Do You Know About...

The rather talented and lovely artist/illustrator Amanda Visell?

We didn't until yesterday when i came across her book on a birthday trip to Bristol, i very nearly brought one of her books but opted out (and brought a wind up tin robot instead...as you do). Luckily i jotted down her name so i could do a bit of research later...would you like to see??? i think her stuff is rather good....This one is called Carniverous Giraffe.
I'm not sure what is about her work that i like so much, i think some of it is the simplicity of it all, her work reminds me of Richard Scarry in some ways, but i think that's down to the colours used.

This one is called Evil Poopicorn.
I'm quite taken with the eyes that the creatures have on some of her work...you've got to love the sleepy eye.

This one is called Birthday Dragon.
I had to put this one in because a) it is amazing and i would like it very much and b) i like dragons a lot...but only nice ones...not the nasty dragon war ones (this probably has something to do with the fact that at least once a year i re-read some fantasy books i first read when i was around 14...I'm now 24 and should probably consider growing up some time.....or not!)

Anyway, that's Amanda Visell, i hope you like!
Lots going on around here...
A little move around in the shop
The beginnings of a new embroidered moustache picture range (ohhhh that sounds exciting doesn't it)
Lots of felt buying for the Wychwood Festival (if your going please come and say hello...we will show you how to make a real cool monster we will!)
Ohhhh yeah...and freaking out about the whole weekend and the fact that the two of us are responsible for bunches of people, felt, needles, thread, buttons etc etc for ten whole hours!!!

Until next time lovelies

xx

P.S. we found the pictures on BamPop's Flickr and also PrettyinPlastic

The First Ever Craft Night In...

Well my dears...

Saturday evening arrived and i loaded up my wonderful Raleigh Caprice (imaginatively called Caprice) with some favorite sewing books, some wool & a crochet hook and rode her into town for the first ever Craft Night In...

It was a lovely success and everyone had a great time!

Boy! were the ladies there talented! it was a great night and I'm really looking forward to the next one.

I've made a separate blog for the Craft Night In so that its all kept separate and what not, so please head over to have a look...i will leave with you this little snap...

in the far background...hooked to that ball of red yarn is my granny square...which I MADE!!...there is a better picture over on the blog.

Right...that's it for this evening...i must a) make an embroidered picture of a famous moustache and b) have a bath in preparation for my ten hour bank holiday shift!

xx

Not Too Many Words...

Alright people?? We've been rather busy in a "ohh bugger is the craft fair really that soon!" kind of way...

lucky for you (or un-lucky...i'm not very good with the camera!) we made time to take a few snaps of the many processes we've had going on upstairs!!

Ready yourself ,my dears,for a riot of pictures which will aptly demonstrate what it is we have been doing!...

Un-packing and putting out hand made wonders from the talented lady that is Lou Peajeux, here is her folksy shop, and here is her blog...say hi...shes a nice lady.

Sitting in that patch of sunlight and making that pile of Crabbittz...

Continuing to sit in that patch of sun and stuffing Crabbittz...

Still sitting in that patch of sun...but this time admiring a rather lovely font we came across whilst making envelopes out of old books.

Making lots and lots and lots of Tell Tails and Crabbittz....we made soo many El could only just pick them all up at once! (please note the rather handsome huge grey Tell Tail...we are both quite taken with him.

Over coming the fact that we didn't have enough trusty brown card to package up our new scrabble necklaces by using some rather scary happy families cards...which we brought but got scared by the pictures so didn't use....but any way, what do you think about the necklaces??Playing with old jigsaw puzzles and making them into bracelets...do you see the one that has a lovely parrot on it (right there on the left)?Admiring our previously empty 'stock for craft fair box' (please note the lovely looking bunting which was,excuse my french a bitch to sew). i accidentally brought bias binding that was thinner than the stuff I'd used before...and i also used thicker fabric, the consequence being i swore lots and lots, abused poor old Nina's ears and got thoroughly fed up...but its all good, cos i made something pretty!Arthur got in on the action and tagged up this rather rowdy bunch...if you listen carefully you can hear them telling everyone all of the gossip they now...well....they have to do something with here huge mouths i guess!

Right...that's it for now, we will try to remember a camera to take some pictures of the stall but if any of you have seen us on the morning of a craft fair then you know that it is a miracle that we manage to remember the stock yet alone a camera!!

xxx

Five Things We Like This Week....

O.K, so we realise that this blog is tad on the boring side sometime (there's only so many times we can tell you that we've been sewing lots at the shop right?) So we decided to join in with Pips Five Faves (we are sure that you lovely people all ready know about this crazy cool, super talented lady, but if you don't may we suggest you head over to her blog and take a sneaky peak...her shop is all that we hope StuffedNonsense could be!)

Sooo, here are our five things this week...

1. We've spent a lot of this week drooling over the mad skills of Cat Rabbit, we love the many wonderful details on her work and they just look wonderful, please can we have them all??

2. We think that anything the talented Murgatroyd and Bean makes is great but we are especially taken by these gorgeous brooches...

3. Hunting out charity shop finds of the embroidered birds in frames kind...

here you can see Franz, the incense smoking man...another charity shop find. i tried to tell him that i was just taking a picture of the birds but he wouldn't have it.
4. This wonderful knitted head band bow...for those of you who don't know, I have rather a lot of hair and at the moment am a fan of the 'scrapping it up into some sort of bun thing and hoping for the best!' method of hair presentation, so feel that something like this lovely creation would really help my cause...

Its from the talented Dolly Knits on Folksy.

5. And last but by no means least...have you heard off Gemma Correll? Woweeeee does this lady know how to draw! we are in love with here pocket mirrors; and to top it off shes from Norwich which is close to where i am from!

Well dearies, that's it for today. we hope this was a tad more interesting then normal broadcasts!Time to go to the shop and make things!
xx

Phew!! have we been busy?

we rather foolishly forgot about some stock we had promised to MADE, so after a phone cool from one the lovely Louise politely asking when we would be able to send the stock over to them, we launched ourselves into a frantic sewing frenzy. seriously...if you had looked carefully you would have seen smoke coming from poor old Nina (the trusty and wonderful singer we do all of our sewing on), and in the words of dottie angel, el is now suffering from a CCSI (we are sure that lots of you know about the wonderful blog and skills of dottie angel but if there are any of you who don't, we strongly suggest you drop on by because the lady's skill is amazing, her house is wonderful, and her dog is the cutest thing ever....in the whole world)
We've also been super busy with about a million other things...here is a list of things we are busy at

1.trying to make stock for a craft fair we are due at on the 28th

2. planning the craft night in for the 29th

3.worrying about and trying to organise a tutorial/making session we are doing at the Wychwood Music Festival, which is very local to us.

4. trying to remember to apply to all of the craft fairs we have enquired about

5. busy forgetting to send out giveaway parcels

6.trying to plan when we can make a catalogue to send to this rather wonderful sounding shop

7. trying not to think about how wonderful it would be if said shop did sell our stuff

8.getting excited about Bex's birthday (but that's mainly me who has been doing that)

and forgetting many other things whilst writing this post.

just a little snap of some craft fair stock in the making.
Thanks for hanging in there with us, and just so you know...we are dead chuffed that you are here to accompany us on this journey to making a proper living off of our shop, we hope you enjoy your trip!

Anyway...there some washing that needs to be hung out and some Lord of the Rings that needs watching (for the millionth time...and that's only a slight exaggeration.)

Until next time!

xx

The Night Bex Played with PVA and Scissors...

Evening Y'all...

How goes it??

O.K. sooo this isn't exactly shop stuff but i think its something pretty cool (and its good to mix things up right?....if your nodding your head than do not fear...we have plans to shake the blog up a bit...eventually...once we've done the million and one other things we have to do...)

Anyway where was i?

My sewing desk at home cost me the grand total of nil pence. Eleri found it by the bins after she moved into her new flat. I guess who ever owned it couldn't be bothered to take it to charity. It was in almost perfect condition, the only issue being that where the desk top had been out in the rain it had kind of warped. I wasn't going to let that stop me. No Siree...

So i took it in, returned the 'dining table' to its rightful place and set up the new desk.

I spent a few days trying to find the right paper to cover the warped top with but found myself going round in circles. You know when you over think something and find yourself unable to come to a desicison? Well i was almost at that point. So i took the plunge...

On one of my weekly bargain hunting jaunts i came across a 50% off all books sale in a second hand book shop...

'Ohhh' said I 'I wonder if there may be something in here to aid with the desk covering conundrum?'

I stepped in through the door, got lost in the shelves for half an hour or so and came out with something....

Something i then proceeded to butcher and cut up once i got home....

I made rather a mess...(ehhem...note the lovely newly painted walls and shelves...apologies to people that follow by rather sporadic posts at bexsbuttons you've all ready seen them.)

I cleaned up my mess and took a step back, I observed my work and thought aloud 'Oh dear Bex...what have you done??' my conclusion is either something wonderful...or something bad....i haven't decided yet. What do you think??

Your thoughts, are as always, very appreciated!
Normal StuffedNonsense broadcast will resume very shortly...she says with fingers crossed as she remembers that StuffedNonsense has a stall at a craft fair in two weeks....and no stock to go on said stall!!
xx

Posted by Bex

Craft Night In Anyone...

well hello there!

what is this not being at work on a bank holiday business?? i think we should do it more often!

We have been busy planning and plotting wonderful little events to do with StuffedNonsense. The first one off of the press is (ehem...drum roll please)

Craft Night In.

On the 29th of May in Cheltenham at 7-9pm there will be a gathering (hopefully!) of lovely crafty peeps at a lovely cafe called 'cafe 51'.

The aim and hope is to meet up with other creative peeps, have a chin wag, drink some tea and eat some cake.

Hopefully they will be every month and every now and then we will maybe do a group project or theme.

We're inspired by groups like the craft mafias and Brown Owls.

So if you are local and if your not local but want to travel down for a trip please let us know, we think it will be £2 each to cover the cost of hiring the cafe. it would be wonderful to see you...absolutly everyone is welcome.

Just bring along whatever you are working on at the time!

See You Soon??