Posts Tagged ‘Vintage’
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Spirit of Christmas Fair ticket giveaway
It’s 6 November, which means Christmas is a mere 48 days away. If you’re a last-minute sort, Christmas shopping won’t have graced your retail radar yet, but if you’re someone who likes to get it done sooner (all the more time to quaff mulled wine, you see), your ship has come in…
Let the Christmas shopping commence
OolaMoola is giving away four weekend tickets to the Spirit of Christmas Fair in Olympia this weekend. The event has been featured in Home & Garden magazine and is stacked with gifts, glitter, and all manner of delicious Christmas treats.
The Spirit of Christmas Fair
Here’s what you’ll find at the Fair
This year, more than 600 companies will have some sort of food, drink, gift or service on display. The list of who’s coming features lots of local, ethical and handmade brands like Chameleon Earth Fair Trade leather goods, luscious Cowshed body products and Gwendolyn Carrie handmade shoes.
Even if you’re not up for shopping just yet, the Spirit of Christmas Fair is the perfect place to take in your first taste of festive spirit, with wines (mulled and otherwise!), chocolates and all manner of seasonal treats to be had.
Our tickets come courtesy of jewellery designer Kimberley Selwood, whose gorgeous new Plume range will be on display. Here’s one of her cuff bracelets — I think it’s really delicate and unique… something for the stocking, perhaps? (One can only hope!)
A Kimberley Selwood cuff bracelet
How to get in on the action
Tickets are valued at £15 each and are good for admission on Saturday or Sunday. We’ll give the tickets away in pairs so you can take a friend with you to soak up all the seasonal festivity.
To win yours, hop onto Twitter and be the first (or second!) to retweet our Spirit of Christmas Fair tweet. Good luck… and happy shopping!
Posted in Bargains & Markets, Uncategorized
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The Mulberry handbag challenge – job done!
I am pleased to report that the Mulberry handbag challenge is now complete, thanks to a clever little shop called Seconda Mano.
Seconda Mano -- this way for bargains
This past weekend I ambled up to Seconda Mano (no website, but I’m told one is on the way) in Islington to investigate an oft-told tale that until now I had disregarded as the stuff of urban myth.
Posted in Fashion
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DIY tutorial of the week
We are loving this ultra-thrifty ottoman re-upholstered with an old tartan skirt. Totally genius DIY! The step-by-step tutorial is courtesy of ModHomeEcTeacher over on Curbly.com. We found it on the utterly brilliant Design Sponge blog. Let us know if you’re tempted to make it!
Posted in Decor
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Posh afternoon tea for two for £10 [Part 2]
My home-made afternoon tea went down a treat – have a look at the results:
Admittedly I came in just over budget at £11.94, but think I did an OK good job with making my own scones and sandwiches. Remember, I’m not the best of cooks, so this was something of a challenge for me. I also have a very tiny kitchen and not a huge range of baking utensils, but I made–do with a few substitutes. For instance, I don’t own any scone cutters, so I used a glass tumbler to cut out the rounds of dough instead. And I also don’t have a pastry brush, so I ‘brushed’ milk on the tops of the scones with my (very clean!) finger tips! Thankfully the scone recipe was super-easy and they came out quite well – and it was lovely eating them warm and straight out of the oven.
Scones before …
… and looking v. golden and gorgeous, after!I picked some flowers out of the garden for my ‘centrepiece’ and dug out all my vintage china to set the table. I got a new cake stand for my birthday, which looked very pretty piled with scones and retro English biscuits. I ended up going for Jammy Dodgers, Party Rings and Fondant Fancies. My friend brought along her own art-deco cup, saucer and plate, and I think we achieved that mis-matched vintage look we were going for.
Despite going over budget, it was a big success and we had a lovely afternoon. Watch the video below and see me making a huge mess in the kitchen. I’m not called the Swedish Chef (from the Muppets) for no reason…
TOTAL SPENT: £11.94
COST OF AFTERNOON TEA FOR TWO AT LONDON’S DORCHESTER HOTEL: £75.36 (not including the discretionary service charge we usually pay)
SAVINGS: £63.42PROS:
• Could relax with friend at home.
• Lovely warm scones straight out of the oven.CONS:
• The shopping, cooking and cleaning-up afterwards.
• Not exactly Dorchester-standard food.
Posted in Food
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DIY tutorial of the week: Make a dress out of a pillowcase
I’ve been scouring the web for the ultimate in Make Do and Mend. And I think this genius tutorial for making a dress out of a pillowcase pretty much fits the bill.
Marceline over at Asking for Trouble shows you how to work some magic on an old pillowcase in very clear, easy-to-follow steps. All you need is a sewing machine, a pillowcase and some basic sewing skills. Read full post
