Surfacephilia now selling through MARY PORTAS

Many of you will probably know that at the beginning of the year I entered the national competition that Mary Portas and her team put out, looking for new up and coming homeware designers to represent in her House Of Fraser concession stores MARY.

After coming in as one of thirteen finalists out of 170 applicants, I'm happy to announce that my china has now gone on sale in all three stores, London, Manchester and Edinburgh. My four mugs, three of which were exclusively designed for MARY, are also available to buy online... you can take a peek HERE.

 

Vicky Trainor's Charity Summer Garden Party

Wedding stationer and inspiration powerhouse that is Vicky Trainor (ex work collegue and very supportive lovely friend) is always one to pull together great groups of people, that being through photoshoots, creative events, workshops or even just coffee mornings (keep your eye out - on Vicky's blog for future get togethers). Many months ago Vicky decided to throw a charity summer garden party for local creative business women and fans alike, in aid of a charity very close to her own heart, The Holistic Centre at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

So this Wednesday as a ticketed event, Vicky threw her doors open and invited around 35 women into her beautiful home and garden for a lunchtime of scrumptious food, relaxed business chatter, tons of laughter and fabulous raffle prizes...

The buffet food was laid out in Vicky's gorgeous home studio which never ceases to disappoint the eye, so this time round I couldn't help but take some snapshots.

In the end over £600 was raised for this worthy charity, with many big names and talented designers from all over the UK and abroad freely donating gift prizes for the raffle including a signed copy of Selina Lakes amazing new book Homespun Style.

A big well done to Vicky! It was great to catch up with this list of fabulous ladies...Here's to next years garden party! Becky Mitchell Photography, Jo Leversuch Make Up By Jo, Debbie Stodgen Photography, Katie Byram Photography, Sarah Hestletine of Lillians House, Wendy Walker of Peeling Paint, Jane Day of Tea with Ruby, Lucy Leaver of Design Hub Art Workshops.     

MY WINING RAFFLE PRIZES!... A Vicky Trainor original...

And a a box of gift tag and ribbon goodies from Bits & Bobs. Happy days.

 A wander through the studio...

HOME show build!

....was suprisingly not as stressful as my last show in September! I was fully prepared for ridiculously high stress levels, shaking hands and points of near passing out from forgetting to eat.... but my planning paid off and I got my stand built in less than a day. Pwwwuff!

My neighbours at the show were great, I was wedged between Italian homeware brand Seletti, British product designer Alex Garnett and and Dutch designer Piet Hein Eek, who's work I have always been a huge fan of... new blog post on this to follow!