Inside the House of Made & Found

Saturday was the day we'd dreamed about and worked hard to make happen; Emma's cunning plan was about to become reality – but would it work? would people turn up and buy things?

I was very grateful that was offered a bed in the Made & Found house, for Friday night; so after supper I packed everything in the tardis and drove down to North London. Although it had been a long day, I set to and arranged my wares at one the end of the kitchen . . .

the brick fireplace was perfect for showing my Christmas cards

and the cards and unframed prints fitted onto a round table.

Saturday early morning was a flurry of activity, Val arrived with her woven willow and set up her stall in the conservatory.

Emma arranged a beautiful cabinet of her silver jewellery, made with precious gems and vintage treasures, in an antique cabinet in the hallway.

Also in the hall was Debbie's shimmering display of hand-dyed yarns.

There was more (but I somehow didn't take photos of them!) 
Karen, Lilli and Claire were in the sitting room; Tracy was in her own sewing room; and next to me in the kitchen was Linda.

Also in the kitchen was this delicious array of food baked by Miss Georgina Worthington . . . and yes it was as scrummy as it looks!

 Can you spot someone wearing golden shoes?

I wonder who it is?

Right from when the Made & Found house opened its doors at 10am, the rooms started to buzz with chatter . . . customers were soon buying things and we knew the cunning plan was working!

As the day progressed Twitter friends appeared and introduced themselves . . . some had driven a very long way to be there! In the cosy snug, impromptu crochet tutorials happened between complete strangers and Val taught people how to make stars . . . this is mine :-)

As the light faded outside the visitors drifted away and we had time to chat with each other and swap information and ideas; bartering and swapping took place too!

I came home with a woven willow tree, the softest most luxurious silk and camel yarn and a beautiful eggcup/vase/cup - all even more special because I know exactly who made them.

Thank you to everyone who came along - it wouldn't have been a success without you!

Maybe the Made & Found house will pop up somewhere else in the spring? 



Now I have boxes to unpack and new work to plan . . . and our own Christmas to think about!

Celia
xx

Cushions for MADE & FOUND on Saturday 7 December

This Saturday is the Made & Found sale of handmade goods in North London. I'll be selling framed and unframed prints as well as my cards... including the Christmas cards. But I thought that I should also have a few items to showcase my fabrics, so yesterday I got out the sewing machine and spent the day stitching.

With apologies for the rather rubbish photos, it is so gloomy and dark! this is the best I could manage taken outdoors!

I made two cushions . . .

With button details on the backs . . .

The Stone Hearts cushion has Sea Sprigs on the reverse and the Sea Hearts has Stone Sprigs . . .

I used some letter stamps to print name tapes and hand stitched them onto the backs . . .

. . . and signed them

It would be nice to spend the whole week sewing, but today I'm back in the studio framing prints.


I hope to meet some of you at Made & Found on Saturday

Celia
xx

All the fun of the fair

Two Christmas Fair's ticked off the list – so, how did they go?

The Linton Christmas Gift Market was a new event, so it was uncharted territory – I was surprised to be directed to behind the back of the main building to a portacabin classroom, the atmosphere was a little tense and not at all jolly and very cold (I now understand that unfortunately a number of stallholders hadn't turned up which had caused all sorts of problems for the organiser). On a happy note I was next door to a lovely lady selling brightly covered felt covered soap – her sales banter was a joy! – and next to her was Nicola, aka Lily Button, with her beautifully made upcycled bags and accessories. There was a steady trickle of customers and to my surprise one introduced herself as Chrissie of niminyfingers, wasn't that lovely! At the end of the day I had lost all feeling in my frozen toes; but, helped by one exceptional sale, my takings were quite respectable.

Last weekend was the big one, The Mayor's Appeal Arts Fair in Saffron Walden Town Hall. I've had a stall at the two previous Arts Fairs and sales have been excellent – particularly at the Fund Raising Private View on the Friday evening. So it was with high hopes that I set up my stall . . .


The central area of the Town Hall is reserved for artists to show their framed pictures, two or three of the people who had expressed interest decided not to attend, so I was allowed to spread out onto two extra display panels for no extra fee.


Rachel had sent a package of more finished pieces in out LANDSCAPE EAST jewellery collection, I'd quickly made a display panel covered with some Sudbury silk I just happened to have in the studio – I liked how the wide black and brown stripes looked like a minimalist landscape.


What happened? Quiet is an understatement, I won't even try to analyse why and this isn't the place to do it. My takings for the whole weekend were just a little less than the Linton Market, and that was mostly thanks to a charming woman who visited twice on Saturday and then came back on Sunday to buy two prints (I can't tell you how much she cheered me up!).

On a positive note, there was a 'let's make the most of it' spirit among the stallholders and we spent a lot of time swapping ideas and getting to know each other which was very inspiring. Gary from Edwards & Todd in Museum Street, London (opposite the British Museum) called in to collect a bundle of unframed prints from me to restock his browsers – and he gave me one of his gallery's Christmas invitation cards which features my Deer sprang form the wood linocut.

I came away not at all down-hearted, in fact just the opposite – I had a list of things to get on with . . .

The LANDSACPE EAST jewellery is gradually being listed in the jewellery department of Magic Cochin's Emporium – the Anglesey Abbey Falling Oak Leaf earrings are there already :-) I think they are my favourite piece – I'd snap up a pair!

Prompted by Caroline on the neighbouring stall, I've started a visual journal, i sketch my day, drawn while I'm out walking, using various drawing apps and posted from my iPhone.

And, thanks to the amazingly skilled maker of decorative papers, Victoria Hall; I've some exciting new printmaking ideas to pursue.


One more Christmas event to go . . . The Withersfield Christmas Bazaar on Saturday 4th December 2 - 4.30pm. It's my local village event, there will be lots of friends there so it's for fun – do come along if you live nearby, worth it for the tea and cake ;-)

Celia
x

New on my stall this weekend . . .

It's been a busy day . . . one of those days where everything seems to happen at once. Probably the most exciting thing that happened was the arrival of a 'special delivery' padded envelope from Rachel in Norfolk – it contained more finished designs in our LANDSCAPE EAST jewellery collection.

Luckily it has been a bright day, perfect for taking photos, so I've spent some time photographing all the pieces so I can put them in the silver jewellery department of Magic Cochins Emporium on etsy. I haven't selected and sized all the images yet and I need to make a little display panel for them at this weekend's Arts Fair in Saffron Walden Town Hall; but here's a taster . . .

Leaf Doodle pendant
etched sterling silver on a compact snake chain

Small Leaf Doodle long-wire earrings
etched sterling silver

Anglesey Abbey Falling Oak Leaves long-wire earrings
etched sterling silver

Anglesey Abbey Oak Leaf pendant
etched sterling silver on a compact snake chain

Flying Hare necklet
etched and oxidised sterling silver on an oxidised silver cable necklet

Rachel has described the etching technique she uses on her blog, you can see pictures of the leaf pendant and the hares being prepared for etching and actually in the acid bath.

Celia
x

Christmas Fairs 2010

In between illustration commissions I'm working on the stock for my stall at three local Christmas Fairs . . .

The Linton Christmas Gift Fair on Saturday 6th November
This will take place on the same day as the popular Farmers’ Market. There will be over 30 stalls, a Christmas Grotto and Cakes and Refreshments. The event starts at 10am and finishes at 4pm.

The Mayor’s Appeal Art Fair in Saffron Walden Town Hall on Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th November
This is an established event organised by Saffron Walden Arts Trust to raise money for local charities chosen by the mayor, this year money will be donated to Shake-A-Leg Theatre Company and Carver Barracks Injured Fund. There will be a private viewing with refreshments on Friday 12th November from 7.30pm to 9.30pm, tickets are available from Saffron Walden Tourist Information Centre and cost £5 each, all money from ticket sales will go to the chosen charities.

Withersfield Christmas Bazaar Saturday 4th December, 2pm to 4.30pm
A traditional sale of Christmas treats in the Village Hall at Withersfield, there will also be tea and home made cakes.

If you live nearby they are great events to find locally made art, craft or food and produce – perfect for making Christmas shopping really special without fighting through the high street crowds.

Celia
x

. . . and after the Bazaar

On Friday I stepped out of my usual routine and drove down to Saffron Walden to rendez-vous with Carole at The Riverslade Gallery in Saffron Walden - I was to 'shadow' her for a day to learn how to look after the gallery for when it's my turn to be on duty. There was a lot to learn! We had an enjoyable day, after a quiet morning (I had time to learn about the till!) we had some enthusiastic customers in the afternoon and some good sales - so it was a successful day. With the gallery all packed up and left spick and span, I trudged through the dark lanes to my car and drove home trying hard to remember everything!

So then it was Saturday and the Christmas Bazaar - I'd iced the carrot cakes I'd made earlier in the week, on Friday evening, so once they were packed in cellophane bags I sped up to the village hall to deliver the cakes for the cake stall and teas and to bag a pitch my stall. Then it was back down the hill to home to pack all my stuff in the car, get it into the hall and my stall set up.

The time flew past and with everything set out the first customers were arriving through the door!

The hall ebbed and flowed with people, a first wave looked at all the stalls and considered without buying, there was a lull as most people tucked into the delicious cakes before a flurry of spending. All in all a pretty good day, even without record breaking sales. And it was fun to have two lovely neighbouring stallholders . . .

To one side was one of my neighbours from the village, Christina Friel with her stylish selection of new and vintage costume jewellery and accessories. Christina has a expert eye for what's in fashion, you can find her stall on Cambridge Market every Sunday.

And on the other side, the lovely Mrs P, aka Silverpebble with her array of shiny silver and bead jewellery. She was even beavering away behind her stall with her pliers and silver wire, creating a gorgeous oriental style pendant!

So, that was lots of fun and great to catch up with the gossip too! With all packed away, cars loaded up, we said goodbye and headed off into the dark blustery night. I'd just got everything in from the car to my studio when Cliff pointed to a note on the calendar "Church Flowers" - oops! I'd clean forgotten! That's the trouble with living in a small village, you get put on rotas! So on with the boots and mac, and torch and secateurs in hand I walked to the church, lucky I know where the light switches are! And lucky too that there had recently been a wedding and all that was needed was a bit of pruning and tweaking. Can I sit down now please?

This morning we woke early, Cliff was leading a walk of 15 miles and I loyally said I would join the group for the morning (9 miles). I could hear wind and rain outside :-(

But by the time I'd eaten my porridge the sky was cloudless and blue! Fingers crossed the forecast squally rain would be in the afternoon (when I'd be back home in the warm!). We strode out along the Devil's Dyke, squinting into the low winter sun and trying to avoid slipping on the treacherous wet exposed chalk. All was going splendidly! We saw a herd of over twenty Fallow Deer, including a couple of pure white ones - what a treat! But the sunshine didn't last - at around midday the heavens opened and the wind lashed us with gale force gusts soaking us in next to no time! I was a tiny bit relieved that I had opted out of walking in the afternoon and my car was at the lunch point for me to hop in and drive home! But it was a very good walk - if it had been dry I would have carried on to complete the full distance ;-)

There was something I had to do before getting out of my wet clothes and boots - tidy up the hen-house and collect the eggs . . . Oh!! that's not a hen . . .

Hope that you too had a good weekend! I'll be back soon, but I've one or two deadlines to meet this week, so no blogging until they are done.

Celia
x

Saffron Walden Arts Fair 2008

If you couldn't get along to the Arts Fair at the
weekend, you can see what you missed by looking at
Gordon Ridgewell's photo's of all the exbitors here

Thank you Jill for keeping us all in order!
We'll be back next year!

To do today . . .

1. Write a checklist of things I must not forget to take to the Saffron Walden Arts Fair on Friday.

2. Write a list of prices of all the things on my stall.

3. Write a list of things to do before Friday.

4. Make the Christmas cake*.

* I intended to make the Christmas Cake at the weekend, there was a delicious sounding recipe in the newspaper the other week. I'd bought all the fruit and spices from Daily Bread and appropriately on Stir-up Sunday** I weighed out all the fruit as discribed in step one of the instructions. Step two was "leave for a minimum of two days" . . . oh! So I changed that to read: "add to Wednesday's 'to do' list". The cake is now in the oven, and as my cake tin is slightly smaller than the one recommended in the instructions, the mixture has already risen right to the top of the tin! The uncooked mixture tasted divine :)

**Stir-up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people;
that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works,
may of thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

The collect for the last Sunday before Advent in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer

Ring out the bells for St Edmund

Today, November 20th, is St Edmund's Day. I'm listening to BBC Radio Suffolk this morning in my studio, and apparently Suffolk is ringing out the bells from steeples all over the county for our patron saint. If the wind's in the right direction I might hear distant peals, but the bells in the tower I can see from the window have long been silent.

The Martyrdom of St Edmund by Brian Whelan
which hangs in St Edmundsbury Cathedral

Edmund ruled East Anglia between 855 and 869, during a period we used to call 'The Dark Ages' and skip over in the history books, but we now know it was a time of great creativity, trade and culture which were shared across Europe; as well as a time when Kings and Queens vied for power. In the 9th century Danish raiders attacked East Anglia, there were horrific massacres and the rulers of the various English kingdoms tried to defend their lands. Edmund king of the East Angles probably died in one of the battles, but a more interesting version of his death turned him into a Christian martyr. The story said that during one raid Edmund hid under a bridge, but his shining golden spurs reflected in the water below and he was captured. The Danes (or Vikings as we used to refer to them) tied Edmund to an oak tree and fired arrows into him so he resembled a hedgehog. They then cut off his head and threw it into the woods.

The story gets more fabulous in the next episode . . . Edmund's friends came looking for him and heard something calling "hic, hic" (you all knew that means 'he is here' in latin, didn't you!) and they found a wolf protecting Edmund's head between her paws! There's more – when they reunited Edmund's head with his body it welded together with just a faint red scar – must be a saint then! The king's body was buried in a monastery in a small town called Bedericesworth, pilgrims traveled from far and wide to visit his shrine and began to call the place 'St Edmund's Bury' (a nice little earner for the abbey church and the inn-keepers).

My first task today is to do my bit for the community in this far corner of St Edmund's realm – wearing my 'Editor's hat' I'm completing the pages, and sending the file to be printed, for the bumper Christmas and New Year edition of our village's magazine. After that I have to make sure that everything is ready for my stall at Saturday's Christmas Bazaar in the local Village Hall.