Storeyshop

Valentine's Rush 2012

2012-01-31T17:40:00.005Z

Crikey! My last post was 11th January and I had just reached the big 3000 sales in my Etsy shop. Well, I'm pleased to say I'm now up to 3223 sales and have JUST got all of my international Valentine's Day card orders posted. Phew! No more cards will be delivered in time for February 14th now unless you are in the UK.

This is just a quick update to let anyone who is waiting for a card know that I'm cutting and posting as fast as my little (actually quite big) hands will let me. All UK orders will be in time for Valentine's Day, so fear not. I hope you all like your cards and posters and a big thank you for your orders and support. This month has been amazing (but crazy)!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-11T17:52:00.006Z

Better late than never! Happy 2012 to you all and I hope you had lovely Christmas breaks? We had a lovely, relaxing week in Sussex catching up with my family and friends. It had been way too long! New Year was a lazy and quiet one spent back in Northumberland before the big Storeyshop catch-up began (I'm getting there now!)...

The amazing news is that I have made it! On Monday I hit the big 3000 sales in my Etsy shop. Can't quite believe I have even posted that many items, let alone made and packed them all too! Including my sales on Folksy and all the cards I have made for family and friends I am probably near to 4000! So, a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has supported me and Storeyshop since the summer of 2007 when it all began. I could definitely not have done it without you!

As well as the freebies that will soon be on their way to the buyer of sale 3000, I'm also running a little celebratory giveaway over on my Facebook page. For your chance to win a laser cut Storeyshop card of your choice, all you have to do to enter is 'like' or comment on my latest giveaway update! I'll pick the winner at random on Friday. Good luck!

Behind The Scenes: Now Magazine Papercuts

2011-12-13T18:52:00.014Z

As promised, some behind-the-scenes photos from my recent commission by Now magazine. The task was to create a papercut winter wonderland for a beauty photoshoot. Such a fun job! Storeyshop HQ had to move in to my kitchen for extra space as this project turned out to be quite large in scale. I mocked up the size of the beauty gift sets to be included in the winter scene (biggest was A4 size) in cardboard so I could get the sizes right and did lots of extra trees and snowflakes for flexibility when the papercut shoot took place. Even more mess than usual was created along the way. I was still finding little bits of white card throughout the house (and in the wash) weeks later! The final printed feature is shown in the previous post...

Storeyshop Papercuts in Now Magazine!

2011-12-07T13:05:00.008Z

Yay, I've been looking forward to seeing this! The reason I was lost for a few days under piles of white paper last month: My papercut winter wonderland for Now magazine! It's a beauty feature in the bumper Christmas issue 2011. I loved cutting this commission and it definitely got me feeling festive earlier than usual. I really like how it looks with the products included between the hills too, as I stared at it for days just in white with cardboard mockups of the lovely products. As I was cutting, I took lots of photos so I'll add them soon, too.

Storeyshop in Handmade Living Magazine

2011-12-05T18:36:00.013Z

Woo! A very lucky Storeyshop monkey has made it into the gift guide section of the current issue of Handmade Living magazine!

Monkey is ever so proud! In other news, I'm really busy so please bear with me if you are waiting for a reply to a message. I will get back to you asap. I'm currently concentrating on making and posting orders for Christmas. If you are waiting for an order through Etsy or Folksy, please keep an eye on your feedback as I'll leave some for you when your item is on its way to you. Thanks and hope you love your goodies!

Christmas Post Dates, Papercut Pretties & Giveaway!

2011-11-29T17:25:00.014Z

Hurrah! I've emerged from my piles of paper to do a quick Storeyshop update. My studio really needs tidying as there is even more paper on the desk and floor than normal. All good though, as I have been merrily scalpelling away. I'm excitedly waiting for a magazine to come out with my papercut winter wonderland inside, just about keeping up with card and poster orders and also working on a range of design projects.

I have been freelancing a lot aswell. Designers across the land seem to be taking their last few days or weeks of holiday before the new year and I'm filling their seats and doing their work while they're away! It makes for some late nights, trying to keep up with orders at the same time, but also means I get to mingle in normal studios and offices and give my hands a break from scalpelling. I even got invited to a real work's Christmas do. Result! Sorry for the lack of recent blog posts, especially my 'I Want Wednesday' lovely shop recommendations but normal service will resume very soon!

Right, the dull but important stuff. Last Christmas posting dates:

MON 5TH DEC - South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East, Australia and New Zealand
FRIDAY 9TH DEC - Europe, United States and Canada
MONDAY 19TH - UK

Please bear in mind that these are the dates I'll need to have orders made and packed by. Current waiting time for hand cut orders is around 10 days so please order as early as possible to avoid disappointment. As with all my estimated shipping times, these dates are a guide and delivery will not be guaranteed to arrive in time for the big day. I'll do my best though!

I'll leave you with a couple of my latest papercut posters...

ps. In case you haven't seen on my Facebook page, I am having a little giveaway this week. Just head over to the Storeyshop page and 'like' and/or comment on my status about the giveaway. Winner will receive their choice of laser cut card absolutely free! I'll announce the winner on Friday. Good luck!

Holiday!

2011-11-16T17:38:00.019Z

Guess what? We actually stopped working and went on a little holiday. We went over to Ireland (Greystones, Dublin and Donabate). Just a few days away but it feels like it was longer. 'Twas very fun especially as we hadn't had a break for so long and we got to catch up with two sets of friends out there who we'd not seen for ages, too. I didn't take my new fancy camera but took some snaps on my phone (excuse the blurriness). Yes, I'm the geek who always takes photos on planes!

(Think, maybe, I spent a bit of a long time in the advertising area of the Guinness Storehouse!)

I know. It looks like we just flew over, drank Guinness and then came home. Sort of, but we did squeeze a few more things in too! Great trip and I've come home feeling very inspired. So, once I have caught up with orders, look out for some new Storeyshop designs and lots more blog posts. And I think a giveaway might be in order too. What do you reckon? What Storeyshop goodies would you most like to win?

New Magazine Feature (And Seb!)

2011-10-24T17:49:00.009+01:00

Woo hoo! A lovely magazine landed on my doormat on Saturday morning and it features Storeyshop. A diary feature about a week in the life of yours truly, to be precise. It's Craftseller Issue 4 (Nov 11) and it has some great makes and tips in, too!

In other news, Seb Chinchillason has a little wink for you all!

New Storeyshop Papercuts

2011-10-17T17:15:00.008+01:00

I've been cutting lots of tiny stripes after designing these new papercuts. The black 'More than you'll ever know' one is based on the papercut I gave to Mr Storeyshop on our first wedding anniversary in April. Ever since that one (and even though it took ages to cut!) I've had other more intricate cut out designs up my sleeve.

The next papercut was a recent custom order for a first wedding anniversary gift. The commission was to make the design ornate and romantic. I loved cutting this one and included a few little initials and dates through the design, as I was cutting.

Storeyshop Sock Monkeys

2011-09-16T11:41:00.013+01:00

Have had a serious email and message catching-up morning and, due to quite a few recent sock monkey enquiries I thought I'd write a quick update. It's that time of year again and, much as I hate to mention the word in September, I know you lovely, organised people are starting to think about Christmas (and the little ones are starting to draft the Christmas lists!). Rest assured, Storeyshop monkeys are still available (I know at least two of the little fellas have been mentioned on letters to Father Christmas already!).

Due to lots of personalised orders, I haven't been able to make many monkeys to add to the shop lately but I'll be making them to order, like these two who jetted off to Canada together a couple of months ago...

With all this in mind, I have taken some quick snaps of all the sock designs I have available for monkeys. Please excuse the slightly rubbish photos and get your imaginations in gear to visualise the following piles of socks in to super cute monkey friends!

Ooh, and I have more of the pale blue and white polka dot pattern socks (shown in the first photo of the monkeys made for a Canadian customer) available too! Feel free to contact me through my Etsy shop, Twitter, Facebook or by email (helen at Storeyshop.co.uk) if you'd like to order a Storeyshop sock monkey. Please allow up to 4 weeks for yours to be made and shipped although I'll try and get them finished and posted sooner. A felt initial or simple shape can be added to your monkey, if you would like, too!

pssst... There are also two monkeys (pictured below) in the Storeyshop sale so be quick and grab one before they go!

New Storeyshop Cards!

2011-09-04T16:26:00.006+01:00

I've been scribbling down ideas for new Storeyshop cards on every scrap of paper I can find for the last month or so while I have been busy cutting personalised orders. Well, I've now got around to designing some of my favourites, cutting them and taking some photos! They'll be appearing in Storeyshop over the next day or so...

Storeyshop In Craftseller Magazine!

2011-08-26T13:49:00.009+01:00

A lovely new craft magazine landed on my doormat yesterday and it's great! It's the second (October) issue of Craftseller. There are lots of projects I fancy having a go at (especially a little round felt bird) and some would make great handmade Christmas (sorry that word -eek!) presents. Oh, and there's an Etsy feature featuring yours truly. Yay!

The news from Storeyshop HQ is that there are new cards in progress! It's been ages as I have been so busy with custom orders for lovely people but new ones will be popping up in Storeyshop over the next week. New poster designs in the pipeline, too. Keep your eyes peeled!

I Want Wednesday!

2011-08-17T17:33:00.011+01:00

My 'I Want' for this week has to be ALL of the amazing pen and ink illustrations by Virginia Kraljevic. An American artist and designer based in New York City, Virginia has an Etsy shop where she sells her beautifully intricate drawing and doodles as prints (and the originals if you're very lucky). It took me ages picking which ones to choose for this post. I spent ages staring at each one looking at all the little details!

I have been temporarily banned from buying any more artwork until we move house (don't think I have ever moved house without breaking at least one picture frame) but when we have new walls and I'm back in the framing and hanging game, these are first on my list.

Virginia has a gorgeous blog to get completely lost in, too. Lots more quirky pen and ink wizardry and also featuring Buggles The Cat!

InStyle Papercuts: Behind The Scenes

2011-08-16T21:03:00.008+01:00

As mentioned in my previous post, here are some behind-the-scenes photos I took as I worked on my InStyle fashion papercuts. Organised chaos I like to call it. Paper everywhere: Just how I like it!

Storeyshop Paper Cuts for InStyle Magazine

2011-08-11T17:42:00.006+01:00

One of the reasons I have been so busy lately and surrounded by even more piles of paper than usual: I was recently commissioned by InSyle magazine to create some gothic papercuts for an amazing 10-page fashion feature! It has to be one of my favourite jobs of all time. Have kept it under my hat for a month or so so I was really excited to get my hands on a copy today and see the finished story in print! Behind the scenes photos to come in my next post...

New Camera, Meet Newcastle!

2011-08-06T17:51:00.018+01:00

OK, I'm finally off the auto settings and getting to grips with my new camera. Things are slowly coming back to me from my university course and I'm loving experimenting without worrying about the cost of photographic paper and film like in those old days! It was Dave's birthday a few weeks ago and we decided to go for a weekend away but stayed local seeing as we'll be moving away soon.

I love Newcastle. Especially all the old industrial buildings and bridges. We walked around Ouseburn and the Quayside on the Saturday in lovely sunshine and I took my Canon along for the ride. I've edited out of the pics of Birthday Boy looking bored at my snaphappyness (lots of him perching on bollards and leaning against walls with a 'how many more?' look on his face!) and here are some of my favourites...

And one of me sporting my new favourite Amor tee by emilythepemily who screenprints her brilliant designs in my hometown of Brighton. Love! Oh, and a couple more of birthday fun would only be right...

Happy Birthday To My Mum!

2011-07-26T13:29:00.015+01:00

Yep, it's my brilliant Mum's birthday today (she's a complete bookworm) so lots of Happy Birthday wishes (and goodies hopefully, if they've arrived) being sent from Northumberland to Sussex today!

She also loves a crossword! In other news, I'm still really busy at Storeyshop HQ so all really good. Busily cutting away as always and looking forward to a couple of exciting press features in the pipeline which I'd better keep schtum about for now (so hard!). Current wait time for hand cut orders is around a week - partly as we have a wedding to go to (yay) in the Lakes on Thursday. Here's the queue of orders waiting to be packed up for todays' post...

(also featuring a peek at our new 'French Grey' office walls!)

I Want Wednesday (on Thursday)!

2011-07-21T18:55:00.009+01:00

This week seems to be speeding past me again and I was buried in card orders all of yesterday so here is my 'I Want' post for this week. Based in Sydney, notTuesday showcases the brilliant polymer clay creations of Rachel Wightman. I love everything about this shop; the products and titles, the colours, the shop name, the creative photographs... Enjoy!

You can also visit the notTuesday website here

Storeyshop Wedding Stationery

2011-07-19T18:18:00.016+01:00

Ooh, I do love a wedding! Here's a peak at some recent papercut wedding invitations and place name cards I made for a lovely couple who got married earlier this month. The card design is laser cut from ivory cards and each invitation is lined with a printed ice blue paper inlay. The table name cards are individually hand cut from the same ivory card and have matching love hearts and the same dark blue typeface and type colour as the invitations...

I love making wedding stationery and have more photos up my sleeve of other recent commissions. Better keep them under wraps for now though. I don't want to ruin any surprises! I hope the weather cheers up by next week as we're off to a wedding in the Lake District. Can't wait!

I Want Wednesday!

2011-06-29T18:30:00.007+01:00

It's been a while since I did an 'I Want Wednesday' post but I'm just about squeezing in some time between papercutting to have a little browse online for lovely shops and finds. Well, you need tea breaks, eh? My 'I Want' for this Wednesday comes from an amazing jewellery designer who lives and works just up the road from me in Northumberland. Sarah Hickey's designs are so beautiful and intricate that I thought I'd show a few pieces off here...

How gorgeous are they? Sarah has an Etsy shop and also a NOTHS shop where you can see lots more.

Wedding Season Is Upon Us!

2011-06-27T18:13:00.009+01:00

Wedding season is very definitely in full swing and I'm looking forward to the next wedding we've been invited to in the Lake District next month. I have my dress all ready and I really hope it's nice and sunny for the love birds! On the subject of weddings, here are some photos of a Storeyshop order I posted out last week. A range of papercut 'Mr & Mrs' cards all with a different colour paper inlay. I am trying to be more creative with my photography, especially now that I have my super duper new Canon. What do you think?

Hope you have all had a nice weekend and have been enjoying the sunshine! I had a very busy weekend of scalpelling. I hand cut over 80 place name cards for an up-coming wedding and also started an exciting, new papercutting commission. More to come on that and photos of the place cards when the wedding has taken place. I don't want to ruin any surprises!

Sebastian Chinchillason

2011-06-20T19:57:00.009+01:00

Sorry for the lack of blog posts lately. I keep having big dreams of weeks where I blog everyday and they're amazingly interesting posts with beautiful photographs and tutorials and recipes... But, alas, I have been cutting away like a mad thing getting orders out as always (thank you lovely customers!) and haven't had time. Oh, and I also escaped to Sussex for a weekend too (photos to come). Anyway, Mr Storeyshop is cooking tonight so I thought I'd take the chance to quickly add some photos of Seb taken with my new Canon 1100D. I'm still practising and getting used to settings but I love it. And Seb seems quite intrigued, too!

My Birthday Present Has Arrived!

2011-06-06T19:12:00.012+01:00

I finally have my new camera! I have been dreaming of a good one since leaving university really but have only just got around to going for it and choosing one. A very good thirtieth birthday present I think. It arrived on Thursday (along with the sunshine - yay!) so I decided to swap my days around and take Friday off to make the most of the sunshine. So glad I did as it was a bit dreary over the weekend and I was quite happy to cut orders and do things around the house. I'm still in auto mode but loving my Canon already!

This was the very first photo I took when I noticed the battery had charged. Not the greatest but it shows some of my lovely charity shop treasure that I had just bought home from my morning potter around Hexham. That, a half-finished card order, the Canon instruction booklet and a 'to do' list in the background. Sums things up very well!

Sewing out in the sun...

...With a cup of tea, of course!

More tea at the parents in laws' on Sunday...

...Followed by my first ever spin in an Ibex F8. Mr Storeyshop has been designing this new vehicle for the last few years, and has started building them in the last year or so for customers, so this was a landmark voyage! Two handsome beasts, eh?!

The camera is going to be great for Storeyshop and also for Ibex Vehicles. I'm looking forward to taking vehicles to amazing places around the country (and world!) for photoshoots. Well, I was already the in-house designer so I'm now art director and photographer too. Bring on the Scottish highlands!

Storeyshop Off Cuts!

2011-05-30T18:41:00.009+01:00

Now, I have always been a bit of a (a complete) hoarder but I think I have taken things to the extreme. Guess what I have been collecting over the last few months? Yes, the little colourful trimmings from hand cutting my cards! They are in little glass jars around the office and look so nice. I'm not sure what I'm actually going to do with them but I don't think I can ever throw any in the recycling box again...

Hello Thirties!

2011-05-26T18:23:00.016+01:00

So I have had a birthday. A big birthday. I have now entered my thirties (no, don't worry, I didn't make myself a card - this was an order for a fellow 30-turner a few months ago)! Actually my mother-in-law did hand cut me a card. It's a purposely rubbish attempt at copying my cards complete with a spelling mistake and fingerprints. 'Tis brilliant (I'll have to take a photo and add it in later)...

Anyway, the big day was last Thursday (thank you very much for all the birthday tweets!) and we celebrated by heading off for a long weekend in the Lake District. We stayed in a little cottage in Bowness-On-Windermere and spent a lovely few days walking, wandering, shopping (lots of charity shops!), relaxing and eating. Perfect. One of the highlights was The Jumble Room restaurant in Grasmere. Amazing food and lovely, hectic decor with mismatched furniture and loads of cushions. A little gem which we'll definitely be returning to!

My present is going to be a super duper new camera which I have been wanting for ages. I haven't got it yet though so these snaps from my trusty little point-and-shoot will have to do for now...

This week has been really busy with fitting in cutting orders with freelancing on a magazine over in Newcastle. Looking forward to catching up with all things Storeyshop over the weekend and next week. If you're waiting for a hand cut order, they should all be posted by Tuesday at the latest. Other exciting news is that I have a couple of new potential stockists wanting to stock Storeyshop goodies. Woo!

Look At Me!

2011-05-11T18:25:00.007+01:00

Crikey, not blogged since Kate and Wills' big day. Storeyshop has been really busy hence the lack of blog posts in May so far (must sort that out) but I'm still happily cutting away! While editing some photos earlier, I noticed how many of my card photography sessions Seb Chinchillason sneaks in to! He's normally really camera shy - I don't think he likes the red light on the front of my camera - and runs away if I try and get a pic of him. As soon as I get some white boards set up to take some snaps of some recent card orders, though, he's there trying to steal the limelight! Thought he deserved some blog space...

The best way to keep him out of shot is by bringing his food in to the studio for him. Bless his very long whiskers!

Congratulations Kate And Wills!

2011-04-29T14:40:00.001+01:00

Our Paper Wedding Anniversary!

2011-04-28T18:15:00.018+01:00

Get me, getting all regular with my blog posts! Well, as anyone who remembers me going on (and on) about my wedding a year ago will know, it was our first anniversary on the 17th April. I really can't believe how fast the year seemed to go! I've been meaning to add a few photos from our celebrations and the paper goodies (perfect for me) which were exchanged. Dave got a hand cut card and, yes, one of my treats was a rolled up newspaper to read on the beach!...

We went back to Langley Castle where we had our wedding reception for a lovely dinner and stay a week or so before our actual anniversary which was as amazing as ever. Then we went to Bamburgh Castle and beach on the actual day with a picnic (and wine in plastic cups, of course). We also thought it very necessary to go back to Holy Island where Mr Storeyshop popped the question back in 2009.

We discovered some old military bunkers on Holy Island where we started our new anniversary tradition of holding up fingers showing the number of years we've managed. We'll have to have some kids or find some random strangers to join in when we get past 10 years!

How brilliant are these rows of chairs outside the toilets on Holy Island?

Happy Birthday Freya!

2011-04-27T09:50:00.014+01:00

Happy Birthday to my beautiful niece, Freya. She is 13 today! I can't believe it has been 13 years since I heard my Dad on the phone to my sister when she called with the news of Freya's arrival in to the world. I was sitting on my bed, with my friend Natalie, when I heard that I'd become an aunty for the first time!

There was me thinking I was all grown up at 17 and now Freya is a teenager. I just found this photo (think it was the end of the roll of film hence the funny orange effect) of me sitting in my bedroom a few months later with little Freya. Check out my lovely decor in the background! Old ticket to see 'Blind Date' live, back stage passes for Symposium's concert in Brighton (anyone remember them?), ticket for 'Indie Day', postcards of Brad Pitt. They were the days!

I hand cut a personalised birthday card for Freya on a really sunny day last week when the shadows and reflections were so clear that I had to get my camera out and take some snaps!

As I was looking for a silver or gold pen to write on front of the black envelope for the card, I noticed the little cut out bits from the orange card so decided to stick them on the front of the envelope instead. How have I not thought of this before? So, if you order a card where the letters are cut out (most of my cards have the negative space cut out instead) feel free to ask for the cut out'ty bits too. You could stick them to the present wrapping or have them like confetti inside the card...

The Storeyshop Egg Cup Collection

2011-04-25T16:54:00.005+01:00

No, they're not papercut or anything (hmm is there a possible idea there?) but this is my treasured egg cup collection which I have gathered over the years! I do love a boiled egg and I love collecting so it was bound to happen. You can read more about my egg cups on the Etsy blog and on the rikrak studio blog.

I hope everyone has had a brilliant Easter weekend. We went to Sussex to catch up with family and friends which was lovely. Now back at Storeyshop HQ in Northumberland having a quick catch up with orders and blog session before another Easter dinner over at the inlaws :)

Storeyshop In Company Magazine

2011-04-18T16:58:00.008+01:00

Double celebrations this weekend. Yesterday marked mine and Mr Storeyshop's first wedding anniversary so was spent relaxing on and around the Northumberland coast in the sunshine (pics to come) and on Saturday I got my hands on the May issue of Company magazine for a peek at my name in print (more than once too!) along with lots of other great designers and makers. Woohoo!

Latest Storeyshop Orders

2011-04-05T18:36:00.009+01:00

So I went crazy and had a whole weekend off! It made a lovely change and we packed lots in including some early first wedding anniversary celebrating (I know, nearly a year already!), some DIY, Ikea (yay) and some surprise Mother's Day roast-dinner-cooking for Mother In Law! Lots of catching up now but I'm keeping up with orders. Here are some of my most recent personalised, hand cut cards...

I'm A Hand Cut Card

2011-03-24T11:17:00.012Z

Well, my response to all the disbelieving comments from Angry Lady on my last blog post, could only really be hand cut...

In other (much more important) news, I am still busily cutting away. Things haven't really slowed down since Valentine's Day which is brilliant. Lots of personalised orders from an 85th birthday card to a Bar Mitzvah celebration card, and it is most definitely wedding and new baby season! I'm also looking forward to some more exciting press coverage in the near future too. Watch this space!

I Love You More Than Burgers

2011-03-18T17:25:00.014Z

It's quite a declaration, I know, but a lovely Storeyshop customer made it recently. And in style with a hand cut poster version of my 'I love you more than burgers' card design. I am loving the bigger A4 version so, before popping it in the post, I tried it out in a frame...

I have added a close-up of the burger detail complete with drawing-pin-stabbed sesame seeds on top. Yum!

Also, introducing Ken the svelte and refined new porcelain face of Storeyshop. You may well be seeing more of him around my shop and blog in the near future. He came from a charity shop in Shoreham-by-sea but has settled in to the wilds of Northumberland very well indeed. Have a great weekend everyone!

There is a new 'I love you more than .... (you fill in the blank)' poster listing in Storeyshop now so do get in touch if you would like one.

I Want Wednesday!

2011-03-16T17:17:00.004Z

Have missed a few lately but 'I Want Wednesday' is back. Inspired by these amazing hand embroidered cushion covers I spotted on Etsy earlier today. I have fallen in love and had to get them on here. They are the creations of sukan. How nice are they?!

Best Package of Goodies Ever!

2011-03-09T17:45:00.013Z

Look what delights I discovered on my doormat this afternoon! The lovely Sami of Teasemade had a giveaway on her blog last week to celebrate her birthday and I won. Woo hoo! I excitedly opened up my package and the goodies just kept on coming. Gorgeous, amazingly hand-stitched Teasemade accessories, the cutest badge ever, brilliant cards (including the beautiful bird card below by Bonbi Forest), little Easter ornaments AND chocolate. What more could a girl wish for?

Thank you so much again, Sami! You've made my week. Can't wait to wear my necklace and ring. And eat my rabbit's head off!

Happy Birthday Little Bro!

2011-03-03T17:25:00.009Z

OK, he's not so little anymore but he is 27 today. Happy Birthday! I cut him a card yesterday while the sun was out. I'm liking grey at the moment so went for a grey and dark blue number. Oh, and I had to add a little pic of him in the old days (and so he doesn't kill me, the photo that was taken a few seconds before that one, of yours truly)!

Decking The Halls

2011-02-24T18:36:00.020Z

Good news: We have finally been getting some things up on the walls at home! Lots of photographs, prints and artworks have been in various stages of framing and sorting for months. Then they have been leant against different walls while we umm and ahhh about where to finally bang the picture hooks in. Well, we have gone for it. Holes have been hammered and the place is looking much more homely so I'm very pleased. Here is a peek at some of our new wall adornments.

This is of my favourite pictures. My swan photograph which I found in a tatty old frame in a charity shop in Shoreham-by-Sea. My Mum's taste is usually pretty in line with mine when it comes to treasure hunting but she definitely didn't look convinced at my £2.95 purchase. Neither did my Dad. Neither did Dave when I brought it home to Northumberland. I love it though and reframed my beautiful find in a simple white Ikea frame. It now has pride of place in our lounge and even Dave has said that it "actually looks alright". Wonder if my parents will recognise it when they next come up to stay!

This is a screenprint which I did at university. It is all the green spaces in Croydon. It was for a project I did with the idea of showing people the amount of parks and public places in their area that they could go and play, exercise or walk in. The idea was to make posters of different towns and cities but I didn't get around to making prints of any other areas (maybe I will one day?). My finished posters had branding on too but I quite like the randomness of the versions with no explanation. The frame isn't the right size -the design should be cropped so that some of the red areas bleed off the edges of the poster- but it's only a temporary lounge addition until we find something we love.

More university work. These are my creations from our life drawing classes. I decided one day that I would use scissors and some old magazines instead of pencils or charcoal. I should have known I would end up slightly obsessed with cutting paper and card!

I love these. They are pages from Jonathan Livingston Seagull: A story by Richard Bach. My mother-in-law leant the book to me a while ago and it's brilliant. I really liked the photos so got myself a copy from eBay and framed some of my favourite photographs (they are taken by Russell Munson) from it. I felt bad tearing a book apart but, combined with some black M&S frames, I think it was worth it.

These are my prints by Yuuco who runs the Blue bonbon shop on Etsy (and who I featured on my blog before). My photo definitely doesn't do the illustrations justice but they are framed and up in the upstairs hallway and they always make me smile!

So we are getting there. There are still a few things we need to find wall space for, like our map of Florence which we brought home from our honeymoon last year and a gorgeous, grey Northumberland screenprint which my friend Grace made us for Christmas. We'll hopefully get them up at the weekend so I'll take some pics.

Taking these snaps and writing this blog post has made me realise all the Etsy and other amazing handmade items I have collected now, both around the house and in my jewellery box. I'll have to get some of them on here soon, too!

New Hand Cut Card Designs

2011-02-22T17:30:00.008Z

Seeing as things have calmed down a bit after Valentine's Day, I am making the most of some time to cut some new card designs. I've been having ideas here and there for a few months and scribbling them down on scraps of paper all over the place. Here are some of the first ones converted from little scribbles to hand cut glory. They'll all be popping up in Storeyshop over the next few days.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T18:41:00.003Z

Happy red and pink day to you all! I'm excited to think that today is the day when the most Storeyshop cards will be given and received. I love that they will be proudly sat on windowsills and mantlepieces around the world (and on top of old vintage TV's like ours!). Mr Storeyshop hasn't come home from work to find his yet but here it is. It's our first Valentine's day as Mr and Mrs Foers so I thought I'd get the name in...

And all the little left over bits!

Be My Valentine

2011-02-08T17:52:00.005Z

A quick update: I am still cutting away and just about keeping up with orders! The last orders for Valentine's Day will be posted first class on Thursday. I am now no longer accepting new hand cut card orders but feel free to order laser cut cards until tomorrow evening for delivery in time for February 14th. Orders which have been placed will be posted out on or before Thursday unless you have heard otherwise from me. I hope you and the recipients all love your cards!

I Want Wednesday

2011-01-26T19:13:00.008Z

The first 'I Want Wednesday' for 2011 are these lovely handmade accessories by UK-based, Lucie Ellen. I love them all and have just treated myself to the first finch necklace. The lovely little fella has been in my 'favourites' for a while and I have been working very hard cutting Storeyshop orders! Can't wait to see him...

Actually, I've just had a sudden realisation (or maybe deja vu?) that I have featured Lucie Ellen's lovelies as an 'I Want' on my blog before. Oh well, even if I have, they definitely deserve another go and I'm sure the brilliant dog brooch above hasn't made a previous appearence! Hope you like them as much as I do.

I think I must be going slightly mad. I need some dinner and to iPlayer the second half of 'Silent Witness' which we missed last night on account of our Burn's Night supper at the pub. Ta ra for now.

That Time Of Year Again...

2011-01-25T18:02:00.010Z

So much for my plans for more blog posts in 2011! Just a quick post to say 'hello' and give a little Storeyshop update. I'm super busy with orders but keeping up. The wait time for new hand cut orders is currently 4-5 days (laser cut cards which are in stock will be posted within 2 days). If you have placed an order and not heard from me then please accept my apologies for not sending a personal 'thank you' message but, rest assured, I'm cutting day (and sometimes night) and will get your cards to you as soon as I can. Hope you love them!

Thank you very much for all the orders. I am even on track to reach my target of 2000 sales in my Etsy shop by Valentine's Day! Woo hoo!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-19T17:12:00.014Z

A bit late, I know, but better late than never. I have been busy freelancing on magazines in Newcastle and London since early December so haven't been at Storeyshop HQ for over 7 weeks! I am back now though and absolutely loving being able to properly catch up on all my card orders (and work in my slippers again). Obviously being back home with Mr Storeyshop and Seb Chinchillason is brilliant too!

The last few weeks have been a bit of a blur with commuting from my parents in Sussex to London and back each day and trying to keep up with Storeyshop orders in the evenings and at weekends. Christmas seems like a long while ago. It was so lovely though. Completely relaxed and just what I needed. To quote my friend Tracy from Company magazine, "I just spent 10 days in a slanket"!

While I was freelancing on Company I got myself a copy of the February issue of Sainsbury's magazine and guess who's card is featured alongside the lovely-looking chocolate pudding? Yay!

Definitely a good start to 2011 for Storeyshop. The Valentine's card rush is well and truly back on! I have a long list of cards orders (just how I like it). If you've ordered a card and not heard from me, fear not. I've been cutting away and all current orders should be out by early next week. Hope you all love them!

I Want Wednesday!

2010-12-01T17:41:00.006Z

It's December! I hope you are all having fun Christmas shopping. I have to admit, I haven't really started mine yet but I have a list of ideas of things to make or buy for people now. That's a start! I'm going to try and go handmade all the way. On that note, I bring you my 'I Want' for this week: Gorgeous and ridiculously intricately stitched handmade creations by Teasemade on Folksy and Etsy. Love them!

Snowy Storeyshop HQ

2010-12-01T09:47:00.008Z

OK, so if you are standing on the hill in the photo from my last post and turn around, this is what you'd see. Storeyshop HQ is the little window in the shadow of the tree. It is all warm and cosy and I'm cutting away enjoying the fact that I don't have to travel to work (for now). I'm still managing to get to the post office every day but please bear the snowy weather in mind if you are waiting for an order from me. Things may be a bit trickier for the poor post men and women. Brrrr

My next challenge will be getting down to London on Saturday to freelance on Company magazine next week. Let's hope the trains are running to get me down there and to whisk me from my parents' in Sussex to London Victoria each day!

So a little shop update: Today is the last day for personalised orders from any buyers outside of the UK (last posting date is Friday). I'm freelancing from Monday until the 23rd December now. I can still make and post all UK orders but there may be a slight delay on some of them. I'll still get items to you in time for Christmas and will update my shop and blog if anything changes.

Woo hoo. I'm feeling quite festive today. Happy first day of advent!

Dreaming of a White Christmas

2010-11-27T09:20:00.006Z

The view from my bedroom window this morning. Sunny and snowing and we don't have to be anywhere today so it's gorgeous! Catching up on some Storeyshop orders this morning and then off out for a walk to Hadrian's (white) Wall I think. Have a lovely weekend everyone!

ps. Sorry for the lack of 'I Want Wednesday' post this week. I was actually whisked off to a little cottage in the Lake District on Wednesday evening. 'Twas lovely. I have a brilliant 'I Want' up my sleeve for next Wednesday though...

I Want Wednesday!

2010-11-17T17:35:00.015Z

It's been ages, I know, but 'I Want Wednesday' is back. It's just an excuse for me to browse lovely handmade products really but, as you don't just want to hear about Storeyshop all the time, I'll be bringing you my favourite shops and makers every Wednesday (just like the old days)! Today I bring you the woolly delights of UK-based Sara Carr on Etsy and Folksy. I love the shapes, colours and textures of her creations and I really need a pencil scarf (even though my initials aren't HB anymore). What a brilliant idea. Christmas shopping ahoy!

New Custom Papercut Posters

2010-11-15T19:26:00.014Z

Bit slow on the blogging front lately but I have a very good excuse: Lots of lovely Storeyshop orders including personalised cards, notebooks and posters. My scalpel and I are very busy! Here are a couple of recent hand cut poster orders. I definitely need to work on my photography skills but I loved cutting these and I like the subtle white on white when they are shown against a white wall...

Think I might make hand cut some more posters as Christmas presents for a few friends and family members. The plan is to go completely handmade for pressies this year; either by making things myself or treating folks to gorgeous handmade items by other makers. I shall keep you posted with some fab festive finds over the next few weeks!

ps. GIVEAWAY TIME! I have finally got round to creating a Facebook page for Storeyshop. When I reach 200 fans/likes, I will be selecting one fan at random to receive a special Storeyshop treat. Tell your friends and good luck!

Special Delivery

2010-10-29T12:40:00.009+01:00

The exciting news from Storeyshop HQ is that my range of machine cut card designs is growing. Some of the most popular Storeyshop designs are now in stock and at a more purse-friendly price. The great thing about these cards is that it makes them better for my small collection of lovely stockists around the country. Here is a selection of the new additions, all of which are available now.

psst... There's also some Christmas designs!

Wedding! April 17th 2010

2010-10-19T18:13:00.008+01:00

This year seems to be flying by and I have just realised that Sunday marked six months since I got married to the lovely Mr Storeyshop! Here's a peek at some of my favourite wedding photographs. They make me so happy. Thank you so much to the brilliant Gingerpixel for capturing such special moments from our big day!

Life Before Storeyshop

2010-10-13T17:50:00.012+01:00

Every time I travel down by train to Sussex to visit my parents, I promise them that next time I have a car with me, I'll take some more of my stuff. I still seem to have quite a lot of stuff in their spare room and loft cupboards (I have a lot of stuff generally as I'm not very good at parting with old things). Anyway, when we were there a few weeks ago, we finally filled the car with lots of old art books and folders and brought them up north. Lucky Dave!

So, for a couple of weeks, I have been dusting off massive 'A' Level and Art Foundation portfolios and flicking through university sketchbooks. The portfolio work is a bit cringe-worthy, to be honest (very smudgey charcoal life drawings, anyone?), but the sketchbooks are quite fun. I didn't really realise how much papercutting I had done while at uni. I used to love using neon colours and I think half the reason for this was that, as I couldn't print the flouros, I just HAD to get my scalpel out and cut the typography or design by hand. An intricate time-consuming task was always much more inspiring to me (and still is) than staring at Photoshop or Illustrator with an idea in my head that I was pretty much guaranteed to end up having to change because I didn't have the tech skills to actually create it.

So, some of the history behind Storeyshop is revealed: A lack of computer skills, a passion for old-fashioned, hands-on processes and a dread of having to grow up and get a job where I wouldn't need a pencil case, with a ruler and a rubber in, at all times.

The last quote is a famous one that my Granddad used to say. I always hate it when people randomly say things like, 'Smile, love' just because you're not grinning away, but Grandad was always allowed.

My 'ideas list' is even longer now after going through my old designs. Apart from papercutting, I also liked felt tips. Maybe I'll bring them back out?

First Personalised Wedding Guest Book!

2010-10-06T18:22:00.007+01:00

Books are an exciting new venture for me and here are some photos of my first personalised one. It's a questbook for the happy couple's up-coming wedding so soon it will be full of lovely wedding messages for them to treasure forever from their special day. Woo hoo!

New Storeyshop Designs

2010-09-30T19:02:00.009+01:00

It's been a while and as there are lots of new Storeyshop card designs which have never made it to my blog I thought I'd do a little showcase. I have a pile of new designs ready to cut too, which I'm going to get scalpelling tomorrow. Today has been a day of computers and admin so I'm looking forward to getting back to the cutting mat in the morning!

Shoes!

2010-09-28T18:23:00.008+01:00

When I am not at Storeyshop HQ cutting cards and other paper goodies (and drinking lots of tea), I'm quite often freelancing on various different arty jobs (where I also drink lots of tea but have to make cups for other people too). One of my recent favourite jobs was working on Company magazine's 'High Street Edit'. A gorgeous, chunky magazine (on lovely matt stock for the paper geeks out there) devoted entirely to shopping! Perfect. The Autumn/Winter issue is out now and here are a few of the pages I designed. Shoe heaven.

September Sun

2010-09-27T17:25:00.013+01:00

Sorry to anyone who popped 'into' Storeyshop on Etsy or Folksy last week. It was all closed up because Mr Storeyshop and I went on a last minute holiday to Italy. We went to Florence, where I have wanted to visit for a long time, and also to Ravenna to see family. A brilliant break with lovely sunshine, scenery and food! Here are a few highlights...

It's amazing what an entire week away from home and all things Storeyshop does for inspiration and enthusiasm levels. I thought I had a big 'ideas' list before but you should see it now! So anyway, I'm back, it's business as usual again in both shops and there'll be lots more new cards, artwork and other products coming soon!

Storeyshop Newness!

2010-08-20T19:54:00.010+01:00

A new product is unveiled from Storeyshop HQ. I have had a little stack of these nice notebooks on my shelf for a long time but have only just got round to introducing them to Mr Scalpel. The same idea as Storeyshop cards and posters; they can be completely personalised with words and/or images. Great for gifts for other lucky souls or as a treat for yourself. I need to build up lots more examples but it's a start...

My first design is quite fun as it's my new initials and is roughly based on the very first Storeyshop card which was a Valentine's Day card for Dave 4 years ago - back when I was a HB and had no idea how close me and Mr Scalpel would one day become (or that me and Mr Storeyshop would get hitched)!

ps. Don't forget my giveaway below. There's a free hand cut and personalised Storeyshop poster up for grabs! Still time to enter and spread the word as the winner will be announced on Tuesday. Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Storeyshop Giveaway!

2010-08-17T14:44:00.007+01:00

As I mentioned in my recent post, I'm very excited that my Storeyshop Etsy shop reached 1500 sales a couple of weeks ago. Woo hoo! I love a milestone and I definitely think a celebratory giveaway is in order. So, it's time to get winning!

The prize will be a personalised A4-sized Storeyshop hand cut poster. You choose the design, the colour(s) and the wording and I design and scalpel it for you before popping it in the post. It's that simple. You can even choose a personalised card instead if you would prefer.

So, all you need to do to enter the giveaway is to comment on this post with what you would choose for your hand cut poster or maybe what room of your home you would like to brighten up with a poster. No need to be exact or let me know every detail, we can discuss your actual poster if you win! Maybe you would give your poster away as a gift to some newly-weds or to a family with a new baby?

For extra entries you can do the following:
1) Follow my blog (or mention that you are already following in a comment).
2) Tweet about my giveaway and add a link to it (I'll keep track of all tweets if you include 'Storeyshop' somewhere within it.
3) Blog about my giveaway or add a link on Facebook (let me know in a comment).

I'll pick at random and announce the winner on Tuesday 24th August. Thank you and good luck!

Storeyshop Hand-Cut Table Numbers

2010-08-13T12:12:00.009+01:00

Since really enjoying making the stationery and other accessories for my wedding in April, I have had lots of other paper cut wedding ideas up my sleeve for Storeyshop. Here are the first examples of table number cards. I cut these by hand yesterday in a range of styles and colours. They can be completely customised with a customer's choice of typeface, colour(s) and imagery so can tie in with any wedding theme. They can have paper inlays or be left as simple folded cards. The wedding menu or any other information could be included inside on a paper inlay. Listings will be able in my shops soon. Yay!

The cards can also be ordered for special events and parties. Or maybe used as birthday cards with the recipients age on. It doesn't have to be a special 21st or 40th, have any age you like. Or they could be nice anniversary cards to celebrate the number of years you and your beloved have been together. I love a bit of romance...

Business As Usual

2010-08-11T19:00:00.008+01:00

I'm back at Storeyshop HQ after a busy 5 weeks of freelancing in London. I was covering my old job as senior designer on Company magazine as well as getting to help out on the second edition of their 'High Street Edit' fashion magazine. An entire magazine nicely designed, on lovely matt paperstock and entirely about shopping. My dream!

I loved being back in Soho with every shop I could ever wish for on my doorstep each lunch hour but the thrill did wear off (somewhere during week three, I think) and I'm very happy to be back in the Northumberland hills with scalpel and card in hand.

Apologies again to anyone who wanted personalised cards while I was away. I couldn't keep up with orders on top of full-time freelance hours and commuting in and out of London (I stayed with my parents in Sussex for most of my London stint). All personalised orders are available again now though. Absence definitely made the Storeyshop heart grow fonder too as I have lists of new ideas and products to get cracking on! Although I am back to the lonely single tea runs, there's nothing like time in an office to make you appreciate working from home on something you love.

Here are some photos of a recent order I made for personalised menu cards. They were for a bright, colourful-themed wedding in France.

While I was away I also reached my milestone of 1500 Etsy sales. Woo hoo! I will be running a giveaway very soon to celebrate!

Read All About It: Storeyshop In Telegraph Magazine

2010-06-19T11:18:00.018+01:00

I'm very pleased to be part of a feature in the Telegraph magazine today focusing on British sellers on Etsy. There are some great illustrators and makers featured so I've found some new shops too. It's a really good article and it will hopefully raise Etsy's profile in the UK. I was contacted back in January about the possibility of being included in this so it's very exciting to actually have the magazine in front of me now!

It's a shame that the feature refers to my personalised cards as 'laser cut' when they're nearly all lovingly cut by my own fair hands and a scalpel, but nevermind. This is the most mainstream press Storeyshop has had so far and it's great. Welcome to my blog if you have found me through the magazine. The article is also on the Telegraph website.

The Garden & Our New Tenants

2010-06-16T18:33:00.017+01:00

Good news. Number 7A, round the back of our house, is newly inhabited by Blue tits! We've lived here for over 3 years now and have never seen any signs of bird activity in the box but a little family seem to have taken a shine to it this summer. Maybe because the family of Blackbirds, who normally take up residence in the tree opposite, have moved higher up in to the ivy on the garage. I'm no Chris Packham but I have loved sitting in the garden eating my lunch, for the last couple of days, and seeing a Blue tit popping in and out of his new pad. I think that officially makes us landlords. I hope they look after the place.

I am loving the sunny weather and the flowers appearing in the garden. Credit must all be given to the green-fingered lady who lived here before us, Philys. She did a grand job. We have tried to keep it tidy and not let it all go to pot but neither of us really have a clue what we are doing with plants. I think quite a lot of my prized flowers are actually weeds (go on, you can break it to me!) but we enjoy it anyway. I do want to plant some new plants in some of the gaps and have a better tidy up and weed clear-out but it's hard to find the time when we both run our own businesses. I am in awe of people who run businesses, have children to look after, cook lovely dinners from scratch every night AND do gardening! One day. We missed the tomato and veggies planting this year but some nice pink flowers (weeds) have popped up in the mini greenhouse so it's not all wasted. Here's a little snapshot of those and the rest of our (very) little patch of Northumberland...

Weekend Roadtrip & Glamping

2010-06-10T18:04:00.018+01:00

Hoorah. I'm back and am finally back up to date with all my card orders. Sorry if any of you have had to wait a little bit longer than usual, but your cards are all on their way to you now. The reason for the slight backlog was some freelance design work last week and also our wedding roadtrip at the weekend. This was the first wedding we'd been to since ours and, as it was quite a way away, we decided to do some extra roadtrippin' and see some folks. We ended up doing Scotland, Yorkshire, Leamington Spa and Sussex in four and a half days but it was so nice to get away properly and catch up with friends and family. The weather was lovely and sunny too. Perfect for our budget accommodation choice... glamping!

Both wearing the shoes we wore on our big day! The photo below shows my relief at changing into flat shoes later on, I think. Don't know about Dave's excuse. Pimm's and champers, probably.

Shameless Copying

2010-06-01T17:13:00.013+01:00

So, I blogged a while ago about someone who was copying my cards. I have been trying my absolute hardest since then to ignore her and just put all of my energies into my shop and products rather than into her and what she is doing. That's why I have avoided any more blog posts or anything. Anyway, I have just been sent a link to this card of 'hers'!

And it's even being promoted by Etsy. I don't know what to do or say really. I am just so shocked about the blatantness (if that's a word!). Here's my one which I am currently selling and sold this time last year.

There are lots more cards in her shop which I think are just too similar to mine too. I'm not going to say anything else now while I'm so upset. I'm shaking! If you have any tips or suggestions on what I can/should do about this then please let me know.

Sunshine, New Card and Folksy Feature

2010-05-24T20:45:00.017+01:00

Well, this year is certainly flying. I've barely had time to think, let alone blog. I am now a year older (it was my birthday on Wednesday), we have a new little niece (Esme Martha born today!) and we have even had some sunshine for the last few days too! We decided to make the most of the weather and headed to Whitley Bay on Saturday for ice creams on the beach. It was lovely and so much quieter than the beaches would be down south. One definite advantage, I'm learning, to living up here. The other thing I am growing to like up here are the crazily vast moors where you can walk for miles and won't see another person. We had a wander on the way home from the seaside -the last photo below is me in our glorified back garden!

I have been busy working on custom card orders today as I am freelancing on a magazine for the next three days and wanted to get as many as possible made and posted out. No time for pics of today's orders but here are some photos of a card order from last week which I liked. It is an engagement card and the customer requested white on white for the colours. I hadn't thought of that before but thought it worked really well. I'll definitely be using these scheme again.

Oh, and the other exciting news is that Storeyshop is currently a 'featured seller' on Folksy! With my new name and everything. I'm very pleased to be showcased among some other fantastic sellers.

Wedding Sneak Peek & Handmade Place Names

2010-05-13T18:28:00.012+01:00

Gradually getting peeks at some more of our wedding photos. I love some of the random ones like this one of Dave holding his bottle of Newc'y Brown and my wine while I bunch up my dress and try to walk quickly over the grass before my heels sink in to the ground!

While on the 'W' subject (again), here are pics of the hand cut place names I made for the big day. They were really simple pieces of thick, textured paper and I just cut a heart shape from the back of each to stick up when folded in half. I printed all the names onto sheets of paper in the right place and printed a cutting guide on the back of each (you can just about see in the photo below) so it was actually quite quick to cut each one out but they looked a bit more special than just a plain folded card. And a bit more wedding scalpel action would only be right!

Hand Cut Wedding Table Numbers

2010-05-07T17:33:00.025+01:00

Really looking forward to seeing our professional wedding photos but, until I have some of those to post, I thought I'd add some pics of the table numbers I made for the big day. I had to have some papercut action in there somewhere! The only thing is... I don't actually think anyone took any photos of the tables at the wedding. Probably a good sign that we were having too much fun! Some might turn up though so will add some if they do. Here they are on my trusty cutting mat...

I didn't really know what do for them when I started but found the fancy-looking typeface we used on our 'save the dates' and used it to print the numbers we needed nice and big. I started off cutting out different bits in navy blue and gold (our loose colour theme) and making them quite fussy but then decided just to keep it simple and, instead, cut each one from black card which would be stiff enough to stand up on its own without any backing.

I was planning to buy some metal table number holders to pop the finished numbers in to but they work out quite expensive (although I have since found some nice ones at quite a good price in Tesco if anyone is after some) so I decided to use an idea I had seen in a wedding magazine for place names, and use corks as little stands.

Oh and, obviously, the other essential item in the whole process was a lovely cup of tea! I think I am going to add hand-cut table numbers to my shop too as I loved making them and would enjoy making them for other peoples' weddings and other events. I did have a quick look at what was around to buy before deciding to make ours and there didn't seem to be much. Do get in touch if you would like something similar made for you. My next little 'show and tell' will be our cheap but chic (notice the theme here?) table place names.

Brand New Storeyshop Cards!

2010-05-04T17:34:00.008+01:00

I've had these (and lots more) ideas for new cards up my sleeve for ages but have finally got around to drawing, printing, cutting them out and adding them to my shop. Lots more coming soon too. Quite a lot of wedding-themed and lovey ones. Funny that!

Seb In The Spotlight And Wedding Invitations

2010-05-03T13:07:00.010+01:00

Well, if you haven't already seen Kitty N Dog blog, you should. All things furry and cute. Last week Seb was the official 'Furry Friend' so I thought I should upload this photo of him basking in his glory and having a good old read of the blog post!

He's a bit dark in the corner but you get the idea. In other news, I have been back on the wedding stationery but for another happy couple instead of us! I have loved making these pale cream and ice blue personalised cut-out cards...

Just Married!

2010-04-22T15:50:00.000+01:00

New Storeyshop Custom Card Orders!

2010-04-09T09:00:00.018+01:00

Sorry, blog posts are a bit lacking at the moment due to all things wedding. I'll more than make up for it after the big day though when they'll be news and photos a-plenty! I'm also busy finishing lots of Storeyshop orders as I am freelancing on a magazine for a few days next week and before I know it, I'm going to be standing at the end of an aisle. Uploaded some photos of recent card orders last night while watching the Masterchef final on iPlayer and here are some new ones...

Off to tackle my giant 'to do' list now which includes finishing and posting some more card orders, looking through future mother in law's jewellery for possible wedding accessories, nail varnish shopping (and some other bits) and making Order of Service sheets and a table plan. All in a days' work, eh? Have a good day, all!

Happy Easter and Treasury Time!

2010-04-03T11:59:00.019+01:00

Have a great Easter weekend everyone! I have just received some new laser cut cards so will be listing them next week. In other exciting news, my latest 'Teal and Turquoise' treasury made it to the front page of Etsy this morning and mighty fine it looked too. Even if I do say say myself. I love teal and hope that every brilliant shop I featured got some nice views, hearts and sales from it...

I just got this very cool widget from Craft Cult so you can see the items more clearly and click on them to buy or visit the shops. Doesn't quite fit in my blog properly but it's the thought that counts, eh. Enjoy!

Our Wedding Invitations

2010-04-02T12:21:00.031+01:00

Been promising to reveal these for a while. Don't get too excited as we just kept them really simple in the end. I did, however, have my first go at printing by hand and it was quick, easy and fun. We were running out of time posting our invitations out so they were a little bit last minute. I didn't have time to look into buying proper lino so I decided to have a go at cutting my design from a sheet of soft foam that had been knocking around the office for a while.

Using Illustrator, I designed a simple monogram of mine and Dave's initials and printed it onto thin paper. I stapled this to the foam and cut out the design all the way through the sheet, like I do with my cards.

Once I had my foam monogram, I glued it, right side down, to a piece of cardboard. I covered the piece of card in PVA glue first and left it to dry so that it was a bit more 'paint-proof'. I was just making all this up as I went along but, actually, the PVA coating came in really handy for cleaning the stamp halfway through prints and once I'd finished.

I made a little handle out of a couple more small squares of cardboard glued together and stuck that onto the back of my 'stamp' to make it easier to pick up and use without getting too messy.

Then I got stamping! We decided a grey colour would be nice as our 'save the date' designs, which we'd emailed out to guests, were grey...

I used acrylic paint and just mixed black and white to make a light/medium grey shade. I added some water to make it a bit more fluid too. Using a small brush, I painted it onto the stamp for each print and was careful to make sure there wasn't too much excess paint in the gaps between the letters. After a little practise on the back of an envelope, I printed onto off-white linen-textured A6 cards (A5 folded) and just tried to position the print roughly in the middle of each card.

I like that each invitation card is unique, the charm of handmade as always. For the information inside each card, we printed the wording onto a textured off-white paper inlay and glued a small round doily to the outside of this to sit between the outer card and inlay. Why not, eh? A bit of frill! We also included a slip of paper inside each invitation with accommodation, travel details and a hand-drawn map so decided to embrace the frill theme by cutting them out with patterned scissors. I knew those scissors would come in handy one day!

The photo's aren't the best as we were doing most of this in evenings but you can kind of get the idea. I'll nick an invitation back from someone one day to take some nicer pictures. You can kind of see through the paper to the doily on the pic below...

Dave wrote all the guests names inside with his much-nicer-than-mine handwriting and they were good to go! No cut out details on the invitations, but, fear not, there will be cut out details on other wedding bits. I will post photos of our handmade place names and table numbers soon as I loved seeing what other people had made/chosen for their big days while we were planning. I will also be offering more wedding-related stationery in Storeyshop soon so keep an eye out.

Not long to go until our big day now! We have lots of lists but are quite sorted with most things I think. Need to finish making table numbers, plan the table decorations and layout, make some favours and some 'Order of Services' and a few other bits. I really want to get some wood to make signs to put in the country lanes on the way to the church and reception too, if we have time!

Hen Weekend By The Seaside!

2010-03-24T15:09:00.023Z

So it was my hen weekend last weekend and it was brilliant. I loved it! We stayed in a gorgeous flat right in the Camber Sands dunes. Literally in the dunes. The view from two of the bedroom windows was just sand! The flat was amazing and we spent quite a lot of our time there looking around it deciding what lovely features and decor ideas we could take back to our own homes. Wanted it all! Such a nice mix of random finds, designer bits and quirky little additions without seeming like it was 'trying too hard'. Oh, and it had a roof terrace!

We had a lovely 3 course meal on Friday night which my friend had prepared in advance and had a good girly natter and catch up with tea, cake and wine a-plenty. Then on Saturday we went for some spa treatments in Rye. I had (and still have) a fab manicure with bright coral pink nails which have lasted until now with only one chip. Saturday afternoon was a great retro buffet lunch back at the house and then pottery painting which was great fun. Lots of concentration and perfectionist painting. I can't wait to get my teal and lime green stripey heart-shaped plate back once it has been fired and glazed!

Then we went out for dinner and drinks in Rye on Saturday night with stick-on moustaches all round, of course. Oh, and a top hat for me. The classy hen do I'd dreamed of. A night time walk on the sand dunes in pitch darkness after that. As you do. Sunday started with a delicious cooked breakfast and then we all hit the beach for good walk to wake us up and blow the cobwebs away.

Sunday afternoon was spent sampling the cobbled streets (back in trainers rather than Saturday night heels!) and nice shops in Rye and then we headed homeward. Well, I went back to my parents to catch up with them for the evening. A walk and a spot of shopping with my Mum on Monday morning and then a train back up north. Perfect.

Storeyshop Hand Cut Personalised Posters!

2010-03-12T17:39:00.009Z

Personalised posters are now available in my shop after a special request from a lovely customer wanting one for her kitchen. I loved how it turned out so am very much up for making more. Same idea as my cards; you choose the colour, the wording and the imagery/shapes. Then I design and cut it for you, carefully pop it in the post to you and you receive it and smile and find a frame for it and put it on your wall. Or you give it as a gift to a lucky friend or family member. I think they'd be nice in a baby's nursery or child's bedroom.

Today has been a busy one involving taking lots of new photos of cards to add to my shops over the next few days and making templates for the new range of laser cut cards. The wedding 'to do' list is getting longer by the day so a weekend of trying to cross some things off lies ahead for us, I think. Hope you all have great weekends and Happy Mother's Day to all the Mums out there!

Storeyshop Giveaway!

2010-03-10T19:01:00.008Z

Head over to the lovely Kate and Oli blog now for a little interview with yours truly and the chance to win a Storeyshop card. This includes any card from my shop, including personalised ones, so good luck! It's a fab blog too focusing on all things handmade. You can also find lovely paper goods and vintage finds in the Kate & Oli shop.

Welcome to my blog if you have popped over from Katie's blog too. Do have a browse and follow and/or leave a comment so I can see your blogs/shops/tweets. I look forward to 'meeting' you and love finding new shops and blogs to visit and feature on here!

Etsy Delivery!

2010-03-08T15:54:00.012Z

Today is getting quite busy after a nice Storeyshop Mother's Day card plug on the Etsy blog, The Storque so just a quick post today featuring my beautiful original drawing by prettylittlethieves which arrived a few weeks ago in the most original and lovely packaging. I had to photograph as I unwrapped and I'm glad I did. Simple but so effective...

I absolutey love and can't wait to frame my little artwork (and the freebie one too!). There are lots more gorgeous drawings in prettylittlethieve's shop now too including these:

I want more! Right. I must dash to the post office with todays card orders. More of my Etsy (and other) purchases will be showcased here soon!

Fantastic!

2010-03-05T10:45:00.005Z

After my crazy Valentine's card rush, I forgot to reveal my own personal Valentine's card for the future Mr Storeyshop so here it is. Better late than never, eh? It's bright neon which you can't really appreciate from the photos bit you get the idea. It's inspired by the brilliant new animation of 'Fantastic Mr Fox' which we both loved when we saw it at the cinema and also because he's a foxy chap.

You're It!

2010-02-26T13:48:00.008Z

I have just been tagged by the lovely edwina.simone and have been set the task of publishing a particular photo and telling the story behind it. It's fun seeing other peoples' random pictures and the stories behind them and a great way to discover new blogs. Here goes...

THE RULES
1. open your first photo folder
2. scroll to the tenth photo
3. post the photo and the story behind it
4. tag five or more people

So here's my family in the Derbyshire Dales on the big rocks near the stepping stones across the River Dove at Dovedale. With me living miles away up north these days, we all decided to meet in between Northumberland and Sussex and had a little holiday in a cottage in Derbyshire (and also because the cottage is near Thomas Land for the Thomas The Tank fan in the family!).

So, from front to back in the pic is my Ma; my Pa; my nephew, Harvey (in his cool stripey boots that I want a big version of); my brother, Phil; my niece, Niamh and last (but never least) my future husband, Dave! Niamh had one wet foot after a stepping-stones-related welly boot full of water and I was behind the camera with my sister and other niece, Freya. We had been to buy bridesmaids dresses -for the girls to wear to our wedding- earlier in the day too!

I am tagging and looking forward to seeing the pics from:

Bec from Feet in the River
Yvette from Paperfaerie
Lissa from Peak Princess
Claire from gingerpixel
Deepa from Lazy Giraffe

Treasury and Birthday Girl!

2010-02-20T13:50:00.008Z

Happy weekend! Another busy week has sped by and a nice, sunny Saturday has arrived again. I managed to grab a treasury slot this morning and thought I'd go for a honeymoon theme seeing as I have been looking out for nice summer bits for ours. We haven't booked anything yet but hoping to go somewhere warm. Woo! So here's my holiday wishlist including some stripes (as always) and some splashes of my new favourite colour, yellow.

More importantly, it's my neice's 9th birthday today. Happy Birthday Niamh! She loves animals especially cats and foxes so here's her personalised Storeyshop cat card. I'm liking the animal theme even if it does make me think of the Whiskas cat food logo!