Let me introduce you to Spotty Cat...

This is Spotty Cat

He is a very special little kitty with jointed arms and legs and the most magnificent curly tail.

Wouldn't you just love to take him home?

Well now you can - he has just been listed in my Folksy shop !

Time for a change?

I have been spending a lot of time the last few dys looking at other peoples blogs and enjoying the vast amount of creative blogging that is out there... It's made me think that my own little blog could do with an update of some kind.
Hopefully I will get a chance over the next couple of days to rethink it so but, as with everything around here it will be a work in progress.  So if you do pop by and things are looking a bit...well...untidy then you know why!
Please bear with me and I will get it sorted as soon as is humanly possible! :-)

**Forest Flower Launches...**

Wow - what a weekend!
After a very frantic Friday trying to get everything set up - Folksy shop , facebook page , cards and leaflets with relevant web addresses etc designed and printed - Saturday was a breeze!

We arrived at Gorsley Village Hall with plenty of time to set up our tables and were welcomed by the smell of bacon butties wafting through the door from the little kitchen out the back...mmmm...

Setting up the stall didn't take too long

My mums hand knitted soft toys in the vintage suitcase got a fair bit of attention!

Once we were all set up I got a chance to wander round and chat with everyone else and there were some wonderful things on display!

Next to us was Frankie Martin who makes the most wonderful mirrors - go and have a look at his website Imagine Mirrors for some truly unique and practical works of art! I fell in love with the big woodland mirror complete with otter and kingfisher, but sadly it was a little out of my price range! Still - it gives me something to aim for!

Sarah Teague makes the most amazing miniatures in fimo clay and had on display a conservatory complete with pots of flowers and trees, a gorgeous pair of pink wellies and even a little black and white cat sat on the sofa! Plus a mini market stall packed to the gills with miniature cakes, pies and treats. Sarah is purely a hobby crafter and does not sell her work- although she could without a doubt!

Another interesting lady I spoke to was Ann Allen whose hobby is basket weaving ( again she doesn't sell her work) and has even woven her own coffin! She is involved in a group called Transition Newent which is part of a grass roots movement aiming to raise awareness and seek local solutions to the twin problems facing the world: Climate change and Peak Oil.  Their purpose to help communities prepare for the transitional time ahead when cheap oil is no longer an option and it will become necessary for communities to pull together and become more self sufficient. They encourage the re-learning of essential skills such as horticulture and environmentally friendly construction and the boosting of local economy by supporting local business and producers. Do have a look at the Transition Culture website and if you are interested in joining in there are groups popping up all over the country so there is bound to be one near you...

There were plenty of other things for visitors - patch working, cake decorating, spinning, plants, a vintage car restored to it's former glory, rag rug making, stamp collecting and even a pet dog show! A steady stream of visitors all the way through the day kept the atmosphere buzzing.

The weather was absolutely perfect and Riley had great fun in the little children's play area outside with all the other local children that turned up and, as promised the surroundings were perfect for a picnic.

All in all it was a fab day and I really hope that another event like this is organised for next summer - and that we are invited again!

**BIG**DAY**

So today is the day I have been building up for over the past couple of weeks - the proper launch of 'Forest Flower', my own little enterprise producing handmade lovelies. Yesterday was a crazy day spent setting up my Folksy shop (more about that later but if you are impatient just click on the link opposite...) and designing and printing off cards, price labels, leaflets etc with the shop address on them. As ever in my life everything was left to the last minute but maybe it's cause, secretly, I thrive on stress!!

We are off to Gorsley Village Hall very shortly to set up our tables at the Hobbies Fair I mentioned a couple of posts ago. After a week of grey, drizzly, windy (even frosty!) mornings we woke up this morning to beautiful clear blue skies and the promise of a beautiful day to follow. I do hope so as the village hall is set in lovely surroundings and I know the organiser has arranged for a number of 'outside things'. It should all make for a great family day out so if you are in the area, bring a picnic and come and join in....

Needless to say a detailed account and lots of piccies will follow... ;)

Spring flowers

I love this time of year. The garden - which, being north-west facing, spends most of the winter enshrouded in dull dampness - is finally seeing some sunshine and bursting into life once more. I moved my little cherry tree into a better position to catch some rays and warm the soil in it's pot and it responded by bursting into bloom - the smell is heavenly! Hopefully we will actually have some cherries this year - before all the birds get them...

Sometimes a wonder why I bother so much with the cultivation of plants. I really think that I should just leave mother nature to do the work - look at these gorgeous wild violets that have popped up in little clumps everywhere in the front garden. I know, I know 'They're invasive, they'll be everywhere by next summer and you'll never be able to get rid of them blah blah' but you know what, they and the primroses and and all the other pretty so-called 'weeds' can stay and flourish and provide me with a nice colourful view from kitchen window without any input from me (except the occasional removal of dandelions which, while they are a lovely sunny colour DO tend to take over the plot completely!) Gardening at it's simplest...

Hobbies Fair

I was recently asked to create some of my personalized bunting to advertise a forthcoming event that is promising to be an interesting day out to say the least...




A 'Hobbies Fair' held at Gorsley village hall on May 15th (Gorsley is a little village in Gloucestershire about 10 miles or so from Gloucester) The organiser, a lovely lady called Sarah Davy has gathered together a host of people to come along and share their hobbies with the public. Contributors include a beekeeper, a spinner, a potter and a gentleman who has restored an old vintage car. Weather permitting there will also be a pet dog show.
Lara's Den will also be there of course, represented by my goodself, Riley and the mother-in-law, so I am busy making bunting, pin cushions, pillows, teddies and other goodies plus we will have Alys' jewellery and Hannah's cards.
Light refreshments will be available but the surroundings are perfect for a picnic so why not make a day of it?
Old fashioned village fetes are a dying tradition ( although here in the Forest they are thriving, with two or three some weekends at the height of summer) so it's great to see someone trying to galvanise the community and provide a fun day out for the whole family.
Lets just hope the weather doesn't spoil it!

Hobbies Fair, Gorsley Village Hall, May 15th, 11am-4pm

How the time flies...

I cannot believe it has been 7 - yes 7!- months since my last post.
Well things have been a bit hectic what with trying to get Owen's new shop up and running not to mention Lara's Den... It's been hard times for many as the recession seems to have caught up with many of our customers and, in turn ourselves. The almost three months of continued bad weather really didn't help matters as we couldn't even get to the shop to open up on several days during January.
But spring is here and the lengthening days and warm sunshine has lifted everyones mood and the bikers are coming out en force once again which means trade at both branches of Bikerdean is picking up nicely - here's to a long, hot, busy summer season!
I have been busy too - orders for my personalised bunting have been slow but steady - with one order coming from the Merthyr Tydfil Fairtrade Steering Group who wanted bunting for their stall in the fairtrade colours - I even managed to make it using fairtrade cotton hand dyed and loomed and quite 'rustic' to look at but great to work with. The staff at Fair Trade Fabric were really helpful and even sent me some samples so I could get the right colours - if you want to try some of their lovely fabrics go to http://www.fairtradefabric.co.uk/ where there is also a very interesting page on why 'fair trade' is so important.

I have also been making lots more lovely fabric things for Lara's and for my own shop I am currently in the process of building at http://folksy.com (which is like Etsy but UK based). I will let you know when it's open for business!