W e e k e n d a w a y ...

Here is a little taster of what I've been up to of late...

...more about this little trip to follow!

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d e c l u t t e r ...

For those of you who know me, you will know the the word declutter isn't one that belongs in my vocabulary! However, after a recent trip to Berlin (my 3rd time) for work, rest & play, spending 2 days doing hotel reviews and 3 in our own rented 3rd floor apartment, which Mr Red Bird and I immediately fell in love with, I come home with a certain pang of need to declutter my home!

Now I am a certified hoarder and have been since birth pretty much. I think my mother has a lot to answer for when I talk about hoarding (she has an entire garage which has no room to house a car because it is floor to ceiling full of crap memories. Okay, a lot of this is 'said' crap belonging to me and my siblings that we all guilt my mum into not chucking away, but a lot of it it definitely hers!
I blame my messy hoarders house to the fact that I don't have enough storage to hide my endless bits and pieces away in. When infact, I need to just bite the bullet and clear out my junk pre-loved items and give them to a new home. Oh, I can see Mr Red Bird's face lighting up as he reads this!

Here's some snaps of our Berlin apartment!

....gorgeous huh! I highly recommend using Airbnb instead of perhaps booking a hotel as it's much more personal and has a lot more charm!

I also came across this blog this afternoon - Life Thru A Lens. It's written by a Finnish graphic designer and mother, and is full of bright inspiring photos of her loves. I can't but adore her taste in home decor. Those pops of Neon are just my thing & I love the yellow kitchen wall!

This has definitely given me the drive to make a start on my new decluttered lifestlye...

m a r k e t s : b a t h a r t i s a n m a r k e t

Okay.... So much for committing myself to writing regular short and sweet blog posts in attempt to make them regular - hmmm, I must try harder!

The second Sunday of every month I have been holding a stall at the wonderful Bath Artisan Market in glorious Green Park Station which is an amazing grade II listed building having formally been a train station, now converted into undercover marketplace. The building has an amazing high vaulted glass roof in a single-span wrought iron arch structure which is pretty cool.

You can find me along with many other excellent artisan stalls here at this monthly event which definately makes a great day out for the whole family. You can check out more photo's from the May market here on their Facebook page.


Yesterdays trip to Bath was very eventful for me seeing as my trusty little van was getting some repairs done at the garage. I managed to squeeze all I needed into my huge travel backpack and cycled my squeaky 80's bike to cycle to Temple Meads station. It was pretty hard work but once on the train all was good - phew!
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Carolyn of Carolyn Slater Ceramics

Gorgeous vintage clothes & accessories

Gemma of The Silver Shed

n e w : b i t s & b o b s ...

Well...it's been a very long time since my last post. So much so, that I missed my 1 year anniversary of starting this blog - oops! I think my main issues with writing a post is that I put too much pressure on myself to need to write masses, when infact I think I will make an effort to write at least once a week with something short and sweet....

So of recent I have been back on the market scene with a couple at The Tobacco Factory Retroville Market & Bath Artisan Market which are both monthly. Now that Spring has finally arrived I will now be taking part in the St. Catherines Artisan Market in Frome which is also monthly. Be sure to follow me on Facebook to keep up to date of where I'll be next.

I am very pleased to also announce that I have a couple of new stockists - yay!!

The first, being Iota Bristol on the fabulously independent shopping area of Gloucester Road. It is an amazing independently owned homewares and accessories gift shop with everything deliciously wonderful. I always spend a good half hour looking at everything to make sure I don't miss out. A perfect shop for you magpies out there! 

The second, is the fabulous Godiva Boutique in stunning Edinburgh! It's quotes itself as being Edinburgh's most original independent fashion boutique, so I'm super pleased that I have these two wonderful shops to carry my wares.

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Two Hundred and Fifty Eight

The Bath Artisan Market was so wonderful yesterday! It is a grade II listed building located in Green Park Station in the heart of Bath. An old victorian train station which is now used for all kinds of events, playing host to The Bath Artisan Market. Christmas trees, mulled cider, christmas tunes & the cold weather all made the this perfect for the Early Bird Christmas Market! Lots of lovely people & tons of excited faces made this day even better.

This is the very talented work of my friend Sally of My Bear Hands

This is Eleanor from Eleanor Christine Jewellery

Thank you to those that came...spread the word & see you in a few weeks for the big Christmas Market on Sunday 9th December 9.30am - 4pm...

Day Two Hundred and Fourteen

I spent all day at my sewing machine today...

Here's what I've been working on. I have some new additions to my cushion collection from my Red Bird Makes Shop with a new rectangular bolster-style cushion.

I'm still loving the bright neons to add a splash of colour to a room. What do you think?

Day Two Hundred and Thirteen

Well for those of you that couldn't quite work out where Mr Red Bird & I had spent our weekend...we decided to drive down in our little Dihatsu Hi-jet van and spend a couple of days in Lyme Regis. I'd never been there before and wasn't quite sure what to expect. 

Lyme Regis is a coastal town in West Dorset, England, situated 25 miles west of Dorchester and 25 miles east of Exeter. The town lies in Lyme Bay, on the English Channel coast at the Dorset-Devon border. It's nicknamed 'The Pearl of Dorset'! The town is known for the fossils found in the cliffs and it's beaches which are part of the Heritage Coast also known as the Jurassic Coast!

 

We most certainly had a splendid day. The first thing was to get some fish and chips as soon as we made it onto the seafront. What we got in return for our sterling was the largest portion of fish & chips I have ever set my eyes on & we were promptly wished lots of luck by a passing pensioner!

The coastline is pretty cool alright and I found myself getting lost looking at all the hidden gems beneath my feet. I found beautiful bits of differnt coloured china and glass which the sea had softened its once sharp edges. There was a wreck of household items buried in a mudslide on the beach. We got digging and found an array of beautiful glass bottles. I know this may not excite many of you, but for me this felt like treasure and with it I imagined where these bottles once sat in a little house up on the cliffside...

Around the little winding streets were cute curiosity shops, museums and some great places to eat too. We stumbled across a lovely place called The Millside Restaurant and decided that we would have dinner there that evening. Being by the coast we both ordered fish. Mr Red Bird had the Skate Wing with black butter & capers and I decided on the Guilt-Head Bream with oven roasted tomatoes and mash. Our taste buds were certainly a-tingle after this pure delight on a plate.

The Town Mill Bakery around the corner was just as delightful. A very rustic relaxed feel about the place with a Scandinavian slant on things with its canteen style approach, the long wooden sharing benches and the handmade jugs of milk & jams on the table for you to help yourself to. You were also able to go up and help yourself to the plentiful scrumptious cakes & bakes they had freshly pulled from the oven...coffee freshly ground to order...relaxing with a sunday paper...perfect!