Bust Christmas Craftacular 2012

Blimey! What were so many cool and colourful people doing on a Sunday afternoon in an East London venue normally associated with boxing bouts? Shopping for crafts of course!
This year's Bust Christmas Craftacular was another festive market filled with gorgeous handmade goodies, sold by indie maker/designers offering a refreshing spread of fabulousness.

Bust? It is indeed an event associated with US magazine Bust - they hold one in New York which inspired the London event to start up a few years ago.

As well as filling up your Christmas stockings there were free workshops throughout the day where you could make stuff. Milliner extraordinaire Chloe from Hatastic! (she makes headwear from sweets and recycled things) ran a session on making mini fascinators ready to be worn on Christmas Day.

While Queen of Crafts Jazz Domino Holly added festival flair with her Handmade Hangout where you could make dream catchers (or snowflake catchers, whichever you preferred!)

Recognise this lovely trio? Yay! It's The Make Escape DJs Isabel, Alice and Dan who provided some of the soundtrack to the event.

It wasn't just visitors ears that were satisfied, sights were too thanks to the rather spectacular live entertainment courtesy of a hula girl...yes a girl who performs with a hula hoop. And not just any old girl; one of the happiest and most enthusiastic dancers I've ever come across!

 

 Like every good event there was a raffle. I do love a raffle. Especially one with such brilliant prizes...keeping my fingers, toes and current buns crossed for the giant Craft necklace donated by Tatty Devine. It would look so fabulous on me.

 

Last year I got over excited about meeting my hero Rob Ryan. He was back this year in his own Print Grotto where he was selling jawdroppingly amazing screenprinted wrapping paper.

Amongst the 75+ stalls was a lovely selection by my favourite haberdashery supplies shop All The Fun Of The Fair. You can normally find them in Kingly Court off Carnaby Street, pop by next time you're in that area.

 

 My fave stall was by Crafty Pint - really colourful and welcoming selling fun cushions and bunting made from vintage tea towels and character fabric. Crafty Pint also run regular craft workshops in South London, check out their site to find out more.

 

The youngest stall holder was Chloe from Hatastic's niece who managed the stall while Chloe ran her workshop. Take a good look at this face, she has her sights set on being Prime Minister..,and she loves craft which is a good thing, so expect lots of crafter-friendly policies!

 

 It was also great to see newcomers The Craft Closet selling their 'make it yourself' craft kits. The girls were so committed this was their second stall of the day. They also had one at We Make London where they served a certain Mr Gok Wan who bought one of their 'knit a purse' kits.

 This is why the Craftivists say to make three jigsaw pieces for their I Am A Piece project, one to give to them, one to gift to someone else and one to pop on your tree!

 

That Sarah Corbett, she never takes a break! She was even busy stitching on the Craftivist stand..while stylish sporting some fab jigsaw shaped earrings.

 

It wasn't just crafty goodness for sale, The Merry Bobbins sold homemade chutney and marmalade to raise funds for Age Concern and there were many tempting cakes for sale including Egg Nog cupcakes by Ms Vegan Cupcakes - yum!

I got chatting to the current president of Shoreditch Sisters WI who is about to embark on a new job in The Congo for three years...I'm sure she'll be inspiring them with her crafty presence, I loved this jumper she customised with a felt Christmas tree decked out with sequin baubles.

 I also bumped into the super lovely Rosie Martin aka DIY Couture...who was on the hunt for a Christmas gift for her mum.

I was searching for things I can send in the post and picked up this lovely typewriter brooch by Kayleigh Omara which I am still umming and aahing about keeping for myself...

 

 While these badges by Mary Kilvert are being sent to my friend Janine in Ecuador who collects sausage dog memorabilia.

Another year, another great event. There are so many Xmas craft fairs to choose from in London, all fabulous, but this one is especially a treat to visit. The standard of crafts on sale is really high and it's well priced. If you missed it then try and get along next year, and if you can't wait until Winter, they usually have a Spring fair too.

The Bust Christmas Craftacular took place at York Hall in Bethnal Green east London, on Sunday 16th December 2012.
Keep up to date with them about future events by visiting their Facebook page.

#IMAPiece: The Craftivist Jigsaw Project for Save The Children

I stitched this on Tuesday night. 

People often ask me why I'm so positive and it's because this is my motto. 

Every single person on the planet has dreams, ambitions and hopes...and holding on to them is what makes life pleasurable. 

No matter how big or small, every second we put into thinking we shouldn't give up, is a second towards 'achieving.'

The Craftivist Jigsaw Project is also about not giving up...its aim is to support Save The Children's Race Against Hunger Campaign to put an end to the fact that millions of people, including children still go to bed hungry every night : (

The charity have invited 4 of the UK's leading Crafty ambassadors to front the campaign which is asking crafters all over the country to stitch a piece of a fabric jigsaw to show that they are 'A Piece' of the change that will make the world a better place.

Next year is the G8 Summit and Save The Children and The Campaign are asking world leaders to put eradicating hunger at the top of their list. Their method is to present thousands of stitched jigsaw pieces to show that UK Crafters care, and want to make a difference. 

Every single person can get involved. All you need to do is download a template of the jigsaw, stitch on your message and send it to The Craftivists where Sarah will collate them.

There are NO EXCUSES not to do this as the closing date is March so it's the perfect Christmas crafting activity.

Next month Sarah, Jamie, Lauren and Hilary as going to Indonesia with Save The Children to experience some of their projects and report back. This may sound bizarre, but like celebs often go on charity trips, bloggers too can have a positive impact on spreading awareness of campaigns and while they are away they'll be keeping blogs and diaries of their discoveries, inspiring us back home to get involved.

The launch of the campaign took place at a special Save The Children charity shop in Primrose Hill and was attended by a host of bloggers (including mysefl!)

We were all given a pack to help us create a piece of the jigsaw.

Inside were fabric, instructions, a needle and thread.

I stitched my message at the event but will glitter it up at home (obviously!) before giving it to The Craftivists.

I have never liked being told what to do and I dislike it when people insist on what you should and shouldn't do. But this campaign is different.

It's the first time the UK Craft Community have been given an actual voice - it takes us seriously, appreciates us as people whose opinions matters - not just mad hobbyists!

That's why I think it's an opportunity we should not miss out on.
You don't need to spend any money - you just need to stitch a jigsaw piece or two, either on your own or with friends.

The satisfaction afterwards is something you can really be proud of.

Find out more about how to get involved:

Deadly Knitshade (Lauren O'Farrell)'s blog

Hilary Pullen's blog

Mr X Stitch (Jamie Chalmers) blog:

Sarah Corbett (The Craftivists) (you can download the jigsaw template from this link.)

 

Craftivists & Oxfam Grow Campaign Launch

A Jammy Deal

The tale starts with jam. Tomato jam. Yes that's jam not chutney! Fruity, reddish orangey jam which if you weren't told, could be mistaken as strawberry...or perhaps even orange marmalade without the peel. 

Sweet...like strawberries

There is nothing British about the recipe, it's Kenyan and it's a jam that a lady called Christine sells in Kenya, in order to survive, even though she's retired and should be putting her feet up. Instead she's constantly working in order to survive and look after children who've lost their parents to HIV and Aids. So why was her tomato jam recipe (which I can vouch for is utterly delicious!), being served up at Spitalfields City Farm on a Sunday afternoon? Because Christine and her jam is the inspiration behind a new campaign by Oxfam and the Craftivists Collective.

Craftivist volunteer

Grow is one of Oxfam's campaigns the aim of which is to ensure that everyone in the world has enough to eat...and to put an end to the fact that 1 in 7 people go to sleep hungry while elsewhere 80% of food is wasted...inequality as it's very worst. The Craftivists use craft as a form of activism to raise awareness of issues. Founder Sarah Corbett met Christine when she was in Kenya and was so touched by her tale that she looked for a way to share it. Now five years on, Craftivists have joined forced with Oxfam to get people to think about the world's food system and to consider the role small scale farmers can play in helping food production in developing countries. It's a complex issue and ambitious project but one that is essential.

Farm yard crafters

Over 50 people joined the launch of the campaign, held at Spitalfields City Farm on what was a very lovely sunny afternoon. The practical side of the campaign encourages people to make their own tomato jam using Christine's recipe and to give it to someone who is in a position to make a change such as MPs. Messages are hand-stitched onto the jam jar covers to get them to think and act.

Jar amnesty

So first up, all attendees took a jam jar which had been collected over the past few weeks.

Every jar came with lovely fabric

Inside each jar was everything a person needed to get started, fabric to stitch on, a band to hold it in place, a label and a needle.

Me reading up on the campaign

Before the afternoon got underway we were asked to read the leaflets about the campaign to get a better understanding of the issues.

This video is worth a watch to get a really good understanding of what I have been trying to explain (but they do it better!). It features Sarah from Craftivists talking about the campaign and how the jam and the stitching came together:

(Defo give this video a watch - if not now, bookmark it and watch when you can).

The craftivist crew

As a group we discussed what we thought of Christine's story which forces you to actually shape an opinion. Otherwise you can read something, find it interesting and forget about it. When you're asked to explain your reaction to what you've read you're more likely to take it seriously.

 Equally important therefore is what message you stitch on your jam jar lid and who you give it to. These were some of Craftivist's suggestions.

A finished jar should look something like this!

Amongst the participants were the Shoreditch Sisters branch of the Women's Institute...

Boys...(proving again that craft is for everyone)

Confident stitchers...

 And new comers to the stitch like Natalie from Ohdearism.

As well as jam, there was some live jammin' which added a fine soundtrack to the stitching.

A film crew were also there to record the campaign launch.

Craftivist Sarah invited lots of members of the craft community to take part so it was a fantastic opportunity to also meet some of the other crafty peeps I've encountered via twittersphere, such as Chloe from The Merry Bobbins, pictured here with Sarah.

And here's me with my finished jam! Now to sterilise the jar and fill it with homemade tomato jam. The message I stitched on mine was something that is very personal to me:

Live a simple life so others can simply life.

There is such an emphasis on 'excess' in our culture especially in the west: we're obsessed with having it all - the job, a house, car, social life, latest fashions and technologies and even the finest foods. While billions of people will never have any of the things I've just listed. It is very sad and I wish people would take that issue more seriously as a first step to eradicating this inequality. 

I've long admired Sarah and Craftivists and I learn't today that as much as I love crafting for pleasure, when you craft for a cause, it's much more satisfying.

The event was my second alfresco crafting activity in a month and my second crafting activity this year based on a city farm.

I couldn't therefore not mention my two fave things about this particular location. Such as it has an empty phonebox for the sheep to play in...

 And houses crime fighting pigs! Brilliant!

To find out more about Craftivists and their current campaign visit their website. You can get involved with the project where ever you are in the world.

Craftacular fever hits London

I read that Rob Ryan wrapping paper would be on sale at Bust Magazine’s annual Christmas Craftacular in London but I had no idea the man in question, the man…he, the legend, the most incredible paper crafter ever, would be there in person, signing hand screen printed ‘wrapping paper’ that clearly no one will ever use to wrap a gift, but will in fact frame, and admire forever. And here he is….with me!!! I was in so much shock…in fact, I am still in shock. The man is a genius. I am in love with every papercut he has ever done, his desk calendar sits on my table, his teatowels are in my kitchen drawers, his skirt hangs in my wardrobe, his books adorn my shelf, his blog is a must read of mine and his Ryan Town shop is one of my favourite museums… and there I was. In his presence, getting his autograph. I felt soooo honoured.  (All I need now is someone to buy me this rather incredible Tatty Devine necklace, followed by me saving up all my pennies to one day own one of his original pieces of art work….that’s two dreams to be getting on with …)

In the mean time here’s a round up of my trip to this most spectacular of craft fairs. Lots of the regular craftastic stalls were there, the super stylish Janine Basil and her Batastic fascinators, the ever gorgeous Heart Zeena (revealing her new woven shawls), and plenty of other folk I recognised from Renegade a few weeks back and the Thames Festival in the Autumn.

Rob Ryan was selling three colours of ‘wrapping paper’. Miraculously I was the last person in the queue to get my hands on a blue one…and I was suitably chuffed : ) I bought it as a gift and am keeping a red one for myself. It was one hour (spent queuing) well worth it, and I wasn’t the only satisfied customer.

Lauren O’Farrel of Stitch London and Crafty Crafty fame was the one who tipped me off about it!

What an arm!

Unfortunately queuing meant I was unable to get to the Craftivists workshops.

Sarah the heroine behind the Craftivist Collective led one of their popular sessions on making poignant ‘mini protest banners.’

Kits to make your own banners can be bought online at Folksy if you fancy having a go and check out their website for more details about their inspiring work, that quite frankly we should all be a part of.

He's 'X'y

Luckily I still got crafty, thanks to the fine stitchy specimen that is Mr X Stitch. He may be a craft celebrity (look out for him on Kirsty’s Chrismas Special over the festive season)…but does that mean he knows how to teach?

I can reveal that the answer is yes! Having done zero cross stitch since I was seven years old (I have a cushion full of mistakes to show for it), he opened my mind up to a whole new crafty world. Starting with how to sew without knotting your thread…something I never knew, despite my own efforts to be a crafty expert who specialises in textiles.

Fellow crafty Twitterati friends joined me – most of who were more successful that me. I didn’t manage to complete my Christmas sampler, just the letter ‘o’!

But hey ho, it’s a start and I learn't heaps!

'O' dear...

Mr X Stitch was a splendid workshop host; inspiring, motivating and even patted me on the back when I was feeling stressed about the ridiculous mistakes I kept making. If only all teachers were like him. 

Get your sugar hit!

I didn’t get a chance to meet the legendary Jazz Domino Holly who was running the next session, as I had to hotstep it to catch a Bollywood movie across town, but I’m happy to report I did track down a lovely girl with amazing hair, who co-runs a brilliant craftzine called Sugar Paper. 

 It’s the best craftzine I’ve ever seen (even better than my old craftzine Fete!) 

I met her at Craftacular two years ago when I bought an amazing bag she made with the words ‘You make me want to crochet’. It’s one of my fave bags and it was great to see she’s still doing what she loves.

 

Love and passion is pretty much what sums up Craftacular. The stalls are run people who all love making stuff and the shoppers are crazy about what they see. The atmosphere is one of shiny, happy, smiley people and lots of like-minded peeps to make friends with, such as the ever lovely Shoreditch Sister girls. For a run down of the crafty goodies that were on sale, check out the brilliant photo gallery on Crafty Crafty.

I most definitely recommend a trip here next year (there may be a summer Craftacular too?). The only disappointment was the Tatty Devine tombola. It cost £2 to enter and all I got was one chocolate celebration…i.e a Bounty bar that measures 3cm. 

 

The good thing about the stall though was that the lovely lady working there was wearing this most spectacular of lobster necklaces. Another accessory I need to get saving for.

 

In fact that’s one thing this craft fair taught me. There is so much lovely arty/crafty stuff out there I want to own, I just need to pull my stockings up and get more work, to pay for it ; )