Spring Into Vintage

Last year I blogged here about a vintage fair organised by one of my good friends over at The Vintage Suitcase. I love popping along to their fairs, not because I completely biased, ok maybe I am a little bit, but more so because the atmosphere is always amazing.

She doesn't just arrange a few stalls in fusty room.  She hand picks the best venues to suit the needs of the traders, customers and sets a scene. A scene where Northern Soul, Motown and 60's hits are the backing track to this day, because going to a Vintage Suitcase event is like going on a daytrip. Except there's no need to pack your sandwiches because she's even got that covered by way of a pop up tearoom!  After you've whiled away a few hours browsing the stalls and chatting to the ever-so-friendly traders, sit yourself down and enjoy some delicious homemade cake that's available.

What I love most about these events apart from the nostalgia and the buzz of finding a vintage gem, is the joy of stumbling across somebody new.  A trader who specialises in something I haven't seen before.  Last year it was Molly Felicity Designs and her photographic bunting.  This year I was excited to discover two fabulous traders by the names of Lamplight Design and Peacocks & Pumpkins

Lamplight Design specialise in handcrafted signs, amongst other things, however the signs were what really grabbed me. I could definitely imagine them somewhere at home or maybe at a vintage inspired wedding.  In fact I'm fairly tempted to place an order however I'm not entirely sure I'll be able to restrain myself at just one sign!

Peacock & Pumpkins is run by textile magpie and artist Alison. Her handcrafted lampshades made from vintage fabrics really caught my eye. Not only are these beauties available to buy, you can also try making your own at one of Alison's workshops.  Perfect if you're looking for something bespoke for your home.

I spent the rest of the day trying to resist the nostalgia there was on offer but I didn't exactly do a great job. In fact I left the fair to find the nearest cash machine just to I could carry on shopping! There were just too many temptations, as always, but I'm saving those for another post!

Just in case you've never been to a vintage fair, here's a few snaps from the day...

Oooh and did I mention it's not just me who thinks The Vintage Suitcase are pretty downright fabulous? It turns out a lot of other vintage seekers do too as they're up for Breakthrough Business Award at the National Vintage Awards!! If you've been to one of their events or you think you could happily spend the day mooching around their vintage fairs, why not pop over and give them a vote.  They're two of the hardest working ladies I know who create these events in between full-time jobs and child rearing!  That deserves a vote in itself!

Teacups of Design

I love a good cup and saucer - No, that's not a filthy innuendo, obviously I mean the ceramic kind! Somehow tea tastes even nicer from a special cup. Which is kinda lucky seeing as they're everywhere at the moment.  The older it is the better.  There's something special about the uniqueness that comes with a vintage tea cup.  However there are also some really good modern designs out there which might tickle your fancy.

Here are a few of my favourites...

Mrs Moores Vintage Store

Mrs M has a passion for vintage fashion and glamour of past times.  Not only does she have an amazing collection of pre-owned vintage tea sets, she also designs her own range of tea sets, textiles and stationary.  I love the simplicity and quirkiness behind her designs such as the Metamorphosis range below

Metamorphosis - Kestrel

Lisbeth Dahl

This Denmark based design team have a creative approach to quality, shape and quality and like to put their personal stamp onto each product

The vibrancy of this Florence range is effective without being garish.  What's even better is you can mix and match with other styles from different collections.

Florence

Pip Studio

Pips motto is 'Happy Products for Happy People'  She gets her inspiration from everyday incidents, that when scrutinised, are actually exceptionally beautiful.  Her collections range from duvet sets and stationary to bags and cushions.

PiP Love Birds

Anthropologie

Established 20 years ago Anthropologie describe themselves as a destination for those wanting a curated mix of clothing, accessories, gifts and home decor.  They are fast becoming well known for their signature look and have recently opened their fourth store in the UK  

Do you know of any other designers out there? Let me know.

Vintage At The Dome

Vintage At The Dome is exactly what it says on the tin. A vintage fair hosted by the fabulous Vintage Suitcase in the historic Devonshire Dome.

I'm lucky enough to live down the road from Buxton so thought I'd pop along for an hour. Two and half hours later I had to tear myself away!

The Devonshire Dome is one of the worlds largest unsupported domes and The Vintage Suitcase crammed it full of gorgeous vintage delights.  There was so much to see and do.  One of the things I love about vintage fairs is the atmosphere.  There are so many friendly traders I could have chatted with them all day!  As well as lots of lovely clothes and homeware from bygone eras there were also many new handcrafted designs made from vintage materials.  There was even a chance to get your hair and make up styled by the awesome  Miss Whittington's Vintage Beauty Parlour and Sassy's Vintage Beauty Parlour

One of my favourite stalls that I need to give a special mention to is Molly Felicity Designs She creates personalised bunting using a photo of your choice. So, for example, you could have your baby's face printed onto one flag and then add to it each year as your child gets older!  This is such a great idea. Not only does it look nice hanging in the nursery but it also makes for a special keepsake. 

Although I could rabbit on all day about the wonderful delights I found, I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Molly Felicity Designs

Vintage delights

Who remembers Sooty!?

Lots of treasures

Away With The Clouds

Fabulous collages by Marigold 

Traders, traders everywhere

A Very Vintage Christmas

If you liked this post and love vintage then why not visit The Vintage Suitcase at their next big event, A Very Vintage Christmas at Uttoxeter Racecourse. There's lots going on including a Christmas craft workshop, vintage fashion, live music, food stalls, even a retro funfair!  To find out more follow them on Facebook where they'll make you giggle with their daily posts or take a look at their website.

Oooh and just one thing before you go, if you get a chance it would be lovely if you could vote for me over at AHF Bloggers Panel. Thank you.

xx

Ask Her Friends - Gift Ideas

How many times have you heard the phrase uttered "She's just so hard to buy for"!?  I've heard it plenty, in fact I've probably said it myself and I know for a fact it's been said about me! Although, I'm of the opinion I'm the easiest person in the world to buy for! Pah!

Ask Her Friends is a website with gift ideas based on asking normal women exactly what they want. They focus on a selection of these ideas, reducing the choice but increasing the quality.

This month I was asked to feature on the AHF Bloggers Panel and choose my favourite gift ideas.  It was so hard to choose!  The world was literally my oyster!  I've tried to vary my choices as much as possible from cute stocking fillers like the Pretty Dandy notebooks to a delicate Ella Georgia bangle.

I prefer gifts that will last a lifetime such as the Orwell & Goode deer print or Rose & Grey paperweight or gifts I'll use each day like the Lisbeth Dahl cup and saucer.  Things I appreciate but wouldn't buy for myself, mainly because I spend all my money on bills, clothes and holidays!

So what do you think of my choices?  If you like them I'd be over the moon if you voted for me over at the AHF Bloggers Panel Gift List

Thank you x

Two Little Birdies - Giveaway

As most of you know I love nothing more than championing independent designers and businesses.  I love anything crafty and unique and could literally spend all my time either on Pinterest or at vintage fairs and car boots.  This however is time consuming and as much as I'd love to spend my weekends perusing second hand wares or pinboards I sure as heck don't have the time!

Then all of a sudden, as if by magic or it could have been Twitter, Two Little Birdies appeared on my radar. Whilst browsing through their products, it felt like I'd come home, you know the feeling?  What I love most about their products is the combination of vintage finds and modern elements.  Some things are genuinely vintage, some are made with vintage materials whereas other items are brand new but have that vintage feel.

Here are a few of my favourite items from Two Little Birdies

If you like what you've seen so far then read on!

I've teamed up with Two Little Birdies and we're giving you the opportunity to win one of the following pieces of artwork worth £10.  Each design has been upcycled onto vintage pages from a book and incorporate original drawings and photography. Prints measure 15.5 x 26cms

Typewriter with Butterflies

Victorian Ghetto Blaster

If you want to be in with a chance of winning just enter using one of the options below.  Remember to leave a comment telling me which design you'd prefer and your email address in case you're the lucky winner.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

What I Always Wanted & Can't Live Without!

What I Always Wanted is a beautiful online gifts and homeware store. It supports home grown talent and independent businesses, something which I wholeheartedly support.  Three cheers for them please.

When I was asked if I'd be interested in writing a blog post about them I didn't need to think twice.  I love nearly everything on their website including their ethos.

All their products are designed and made in the UK, many of which are made from eco-friendly materials or 'upcycled'.  There is even an option to personalise some of the products.

One of the many things I love about this website is how passionate owners, Deborah Bancroft and Ann Ellison are about their products.  They love nothing more than tracking down beautifully designed and crafted British gifts and homeware.  This passion shows in the products they've carefully chosen.  

With Christmas just around the corner, yes I did just mention the 'C' word, why not pop over to What I Always Wanted and see what they have to offer.  Not only will you be supporting some great British Designers but you also have the opportunity to purchase some original and unique homeware.

Tiny Daisies by Wychbury Designs

Gorgeous heart shaped stud earrings covered in vintage fabric.  If you look closely you'll notice even the butterfly is heart shaped!

Little Flowers by The Magpie's Daughter

This dainty orange pinwheel poppy necklace is complemented by a strand of pearls

Appliqued Dog Cushion by Naughty Dog

This appliqued and embroidered Dalmatian cushion uses vintage fabrics and would make a great gift for any dog lover.

Letterpress Print by Print for Love of Wood

For all you Great British Bake Off lovers.  Each letterpress print is lovingly printed on a vintage press

Vintage Camera by Moha London

This fun retro camera illustrated print is printed on heavy poster paper and available in A3

Which is your favourite item.  Do you love handmade or upcycled products?

Manchester's Calling

Ages ago I bought the boyf  two tickets to see the Kings of Leon for his birthday. Obviously I insisted one of those tickets was for me, haha.  It felt like the event was never going to arrive!  I'm not sure who was more excited, me or him!

Anyway last Monday we caught the train to Manchester.  We checked into our hotel, did a little shopping in the Northern Quarter, for those who don't know that's the vintage/indie area, a LOT of eating, responsible drinking and then a night at the Manchester Arena. The Kings of Leon were AMAZING!  I actually forgot how many awesome songs they have.  I prefer their earlier stuff before they became insanely famous.  There's something special about loving a band before EVERYBODY and their mother's heard of them.  

1. Love this window display.  2. I learnt that polenta is NOT Italian for potato and is in fact cheese!  3.  Vintage Heaven in Pop Boutique.  4.  Excited on the train.  5.  Mmmm figs and mascapone cheese.  6.  OMG Bunty!!  7.  The pizza I wish I'd ordered.  8.  Cool sign.  9.  New skirt from Pop Boutique.

Normally when I go to gigs I prefer to stand.  I always think the atmosphere is generally better and you get to dance or in my case jump around like a loony, etc.

I could only get seated tickets this time round but I can honestly say I was NOT disappointed!  Even though we were right the other end of the arena we still had a good view and everyone sitting around us was really nice and friendly, etc. Which reminds me, how 's this for a random moment?  We were actually seated next to a couple who were in the queue in front of us at Burger King, four hours earlier! What are the chances of that!?  I love it when things like that happen!

Have you been to any gigs lately?  Who's your favourite band?  Do random things happen to you?!  Tell me!  I wanna know!

P.S  I'm now on Instagram if you want to follow me

Pin Ups & Petticoats

Recently we held a fundraising event at Spout called Pin Ups & Petticoats.  The event was to help raise money towards Douglas Macmillan Cancer Support.

Like most of our events at Spout it had the usual vintage theme which I love, plus I got to have my hair and make up professionally done prior to the day beginning.

I don't spend a lot of money on make up because to be honest I haven't got a clue how to use most of it and because I'm a busy working mum.  The less time I spend doing my  make up the more time I can spend  doing a million other jobs before going to work.

I was a bit dubious about having my make up done.  The last time I was professionally made over was when I was a bridesmaid at my dads wedding a couple of years ago.

This was the result....................

Photo courtesy of The Guardian

Ok ok I didn't quite look like that but that's how I felt!  There was far too much slap on my face for my liking!  I had every kind of look going on!  Eyes, lips and cheeks.  I could have been in Panto. Luckily I managed to get most of it off before the ceremony.

So it was because of this bad experience that I was slightly sceptical about having my make up done but I thought I'd give it another shot.  And I'm so glad I did because I learnt a few little tips and tried out a slightly different look to the one I usually have.

If I'm going to share one tip with you it's this: - 

USE A PRIMER. 

It helps to keep your make up in place for longer  

Here's the finished result......

Feeling all glam

The rest of the day consisted of vintage hair and beauty workshops, stalls, silent auctions, tea, cakes and live jazz music.  It was like stepping back in time. And to top it all off we helped to raise over £700 towards Macmillan Cancer Support.

It was such an amazing day and the atmosphere was literally electric.  It wasn't until I got home that I thought about what we'd helped achieve.  Quite a few of us felt emotional because unfortunately cancer will at some point affect most of us, either directly or through friends or family.

I felt honoured to be involved with this event knowing that it was for such a good cause.

Here are a few more photos from the day.

Amazing cake by https://www.facebook.com/PashionForCakes

Crochet bunting

More Bunting!!

Donations from Burleigh Pottery

Hair & Make up

Group photo by Jam Snaps

Have you ever been involved in a charity event?

Birmingham Blognix

Recently I attended an event hosted by Rosalilium called Blognix.  You might have seen me tweeting about it several hundred times!!

The idea behind the event was a bloggers conference that also gave you the chance to mingle, chat, network and eat!  All of my favourite things!

We listened to some inspiring speakers namely Jen from A Little Bird Told Me and Emma over at The Freelance Lifestyle who gave some really good advice and we also got the opportunity to attend two out of three workshops.  The choices were Blog Design, Monetising Your Blog and Photography.  As you may have already noticed I've recently had a little blog makeover so I went for the last two choices.

Both were really interesting workshops although I preferred photography with Hazel Paterson.  Any excuse to take photos!  I learnt some useful tips and got the opportunity to take some photos at The Custard Factory.  Somewhere I've been meaning to visit for ages!

Vintage fabrics and other objects

This couple looked so cute laughing

Amazing sculpture

I really really wanted this dress!!

Some vintage treasure

I honestly came away from the event feeling so motivated and inspired that my head was spinning!

What were the biggest tips I learnt? 

BE YOURSELF 

DEVELOP YOUR OWN STYLE

WRITE WHAT YOU'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT

Sometimes it's easier to look at the bigger bloggers and think 'that's how I should be doing it', but concentrate more on your own style and not someone else's.  Everyone had to start somewhere.  If I'm honest I kind of lost sight of why I started this blog.  I started this blog so I could be me, not somebody I think I should be and I wanted to develop my photography skills more.  

Have you ever been to a bloggers conference or met up with any other bloggers?  What do you blog about?

P.s  I've had a little blog makeover thanks to Jenny & The Magic Feather.  What dya think?  I feel all posh haha.

Retro Wrens - The 1940's Woman

In a previous blog post I mentioned a group I help run called Retro Wrens.   We originally wanted to start a young version of a WI but it turned out a) there was already one in our town and b) there's a lot more to it than a monthly meet.  For starters you have to have a president, secretary and treasurer and none of us really wanted that responsibility!

So we started Retro Wrens.

Something Vintage, Something New, Make New Friends In A Town Near You.

One of our handmade posters.  Penny farthings actually used to have a wren on them!

We meet once month at Spout for tea, cake and whatever activity we've chosen for that month.

This month we chose something a little different.  An interactive talk about the 1940's with Miss Pitchy Patchy and a vintage hair workshop.

To say I loved this event would be an understatement.  I got to wear my hair in a 1940's do, wear a stole, red lippie and listen to music on a real life gramophone!  Miss Pitchy Patchy even presented me with a gift.  A gorgeous tablecloth with my initial embroidered in the corner!  What a sweetie!

A box of goodies

Some Wrens busy making

Miss Pitchy Patchy lead us in a talk on what it was like to be a women during WW2.  From what women wore to how they did their hair (hairspray was rationed so they used sugar water to keep it in place).  Where they worked, what they ate and rations - did you know soap was rationed to one bar per household and that was used for the washing up and on yourself, including hair!  Can you imagine what their hair and skin must have felt like.

After listening to Miss Pitchy Patchy's stories it's certainly made me feel humbled and a reminder that life is very different for woman today.

Miss Pitchy Patchy at a vintage fair

During the talk we were also shown how to style our hair in various 1940's styles.  How these women managed it without hairspray and tongs is a mystery!!

 I enjoy our Retro Wren nights, not just because we're learning something new but because I get to talk to people I probably wouldn't meet in normal circumstances, oh and eat cake!

Me with my hair up!  I never wear my hair up!!

Do you go to a WI or something similar to Retro Wrens?  Would you be interested in starting a Retro Wrens group?  Let me know, maybe I can help.