We don’t like to blow our own trumpet, but… we’ve had a lovely write-up in the Evening Standard last night. Not only are we delighted to be featured, but they’ve also highlighted two of the talented designers in our directory, Polly George and Snowden Flood. Toot toot!
I do love a good rummage in a button box full of treasures. Unfortunately so does my little boy who delights in emptying my button stash and watching me scrabble around on the floor trying to retrieve them from far off nooks and crannies.
No such problems exist I’m sure for two of the latest listings in our jewellery category. I’d love to see the button collections of Sam from Mrs Gibson’s Atelier and Claire from The Blue Pebble. Both of these talented ladies create beautiful jewellery using new and vintage buttons, and I’m sure their studios are the very picture of buttony organisation.
Button Bracelets from £18.50, Button Earrings £29.00, Mrs Gibson’s Atelier.
Available to buy from Folksy.com and NotMassProduced.com.
Bracelets from £9.50, Necklace £12.50, The Blue Pebble.
Available to buy from NotOnTheHighStreet.com.
This week we visited Top Drawer and were bowled over by the talent and creativity on show. We made a beeline for the event’s popular Product GB initiative which champions exhibitors whose products are designed and manufactured in Britain. Here’s just a small selection from the many inspirational exhibitors we met…
Lovely things for little ones…
Launching at Top Drawer was designer Helen Gordon’s brand new range of childrenswear and accessories featuring her distinctive floral prints, all of which are made here in the UK.
These retro print organic cotton rompers from Organics for Kids are, like everything in their range, made locally in a small factory outside Nottingham.
Made in the UK and free from chemical nasties, the Mummy & Me Pamper Kit from Boo Boo Mummy makes an ideal gift for new arrivals.
Poppy Children’s pretty dresses are inspired by the 1930s and the fabric is printed in Lancaster, with any leftovers being used to create Make-with-Mum rag doll kits.
These sheepskin Cwtch boots from Inch Blue are handmade in Wales. What’s a Cwtch we hear you ask? Apparently it’s the Welsh word for ‘love’ in the form of a hug or cuddle.
Rosie Flo’s Colouring books were inspired by their creator’s two young daughters, and are all designed, printed and published in Britain.
Innovative and eco friendly…
Knitted in the UK using wool from the Scottish highlands, this scarf from Lost Values hides a secret – it glows in the dark, making it perfect for children, cyclists and dark country lanes.
The brainchild of Jaq Croft, the Baggee is a flexible ball which clips onto your keyring and contains spare carrier bags, so you’ll never again reach the checkout and realise you’ve left your bags behind. They’re made in the UK from recyclable materials and there’s even a Doggee version for dog waste bags. Genius!
What looks at first glance like a traditional slate door number is in fact made from recycled plastic coffee cups by the clever people at A Short Walk in Cornwall.
The Herdy Company’s sheep money box (complete with tag saying ‘why should pigs get all the money’) is made in Stoke-On-Trent. Herdy’s products are inspired by the Herdwick sheep native to the Lake District, and through The Herdy Fund they help to support local environmental and sustainability initiatives.
Creative cards…
Launching at Top Drawer, Betty Boyns is a new collection of vintage inspired cards, giftwrap and fabric from designer Paula Nicholls. The name Betty Boyns is her mother’s and the inspiration is the interior of Paula’s family home in Cornwall when she was growing up.
Jacky Al-Samarraie is the graphic artist behind this range of cards and prints featuring photography from around the beautiful Yorkshire countryside, available from The Art Rooms.
Flytrap is a new family run greetings card business whose products feature the work of seven artists across four generations of their family. The card shown here was created by the youngest member of this talented family who is still at school.
Love Retro…
We just love Gillian Kyle’s iconic bags, which feature a foil printed teacake, combining nostalgia with a humourous twist.
According to Chocolate Design, the minute you don this vintage style apron you’ll instantly be transformed into the perfect 1950s hostess. Tea anyone?
Granny Knits is a new brand of contemporary cross stitch kits from the designers behind Pearl & Earl, featuring their trademark nostalgic chic style.
We don’t have space to mention all of the lovely people we met, so if you visited (or exhibited) at Top Drawer this year, why not leave a comment and let us know your thoughts…
Look out for Laundry Maid Jeans, a new home-grown brand of denim which is all designed, made and laundered in the UK.
Barbara Graham and Anita Sheridan, the design duo behind Laundry Maid Jeans, are committed to spearheading a revival of manufacturing and laundering in Britain because of the low carbon footprint, and the enjoyment of working with people who genuinely care about shape, construction, craftsmanship and finish.
All Laundry Maid Jeans feature a unique back panel which subtly lifts and shapes the rear (ok, I’m sold already!) and attention to detail doesn’t stop there… each pair of jeans comes with its own little lavender bag. Buy online from www.laundrymaidjeans.co.uk.
If like me you think raisins are evil, you probably find muesli a bit of a minefield. Those pesky blighters get everywhere and even the most diligent of breakfast excavations often fail to find the rogue ones lurking beneath a hazelnut or an oat flake. It’s no good telling me that it’s irrational because I eat grapes, drink wine and even (shock horror) snack on dried apricots – I know that my prejudice is unfair on the poor old wrinklies!
So, the reason I’m fessing up to my raisin-phobia is that I’ve recently discovered No Flamin’ Raisins, a blissfully raisin-free organic muesli from the folks at Rude Health. With not a raisin or sultana in sight, my cereal bowl explorations are now consigned to history. They do lots of other tasty organic cereals too so whether you’re a raisin fan or a raisin-phobe, you’re sure to find something to please.
On a diet this January? Here’s something sweet and lovely to cheer you up… these treats and fancies from British Cream Tea look good enough to eat, but as they’re all handcrafted from recycled felt, they’re completely calorie (and guilt) free! Indulge to your heart’s content…
Snowed in with the kids? Make the most of it with this beautiful Round Oak Swing from Sitting Spiritually. Handcrafted in Dorset from sustainably grown English Oak, they can also be carved with a name or personal message around the edge to make a memorable gift. Also worth a look are their romantic Double Oak Swings which make wonderful wedding, engagement or valentine’s day gifts.
With crunchy snow underfoot, how grateful am I for my new Cornish-made Cabra Boots from Celtic Sheepskin? Warm, toasty and utterly gorgeous, they’re my best Christmas present by far.
Inspired by the fabulous Great Escape feature that Jeska Hearne wrote for this site, we headed off to Hastings this weekend to try out some of her recommendations. Hastings Old Town is delightful with its wonderful vintage shops, independent food stores and restaurants serving locally caught fish and seafood. After browsing the shops, we enjoyed a late lunch of traditional fish, chips and mushy peas at White’s on George Street, followed by a walk on the pebbly beach as the sun went down.
We had a vague idea that we might head further along the coast on Sunday, so we decided to stay over and happened upon The Lodge at Winchelsea, where we were soon ensconsed for the night. The next morning we headed into Winchelsea town, where we stopped off at Suttons Fish & Game Merchants and bought some locally produced Wild Boar Sausages to take home with us, before heading for the deserted and quite beautiful Winchelsea Beach.
Then it was on to the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway where we treated our son Sam to a trip on a tiny but perfectly formed steam train. As the train made its way through Romney Marsh to Dungeness, clever daddy whipped out a cosy travel rug, a bottle of locally produced Chapel Down wine and two plastic glasses – very civilised!
I’ve always loved the wild windswept beach at Dungeness. It feels like the end of the earth, with its tiny wooden fishermen’s cottages overshadowed the by the enormous power station, and the odd juxtasposition of ancient and new industry. I always stop to admire the late film-maker Derek Jarman’s Prospect Cottage with its garden of driftwood sculpture and found objects.
Before leaving, we paid a visit to Dungeness Fish, finalists in the Radio 4 Food & Farming Awards, where we bought a dressed crab and some samphire to take home for dinner (along with instructions on how to cook the samphire!). With our local food finds, we’ll be able to enjoy some delicious Sussex inspired meals this week, and the combined price of our wild boar sausages, crab and samphire was less than ten pounds.
All this fresh air had made us peckish, so we enjoyed a bite to eat at The Place on The Beach at Camber Sands, before setting off for home. As we headed back to London, it suddenly started to snow - which somehow seemed like a fitting end to our Christmas break.
What a lovely, crisp, sunny start to the year it’s been… we went for a long walk in Richmond Park this afternoon to one of my favourite places, Isabella Plantation, to walk off our fuzzy heads and feed the ducks. The sun was shining, there was a sprinkling of snow on the ground and a little robin red breast followed us all the way to the duck pond. If you’re ever in the area I would definitely recommend a visit.
