Latest Happenings

Hello all,

Haven't been here for a while - been so busy! I have to keep reminding myself to breathe...

So here are a few little pictures of what's been happening in the world of FMN Crafts. I recently went to Bakewell and did a weekend fair which was a whole lot of fun. I had some great neighbours and there were quite a few people through the door. I sold a few things too ;)

These pictures are fairly small as they were taken on my mobile, but you get the idea. The pictures above were of my stall and when I look at it like this, it looks quite full! Although the stall is not huge, people take their time when they stop to look and I can see why now...there are many different things to look at! The fair was at the Bakewell Town Hall in Derbyshire and the fair was organised by Dawn and Steve of Craftwise. They are the most lovely people ever and will do absolutely anything to make you feel welcome and comfortable at their fairs. This is why, although I have to travel quite some distance to get to and from the fair there, I do them because the organisers are so friendly and helpful and make it worthwhile.

While there, I stayed at a delightful little cottage for two nights which was quite close by and it was really, really lovely. Although I didn't get to see much of it as I was obviously at the fair, I did get to spend time on the previous Friday there and get walking in the Peaks. It was really cold but so picturesque.

The cottage I stayed in is called Monks Memories (the section on the extreme right on the first picture) and is part of the Monks Dale Farm in Millers Dale, near Buxton, Derbyshire. My family have stayed there several times, in all three cottages as they sleep different amounts and we just love it. If you ever want a quiet, relaxing and beautiful holiday, this is the place to go. Around the actual farm there is only a road into the nearest town 5 miles away and lots of footpaths, but walk down the Limestone Way, right next to the cottages and you are into Millers Dale which although has more that Monks Dale Farm has in the way of occupation & amenities, it does only have a church, a pub, a telephone box, a B&B and some holiday cottages. The perfect little retreat!

Sinse then, I have been busy in the workshop and mostly I have been restocking items I have been selling out of, so not much point in showing you items previously made, but I have made one new line and it's these wash bags:

I wanted to make a slight difference to the make-up bags I make in the form of wash bags, as I get asked quite a lot if I make them, but I often find that using oilcloth for the interior (so it can be wiped out) is a little too stiff and hard to manage at times, particularly with a softer cotton exterior. I looked at laminated cotton but couldn't find any that went with the rustic material you see above, but then I found some 'wipe-able' (it said in the shop) material, which I can only assume to be cotton coated in some fine wax or cotton that has been sealed in some way. Any thoughts? It is pliable and matches the earthy feel to the upholstery material exterior quite nicely :) I decided also to make it a little different by adding a handle and by using large eyelets to put it through. I really like the result! And I especially loved the hammering involved by installing the eyelets! Tension? What tension?! These bags are ones that will last for a very long time, they are robust and big enough to hold your essential toiletries. They measure 9 1/2" across at the widest part and 5 1/2" tall. I made them with flat bases too so they will stand up and the zips are locking zips, so no chance of it coming undone in transit. They will be in my Etsy store very soon...

And finally I have been on a material hunt for quite a few days and after three trips came home with this lot:

Well actually, there is a lot more as I forgot to photograph the green wipe-able, the denim and the curtaining material I just got, so you'll just have to imagine them! These materials above were a great find. I usually shop around and these were in one of my favorite shops - I couldn't resist! Had a bit of a heart attack at the bill, but oh well, I hope to re-coup that through sales ;) Pass it on...

These materials are all 100% cotton so there is so much scope. I tend to like to mix things up so I am going to have great fun using these. Watch this space.

And then, as I would imagine all the rest of the country I have been getting ready for Christmas. I am a little scared as I seem to have done everything and there is still quite of bit of time to go...surely this is an indication that I have forgotten something! Oh well, we'll see...

And on that note, I'll be off, thank you for reading, share or Like me on Facebook please or simply leave a comment. Merry Christmas! :)

Julie.

(C) FMN Crafts 2013.

Stanley's Cake Boutique

Evening all,

Just wanted to point you in the direction of another one of my family's fabulous business's that is new and exciting - Stanley's Cake Boutique.

Amy makes amazing and delicious cakes in Charlton, London and she has many styles of cakes, including the Shoe Collection:
 

This fantastic 2 tier Princess Castle Cake with micro fairy lights:

This Dinosaur Jungle Cake:

  

These delicious Chocolate Fudge and Butterscotch Cupcakes:

  And this Elegant Black Candelabra and Feathers Cake:

I mean, just look! Fantastic. Check out her Facebook page and I dare you not to order...

Thanks for reading,
Julie.

Matlock Bath Craft Fair

Afternoon all,

A little 'wordy' post here but just wanted to say I survived the 12 days stint in Matlock Bath! I had a fabulous time and although business was good at the weekends, the week days were a little slower. But, it was expected, so mustn't grumble. October is a funny month for people to do day trips and holidays...We had a few bus loads in though, so that helped :) My main reason for today's post was to mention some fab people I was surrounded by and their businesses:

Stall placements changed from the weekends to weekdays, and on the first weekend I was stood next to Duncan and Vicky of Jewelz Online who sell some beautiful silver jewellery and scarves and I also stood next to Amanda of The Rustic Camper who sell wonderful cheeses and homemade chutneys. Then during the week days I was stood next to the completely wonderful and funny Lisa of Lisa Joanne Smith who is a stained glass artist and makes absolutely beautiful jewellery from it, and on the other side of me was Stephanie of Jofli Bears - not just bears but bears with backpacks that go on adventures!

Also around me during the 12 days were Len, Linda and Paul of Dad's Bees who produce and supply their delicious home made honey products of such diverse varieties, made using honey from their own bees; Kevin Wood who is an Artist and Illustrator, specialising in meercats! He brilliantly decorates drinks coasters, wall plaques, designs posters and teapots etc with his creations and is soon to be found on Etsy (go on Kev!); Elaine Hall of The Body Shop selling wonderfully priced Body Shop products, especially good on the run up to Christmas; Shelagh Wray who sells beautiful unusual and vintage jewellery and is setting up her own Fairs next year (woop!); the pint-sized and adorable Carol of Beaumont Bags who sells uniquely designed leather bags, money wallets and journals, as well as Betty & Brian who sell gifts for £2.50 for the Alzheimer's Society and Ian & Verity, Tom, Claire, Elaine, Sue and more who make and sell jams, chutneys, cards, bags, buns and fudge etc - I guess there are just too many to mention! But, ALL of these businesses are brilliant in my opinion and must be looked at, so if you get a minute...

The Matlock Bath Crafts, Gift and Food Fairs have closed for a few months now but re-open in February, so watch their Facebook page for that. BIG thank you's have to go to Joolz and Nathan who are the organisers of the Fairs and provide a magnificent hall to exhibit in that they took months to renovate brilliantly, as well as free entry to the public and numerous cups of tea for the stallholders!

I will be exhibiting three more times before Christmas, so if you want to see my products 'in the flesh' you haven't got much time left and yes, Christmas is coming! Details of my fairs are usually on Facebook or Twitter. If you wish to order from me Online, remember my products are hand made - allow extra time for me making them and getting them through the Christmas post please

Anyway, thanks for reading and pass this on if you wish, leave a comment or like me on Facebook :) Until the next time...

Julie.

Sheet Music & Maps Gift Bags

Good afternoon,

I would like to share with you what I have just finished making...

 

These are gift bags I have made out of sheet music I bought from a recent fair. The books are really old and I just fell in love immediately. I have always wanted to make gift bags but never had paper or card big enough - here was my chance!

I have made them as sets of three so there's a variety for many sizes of gifts, they have red ribbon handles which I think gives a great pop of colour and I made a tag for each too. I used masking tape to hold them together as not only did the cream colour match perfectly, it adds to the rugged look and feel of the old sheet music. They fold down flat too.

They are all made of individual music pieces, mostly solo piano, but some in the books also have song. I labelled each packaging with the contents as you can see here, including the sizes of each bag as they do vary ever so slightly: 

I think they would be great to hold a gift for a music lover, but even if not, they would be great to hold any gift! Tell you what though, my fingers are REALLY sore from all the folding and pressing - it's good quality paper you know! I did use a ruler for definition, but they still hurt. Oh well, poor me, no pain no gain :)

I also just made this too:

This one is made from a really old map! The area is the Peak District in Derbyshire - my favourite place, so I couldn't resist buying the map. And even though the creases are really, well, creased, I think it adds to the character :)

Then I made this one:

 

This one is a newer map! And it is of Pickering...no connection to me in any way, just part of the map I found at the sale! 

I am off to Matlock Bath on Saturday for 7 days (yep, 7 days, wish me luck!) and I will be taking these bags with me. Hopefully I am sure they will sell, I think the Derbyshire map one will be a draw if nothing else and I will have made more by then too. I'd buy them!

Thanks for reading, share if you like, comment if you like or Like me on Facebook and I'll speak to you soon. Have a good day.

Julie.
(C) FMN Crafts 2013

Bunting

Good afternoon all,

Just wanted to show you my latest creation - nothing new in the world, but certainly new to me - my very own bunting:

This is for the front of my stall when I do Fairs. I have some paper bunting, but as you'd expect it is starting to deteriorate, so I thought I would make my own :)

I used pieces of my favourite materials, backed them for stability and durability and added to a 6 feet plus length of bias binding. I think they are really cute!

I couldn't take too many brilliant photos but I think you get the idea. I am inspired by it now to make more to sell - perhaps in really small scale so they can be added to the edges of shelves, or in 'normal' scale but in themes, like Christmas and Easter etc... I think this is another one of those 'the possibilities are endless' instances ;)

So look out for my bunting if you visit a fair! Thanks for reading, share if you like or Like me on Facebook.

Julie.

(C) FMN Crafts 2013.

Latest Batch of Button Bracelets and more...

Evening all,

Firstly, I wanted to share my latest creations with you - it's been a busy week! Here are some new Button Bracelets:

Each has around 8-9 buttons, I used black and white waxed linen string (so the buttons don't slip around), I added beads to increase the cuteness and they measure between 6 1/2" to just over 8", so there should be a bracelet to suit all :)

I managed to get hold of some gold themed buttons and have made a couple of bracelets that could be described as 'bling'! They would look really good with a LBD for a special night out though... I also like the dark theme one with a pop of red in the middle. Mind you, I do like the neutrals though as they go with anything. Oh, the choice!

When I make them, I lay out the string and then just let my fingers wonder to find the buttons required. It's relaxing and almost therapeutic.

I plan to save these for my next fair as I only have five apart from these, but of course if you see one you would like, I can list it on Etsy for you with no problem at all. Guess how much they are? Just £1.99 each. Yep, you read it right!

Also, you know my Floral Diary Covers? Well I made some blue ones too, with check interior:

These Diaries and Diary Covers have proved popular with folk at fairs so far, so I put some on Etsy, you should take a look. They make great gifts for neighbours, teachers, friends and family members. The idea being that diaries are replaced each year so the owner always has a pretty addition to their handbag or work area. Lovely! And at only £3.99, it's hard to resist. :)

Thanks for reading, please share this if you like, Like me on Facebook or leave a comment. I had a comment earlier in the week and I was really pleased! (Hint hint...)

Have a great weekend,
Julie.

(C) FMN Crafts 2013.

Extra, Extra, Read All About It!

And so, in addition to the last couple of posts, I now have made these little beauties!...

In case you were wondering, they are my latest Christmas Gift Set which includes a Tissue Pack with 10 tissues, a Double Sided Purse which is big enough for cash and cards, and a 2014 Diary with Diary Cover.

All are in the Rose Floral range and all are complimentary to one another. For example, the Tissue Pack has the Rose Floral exterior with Blue Floral interior, the purse has one side of Rose Floral and the other is Blue Floral with plain green zip and plain cream interior, and the diary is Rose Floral exterior and plain pink interior, so they all work lovely together!

They make an ideal gift in that they are all items that are carried in hand bags and are used every day. They could also stay at home, so there are no restrictions. They are ideal for flower lovers, Cath Kidston fans as I use some of her material, and people who appreciate hand made items :) Do you know any one who fits into any of these categories?

I have made two sets so far, I will put one up on Etsy shortly and I hope to see you there...

Thanks for looking, please pass it on if you like this post or leave me a comment.

Julie.

(C) FMN Crafts 2013.