i love it, i love it, i love it... The Other Me....

 It was the 'Hallowe'en Half Term' Craft Cafe on Thursday.

This marks the start of our 6th year! How time flies... and what a gorgeous sight to meet the children who have grown so much over  the years.

 Some of 'my girls' are too grown up now and this sort of environment is too tame for them. One of these girls came along to help me with the pom-pom spider table this time *waves at Jo* and that is such a warming thing. Community, Craft, Childhood,Friendship...

 And, with the passing of time, older children make way for new little hands and faces. I love meeting the parents and carers who all 'amaze' at how much effort their children put in to their works. I enjoy the barrage of questions about how and why!? we put on these workshops.

The continual comments to me "you should be a teacher, Kirsty - you should you know"

 There is another 'me'... inside me (if you know what i mean) and she is fat with happiness and home baking. She has 4 children of her own and a few fostered children. We sit round the farmhouse table 'Home Educating' and make models from Junk and obsess over making bird feeding fat balls.

For many years i thought that is who i would be.

 So, selfishly, The Craft Cafe is my way of slipping into that 'Other Me' skin and playing at that life for a while.

I LOVED it when 4 year old Meg was shouting Kirsty... kirsty... K I R S T EEEY at the other end of the room because she wanted help making a bead necklace and did i have "any more Sea Beads"? Who knows what she meant by Sea Beads? 5 months previous that child wouldn't join it without sitting on her Mothers lap and now she is hollering for help from 10 meters away.

 And generally, i am a person who hates chaos. I am not good with noise. I find children very hard work and i like to craft alone in silence.

So why, oh why, do i find myself stood in the centre of this mess - telling children how great their painty created mess is, positively welling up with pride for them and 'loving' my own centralness to all this madness?

It is the Other Me.

I like her. I would want to be her friend if i met her outside the village shop. I would want to sit in her messy kitchen drinking tea and having a gentle gossip. And weirdly, i would love to go home to my own neat little house afterward and enjoy calm and silence.

Maybe, this is the secret to our long enjoyed success of the Craft Cafe?

Many parents are putting on this Other Me overcoat? We are all enjoying the feeling of facilitating 2 hours of creativity and fun - where we all live in messy kitchens and let our children be crazed with creatvity?

Just thinking out loud..... x

Paint Furniture! It will save your life.... sort of.....

 Take one (at a time) nasty Old Chair.

This was handmade, in Cheshire, many moons ago as a custom order for my Great Aunt. The workmanship was sublime. Yet it had seen it's day....

My dad and i have this disagreement all the time "look at that beautiful wood" he says "why paint it?"

 And he is right.... but there is no joy left in this object

"dad - there is no Joy left in it. It is minging"

"what are you talking about Kirsty" says dad "i don't understand"

 Anyway.... it got "Fished" Big Time.

The seat came off with just 3 screws but the fabric took an age to rip free as we took out all the old pins and staples (my Sister in the picture, lending a hand)

I ended up padding the seat with a big piece of foam before re-stretching it with fabric and stapling it very tight.

 I cannot recommend spray paints enough. These are Montana Golds - what a joy to use and i have used them on Wicker baskets, wood, metal... everything.

 I won't lie to you.... stripping off all that dark varnish on the wood, was a bitch. It took time to get in all those crevices and curves. I did it with Nitromors twice and then sanded it. Then gave it a light coat of Primer.  The spray paint went on in several stages, till i was happy it was covered. Finally i sprayed it with a gloss varnish.

 Sorry the photo is not great but i am not a DIY show here am i?

the colour is alot darker and more purple than this shows. This looks pink but it is a kind of rich Bramble Jam colour. The fabric is just what i thought went well with the other fabrics round the home.

Everyone approves!

Now do you see what i mean Dad? There is a great deal to be joyful about in this chair now?

"Whatever makes you happy dear" says Dad.

...Paint furniture... it'll change your life!

Hey - just a quickie!

I love colour. I love to surround myself by it. Colour makes me feel happy and positive and alive.

I don't do 'matching sets' and i don't do 'dull'

I am not funny or quirky or 'like being different'... do what makes you happy people!

This stool is a typical example of what i love to do in my home.

The stool was found at the back of a Thrift Shop. (I forgot to get a photo of it before i sprayed the wood part Hot Pink) It was a wooden stand with a yellow top. I liked the yellow top actually but i have a need for pattern and a great stash of fabrics.

I lightly sanded off the legs and frame before spraying the whole thing with a Gloss Spray Paint. I didn't bother using Primer on it first at the paint looked like it would adhere well without it - and i do love to cut corners (impatience)

The Top has fantastic little bars that easily allowed you to remove it from the base.

So then, i found a square of Cath Kidston fabric in the boldest design and stretched it over the top. I borrowed my dads staple gun to keep it all in place and really pulled it tight to get a good stretch and fit.

With the fabric added it was now a really tight fit into the painted frame so i used a soft mallet to whack it back into position and then turn the bars underneath to keep it in place.

Stool = £8.00

                                       Spray Paint = £1.00 - (from a large 400ml can costing £6.00)

                                 Fabric = £2.00 - (from a £12.00 per metre piece)

               Staples = £2.00 (at a guess?)

The photo doesn't do this justice but i was really chuffed with how it turned out.

Colour + Craft + Thrift = Love my Life xxx

Running a Craft Workshop for Children

There are a million and one considerations and 'To Do's' before running a craft workshop for children.  I might even write a book on it all one day.... But, chances are, if you are considering this in the first place - you have a keen idea of what is involved anyway.

Here are some random tips that i use in my Craft Workshops:

1. Have everything set up the night before if possible. That way you can make a list of all the things you have forgotten to bring down with you.

2. It is a proven fact, time after time - children LOVE to craft with junk. If i bought nothing to the workshop but the contents of recycling tubs, sticky stuff and paints.... the children would be occupied for up to 2 hours. Pictured here is an army of 'Actimel' bottles with fluffy heads i stuck on the night before. Yes i started collecting them weeeeeks before. And Yes, my house is always full of clutter.

3. If you have a specific project in mind - adults and children really like to see an example of what you had in mind. Even if they go off on their own tangent and even when a 4 year old makes something amazing and makes yours look very inferior...they still like a visual aid to begin with.

4. It is a good idea to have a range of sticky stuffs. We do use good strong glue (not cheapo PVA) but also lots of sticky-backed tape which is much quicker and avoids that whole "bits falling off whilst children walk home" kind of scenario. You can take a hairdryer along - adults only and all that - to help quicken the drying of paints and gluey projects.

5. 2 hours is ample time for a workshop. I personally wouldn't go any longer unless the children are older - like young Teens, you know.

6. If you have a big enough hall - it is a good idea to separate the craft projects out so each table has exactly what it needs. If you are a group of adults / parents running this together then you could take responsibility for one table / activity each. Then you can be sure the children have what they need to hand.

7. There is no need to spend a great deal of money on crafty bits. Children are happy with scraps and bits and collected treasures. Wrappers from Easter Eggs and old Christmas cards. Truly, children have way more imagination than adults. Give them good quality glues and paints and scissors and they are well on their way.

8. Try not to be an adult that moans about the sticky mess their child wants to bring home (that includes myself and the giant dog bed my daughter made). Tell children it is fantastic. Let them tell you all the details of their amazing person / truck / atomic flower gun they just made, because they have usually put a great deal of thought into it. Keep for a few days at least before shuffling it outside on bin day.
Children get a massive amount of self-esteem, satisfaction, contentment, excitement out of crazy craft projects.
I feel totally privaliged when they choose to come along and craft with me. I thank them all for making my day so great and inspiring me xxx

LOVING Emma Bridgewater....

Aaaaaahhhh - Love, love, Loving Emma Bridgewater right now, with a capital L!
On Tuesday, I drove my Mum and I up to Stoke-on-Trent which is about 2 hours from us! (not an easy drive but worth it)
I liked Emma B's stuff before but didn't own any.
Now, after a day with 'Emma', i just luffs her ..... We started with a cup of coffee and a cake in the cafe.... i know it sounds dumb but they use the EmmaB plates and mugs and napkins even in their cafe... i don't know why i thought they wouldn't??
Then we had a tour of the factory.
There were only 8 of us in the tour so it was long and we got to ask lots of questions.

The lovely gentleman above is throwing plates. I did have a little go myself! Well, you know me, they asked for a volunteer and i love to get involved...
The plate i threw is actually being used and is probably already fired! To *think* somebody, somewhere, will be eating out of an EmmaB bowl that i threw.

This lady is smoothing over all the 'seams' in the clay that happen when they come out of the moulds. Making it all nice and smooth. Every stage of the EmmaB pottery process is done by hand, here in England. You wouldn't believe how many items they can get done in one day!!

Birdie Egg cups - this load has been through it's first firing in the kiln. They will get glazed and then go through again. If the pattern is from a 'decal' (transfer) rather than hand painted then they go through the kiln a third time before they are ready for sale...... just *think* of their energy bills!? whoa!

Trolleys full of mugs - mainly the Robin design here. These are waiting outside the 'checking' area where the products are all 'fault checked' x they looked sooooo colourful all in rows.

Now, this man above is dipping plates in glaze. They have been fired and are now getting their first glaze before their 'decals' and their second glazing. He was so damn fast, it made you *wow*.

The yellow here is from using the 'decal' and will fire off in the third kiln process. You wouldn't believe how labour intensive each piece is.

I loved asking all the questions. I loved seeing each stage. I loved how friendly they were and how long some of them have been working at EmmaB!

After the tour we went back to the cafe / shop / pottery studio>>>>>>>

This was a trip i was organising for me and my mum - she turned 60 this year and we did have a big party but also, many friends and family have organised trips, holidays and surprises for her throughout the year. THIS day was my contribution.

Lots of yummy stock in the shop! Naturally all the additional products are sourced out to other companies and abroad for production. You can't blame them? It's bloo*y amazing they get to even produce their pottery in the UK anymore.

My glamourous Mother, painting her very own mug in celebration of her 60th year. She was nervous as she isn't confident with things like this - but her mug look ace>>>>>>

Obviously this is PRE-fired. We get our items back in a week or two via post.

I was making a mini-jug with just masses of hearts and spots and 'stuff' on..... well, I am not 'known' for my minimalism am i friends!? haha x I promise to show you the finished piece on its return.

And I MUST introduce Paul and Tracy below>>>>

No, i 'must' because i promised them i would! ***HELLO*** and we have them to thank for such a wonderful afternoon of coffee, cake, sandwiches and pottery painting tips. "You made it great fun guys!" x

It all seemed to end toooooo soon. So we had a quick chance to buy one or two EmmaB bits from the shop before having to hit the motorway to get home for the child.

I ADORE the new patriotic range with it's red and blue bunting (yippeeee!) and hand stamped union jacks. So i bought this hUge mug for my morning tea x

And i also bought this lovely tin and it says 'Truly Great'.

And we did have a 'Truly Great' time.

And i would recommend it to anyone.

And, right now, I am LOVING Emma Bridgewater X X X

(i'm off to write her a letter, to tell her much i love her and stuff. Sad? or Mad? x)