Just back from holiday although I feel like I need another one already! Nearly three weeks without knitting - I've gone cold turkey. Have loads to do as the craft events just seem to be piling up.

The Wee Green Market in Killearn will now be held once a month till December. This is great news as I was really looking for a venue that is local, which also gives me the benefit of customers expecting to find me in one place!

Doing lots of fairs in different locations is fine, but I always feel that the 'one offs' don't give you the opportunity to develop a customer base and local business connections. Its also great for showing the local communities what is available on their doorstep - LIVE LOCAL, SHOP LOCAL!

I'm also considering taking a stall at The Country Living Christmas Fair at the SECC in Glasgow at the end of November, a bit daunting as I would be playing alongside the big guns, watch this space.....

On a more exciting note, my sis and I are taking our kids camping this weekend and we are trying to remember all the skills we mastered at Guide camp many moons ago - lots of square lashing, wooden tent pegs and cleaning of latrines. My niece has requested that we have 'clean' food - just as long as the ice packs keep our wine chilled once the kids have gone to bed!

I'm away to try and find my welly sticks.....

So much to do.....

....so little time! I've been neglecting my blog of late, not because I don't have anything interesting to write about, I've just been so busy - excuses excuses I know! So here is a quick update:- The Drymen School fair was not particularly lucrative for me, but was great for feedback on some new products I've been working on. I've put together some knitting kits for My Baboo Bunnies and Love Hearts and am very pleased with the result. The Drymen Fair made me finish loads of work off that has been lying about for a couple of months so I now have lots on lovely things to sell - new bags too. So I am exhibiting again this weekend at the Millennium Hall in Gartocharn (nr Balloch) in aid of Help the Aged - 11am-3pm £2 admission. If you are in the area please come and visit as there are some wonderful exhibitors. On top of that I'm of to Ibiza next weekend the day after my friends wedding for a fortnights holiday with my hubby and wee boy - yipee! My only gripe is not being able to take knitting needles in my hand luggage as the flight would have given me 2 hours guilt free knitting! I have loads of pictures to upload (and some to retake) so please keep a look out on Flickr and new products to buy on Etsy. I will also try and get my new My Baboo web site finished soon - promise! Lx

Retailer of the Year!

I have just head that my local stockist - The Posthouse Gallery - is one of the five Scottish finalists nominated for Gift Retailer of The Year for independent galleries. I'm delighted for them as their gallery - the old Blanefield post office - is beautiful and stocks a wonderful selection of gifts. I dread delivering them new stock as I usually end up spending all my hard earned cash! Gillian and Murray opened the gallery in 2005 and were then joined by their daughter Lauren after she finished uni. They are some of the nicest people I have met and I have all fingers, toes etc crossed as the deserve to win. They are jetting off to London next week for a posh award ceremony. Good luck!

Drymen School Fair

Just to let you know I will have a stall at Drymen School Fair this Saturday, 10th May, 10.30am - 2pm, where I will be selling a range of my designs including sheep, bunnies and bags!

Hope to see you there,

Lynne

Arte y Pico Award

Arte y Pico Award

This award is for blogs filled with art and creativity and was awarded to me by Aileen Clark Crafts. She invited me to join her Flickr Group - Handmade in Scotland - a few months ago so I owe it to her for widening my cyber space horizons! Its also great to see so many talented designers in Scotland - how come I haven't met you all before?!

~ there are some rules attached to this award and in passing it on to others they are as follows;
1. You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contributes to the blogging community, no matter what language.
2. Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his/her blog to be visited by everyone.
3. Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her/him the award itself.
4. The award winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of “Arte y Pico’ blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award.
5. To show these rules.

My blogs are (in no particular order) -
1: Aileen Clark Crafts - beautiful fiber art and also to say thanks for inviting me to join Handmade in Scotland!
2: Caroline Inckle - her work is so detailed and original - tiny masterpieces
3: Little Cotton Rabbits - a great blog with an amazing amount of comments. Once you have seen Julies work and read her blog about life, knitting and her son you will be hooked
4: Softies Central - see the cutest things in the world here - so much it will make you want to explode with cutness!
5: Phatsheep Textiles - I love Suzannes work - a very modern take on a traditional craft from her home in the Shetland Isles.

There are probably a million more blogs that deserve an award and its lovely to receive one so early on in my 'blogging career'! Thanks x

Findhorn Beach

This weekend was spent in Findhorn with my hubby and wee boy, its such a fantastic place, one of the best beaches I've ever been to and such a good place to chill out for a while - even with my boy dive bombing the sand dunes being a soldier! We visited the Findhorn Foundation, I always like a look around their shop as they stock some lovely 'eco' yarn - although I resisted the temptation to buy any. I saw some 'cowrie' shells being sold as good luck charms - £2 for a tiny shell which had been taken off a local beach. It makes me angry that someone profits in this way. The foundation positively encourages sustainable living and environmentalism - I'm sure siting on one of the beautiful beaches on the Moray coast and enjoying the shells in their natural location would be much more rewarding to your well being and happiness than paying someone for something you can appreciate for free - rant rant rant!

However a stroll back along the beach soon blew my frustration and some cobwebs away. (not a bad photo from my phones camera either!)

A Weekend in Fife

I've just returned from a weekend in St Monans on the east coast of Scotland. It was my friend Yunmings hen weekend and all the girlie's had a fantastic time. We rented a cottage on the shore line called Sea Tangle which was perfect, and much wine was consumed. Its not often we get together so it makes times like these even more special. I even managed to squeeze in a bit of knitting on Sunday morning, sitting in the sunshine and listening to the waves - bliss!

On the making front I have been busy knitting lots of stock for the Drymen School fair on the 10th May. I'm also putting together knitting kits and writing patterns for my bunnies and hearts to sell.

I've tried this before with my friend Eileen being the pattern tester. I felt most of my creations after I knit them, however I wasn't keen to include this in my patterns as the felting process is difficult to control, and I would hate to think of somebodys hard work being ruined. I have revised my patterns so that no felting is involved. Hopefully I will have some kits ready before the 10th May. I will also be selling them on my Etsy site.

At last I have a flock of sheep! I've been working on these for a while now and am delighted with the results. So far I have made them in green, red, blue and cream. I thought it would be difficult to capture that vacant look sheep tend to have, hopefully I have done them justice!