I Heart Haberdashery

I've been buying some gorgeous new supplies lately, with the excuse (as if I needed one!) that they will, in turn, inspire me to create new stuff. That, and well, I just love haberdashery. I even like the word - though it's almost dismissive somehow - making me think of frippery a little...it's amazing what you can make with some simple pieces of haberdashery and a dash of imagination.



Particularly irresistible I found, were the wonderful new range of ribbons by V V Rouleaux (such a grand name!) at my local John Lewis - I especially loved these jacquard ones below (which came in several beautiful colourways), and there was some gosgrain ribbon in colourful vintage stripes which caught my eye and conjured up romantic images of Cambridge: blazers and straw boater hats. I had to leave before I bought a bit of everything!

Retro Romantic

As an 80s kid, I'm simultaneously horrified and delighted to see some familliar sights from the past back in fashion. The neon colours I am really not that fussed about, and as for leggings, well, having not worn them since doing ballet classes at the age of six, I don't intend to wear them just because everyone else is. What's with the weird-looking metallic ones?! Is is just me, or do they look more than a little bit odd... Plus the whole 'baggy' look isn't exactly flattering.

Anyway, the delighted part - I wholeheartedly love all things kitsch, so the 80s revival in that sense is great!


Speaking of kitsch, I love these heart-shaped bangles from topshop- they fit right in with this theme.

I feel that the way to give a nod to this trend is through funky accessories - it shows you are aware of it (but don't want to look like an extra from Fame). Try some colourful bangles, a fun pair of earrings or a great little bag.

So with that in mind, I've been working on some retro designs of my own, namely these bad boys:



I'm really pleased with this collection of four different space invader badges - I now have them listed on my etsy, dawanda and folksy shops. Please see the links on the right :)

In other news, I have also been working on a new commission: a Pac-Man inspired scarf featuring Pinky the ghostie!



See my flickr photostream for more wip pics - I'm back on the crafting 365 wagon!

Crafting for a Cause

Red Nose Day 2009 is fast approaching. So, with that in mind, for every Handmade Felted Sweetheart Brooch I sell from my etsy or folksy shops during the month of March, I will donate the proceeds to the UK charity Comic Relief.



I thought it was about time I did some crafting for a great cause. The money raised is used by Comic Relief to "help poor, vulnerable and disadvantaged people turn their lives around across Africa, throughout the world's poorest countries and closer to home here in the UK."

In 2007, I made this corsage and sold it to raise money for Red Nose Day on my etsy shop. A group of other UK etsians did the same, making other items featuring the colour red - a colour very much associated with Comic Relief and their red noses - in their work. A treasury featuring many of these pieces made it to the front page of etsy, which was great for raising awareness.



For more information about the charity, or to donate, see www.comicrelief.com

Back to Nature

Back to Nature - by WildCat Designs on Polyvore.com

I think this is a collection of handmade loveliness perfect for Spring time - I hope you'll agree!

1. Handforged Bronze Maple leaf pendant by Knitsteel
2. Recycled Circuit Board Clip boards by DebbyAremDesigns
3. Woven Roosting Nest (for small birds) from WWF "Green Gifts for Spring"
4. Paper decorations by Sallyent
5. Fair Trade Magazine Paper Pots from Pea Green Things
6. Paper Dress by Cut Paste Create

UK DIY

I'm very excited to announce that there are some WildCat Designs 'artefacts' on display at the recently-opened UK DIY exhibition. It's on at the Turnpike Gallery in Leigh, Greater Manchester and runs until the 25th of April 2009. It's part of a larger series of UK DIY events and projects taking place throughout 2009 - see www.ukdiycraft.com for more information.

The exhibition is an exploration and celebration of modern British Craft and includes the work of many innovative UK and international makers as well as community projects. It also incorporates a hands-on element where visitors can get involved have a go at crafting themselves!



There are a couple of my creations in the 'techno-crafting' section, relating to work influenced by the iconography of 1908s video games :) You can probably guess that one of my Space Invaders numbers is present and correct!

And the Winner is...

...(drumroll please)... Jennyflower! A goodie bag of handmade WildCat Designs Valentine-themed treats are yours :)





[I used the random number generator on www.random.org to make sure it was properly random & fair.]

February Fun

I'm not long back from a little trip up north to Stonehaven, partly to get away from it all, to catch up with a friend and also for its proximity to Aberdeen :)

On one particularly dreich day (no joke, it was raining cats & dogs!) I spent a happy half hour in a lovely craft shoppe in Stonehaven. Having seen some rather nice yarn in the window, my boyfriend knew it was inevitable that I would want to go in! I couldn't leave without having a good rummage and left with this little lot:



Additions to the ever-mounting stash, yay! :) The yarn is sooo soft and Rico Baby is a brand I haven't come across before - with some yummy colours in the aptly-named 'Lollipop' range. Just wish I'd had time to find at least one of the independent purveyors of yarn in the Granite City. Mind you, it's probably just as well since I have a bit of a problem walking out of such shops empty-handed!

For those of you who might fancy getting your mitts on some WildCat Designs handmade goodies, there's still time to enter my Prize Draw - plus, I've decided to extend the deadline to midnight (GMT) on Tuesday, 10th February 2009. What are you waiting for?!?

Happy Birthday Burns!

He'd have been 250 today...

We had our traditional Burns Supper this evening - haggis neeps n tatties - and very good it was too! With an extra-special creamy mash and one of McSweens finest :)

In honour of the occasion, I would like to share with you the

Address To a Haggis

"Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch , tripe, or thairm :
Weel are ye wordy o'a grace
As lang's my arm.

"The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hurdies like a distant hill,
Your pin wad help to mend a mill
In time o'need,
While thro' your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.

"His knife see rustic Labour dight ,
An' cut you up wi' ready sleight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like ony ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reekin' , rich!

"Then, horn for horn , they stretch an' strive:
Deil tak the hindmost! on they drive,
Till a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve
Are bent like drums;
Then auld Guidman, maist like to rive ,
Bethankit ! hums.

"Is there that owre his French ragout
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad make her spew
Wi' perfect sconner ,
Looks down wi' sneering, scornfu' view
On sic a dinner?

"Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As feckless as wither'd rash ,
His spindle shank , a guid whip-lash;
His nieve a nit ;
Thro' bloody flood or field to dash,
O how unfit!

"But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed ,
The trembling earth resounds his tread.
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He'll mak it whissle ;
An' legs an' arms, an' heads will sned ,
Like taps o' thrissle .

"Ye Pow'rs, wha mak mankind your care,
And dish them out their bill o' fare,
Auld Scotland wants nae skinking ware
That jaups in luggies ;
But , if ye wish her gratefu' prayer
Gie her a haggis !"

- Robert Burns

One of the strange things about this is, I think our night in celebration of good old Rabbie Burns is almost certainly more widely celebrated than St. Andrew's day.