the green gal

Too beautiful to light

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If I were to ever have a mansion, with several floors and a circular staircase, I would absolutely want this paper chandelier to be the central light fitting. It's a beautiful creation as it is but pehaps even more lovely lit up?

The crochet hour

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So, I'm thinking about crocheting a blanket. I'll need to find a 25th hour in my day as, quite frankly, I don't have the time, but I rather fancy giving it a go anyway. 

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As you know, I run my own busines, the green gables. It takes up most waking hours, and the odd sleeping one, and I really love it. I get to be enormously creative in my work but there's a little part of me that thinks it might be a good idea if I did something creative for the fun of it, and in the evenings, to help me relax and switch off before bed. 

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I seem to be incapable of devoting my full attention to most TV shows but rather than spend every evening on the laptop I think crocheting could be a good alternative occasionally. I'm not in a great hurry to complete a project (don't think I need to give myself any more deadlines), I just like the idea of crocheting of an evening, and eventually ending up with a pretty, cosy, useful blanket.

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Have you crocheted a blanket? Do you have any tips or advice for me regarding pattern, yarn or timescale? I've dabbled in crochet but I'm not very experienced so any thoughts you have I would love to hear! Or read!

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Free printable Christmas wish lists

There's no denying it. It's on its way and it can't be stopped. Two months today is Christmas Day. Now, before you scream and run off, I've made you something to help you cope with the impending festivities – Christmas wish lists to download and print for free.

The two different blank lists are A5 size so both fit on one sheet of paper for ease of printing. One list is for you to fill in and leave in an obvious place as an unsubtle hint, the other can be used to jot down ideas for the gorgeous gifts you'll give to your loved ones, whether they be bought or made.

It doesn't matter how long your lists need to be, you can print out as many sheets as you like (on recycled paper if possible, and don't forget to recycle your lists post-Christmas excitement).

Download Christmas wish lists pdf

To download and print the lists simply click on the link above and away you go. You can print as many sheets as you like but as always with my free printables, if you want to tell other people about them please link to the post, not just the download, and all my free downloads are for personal, not commercial, use.

Happy list-writing!

 

Too beautiful to indulge in

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Actually, what I wanted to write as the title of this post is 'Too beautiful not to indulge in' but that sounded a bit of a mouthful. And, speaking of mouthfuls (like what I did there?) everything in this image is right – scones (heart-shaped at that), jam, cream and a beautiful cup of tea all served on a beautiful rustic table. Yum.

Pretty and planet-friendly finds: EcoCentric

I'm writing this week's pretty and planet-friendly find post while it's 0º outside and with a roaring fire inside, so it's safe to say I'm feeling quite wintery. And that's probably why I'm drawn to the warm, cosy products on today's gem – the web shop ecocentric.co.uk. This website has so many fabulously stylish items it was a real challenge to narrow down the choice to just three:

tea light holder, blanket, wallpaper

I love snuggling under a blanket on a chilly evening and EcoCentric has several pure wool beauties to choose from. The one above is made from rare breed Jacob wool using traditional looms in Scotland, and as each sheep's colouring is unique, so is each blanket. I'm really rather taken with this mustardy yellow wallpaper, it would look fab as a feature wall, plus it's printed with eco-friendly inks on PEFC paper. And what's a firelit evening without a spot of candle light too, would you have guessed it's recycled glass?

Stylish and sustainable, I love it.

Palette pingpong no38

Hello there! How's life treating you today? Very well, I hope.

So, it's time for a little palette pingpong. It's my turn to challenge Kirsty and I've done so with this very pretty picture:

 

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You couldn't wake up feeling grumpy in such a happy-looking bedroom, could you?

So, Kirsty will have made a beautiful palette, I'm sure, from this image but what will she then do with it? Rumour has it one of my kitchenware products is involved…! I'm scooting over to ginger and george pronto to take a look, who's with me?

Oh, and while we're on the topic of kitchenware, don't forget that to celebrate National Baking Week I'm giving you 25% off aprons, tea towels and mugs at the green gables with code BAKE25 until Sunday evening!

Tutorials from around the www

Here are a few DIYs, how tos and tutorials that I've happened across on my web wandering and thought you might find them interesting too…

:: Make tissue flowers

:: How to wallpaper with fabric

:: Make glue-free book page bunting

:: How to update suitcases with fabric

:: Make a wallet

:: How to print on wooden coasters

Too beautiful to post

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Not that you'd want to (or be able to) but how fab is this cake decoration?! What is there not to love – it's cake, it's bunting, it's using colour co-ordinated postage stamps. Love it.

And while we're talking cakes, to celebrate National Baking Week I'm giving you 25% OFF ALL KITCHENWARE at the green gables! Just use code BAKE25 at the checkout before the end of Sunday 23 October to get your discount. Enjoy baking!

Special offer for this weekend only!

The sun is shining, I've had a fab week so to celebrate I'm giving you 20% off everything at the green gables for this weekend only. Use code WKND20 at checkout between now and Sunday evening to receive your discount. Happy shopping!

Pretty and planet-friendly finds: People Tree

I'm on a mission to prove that pretty can be planet-friendly and green can be gorgeous. Every week I will bring you an artist or business that creates items that are not only eco and ethically produced but are also beautiful, you can read my first post which explains a bit more here.

This week I give you People Tree. If you're not already familiar with the company I can tell you they design and produce stunning clothing and accessories for women, men and children AND have inspirational ethics. People Tree have collections by Emma Watson (yes, she of Harry Potter fame) which has helped bring their ethical clothes to the discerning teenager's attention. They meet the fair trade standards set by the World Fair Trade Organisation, you can read more about their policies here. 

And quite frankly, their clothes are just plain gorgeous:

dress, pyjamas, cardigan

It was tough to only pick three items, especially when they make such great ranges for men and kids too, so I stuck to women and went for my favourite pieces. Check out People Tree online and you'll see for yourself how stylish and cutting edge organic and fair trade fashion can be.