the green gal

After the clean-up

The riots, looting and general deranged mayhem that happened a few weeks ago in several cities around the UK may have dropped out of the news headlines but those affected are still coming to terms with what took place. Lives were lost, homes destroyed and businesses burnt down. As a small business owner myself I wanted to find some way to help those independent businesses whose shops were mercilessly trashed and looted.

So, when a twitter friend, Zoe, announced she was organising a raffle to raise money for the independent businesses affected in the riots I jumped at the chance to join in.

There are around 100 prizes to be won in the Riot Raffle and all you have to do to enter is buy a ticket for £1. All the prizes have been donated by small business owners, my contribution is this framed print:

Every penny raised will go to the Retail Trust, a charity who will make sure that all the funds are used to help the small businesses and shops so badly affected by the riots. 

I don't usually ask for favours but if you could spare just £1 to buy a ticket for the Riot Raffle you will help the innocent victims and possibly win yourself a prize in the process. You can see all the prizes and find out more on the Riot Raffle website, and buy a raffle ticket at the Just Giving page. 

Thank you so, so much.

Did you miss me?

You may not have noticed but I've been absent from the blogosphere and twitter world recently. This is because I have been basking in the baking heat of Lake Garda in Italy! We were there for a few days for some friends' wedding and although it was almost unbearably hot for me (I'm really not built for nearly 40ºC temperatures) it was a beautiful setting, as you can see. 

But now I'm back, working on orders (bunting doesn't make itself you know) and enjoying the sunny but autumnal air that we have returned to!

Find me at The Academy

I don't think I've ever been to an academy before but I have now! The Academy is a blog written by Noisette Marketing, which is run by the inspirational Isa Maria Seminega. Isa recently interviewed me about my eco and ethical values and how they work within my business, the green gables. You can read all about it here…

Too beautiful to sleep in

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I'm quite a fussy gal when it comes to bed linen, I'm not usually a fan of busy patterns, I prefer mainly white bedding with a touch of colour coming through in a sheet or second set of pillow cases. But when I saw this image on pinterest.com I was instantly smitten. It looks vintage and modern, childish and grown-up all at the same time. Plus it's organic cotton which makes it even lovelier! It's actually from Pottery Barn, one of many shops on my list for the next time I'm able to visit the US. Although, they do ship to the UK…

Palette pingpong no34

The image I chose for this week's palette pingpong post represents exactly what I would like at the moment – a spot of indoor camping:

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Doesn't this look so inviting and cosy? I'm well aware it's a child-sized tent in an obviously children's room but still, lose a few of the building blocks and I'm there! It's just the thing to do on a grey, chilly, decidedly un-summery day.

I challenged Kirsty at ginger and george with this photo and I'm super keen to see what loveliness she has created using its colours as inspiration. Rumour has it she may have cooked up a little download for us all to enjoy…! Right, I'm off to Kirsty's blog now to find out, are you coming?

The statuesque mug goes to…

Thank you to everyone who entered my mug giveaway and for being so encouraging about my smartened up website, I really appreciate it, you lovely people!

But the person who will soon have a mug winging its way to their kettle is… Rachael! Well done, send me your details so I can get your prize into the post pronto! 

Thanks again to everyone who entered and if you'd like to take a closer look at my kitchenware you can find it here.

Ta ta for now!

Making for fun

I have recently realised that I rarely create something for the sheer fun of it. Making and designing for a living has become so all-consuming that I find that all my creative energy is channelled into work. But last weekend things were different!

The hubbie and I decided it was high time we tackled a few of the jobs around the house that have been on the to do list for far too long. There's still lots more to do but at least we checked a couple of things off the list. As well as painting a new piece of art, making three cushions and stretching a gorgeous piece of fabric over a canvas frame to make a picture, we also updated an old mirror. The mirror above was a rather naff-looking pine mirror but a couple of coats of Farrow & Ball duck egg paint later and it's vastly improved.

Have you made anything purely for the joy of creating recently?

We also discovered a treasure trove of a vintage kitchenalia, furniture and bits and bobs in a nearby town and it's taking all my willpower to not run back there every day to see what's new! When we find homes for more of our new finds I'll share some snaps, promise. In the meantime you could always look at yesterday's post which features a beautiful vintage typewriter I picked up on eBay…

Too beautiful to type on

I've been a bit cheeky this week and used a photo of my own for this post. I couldn't resist though, I bought this vintage typewriter last week and I love it so! Every time I walk by it I have to pause and give the space bar a few taps. The ping that sounds when you get to the end of the line is so satisfying. Maybe there's an app available for digital typing… Anyway, I've ordered a new ribbon so may soon be able to type some actual words! 

Here it is perched on my kitchen dresser, pretty eh?!

Find me at UK Handmade

 

As well as being featured on Hmade, which I blogged about on Monday, I am delighted to be part of a feature on UK Handmade. As part of their Buy Handmade campaign, UK Handmade are asking owners of shops who sell handmade to curate collections of work. Clare at Calladoodles in Carshalton was kind enough to include my bunting in her collection, along with several other very talented artists. You can read all about it here…

PS You have a couple more days to enter my giveaway so don't miss out!

Too beautiful to be disorganised

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I love the look of this shelving unit, I wonder what it was in a previous life? And with such beautiful crockery and kitchenware it wouldn't be a chore to put away the dishes. Just lovely.