Patchwork Harmony in on holiday

Just to let you know that we are taking a holiday for a few weeks, and the online shop will be temporarily closed during this time.  It is still possible to place orders, but these will not be dispatched until the week beginning 19th March 2012.  When we come back, we plan to add lots of new products and have some exciting plans for the rest of 2012! In the meantime, have you checked out the 2nd issue of our online magazine!? Its free to read! Have a look here: www.91magazine.co.uk

DIY Valentines

Valentines Day always seems a little too soon after Christmas don't you think?! We have our birthdays in October & November, as well as a November anniversary, everything is bunched together! So if you're still feeling a little skint to splash out on your loved one, then there is always the DIY option! We all know food is the way to a man's heart, and to many a womans too! So get in the kitchen and whip up some delicious cookies! Something a little like this perhaps?

 

You can get the recipe for these Cherry Almond heart cookies on Jenny Steffens Hobick's blog

And you don't want to just present them to your loved one in a worn old tupperware! no! Jenny also has a lovely printable for you to download and create these! Your other half will probably think you bought them in some posh bakery looking like this!

 

if you do decide to treat them to a little gift, you can also use this printable as wrapping paper too! genius.

 

Head over to Jenny's blog for this and more lovely Valentines ideas.

Have you got plans for Valentines day, or do you prefer to avoid it?! We've got a nice dinner planned for tomorrow night, as on V day I will be in the sky jetting off to foreign lands!

xxxx

Aprons & Bunting

The lovely Katie from As Petals Fall has just launched her own little shop on Etsy, and I am loving these pretty handmade Liberty print aprons...

 and this bunting, also made from Liberty print fabric, but mixed with vintage scraps and crocheted doilies creates a little bit of rustic feel....

 I love the colourways Katie's used on both the aprons and bunting, and I think its a must to wear some fab red shoes like the ones in the pic too! :) Check out the shop to see some of the other items available, including cards and tote bags.  She also running a giveaway to celebrate the launch of the shop, which you can enter here

xxx

Fab Followings: COLPORTER

I have become a little bit of a Twitter addict of late - I've got 2 accounts on there now, one for Patchwork Harmony and one for 91 Magazine which is a little hard to keep up with! But it really is a great way to meet others in your field, network, and promote your venture.

Anyway, in a quest to become more connected with the people I follow and who follow me, I thought I'd start a series on the blog about people I come across on Twitter. Therefore actually finding out a bit more about the people behind the tweets! There are so many talented people out there!

So first up in this new series is Colporter, London - an online shop stocking a selection of vintage goods, including bus blinds, advertising posters, furniture and French finds.  They also offer a 'finding' service, and you can even view products at their SW London home.  Here's a little bit of what they've got!  

Check out the full range on their website

And follow them on Twitter - @ColporterLondon

Thrifty wall art idea

I love old educational posters, you know the science and geography type? diagrams of a human eye, a map of the world or breeds of butterflies?  In fact, I've blogged about this a few times before, in August 2010 and in December 2009.

 A trend that is not wearing off, for me anyway! But with their popularity comes a price, and I've seen them at Kempton market for £75 plus.  I actually picked up some with varieties of birds from Kempton a while ago, which i love.  I think I paid about £15 each for them, not too bad, but then framing them wasn't cheap as they are huge.

  If you like the idea, but don't want to spend much then you can get a similar effect with this wrapping paper that Rockett St George are stocking.... They are only £3 a sheet, so with a simple ikea frame, you've got a lovely wall display on a budget! hurrah!

91 Magazine - Issue 2

Well, so far this January I have managed to break one of my New Years resolutions, which was to blog more! I really miss blogging, but with all my other hair-brained ideas, its getting a little waylaid! I promise to do better! Basically January has been taken up mainly with preparing the 2nd issue of 91 Magazine! I haven't just been sitting on the sofa eating chocolate! So I hope it will make up for the lack of blog posts, as it is packed full with beautiful things!
From a beautiful Etsy shop selling vintage French homewares, to a feature on four London tearooms and their interiors, a look inside the Cole and Son wallpaper factory, some gorgeous Easter craft ideas, to the lovely homes of Kate Jenkins and Tif Fussell.  I hope you will find lots to feast your eyes on!

 

 There's 78 pages, so dive in! And do let me know which are you fave features! 

www.91magazine.co.uk

The Matchbox Challenge

One of the most lovely creative people I've met over the years through blogging, is Jeska from Lobster and Swan. She has a beautiful blog, lives in Hastings (which I love!) and has two very pretty kittys! If you haven't already heard, she is doing an exciting little challenge for February, which, if I had more time, I'd love to join in!

She is planning to create a tiny art work from a matchbox every day of February, containing a special little object! Each matchbox will have a different theme, and they will then be sold on Etsy to raise money for her husband's London Marathon fund! What a splendid idea! Creative and charitable! :)

She's inviting everyone to do the same, and you can loosely follow the daily themes which are listed on her blog. Then upload photos of your matchboxes to the flickr group here

I'm excited to see what Jeska creates and what everyone that joins in does too! I can feel a matchbox obsession coming on.....!

Find out more about the challenge on Lobster and Swan