun that was! I'll do a proper post tomorrow with pictures of the stall but everything went so well and I got such lovely feedback from people. I need to get an online shop up and running quickly. 

It was really fascinating to see what sold, and a few things surprised me. The wooden decorations were a huge hit and only a few left to hand around the home! I made some bright versions of my button brooch kit and could have sold several more. Need to make some up over the weekend.

Thank you to everyone that came to the stall and if anyone would like to buy any extras drop me a comment or an email and it will be my pleasure.

Off for a glass of wine!

Last weekend of preparations.

The last full push to get items ready has seen a flurry of activity this weekend.

Friday night on the sofa was spent sewing some brooches.

Saturday afternoon saw rings and hairclips all finished and mounted ready to be sold.

Sundays morning was Christmas Decorations. Do you rememeber those beads that I showed a couple of weeks back? They are now adorning some lovely Christmas decorations. Hopefully these might not all sell because I'd love to have a few about the house.

And amongst all this Mr B has been just fab this weekend, letting me crack on, and I even got some lovely flowers. I split the big bunch up and made a small arrangement for one of my favourite corners of the house.

The frightening thing is that once the sale is over next weekend there are more crafty jobs to do. I've birthday decorations to make to Cait, who turns 14 next week, and then two advent calendars to make. Two traditions started moons ago when I had more time. Two traditions that I will never forgo because no matter how busy I am I love doing them for the girls.

This is an advent calendar from a few years back.....

This is another Christmas job. One for the week before when the family is all together with a whole week off work and we can enjoy every moment. There is lots involved in making this and I don't just mean the eating of the Sweets!

Preparations continue

Preparations are in full swing and there's something to do every evening. Busy? Yes, but its really quite relaxing pulling it all together and I've possibly got too many ideas in my head to carry off!

So one night in front of the television was putting together all my tablecloth weights.

Saturday morning was spent with the glue gun. I assembled lots of rings and I've another lot still to do. I assembled these first and then sought some feedback from the girls on those they liked the best. It helps to steer me in the right direction rather then just the combinations I like. For Niamh it just needs to be pink and purple but Cait is more discerning and has a great eye for colour.

This was part of last nights project and really exciting. It was one of those moments when you are in a creative mood even though it's late at night and things just kept coming together. So I've started with a  collection of vintage buttons from my junk shop finds....

Added a cotton doily that I found in the local antiques market and some old purple linen left over from 'way ago' and I am hoping to have a fabulous cushion cover. 

It will be one of those creations where I will always be a winner. If I sell it, well that's great and really rewarding that someone else liked it to. If I don't I'll be delighted because I would love it one the sofa in the kitchen! Sometimes the one off pieces are really hard to part with.

I'll be sorry to see these two go too. I really love this look and these would look great on the window seat in the Lounge.

Off to do a little more and then I might treat myself to a glass of wine!