A new stockist for Whinberry & Antler in Cirencester

I am delighted to announce a new stockist for Whinberry & Antler products in the beautiful town of Cirencester, 'For You and Your Home'. In this lovely shop you will find unique British made homewares of rich warm textures. For You and Your Home actively try to support British Craftsmen and women who use local sustainable materials which is great and fits in perfectly with the ethos of Whinberry & Antler. Take a look at the company website which has an online shop, you're bound to find some ideal gifts for your loved ones this Christmas; www.foryouandyourhome.co.uk

Vintage, in Shrewsbury, have also just received their new W&A order, including products featuring the new designs, so if you in Shrewsbury be sure to pop in and take a look! (www.vintage-shrewsbury.co.uk).


Whinberry & Antler will be heading to London on Monday for the Country Living Christmas Fair. I can't believe how quickly it has come around and that we are now in November. When I exhibited at the Fair in Spring, I was generally really pleased with the look of my stand. I did however feel that perhaps the sign did not entirely fit in with my brand, and so this time I have made two really big cushions to use as my signs instead! I think they work really well and I am looking forward to hearing any comments or thoughts on them at the Fair next week.

I must say a big thank you to my partner Finn for all his hard work and support in getting W&A ready for the fair, he will also be my fellow sales person next week!

Hopefully see you there,

W&A.

A quick glimpse behind the scenes...

I just thought I would share this photo, as I always think it's really interesting to see the actual work space of designers and crafts people. So here's mine. It's a bit hectic at the moment, that may be something to do with a certain Christmas Fair...?

One day, when I live amongst the hills of Powys, I shall build a workshop in my garden. That's the dream.

Free tickets into the Country Living Christmas Fair

I have a limited number of tickets available to customers who place online orders via the www.whinberryantler.com before the 1st November 2012.

A selection of these are tickets offering free entry into the show (a fantastic saving of £16.50 on the door) for Wednesday 7th, Thursday 8th, Friday 9th and Sunday 11th November. I also have a selection of Gala evening only tickets for those who want to avoid the crowds and enjoy a free glass of wine!

In the meantime, I shall get back to cutting the hessian to make some new extra large cushions which shall be making their debut at the Fair. Hopefully see you there.

W&A

The cosy textures of hessian, becoming more and more appealing as the days get shorter and cooler.

Country Living Christmas Fair 2012 tickets competition

I have two tickets for the Country Living Christmas Fair to give away to someone who can come up with a great idea or names for the different designs in the Whinberry & Antler range! I'm looking for something reflecting the nature of W&A's  British and hand made products inspired by our countryside.

The tickets will get you and a friend into the country living fair for free between Wednesday 7th and Sunday 11th November (except Saturday) at the Business Design Centre, London. Tickets are £16.50 each on the door so this will be a great opportunity to save money on entrance! And I'm sure you would be able to find all your friends and family some very special unique gifts for Christmas. Plus it's a great way to kick off the festive season as the team at the Country Living Fair always to a fantastic job of decorating the Business Design Centre.

To enter, simply comment on this post or visit our Facebook page.

I look forward to some suggestions...

W&A

A Badger Lampshade

So today I finally got around to making my first lampshade! I think I'd put it off as it all seemed a bit fiddly but it actually wasn't too bad. I printed two badgers onto a piece of cotton for this lampshade- I think it looks nice, but next time I shall use the smaller repeat fabric or more prints of the larger images. So I'm going to order another 24 frames to take some to the Country Living Fair.

This one can be found hanging in my parents study. The natural cotton works really well, especially when the light is turned on, it gives off a lovely warm glow. Hopefully they will sell well at the fair, and then after that they will be available at www.whinberryantler.com.

Thanks

W&A

A scurry of Red Squirrels and a Wisdom of Owls.

Today I have been printing the new owls and squirrels onto all things W&A cotton based. I'm really pleased with both designs. The owl will be too big to make into lavender bags, but it looks great on the aprons. The red squirrel is very cute and definitely has the 'ahh' factor, which should make him popular. Once I have made a selection of new products I shall start photographing them all to make them available online. Here's some photos of them, including me wearing and showing two of the new products...

Country Living Christmas Fair prep underway

Well, I'm slowly working through the check list for the Country Living Christmas Fair in London this November. Started printing the new designs yesterday which was great!

I've also just ordered a child and adult dress mannequin as I felt that the aprons were not displayed as well as they could have been at the Spring fair. I've also just received a lamp shade kit in the post today so we will be making a prototype this weekend, I'll post a picture of it when it's done!

Many thanks for coming back to read the W&A blog! See you soon.