Craft and Vintage delights

Today has been a fabulous, chilled out day.  Lots of new friends made and a chance to catch up with some old ones too.  The very brave Hannah organised the Hednesford Craft and vintage fair in memory of her Grandad and to raise funds for the British Lung Foundation.  

Here is my Button and squeak stall and some of my new stuff.

A steady stream of friendly folk made their way around a variety of handmade craft stalls and a treasure trove of vintage finds.  I had the pleasure of catching up with Made by Emma and her fabulous handmade cushions, bunting, tooth fairy pillows, draft excluders and more.  Emma was at the first fair I every attended and helped show me the ropes and so it was great to catch up over tea and cake.  Her tooth fairy cushions are just so cute.

Many of the Hednesford visitors were drawn to the shabby chic delights of the Sincerely Yours stall.  

The CICF ladies were a pleasure to stand next to.  There Russian dolls were simply splendid.  All for a very worthy cause supporting two projects for homeless children in Russia.

The very lovely Katie from Old Skool Retro Boutique is a fellow Shop in the square stockist.  Fabulous to put a face to the name.  She stocks the coolest stuff I have ever seen!  Check out these lovely cushions and cake stands.

And lots more.  Too many to write about!  Congratulations to everyone involved for raising nearly £300 for a very worthy cause.   

Do check out these pages and show some love.

http://www.facebook.com/MadeByEmmaCushions

http://www.facebook.com/sincerelyyoursfurniture

http://www.facebook.com/ContactCICF

http://www.facebook.com/oldskoolretrokitschboutique 

http://www.facebook.com/meloniejanebespokejewellerysales

A vintage affair

On Sunday I was battling the elements at the Aldridge Vintage fair.  Sadly it was not the pretty sunny afternoon promised but the traditionally English summer weather graced us with its presence.  Fortunately a tarpaulin had been packed to save my stall from being washed away.  There were a few comedy moments when the wind whipped the tarpaulin and it smacked me in the face.  But the hardcore few with outdoor stalls made friends so all was not lost.  I made friends with a fabulous photographer called Eddie Jones and his friend Phil who chatted the dry spell away with me and took some shots of me and my little stall.  I'm really grateful for the pics as I usually don't get any shots with me in - so many thanks to the boys.  

I have new events to prepare for which I am excited about.  Next is the Hednesford vintage and craft fair on the 24th August which is set to be a fantastic event.  Details can be found here http://www.facebook.com/events/169189406587012/
Then its all go for Christmas!  I have the Aldridge and Pelsall vintage fairs and of course the Contemporary craft carnival in Stafford.  The craft carnival is set to be a very exciting event after the success of the last event and I am thrilled to be part of this one.  This is a great chance to get some unique presents that people will treasure. Details can be found here if you would like to pop along http://www.facebook.com/events/220270434789346/  
So here are some photos of some new designs that braved the weather at Aldridge and some of Eddie's photo's too.  

Shropshire afternoon tea

We are half way through the school holidays.  As per usual for a family of teachers we are decorating so the house has been turned upside down.  To escape the utter madness, my wonderful friend Wendy took me to explore the delights of neighboring Shropshire for the day.  We started the day walking in the Staffordshire village of Gnosall.  We meandered over the boardwalk which crosses the wetlands while Rudi and Freddie (our Dog companions for the day) had a good old run. 

We then made our way for tea and cake in Ironbridge.  This is one of my favorite places to be in all the world.  I think the gorge is one of the romantic and beautiful parts of the world, partly because my husband and I had our first kiss in Coalbrookdale.
After a good walk, a rest on a bench and of course a chat we headed to Much Wenlock.  I am ashamed to say I have never been before.  It is such a calm, peaceful little village with its church under restoration, stunning Guildhall and Abbey ruins.  The Much Wenlock visit was rounded off with afternoon tea in the Copper Kettle.  Simply delicious and far too much for two, they even packed up the extra so I could bring it home for my husband who appreciated the left over cake after decorating all day.
A dusk drive home through Newport and back to Stafford for more tea and then home to bed to prepare for the Aldridge Vintage fair.  I certainly slept soundly. 

Finding treasure

So this week I have been busy getting jobs done before the kids break up for the summer.  I have been busy finishing custom orders including these lovely back to school hair clips which look super sweet.  

But I couldn't resist a bit of retail therapy during a week a rare week off.  I stumbled across a charity shop packed full of retro goodies and treated myself to a big jar of old buttons which are now outside in the garden soaking in a bucket of soapy water.  I also discovered the shop assistants unpacking a new box of donations which included part of a tea service which made my heart sing.  Here it is happily installed on my kitchen shelves.

So today is the last day before the summer break.  Its also my daughters tenth birthday and so a busy day in my household.  Can you imagine the excitement when my daughter saw these beautiful cupcakes.  

The company making these cupcakes will be part of an amazing line up at an event I am visiting in the morning.  The Post House in  Stafford will be the venue for the first contemporary craft carnival.  This is a charity event to support the Roy Castle lung cancer foundation and will feature a super fabulous raffle to raise funds.  It has the most amazing stalls and I can't wait to get shopping.  I think my daughter has her heart set on spending her birthday money on the stalls.  Its nice for me to be able to shop and not be setting up a stall.  After spending too much money on Tanya's cakes tomorrow morning, its the high ropes course at Go Ape for us.  Not a great combination....

Cakes can be found at http://www.facebook.com/theetgateau?fref=ts
Craft carnival http://www.facebook.com/ContemporaryCraftCarnival
Hair clips http://folksy.com/items/4415608-School-hair-clips-with-fabric-buttons-

What motivates you?

Tough questions sometimes promote some deep thinking.  But its nice to take a step back and think back to what started this whole process off and why we do what we do.  I was totally stunned by how many people with small craft businesses started being creative due to a life changing circumstance.  That's me.  I have never been creative.  I could never draw or paint or throw a pot when I was at school.  So I was asked 'what drives you?' An interesting question that I have thought about all week.  What I have always loved is attention to detail.  Beautiful things that people have loved making.  I love design in all forms and am fascinated by how things are put together and how people have really thought through what they have made. 
All of this came to me on the Mander Centre multi storey car park in Wolverhampton.  Not the most creative or inspiring of places you might say.  But its one of my favorite views of the town.  You can see one of the most beautiful buildings in town - the Beatties department store.  Its beautiful and I could look at it all day long.  Its inspiring because when the architects, Lavender, Twentyman and Percy designed it in the 1920's they put so much thought into what can only be described as an exquisite design. The round windows are so high up that you don't notice them from the ground.  Shoppers busily walk past, never looking up at this beautiful world of design two storeys above their heads.  Its like a secret world up on that car park.  Its motivates me because years after they designed the elephants that border the large square windows at the front entrance, I still adore it.  I would love to progress to a stage where my work brings joy to people like that. 
So I am still exploring where my new found love of all things creative will take me.  I have booked two courses this week which I am super excited about.  But wherever I go, you can take the girl out of Wolverhampton.....

Last two images are from http://www.historywebsite.co.uk/listed/localist/beatties.htm

Folksy, wallpaper and packaging

So this week has been a strange one.  I have been crafting in the glorious sunshine.  I had a beautiful package arrive from little tea wagon which is always a joyous experience.  It made me think about how I package things and how nice it is to open something that is beautifully packaged and wrapped.  I have restocked at shop in the square this week too.  An independent shop in Wolverhampton that stocks my makes.  I picked up a beautiful glass pendent for my mum, a brooch for me and some more chocolate from Charlie's mum's chocolate factory - a must for all chocolate lovers.  In fact since I joined weight watchers Charlie's Mum's chocolate has been responsible for two little blips so be warned!  Anyway, shop in the square is another business that has got that packaging thing just right.  A pretty bag and pretty tissue paper that makes you think how special what you have purchased is. 
I have been working with some beautiful vintage wallpaper that arrived in that special package and crafted some earrings with lever fastenings - my first non fabric and non stud type designs.  I'm thrilled.  Four pairs gone before I even photographed them which was fantastic. 
My folksy shop is finally up and running after the etsy/folksy debate had gone on far too long.  My amazing graphic designer has done me proud again and it looks great.  Hopefully it will allow me to showcase a few pieces although I don't see it ever being the main way I showcase my work. 

 http://folksy.com/shops/buttonandsqueak

Shop in the square

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Charlies-Moms-Chocolate-Factory/182002448555404?fref=ts

Button art and transformers

I was thrilled when someone referred to Button and Squeak as button art this week.  My range seems to be expanding and I seem to have become more and more creative as my confidence has grown.  I have been looking at courses and was so disappointed at how few courses are available and accessible to people who want to learn new skills.  With this in mind I have been sharing creative skills at work.
In my day job I am a secondary school teacher.  This week I have made an effort to share and inspire creativity.  I have visited colleagues in a primary school to help with sats prepation which was hugely rewarding.  I have collaborated with colleagues to make new resourses and signed up to teach some kids to make earrings next year.  I may have ended up volunteering to teach them to read 15th century writing as well.  Its a really great feeling to share what you are great at and its amazing how free people are with their skills in return. 
All I need now is someone to teach me to use this sewing machine....

Learning to boil water with a transformer.  Awesome.

Lovely sunny day and rainbow buttons

Today has been one of those lovely lazy sunny days that you dream of.  Me and my little boy have pottered in the garden and read stories.  We have done very little housework and just had a very splendid day.  We collected herbs in the garden and the tortoise made a return back to her garden enclosure.  This has made her very happy and she was not pleased at being back inside during the torrential downpours.  This afternoon my little one re-organised all my buttons and made rainbow patterns with them which reminded me so much of playing with my mums buttons when I was a little girl.  This was the result of our little creative session.

The best way to relax

Today has been an exhausting day.  After a full day at work I arrived home to find the postman had brought presents.  So I spend a blissful hour this evening before the children came home making hair clips.  These are my 15mm fabric buttons added to 50mm hair clips and they look so pretty.  I have only made black ones before so I was really pleased with these colourful ones.  I am just waiting for my daughter to spot them and see how many disappear ....

Shop in the Square

Shop in the Square is a new shop in the centre of Wolverhampton giving small businesses the chance to showcase their work on the high street.  I was pleased to be able to work with Charlotte, the Manager and get my work into the shop.  The press launch was on Friday and the grand opening on Saturday.  The range of products on show was outstanding.  Charlie's mum's chocolate factory can be recommended by my daughter as can Belinda who has designed my daughter a beautiful hair clip for a wedding.  I can also recommend Damon who was doing the entertainment at the press launch - awesome magician! 
Have so enjoyed being part of this project and wish Charlotte the best of luck.
http://www.shopinthesquare.co.uk/
http://www.damonconlan.co.uk/
bespokebybelinda.weebly.com



Made by Belinda - she does lovely fascinators too

First blog post

I enjoy reading so many blogs.  It is so inspirational and relaxing after a hard day at work.  Setting up one of my own has always been something I have wanted to do but presented a number of problems.  The biggest hurdle being I am dyslexic and not the most coherent of writers.  The other problem is I seemed to have to many ideas I wanted to talk about.  Life has changed so much over the last twelve months.  I am no longer just Zoe the teacher.  I have Button and squeak - my tiny crafting business which is quietly growing from a few pairs of earrings to a range of accessories.  I have my paleography course and soon I will have my research on 15th Century England which I am so excited about.  Then, of course, there is my lovely family.  My amazing hubbie and two beautiful kids who have been the most awesome support.  I am hoping to combine a bit of everything into something that makes sense.