Busy days

In the last month, I have been all over the place!  My daughter Jess and I went to the absolutely amazing Living Crafts show at Hatfield House.  We had a wonderful time, met some really lovely ladies from the Mid-Herts Guild of Spinners who taught us how to use a drop spindle, so of course, we had to buy our own to practise at home - next stop a spinning wheel!  The show was brimming full of fantastic crafts and unusually for us, we spent a whole day there (and the sun shone) - we came away full of ideas and enthusiasm.

There have been lots of workshops taking place at The Make It Room, we spent a lovely Creative Felt Day making needlefelted mice and nuno felted scarves

 The workshop bookings are really picking up and we have many new and exciting crafts to offer.  From July we have Lampshade Making workshops available, you will be able to come along and will learn how to make your own drum lampshade in your own fabric.

 

 

This workshop can be booked online http://www.themakeitroom.co.uk/epages/587985.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/587985/Categories/Workshops/Lampshade_Making

Two posts in two days!

While yesterday's Vintage & Makers market is still fresh in my mind I'm taking the opportunity to post a few images instead of leaving it for months on end!

The market in the Shire Hall in Chelmsford was run by the lovely Jo Meadows  and was a very successful day despite the horrible weather!  Jess and I shared a stall with the very talented Jo Gross who had a first outing for her new venture, Floating on the Breeze, It was also the first market for Jess and her Time for Tea Beads.

Off to my studio at Hylands House today to put everything back in its place, if you have time, come and visit us - we're open in the Stables Visitor Centre, upstairs above the cafe!

Busier still!

Well,I did it again, so much going on completely forgot my blog!  I have a good excuse though, many excuses in fact!

I have had some of my felt and decoupage in A Passion for Fashion a vintage shop in Maldon High Street thanks to Julie, its a shame but the shop has closed its doors this week having been open as a pop up shop since before Christmas.

As well as this, I have had lots of my bits and pieces in the Chelmsford Community Pop Up Shop in High Chelmer, thanks to Cherry Ann Hall, this has been a fab opportunity with masses of people frequenting the shop and lots of exposure for the many artists involved. The shop has stayed open much longer than expected so has been a real success, last day tomorrow.

My youngest daughter, Jess and I went to Kew Gardens to visit the orchid exhibition there, of course as always, we left it till the last possible minute and so did everyone else it seemed!  Nevertheless the flowers were absolutely amazing and we came home inspired to make a new range of felt flowers in similar colours

These flower corsages are now completed and on sale in the Handmade on the High Street shop which opens tomorrow in St. Isaac's Walk in Colchester, and much as I would love to be there, I will be having a stall at the Vintage and Handmade Market in the Shire Hall in Chelmsford.  Everything is ready to go and I am sharing the table with Jess who will be selling her fabulous polymer clay beads from her Etsy shop, Time For Tea Beads,  and also with the lovely Jo Gross whose new enterprise is named Floating on the Breeze, stocking beautiful handmade books.

Jo and Jess both teach workshops at www.themakeitroom.co.uk at my home in Howe Green.  We have had a full programme of workshops over the last couple of months - multiple workshops running in Art Clay Silver with Andrea Neale, wet felting and needlefelting in conjunction with www.bloomingfelt.co.uk, bookbinding, jewellery making, sewing, knitting as well as a two week programme of children's Easter workshops which were very successful.  I had a lovely chat with Etholle George on BBC Essex explaining about these and giving the other guests the opportunity to have a go at some decopatch!

Another lovely workshop today with Andrea, Pearls and Flowers Bracelet

So all in all, a busy time, but this didn't stop us making trips out to our favourite places and the celebration of multiple birthdays at home over the Easter weekend - lots of cocktails and sore heads the next day!

If you have a chance, come along tomorrow and visit us at the Shire Hall!

Must remember to write my Blog!

Another month has slipped by and I have forgotten to write my blog but I have been exceedingly busy! We have started holding workshops in The Make It Room - so far, lots of felting, bookbinding, art clay silver, sewing and Decopatch.

Decopatch Piggy Banks

The space is perfect for holding classes, light airy and warm!

The Make It Room ready for felting!

 
My friend Sarah runs a fantastic company called Blooming Felt which is just across the road from me at Howe Green in Chelmsford and as Sarah is a supplier for a lot of the items I use in felt making, we have been running workshops in conjunction with one another.  Once the workshop has finished at The Make It Room, on selected dates  Blooming Felt's amazing Shedquarters is open for shopping so that participants can nip across the road for essential supplies!  Have a look at her lovely website www.bloomingfelt.co.uk

Merino wool tops ready to use

Felt and felt flowers

Andrea has run a very successful Art Clay Silver Workshop and Jo has held some Bookbinding workshops, we've all had a try and are well and truly hooked!

Bookbinding

Art Clay Silver Leaf

 We have lots of new and exciting thing coming during this year so keep an eye on the website www.themakeitroom.co.uk

There is a great deal going on at the studio at Hylands this year, working from there as Love From Lynne I have workshops and events planned throughout the year, a garden show, jubilee events, beacon lighting with drop in craft sessions and plenty of lovely workshops - cushion making, bunting, spring aprons, owl cushions, children's button jewellery and shabby chic furniture painting

Our Coffee, Cake and Craft sessions at Hylands are going from strength to strength, we had a very busy get together today, we have a group of lovely ladies all interested in different crafts plus new members joining each month, it's too good to miss - 2 hours crafting and you only need to contribute if you have coffee and cake and even then it's only £1!  There was much chatting and crafting today!

As well as selling my makes from my studio at Hylands on Sundays and Mondays, I will be having a stall at the Vintage and Handmade Market at the Shire Hall in Chelmsford on Saturday 28th April  as well as other events which I will list later.  I have just confirmed that I will be teaching children's workshops at the Maldon Arts Trail in September.

Apart from all these things, I'm still finding time to make a few bits and pieces, my latest attempt - felt slippers, what do you think?  I'm doing some patchwork too but I'll save that for my next post because I keep getting distracted by making felt!

Finally, we went to the Essex Bead Fair at Five Lakes today and bought lots of new stuff to keep us going throughout the year!

New things for a new year

Wishing everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year, even if it is a bit belatedly!

I've been busy as always and have been setting up my new workshop at my house. My other half Gary has converted his considerable shed into a beautiful room so that I can  run craft workshops at home.

The new workshop

The entrance to the workshop

I have been teaching workshops at home in my lounge for the last few months as The Make It Room and this has been very successful but means that I am forever tidying up indoors! Hence the move outside!

The lounge with the beautiful wallpaper

I used the very lovely wallpaper in this room as the inspiration for The Make It Room and had Artwork by Angie design the branding for me, she is absolutely wonderful so use her if you need some help, she did exactly what I asked http://www.artworkbyangie.com

The new Make It Room Postcard

 

So now the new workshop is ready and I'm moving stuff in all the time. it is lined with tongue and groove panelling which I am dying to paint but have promised to leave it for a few months to dry out! I have already held a couple of felting workshops in there and the room is lovely to work in, lots of natural light from two velux windows in the roof and a big window at the front!

Inside the workshop

So work has commenced on the website and Alex my daughter's boyfriend has built the website for me so that I can do the easy part and fill it up!  Have a look and see what you think! http://www.themakeitroom.co.uk .  My friends Andrea and Jo are going to teach lots of workshops too:  Andrea Art Clay Silver and jewellery making; and Jo Sugar craft cake decorating and bookbinding.  Of course, this necessitates us having lots of practice runs to make all the examples for the website!

Art Clay Silver by Andrea

Felted scarves by Lynne

Sugarcraft flowers by Jo

Busy,Busy, Busier!

Okay, so I thought I was busy a couple of weeks ago but hadn't anticipated the Christmas madness!  I hadn't taken into consideration the fact that I have set up my own workshop at home called The Make It Room and how much of my time it would take!  I'm using my front room which we don't really use and it is the perfect setting to hold my felting and other workshops.

I have already run a few workshops and the other Saturday Andrea Neale ran an Art Clay Silver Beginners class and I then held a felting workshop with the same ladies, all very successful.

Our friend Jo has also had a double session workshop teaching us how to make sugar flowers and then colour and make them into a spray, a class we will be running next year!

Out of the blue, I had a very nice call from Etholle George from BBC Essex asking if I would like to go in and chat on her radio programme about my Hylands workshops and Christmas crafts.  So on Tuesday 22nd November I went along to the studio, armed with Christmas makes and spent a really pleasant hour with Etholle and a very interesting Interior Design tutor from Writtle College.  It was lovely to go in and talk about the things that I make and to be given the opportunity to go in again in the future.

On Thursday last week, I went along and demonstrated feltmaking to the lovely ladies of the Essex Handicrafts Association who were very enthusiastic about needle felting and wet felting, they all had a go and had some very good results!

On Saturday, a few of us went along with Make, Do & Mend to the Made-It Market at the Guild Hall in Cambridge. I taught four workshops, felting twice and crochet twice as well as having a stall with all our handmade things, my daughter Jess held the fort all day on the stall and made lots of sales.  It was a fantastic day but very tiring.

The next day was the Essex Art and Design Show at Hylands House, the Hylands Artists all had some work on display so my stuff went straight from Cambridge into the house!  It was a very succesful day with lots of visitors to the house and park.

A few weeks ago I decided to have a shopping evening at my house, especially in The Make It Room, this was Jess's idea so a few of my friends came along with their lovely makes, and we had a house filled with very jolly Christmas shoppers drinking mulled wine and eating mince pies.  It was more successful than I could have imagined, a real house full, more like a party and I will be repeating the idea perhaps around mother's day so as not to over-inflict myself on my very good friends!

So on next to our Christmas Coffee, Cake & Craft on Saturday at Hylands followed by our big Christmas Fair on Sunday 4th December at the Stables Visitor Centre and Hylands House. Come along and visit us upstairs, entry is free and there will be carol singing and mince pies and lots of lovely individual hand crafted items for you to buy for gifts.

Hope you can make it!

Lots going on!

Goodness me, how the weeks fly when you are busy!  I've not had time to think about writing my blog and now I have sat down to do it, I'm at a loss for words - hard for those who know me to believe, I'm sure!

I can't remember the last time I sat down to knit or make something for myself either but I love to be busy so am not complaining at all.

A few weekends ago I had a busy Sunday at Make Do & Mend, Hannah asked me to teach felting to a hen party! I spent a lovely few hours with some really fun hens making felt corsages for the wedding party.

Two weeks ago I spent Saturday demonstrating felting techniques in Hobbycraft in Chelmsford, meeting lots of potential feltees and a very nice lady called Rachael who tempted me (only because she was using one to cut her cards) into buying a Sizzix machine for cutting my felt! And the fact that the manageress offered me ten per cent off!

Last week I held a Hallowe'en childrens craft workshop in Hylands House, we made orange and black bunting and paper pumpkins, a very good time was had by all.

This has been swiftly followed by another workshop at Hylands in the Stables Visitor Centre, six very nice ladies came along yesterday and made advent calendars with me.

 

I had used my newly purchased Sizzix machine to cut numbers and had lots of help from Andrea and Karen to assemble kits and stick numbers on the pockets ready to sew! Although it took ages to get everything ready, it was a very relaxed affair and the ladies made beautiful calendars, as you can see!

More news soon about my felting workshops here at my home and my exciting collaboration with Sarah from Blooming Felt!

Next weekend, 12th November remember free Coffee, Cake & Craft, at Stables Visitor Centre, come along and join Andrea and I and bring whatever you are working on and share with us and other like minded makers, or if you just want to be sociable, come along anyway!

Coming up in the next few weeks on 25th November I will be at the Made It Market in Cambridge manning a stall and teaching four workshops, we will be in the Guild Hall in the market place, come and see us if you can!

Also make sure you come and visit us at the Hylands Christmas Fair on Sunday 4th December upstairs in the Stables Visitor Centre, there is a fair in the house too and stalls outside, no doubt there will be mince pies and carol singing too.