Friday Finds – Cast in Bronze

‘Cast in Bronze’ by Emma Dickie Design

I absolutely love anything bronze at this time of year. It’s the perfect colour for coming into Autumn. Enjoy these bronze delights!


Opaque Rose Bronze Lustre 6m…

$2.5

Bone and Bronze beads bracel…

$15

Bronze pearl earrings, champ…

$13

Shimmering Black Bronze Gold…

$39

Vintage bronze and gold clip…

$15

Steampunk inspired metallic …

$40

Leaf Beads Czech glass leaf …

$2.2

Clear Quartz Gemstone Wire W…

$15

Bronze triangle handmade rin…

$35

Ancient Bronze Resin Stud Ea…

$15

1 Small Bronze Figurine – Et…

$43

Antique Bronze Vintage Sheet…

$10

Original 1970s Bronze Loafer…

$25

Etched Bronze Cuff Bracelet…

$60

Distressed/Edgy Bronze Digit…

$15

Set of 25 Honey Gold & Bronz…

$2.9

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A Spot of Gardening

My thumbs are anything but green, however we have a small flower bed at the bottom of the front garden that was just shouting to be turned into a rockery.  After a recent trip to the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, I knew I wanted to create a feature using alpine plants and succulents.  I can’t take all the credit though, my mum did a lot (most) of the work!

2014-07-20 13.31.31I’m planning on filling in some of the gaps in time but I just adore these little plants!

Thursday Feature – Design & Belle

It’s been a while since my last Thursday Feature – I just don’t seem to have as much time as I used to for sharing the love!   However I’m determined to get back into more regular posting.   This week I am delighted to introduce you to Belle from Design & Belle, an Etsy shop dedicated to invitation designs.  Belle’s shop has an eclectic mix of beautiful colours and designs – and even if you don’t find what you’re looking for, also offers custom designs!

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and where the inspiration came from to start your Etsy shop. il_fullxfull.630359483_997a

I’m a freelance creative from Winnipeg in Canada! I have always designed invitations for my own personal occasions and wanted to see if people were interested in my designs, which grew from there. I am working on new print designs and will be introducing stationery soon!

2. Do you have a favourite design? Tell us about the thought process involved in creating it and why it is your favourite.

Right now, I’m really favoring my “Home Sweet Kitchen” chalkboard prints. I love the chalkboard trend and was inspired to mix it up with something different.

il_570xN.632031732_qjpt3. What is it that makes your shop unique?

I love to design with textures, colors and patterns you normally wouldn’t see together.

4. What are your goals for the next year?il_570xN.629583969_smzw

My goal is to keep designing what I love! Taking new art classes. Working on having my prints carried by independent brick and mortar shops.

5. And finally let us know where we can find you.

Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/designandbelle
Twitter: https://twitter.com/designandbelle
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/designandbelle
Website: http://www.designandbelle.com

Thanks for sharing your shop with us, Belle.  I can’t wait to see your new stationery and good luck with getting your work into the shops!

Christmas Cards

We’re now midway through my Christmas in July Sale – and what better time to get your Christmas Card orders in!  Use Coupon Code CIJ2014 for 10% off your order!

Each card is painstakingly stitched by hand using good quality cotton thread before mounting in a cream coloured card and comes with its own matching envelope.  I’ll even happily send your card on your behalf to your desired recipient!

Christmas in July 2014!

I can’t believe it’s July already, which means of course it’s time for Christmas in July!

Simply use Coupon Code CIJ2014 for 10% off orders from my Etsy shop!

This is a great opportunity to get started on some Christmas shopping, buy birthday presents or even just treat yourself!

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Something New

As you may know, I’m currently reworking my shop and moving in a new direction which will focus on hand crafted metalwork jewellery.il_fullxfull.620804100_doui

This weekend I decided to take a break from working on the house and devoted my Saturday to making jewellery.  The hours just flew by and although I had hoped to get more done I am really pleased with what I’ve accomplished!

These Cross Stitch Earrings are made using sterling silver sheet which is hammered for texture and drilled to create holes for cross stitching.

il_fullxfull.620918343_tnd1I love the simplicity of the design and I’ve already ordered more sheet silver to create variations of these earrings.

I’m not planning to completely stop making beaded jewellery, however I love the feeling of satisfaction that comes with creating something completely from scratch – right down to the ear wires.

Keep your eyes peeled for more metalwork jewellery coming soon!

Clearance!

Over the years I’ve gone off in different directions with my crafting, tryingSale-PurpleGreenScarf different things and developing new styles.  However, as my shop and brand grow I think it’s important to try to streamline things a little and create a cohesive range of products.

This might initially be difficult for me because I don’t want to restrict myself to only one or two knitting patterns, but I definitely feel that my current range of scarves is a bit too random!  So the plan is to develop a unique pattern and create scarves in a range of different colours.  I’ve already started to apply this process to my slouchy beanie hats and I’m so happy with how the range is starting to take shape.

I’m also going to start moving away from beaded jewellery and instead develop my range of metalwork pieces.  There’s something very sil_fullxfull.618296570_a2jwatisfying in creating a unique piece of jewellery that has been hammered and crafted with your own two hands.

This is all going to take a bit of time, but in order to make some space in my shop, I feel it’s time to have a clear out of some of my older designs.

So come and have a look at my new CLEARANCE SECTION!  Everything has been marked down by 20% meaning there are some wonderful bargains to be had!  This isn’t a temporary sale, but a permanent mark down in price – and once it’s gone, it’s gone!

This will be an ongoing process and as time goes on I will be adding different items to my Clearance section – so be sure to check back regularly!

Vibrant Hats

BlueYellowHatI’ve finished posting my new series of funky slouchy hats to my Etsy shop!  It’s maybe not the best time of year to be doing this seeing as the sun is finally coming out, but I’m  sure my international customers from colder climes will still appreciate their cosy warmth!

OrangeBlueHat3I’m also very pleased with how my photos are turning out in my new livingroom.  Because we have windows at both ends I can get loads of natural light streaming in and creating a well balanced, natural looking photo.  I’m going to start retaking photos for the rest of my products, as I think some of them might be overly bright in comparison!

So I hope you enjoy my new hats – I’ve created a design to suit the bold,PinkGreenHat3 as well as the more reserved hat wearer, from toxic green and pink to creamy white cables.

BlackYellowHat2There will be more to follow in time, so don’t forget to check back often, or follow me on Twitter/like my Facebook page to be kept up to date with new additions.

 

Ribbon & Ruffle Scarf Sale!

That’s right!  From now until the end of May all of my Ribbon & Ruffle Scarves will be marked down by a whopping 25%!

These Ribbon & Ruffle Scarves come in a range of vibrant colours and the ruffles create a lovely texture.  In addition to full length scarves, I also have a number of shorter Scarflettes which come with their own coordinating handmade scarf pin.

All of my Ribbon & Ruffle Scarves have been automatically reduced by 25% until midnight on 31st May (GMT), so there’s no need to worry about entering coupon codes – the hard work has already been done for you.

A little bit of interior design…

As promised, I’m going to share my first go at a spot of interior design.  I come from a reasonably creative background and assumed that I would be able to tackle my first decorating project with a bit of flair… hopefully I’ve pulled it off!

The first room we tackled was the living room/dining room which was previously adorned with Artex walls, wooden panels and a bright blue carpet.  Not exactly inspiring but I knew that this space could be transformed into something special.  Check out the slideshow below to see how we progressed from 80s awfulness to modern chic!

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We still need to make a couple of finishing touches to the room – such as put in new doors, add some artwork and put up the curtain rail (which you can see propped against the wall in the last photo!) but until then I’m really enjoying using this space.  We eat dinner at the table every evening and I just love curling up on the massive couch with my knitting!