I'm In Mollie Makes Magazine!

Arrrgh! Where has the time gone?! I haven't blogged since June. Been super busy with my new job, editor of a new restaurant magazine launching in September. And when I'm not in meetings or interviewing people about that I'm organising the monthly craft night I run in Hackney, East London.

The Make Escape is now 14 months old! We had an incredible 'sold out' Makerversary for our birthday back in May and since then things are continuing to go amazingly. 
This month we've received our first proper publicity, an article in Mollie Makes magazine.

We are also about to go 'on tour' for the first time. 
We'll be running FREE craft workshops inside The Royal Festival Hall, Southbank, London over the August Bank Holiday weekend, Sat 24th & Sun 25th from 11am-4pm.  

Come and join us if you can! And as well as my blog please do keep an eye on The Make Escape blog so see what we get up to each month.

Fingers crossed for some proper blogging soon x

I've Got Pansy Coloured Hair

I'm calling my new hair shade Pansy as it has hints of blue, lilac and purple and reminds me of pansy flowers which we had a lot of in our back garden when I was growing up.

Here's the birds eye view...I love the early stages of freshly dyed hair, no roots to deal with.

And here's the the sides...

The back is blue and it also reveals the drasticness of my new cut, it's the shortest I've ever had it.
 
I've now had my do for a week and I'm still shocked whenever I look in the mirror.
On the plus side my new hair has sparked many conversations with strangers, mainly people at shop tills commenting how nice it is.

But the bizarrest one was that I was outside Selfridges in Oxford Street looking at my mobile when a guy came up to me and told me it was really apt I was standing where I was. 
I turned around and saw I was camouflaged so I asked him to take a photo of me!

My new look marks an all round feeling of newness, I feel refreshed and life seems different. Having cropped hair exposes your actual face, there's nothing to hide behind, it's scary at first but very liberating.

Thank you Fabritz & Jason from Toni & Guy Academy for doing such a top job on my hair again! And all for FREE! 

Crafting With Danielle Proud

There's no doubting that Danielle Proud is the original craft queen who helped bring craft back into the mainstream in the UK. Long before the current resurgence of craft books and publications, Danielle's book House Proud coined the term 'hip craft' appearing in all the mainstream papers and even on TV. At the time I was working on a craft magazine and it was the most exciting book to ever land on my desk.
After that Danielle appeared regularly on daytime television showing you how to do simple crafts while having your breakfast on GMTV and This Morning. I remember these clips so clearly and am still sad they've stopped.

While I've long admired her crafting capabilities and interior design, I didn't realise Danielle's background was in fashion and that she's such a brilliant artist. One of her biggest passions and talents is painting and after a 'career break' to have three children Danielle is now heading into the world of designing homeware and furniture. The furniture is still underway but you can own her first item of homeware just by purchasing some coffee.

When I was younger I was addicted to collecting tokens and saving up for freebies. I thought this kind of promotion had stopped with these day companies simply asking you to 'Like' them on Facebook and then they send you a voucher to print off. 
Not in the case of Kenco. Their Rewards Club is all about collecting tokens and exchanging them for cool stuff. For 60 points which is three 200g jars you can get one of these gorgeous eco cups designed by Danielle.

I was invited to a special launch event earlier this month to meet Danielle, find out what she'd been up to since publishing House Proud, try out one of her coffee cups and do some crafting with her.

The project we were assigned was to make a coaster to match Danielle's Eco Cup. The base was made from tree trunk direct from Danielle's back garden. They were really solid, smooth and beautiful - such a simple but wonderful material to work with. 

Some of Danielle's illustrations were made into decal transfers which we cut out, soaked in water and then smoothed onto the coaster.

Danielle was on hand to ensure we all ended up with masterpieces and it also gave us all an opportunity to talk to her properly. It was so refreshing to hear the enthusiasm she has for family life. Her career is important; it's not her priority, yet she still manages to get involved in exciting projects that feed her creative needs. The kind of balance we could all do with.

Afterwards we varnished each side, then once dry they were good to go!

My two are currently in use and I love them!

I've also been using my eco cup for two weeks and I can confirm it makes drinking tea/coffee/your hot/cold drink of choice much more fun. It's a great size and although they look like they are made of melamine plastic in this picture, they are CERAMIC! Quality stuff. As 'collectables' go, these are so worth it, even if like me you don't drink coffee. Leave the jar in the office, give to a friend or use it to bake a coffee cake just so you can enjoy this cup and lots of other lovely goodies. 

To find out more about how to get one visit: www.mykenco.com.

London Ice Sculpting Festival 2013

It wasn't just the ice that was frozen, I was chilled to the bone from the moment I arrived at The London Ice Sculpting Festival 2013 until I left! It's as if they planned the weather to add to the authenticity. Brrrrr!

Celebrating it's 5th year, the free family art event takes place in and around the towering backdrop of Canary Wharf, a large part of which was located on a small island called Wood Wharf that you had to queue up to set foot on and leave, but more about that later...

time to reveal some art!

Truth is, they looked a million times better in real life, though hopefully you can appreciate the beautiful way in which sections of them were lit up. 
Over 20 ice sculptors took part in the three day event that started on Friday and ran through the weekend. They came from all over the world including the US, Latvia and Spain to show off their sawing skills (Edward may not have been there but the crowd still got to witness the excitement of snow.) Some more than others...

 The Snow Pit was just for kids. Naturally this made me grumpy, but alas, happiness came in the form of sweet stuff. You know when you go to market stalls and there's always a French Patisserie? Well I always think they're overrated, the creations look amazing but the taste is often disappointing. Not here though. The cake stand was spectacular.

One of the main reasons I wanted to come to the London Ice Sculpting Festival was to try out some ice sculpting for myself. These masterclasses where you could sculpt a penguin or polar bear had to be booked in advance, mine was supposed to be at 5.40pm...but as fate would have it, I never made it there as I couldn't get back on the island. That queuing thing I mentioned, I left the island to warm up, came back and after 15 minutes was still attempting to get back on : (

Still, there was also the ice grafitti wall which was stationed back in central Canary Wharf. You still had to queue but it was a much shorter wait.

Each participant was given a tool to engrave into the wall of ice.

It would have been more addictive if there wasn't the stress of knowing you only had two minutes each. I call that stingy but hey, it meant more people had a go.

There was also ice chess, but I'm more of a Draughts kind of girl so I left that to the pros.

 At nightfall there was a light show, but by that point I was such an iceblock myself, I headed indoors to thaw where I stumbled across this very handsome snowman who was guarding the children's craft area.

Back at the Jubilee Line tube station I was amazed to discover a cinema screen, literally a huge projection at the far end of the station, which you can only access when you've passed the ticket barriers. Most people will head straight down the escalator, but those who follow the sights and sounds are in for a treat.
I watched two brilliant short films from the London Transport archives, including a charming look behind the Lost Property Office in Baker Street. Notably that someone actually left a tortoise on a bus and managed to get it back!

I love free days out in London like this. If you look for them, there's always fun activities going on, waiting to be discovered that you don't need any money to enjoy. 
I aim to report back on some more of these adventures in the capital soon!

My Vintage Shopping Spree At Old Spitalfields Market

Three weeks ago I won a £200 shopping spree at the new Pop Up Vintage Fair, which is held at Old Spitalfields Market, London, on the 3rd Saturday of the month.

All I had to do was send a Tweet and answer the question: Why do I love Vintage?
Mine had something to do with the fact each piece is full of stories...and that it looks good on me! I was given a challenge - to spend all £200 in one day on what can only be described as one of the most exciting days of my life!!! I felt like a VIP the moment I arrived, until I left laden down with shopping four hours later.

 

First stall to catch my eye was the incredible Spark Of Vintage. The owner Nadine  (pictured) blings up vintage bags & hats with Swarovski crystals. The second I laid eyes on this case (which has the words 'Sexy Women') painted on the top, it was love at first sight and it was my first snap up of the day for £30.

I did four circuits o the market before deciding what I wanted to try on. Thankfully, unlike some markets there was a curtained changing room. The patterns on these two dresses were gorgeous but sadly they didn't fit me - vintage clothes can sometimes be made for tiny frames : (

So I opted for this fabulous felted fascinator instead (£3)

An incredible pleated collar jacket (£38) from Gin Lane Vintage

A seriously cute sweater (£20)

A fabulous printed dress that I wore last weekend (£20)

 This amazing Harris Tweed satchel (£30)

and a hippy chic printed cotton top (£12)...I know I know. I've had 3 different hairdos in the last 3 weeks....I can't explain it other than my hair has it's own life. It does what it wants when it wants!

The market also has a fabulous collection of homewares and collectables. This huge pink crocheted blanket was bought from Rare and Racy who sold the most stunning vintage cups and saucers but sadly I didn't need any. So I stuck to this prety blanket; a steal at just £10.

I've always wanted an ice-cube pineapple - it's the ultimate in kitschyness. So I decided to give this one (£18) a home after eyeing it up for a good couple of hours. I lost their card but I know these two ladies go around to fairs in a camper van selling cool stuff so look out for them!

This lady was lovely and from her stall I also bought a long red St Michaels button up top/jacket which I haven't worn yet hence the lack of pictures, a snuggly woolley hat and a couple of metres of stunning retro print fabric which she pointed out, I could make a couple of cushions from.

 

Vintage vixens won't just be spoilt for choice by the impressive range of fashion, accessories, jewellery, collectables and homewares at Pop Up Vintage. They can also get their hair done by Candy Pout. Perfect if you've got a night out ahead. Sadly my hair is too short at the mo for up-dos.

Here are my buys laid out at home, I spent every last penny and have been using nearly all of what I bought (minus the red belted dress and the fabric but that will happen soon.) I can't stop wearing my new patterned dress and have worn the jacket twice at two glamorous events, my book launch and my guest appearance at a WI meeting earlier this week.
So glad I found it, it's fitted into my life perfectly.

Here are the Need To Know dates for your diary. 

Old Spitalfields is amazing enough as it is, and regularly hosts special events. 
Pop Up Vintage Fairs is one of them. 

I know there's alot of vintage markets & fairs in the capital and it's hard knowing which ones to go to but here's why I liked this one in particular:

1. Location: Spitalfields is buzzing on a Saturday so it's not just Pop Up Vintage you can enjoy - there's all the other stalls and shops and Brick Lane is mere minutes away which makes for a perfect weekend trip.

2. Size: It's a comfortable size - sometimes vintage markets are so huge halls they feel too overwhelming. This one is compact and is not just about clothes. It's the perfect intro to Vintage for newbies.

3. Choice: Despite the size there's a good collection of stalls covering clothes, jewellery and homeware. I did feel that there was too much emphasis on garments from the 1980s rather than true vintage but I guess that was bound to happen sooner or later.

4. Stall holders: They were genuinely friendly, chatty and open to talking about their products. I didn't see a single sign which said 'No Photos' which I always find so ridiculous and off putting. In that sense it's great for bloggers!

5. Prices: I know I had vouchers so I was lucky, but it was a very affordable market - lots of brooches for £5 and plenty of bargains £10 or under. Shopping is far more pleasurable knowing you're not breaking the bank. Oh and it's free entry too!

www.OldSpitalfieldsMarket,com

On a different note it's been so nice blogging again! It's been over a month since my last post but this year as has been a tough one where time has been concerned. I finished one book and am gearing up to hand the next one in.
I miss blogging so much but several things had to go and blogging was one of them. So it's been an extra pleasure doing this one : )