I Finally Joined Instagram

Every week someone asks me why I'm not on Instagram. I've always thought it would be too much - I just couldn't see where and how I could fit it into my already manic schedule . But yesterday (we're now half way through the year) I felt a pang of dissatisfaction with life. I haven't been as creative as I want to be. I stare at computer screens so much these days for writing, that crafts and visual inspiration has taken a back seat but it's time to switch. I go through phases and right now I just want to satisfy my aesthetic senses. I aim only to post craft related images that I have taken, that will become my own creative moodboard. If you're on Instagram, follow me at The_CraftCafe...where you'll be treated to pics like these...

I'm absolutely loving seeing everyone's creative inspiration too, if you have a colourful Instagram account then let me know in the comments and I'll follow you. Or please do recommend anyone else that I should be following. 
Here's to some more happy snapping!

p.s If you aren't on Instagram you can still keep track of my photos online here.

Quick crafting: Ladybird Shoes

Everyone should own a pair of red shoes. 
I got my first pair when I was a baby. 

When I was seven, I slipped over in a pair and ended up in hospital, and missing weeks off school. My last pair were worn to death until every last bit of the sole had withered away. Sad times - they were very comfortable.

So I recently bought a new pair..only thing was they were a bit too ordinary looking, so I grabbed a black permanent marker pen and drew spots all over them.

I wasn't keen on the bows so I snipped them off, they were easy enough to remove, just held on by a few stitches.

Of course I couldn't leave them like that and they were obviously screaming out ladybird!

I made some from craft foam and glued them to the fronts. (Each piece is double-backed to make them strong).

 Then I wore them to the park.

All in all it took around 10 minutes and they make me feel happy.

Delicious Design Classics

Bagel purse from Berlin

I've recently acquired some extremely kitsch but classic design products. First up this rather splendid salmon and cream cheese bagel purse found in Berlin.

Salmon & cream cheese filling

Each half of the bagel has a zip so you can fill it with money, card, lipgloss, keys etc. I padded out the top pocket above for photographic purposes, but unfilled, it lies flat.

Bagel ends

It also has a key ring fob, so it can be hung. It's designed by Yummy Pockets who's range includes sandwiches, burgers and sushi themed cases.

Fast food bracelet

This is a rather special fast food bracelet given to me as a Valentines present. It consists of large plastic food items, joined with elastic. I have no idea where it originated from.

Marmite keyring

On first inspection this looks like a jar shaped keyring, but infact the lid comes off so you can store coins...I'm looking forward to testing it out next time I go clubbing!

Food Zines

This set of foodie zines were designed by Sarah Cai and each one is completely hand drawn and contains 6 ideas for what you can do with the product.

Here is a peek at pages from each one. My favourite suggestion is playing jenga with kitkat sticks and bathing in ribena - yum!

Burger timer

 A burger shaped timer to add to my ever growing collection of burger themed collectibles.

Nutella cookbook

An finally a Nutella cookbook, containing 30 delicious recipes to make with the brown stuff such as pastries, drinks, desserts etc. All the recipes are in French, as it was bought in Paris.

Have you acquired any delicious design classics recently? Share your treasures in the comments below!

Mad Hatter's Tea

Tea for two

4pm is my favourite time of the day. Without fail I drop what I'm doing, make myself a cup of tea and take a few minutes out. The break normally involves something sweet and yummy too, often a biscuit (ok make that two biscuits), cake, flapjack, shortbread, chocolate...hmmm anything I can get my mitts on! It's not a habit I started because it's now trendy. The last few years has seen a huge resurgence in taking afternoon tea but I'm proud that I grew up with it. I've always been a four meals a day kind of girl, breakfast, lunch, teatime and dinner (and I admit, there's normally a treat at elevensees too...so maybe that's five meals a day?)  After school my dad would always have something ready from Greggs for my sisters and I; an iced ring doughnut, apple turnover and sometimes a coconut cheesecake. These days the teatime ritual isn't as fun, I normally enjoy it on my own unless it's the weekend. And one such weekend passed a couple of weeks ago. Whilst researching places to take tea in London I heard about The Mad Hatter's Tea at the Sanderson Hotel. Promising a tea time experience like none you've witnessed before, the entire menu is inspired by Alice in Wonderland ...it sounded like the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon with my best friend as she celebrated her 30th birthday. We've known eachother since we were 16 and everything about the concept of this tea summed us up then and now; we both love daydreaming and fantasies and are suckers for fairytales.

Rainbow sarnies

So what was in this extraordinary tea? After the tea was ordered (I chose Freshmint and she opted for English Breakfast) which was served in gorgeous iron teapots, the type you often get in spas, we were presented with rainbow finger sandwiches made from yellow saffron and green spinach bread. There's not much you can say about a sandwich and infact one finger was too soggy to eat, it just makes you feel like you've at least had something savoury to balance out the forthcoming sugar rush.

Looks yummy....

And of course we had  to start with this Queen of Hearts 'Heart'. Obviously in that appealing shade of pink it looked fabulous but when things look this pretty they don't always live up to expectation. Thankfully it exceeded every single fantasy....

Tastes like the best thing ever!

We both agreed it was one of the tastiest 'dessert' items we've ever eaten and it didn't even contain a sprinkling of chocolate. Inside was a smooth, creamy, fluffy, melt in the mouth strawberry mouse on a light sponge base. It was divine and memorable and without a doubt the best afternoon tea item I've ever eaten!

Excitement mounts....

And in true Alice style there was a concoction on the table baring a label with 'Drink Me' on it. Promising to taste like Apple Pie, Lemon Curd and English Toffee, you're supposed to experience each flavour as you sip through the straw. Nice concept but in truth it looked and tasted like Pepto Bismol but don't let that put you off...

Where's the rabbit, we have his watch!

The chocolate and coffee sponge watch was missing its chain but luckily it didn't need one. Like a gateaux it was rich, sweet and felt a bit naughty.

Lollies to lick

To let you reminisce about childhood memories there are also yummy lollies - the hazelnut praline pop which you have to put in your mouth in one go - do not attempt to bite it, and a blueberry lollipop.

 One thing I'm abit confused about is that when I booked last month the price of the tea was £25 which I thought was an absolute bargain for such an amazing spread but when I checked today it had risen to £35....a very steep rise. Luckily I found this special offer so you can experience a Mad Hatter's Tea for £26.25 if you go before September 30th though sadly it is only valid Monday-Thursday.
So it's actually very much a luxury treat, best reserved for very especial occasions. Infact there's no reason why you can't make a whole daytrip out of your visit. Staying at the hotel is impossible unless you're a lottery winner (rooms start at over £500 for the night with the penthouse costing a staggering £3k per night.) But alas you can still live the highlife inside this incredible boutique hotel for free by enjoying its stunning reception area. On entering you are greeted by a Dali inspired lips sofa...it is my ultimate dream to own this sofa, it is pure design magnificence.

One day I will own this sofa...

But it is not the only piece of beautiful furniture...The Sanderson is chair heaven.

...and this chair!

This swing chair had a soft fluffy cushion as a seat and venturing inside it was like a mini adventure in itself.

Sci-fi seat

This chair was the most unique, it's a kind of capsule which you can lie back in and be closed up. It was solid and hard but even so, surprisingly comfortable.

Top model

I'm not going to share all the chairs (some should be kept a secret that you'll only discover if you visit the hotel) but this one above was inside a kind of games room. I love this photo. Rukia is sooooooo photogenic she looks amazing in all her photos but this one is just pure class.

What a wall!

Every aspect of the hotel is mind boggling...mainly because from the outside it's the most non-descript looking concreate block, but as soon as you step inside you're transformed to another world. From the loos to the bar chairs to the space themed lifts that make you go 'wow', it's such an exciting place to visit. Pop in next time if you are ever near Oxford Street, it's just a short walk and is worth every footstep getting there.

Mad Hatter's tea is now also available as a takeaway picnic (£30) from The Sanderson and it's sister hotel St Martin's Lane and comes with maps and bicycle hire so you can discover your own wonderland in Londinium.

Tea cup land

On a recent trip to Holland I visited a town called Veere, in Zeeland, which on first inspection looks like a picturesque coastal town with cobbled streets, yachts and old buildings. Yet wondering around the shops I discovered I was actually in teacup heaven. 


Every store I went  into whether it was down a secret passageway or on the main high street seemed to sell the prettiest range of tea cups imaginable. 

 All the stores had their own unique way of displaying the teacups, it was like wondering into a sweet shop and being amazed by all the delightful colours and not knowing where to start.

 You can never go wrong with spots.

 And even if you don't like florals, seeing so many types looked very appealing.

 And of course there were attractive teapots to match.

 And even tea cloths...

Yet what was utterly strange was that I drunk approx 12 cups of tea in different cafes/ restaurants over the weekend and every single one was served in a transparent glass mug.....I didn't see a single teacup in sight, even when I order tea in Veere!  
How most peculiar......

10p earrings in less than 10 minutes

Kit box

You will need: Two earring findings, two head pins (the long metal sticks), round nosed pliers, wire cutters (not shown!) and a selection of beads.

Introducing the trusty headpins

Head pins are long metal sticks with a circular bottom, which acts like a knot so that your beads don't fall off the end. They easily get bent because they are so thin, start by smoothing or straightening them out as much as possible by easing the round nosed pliers up and down each one. Otherwise you may end up with wonky earrings!

Make them as long as you want!

Now for the fun bit, thread any combination of beads onto the headpin and repeat on two pins so you have an identical pair. Make them as long or as short as you like, just leave 1cm free at the top - you may need to trim the pin using wire cutters according to the length you want.

Get bending!

 This is the most tricky bit but it just takes getting used to, after you've done it once, you will have mastered it! Using the pliers, bend the 1cm end around to create a loop. Hook the earring finding onto the end of the loop and then close the loop by pressing it inwards together with the pliers.

Voila!

That's it, all done - your new earrings are ready to wear!!
They take less than 10 mins to make (the only slow bit is making sure your loops are rounded evenly but as it's wire it can be bent and unbent as many times as you wish so just keep practising!)

Cost 10p per set......the beads probably don't come to more than 2p, depending on what you use (I used seed beads and faux pearls bought in bulk), the headpins cost 2p each, findings 2p each.
All materials purchased from www.creativebeadcraft.co.uk.

With a crafty project this quick, easy and cheap, you can make a new pair for every hour of the day!

My Valentines Wishlist!

Hmmmm, with just over a week to go until Valentines Day I thought I would do a spot of online window shopping. These are the lovely homemade goodies I would like to receive if anyone out there fancies getting me a present!

I love collecting hamburger memorabilia. Last year I received a 'Ham Bag' for Valentines - a hamburger shaped handbag, this year, I quite fancy a matching hat.

My most favourite Super Hero in the world is Batman, I have a fantastic Batgirl dress made of yellow PVC it's a clubbing staple although I get very hot in it! This would be the perfect accessory to go with it!

I'm vowing to follow more recipes this year, I'm much more of a bung in a little bit of this and a little bit of that type person, I hate the restrictions of instructions. If I had a gorgeous apron like this to cook in though maybe things would be different? It's fully reversible too - amazing!

Snowy day reading

It's a wee late, but the Craftzine I edit is finally available online as a lovely full colour pdf. The printed version is black and white comes with a free teabag to keep you warm on a snowy day like today.

I'm pleased to report the zine survived it's first year with four seasonal issues, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter.

I felt inspired to set it up after attending a 'Zinefest' at The Women's Library.

Zines are independently published, not for profit publications about anything. They are usually photocopied. Back in the day, a lot of people used to write fanzines about their favourite bands and that's how I got into publishing aged 12. I used to review music, and gigs that I had never even attended!!

Over 15 years later, here I am running my own zine. One of the great things about a zine is that there are no rules so they can be as unconventional as you like. I've seen them in all shapes and sizes, including mini ones and fold out leaflets.

Traditionally zines are printed and this one is printed too. In the beginning there was some uproar from contributors about this but I've stuck to what I believe in. Somethings should be kept and flicked through over time and a zine is one of them!

This year I'm looking to change the format in someway to make 'Year 2' a bit more interesting. It's currently A5 and bound by yarn but it would be nice to do something different.

I'm always in need of contributors so if you'd like to send something in for the Spring 201o get in touch and I'll send you the details.

For now, get yourself a cuppa and see what's inside.

Print versions are also still available for £1 from Folksy.