Craft Room Tour

I've been waiting ages to share this room with you. I love spending time blogging, filming and crafting in here as well as using it to put up friends and family when it converts into a guest room. I hope you like it!

Back in January I moved into my new house and had the mammoth task of trying to organise a chaotic craft room! If you're a neat freak like me, you'll want everything to have its place and also to look pretty. I'd been scouring Pinterest and made my "Craft Room /Guest Room Inspiration" board to give me some ideas on what to do with the room.

Follow Laydey Katabella's board Craft/Guest Room Inspiration on Pinterest.

As you can see from the photographs below, my craft room started off a very depressing life of mishmash and mess! 

The desk was made up of an old Ikea shelf and a computer desk but then I had a brain wave and this happened...

With a lick of paint and some imagination, I transformed my old Ikea shelf and computer desk in to a cream work bench and even painted a second spare Ikea shelf and bought another matching Argos computer desk for a small amount of £18. I'd been searching far and wide for the perfect desk but couldn't find exactly what I wanted and also found that nice desks were damn expensive!

Overall I'm really pleased with my up-cycled work desk and because it was so inexpensive to create, I don't worry about scuffing or chipping it. At the end of the day I'm using it to create and craft on so I expect it to go through the wars, plus the chalk paint I used gives it a shabby chic effect!

When it came to the finishing touches I again tried to be thrifty about it, making bits myself like the "create & craft" bunting, the dream catcher and the notice board. The little pots and trinkets were picked up in charity shops and things like the bunting and cross stitch on my craft shelf and pillow on my desk chair were made by wonderful people I know and really add a lovely crafty touch. 

As well as being a craft room, this room also doubles up as a guest room when people come to visit. I was even thrifty with this as I picked up the wooden part of the futon from a charity shop for £40. An absolute steal that is very sturdy and teamed with a new matress and pillows makes for a comfy bed or sofa to read on.

And tucked away in the corner is teddy- my first ever teddy bear and a vintage suitcase packed full of craft materials and treasure! On top I have some wallpaper samples which are great for creating different backgrounds for photographs.

So that is my craft room! All in all I'm pretty chuffed with it and really enjoy spending time in here being creative. I also love that most things are up-cycled or second hand which just goes to show that you don't need a big budget to create a nice space.

Check out the tour of the craft room in my video below to get more of a view of the room:

Do you have a craft room or office?

Ramsey 1940s Weekend

Back in August- a term I’ve said a lot since I’ve returned to blogging but bare with me! Seriously though, back in August on one of those rare,  sunny and super hot days, Chris and I took a stroll to the Ramsey 1940s weekend. It’s literally round the corner from us and such a great event for all the family.

Held at “The Camp” on the outskirts of Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, The 1940s Weekend takes you back in time to live and breathe the 40s era. From spam sandwiches and bread pudding in the canteen, to battle re-enactments, 40s music and more- you’re instantly transported back in time. The atmosphere is truly fantastic with re-enactors mingling with the crowds and living history displays dotted between original wooden camp buildings.

Chris had never been to the 40s weekend and was highly impressed by the vast array of original artefacts and memorabilia (some of which you could buy) and entertainment put on in such a sleepy fenland town. He was particularly drawn to the manly things such as the tanks bombing up and down the fields, vintage motor cars and the battle re-enactments with a spitfire flying overhead. 

I was drawn to more of the girly things (surprise surprise) such as fur stoles, vintage dresses and jewellery being sold at the trade stalls. There were even hair and make-up artist stalls to transform you into a proper 1940s lady.

There were so many wonderful and knowledgeable people on hand too, eager to tell you the history of items. Both Chris and I were drawn to the bicycles, with original pieces like leather pouches still being in such good condition. Throughout the day you get a real feel for the era from the mix of military and civilian displays. 

On the Saturday evening is the Saturday Night Dance which I attended four years ago. Here you’ll have a brilliant night with live performances from jive bands and taught how to do the dances from the time. The evening is where you’ll find everyone dresses up in 40s clobber which is a real feast for the eyes and you’ll get endless enjoyment from people watching (when you’re not dancing that is!)

The Ramsey1940s weekend really is worth a visit, especially if you’re from the Cambridgeshire area and I can see Chris and I going back next year, most likely to the Saturday night dance to get dressed up and dance the night away.

For more of a feel of the weekend, why not watch the vlog?

Have you been to the 40s weekend?

Bill's Restaurant

Can you pay my bills? Can you pay my telephone … hold on that’s the wrong Bill’s. Back up back up! Forget Destiny’s Child, today I’m all about Bill’s restaurant and all about the food.

Pretty much every blogger and their dog has been to Bill’s except for little old me. I was due to go back in March to their Cambridge restaurant after the #Cambmeetup but was so god dam ill I sadly whimpered and travelled home to bed.

Whimpering aside, I’m glad I left it until I was fit as a flea, this time opting for the convenient location of the Peterborough branch with hubby Chris. Being the foodies we are, we booked in and happened to be the first customers of the day. Keen or what? On arrival we were greeted by lovely jolly staff who welcomed us into a warm friendly atmosphere.

Inside was surprisingly spacious with a skylight letting some much needed sun into the low lit establishment. The décor is rustic and eclectic looking with decadent chandeliers, oversized lampshades and shelves upon shelves of food (which you can buy!)

We started off with an appetizer of olives, which always go down well but these were particularly good as they were bloody huge and full of juicy rich flavour. The beers were pretty cool too, Chris opting for a Camden Pale ale at the waiter’s recommendation.

For starters I went for the grilled halloumi with quinoa and lentil sprout salad and Chris went for chorizo sausage roll in puff pastry. The sausage roll was freshly made so we were warned we may be waiting 15 minutes or so but it was well worth the wait! This take on the original sausage roll was absolutely divine, with the puff pastry being delicate and light. My salad was also lovely, with a honey dressing and a little red chilli with caper.

Onto the main and I was all over a burger! The bun beautifully soft and the burger itself being rich and delicious. Chris on the other hand went for the ribs, which I must admit looked god damn amazing! Slow cooked in bbq sauce, they were begging to be eaten and Chris thoroughly enjoyed them.  By the end we were totally stuffed and seriously satisfied.

So that was my first experience of Bill’s and a very positive one too! If you’re looking for a cosy restaurant serving good food with awesome staff and a relaxed atmosphere, I’d recommend Bill’s at Peterborough.

Have you been to Bill’s yet?

L’occitane and Stella & Dot event

Back in August I was invited to a L’Occitane and Stella & Dot event at the lovely L’Occitane store in Cambridge.

I took along my mothership as she’s a huge lover of L’Occitane products and together we were greeted by the lovely Olivia from L’Occitane (and fellow blogger at Crave MoreBeauty) with glasses of rose and Eton mess nibbles. Yummy!

The L’Occitane staff were on hand to give us lots of advice on products best suited to our skin types as well as pampering us with wonderful hand massages and educating us on scent layering- something that I’d never even thought to do! The hand massage made me feel so relaxed, maybe even a little sleepy after a hard days work and the cherry blossom hand cream used smelt absolutely heavenly as well as giving my dry hands a well needed moisture boost. I’d highly recommend a hand massage next time you visit! L’Occitane produces such beautiful products with over a quarter of them being organic that give you a real sensory delight when using them which is one of the reasons I enjoy their products so much.

Dotted around the store was lots of fabulous jewellery which my inner magpie spotted and was instantly drawn to! Stella & Dot is a line of fashion jewellery that’s constantly on trend, bringing new pieces out each season to add to any outfit. I love that the statement pieces can be paired with a simple outfit and really pull a look together. The jewellery can mix and match too, with interchangeable items and pieces complimenting each other for layering looks. Of course I couldn’t resist picking up some pieces, nor could Mum! Lauren the Stella & Dot Stylist and fellow blogger at Lo Lo Lovett was on hand to give us lots of style advice and information on the range. We decided to go for earrings and gift them to each other. I picked out the Eva Ear Jacket and Mum went for the Triangle Ear Jacket.

Image Source Stella & Dot

They’re so unique as they can mix and match between studs or the ear jackets which are really unusual. Mum also picked up the dainty Artisan Disc Cuff which will go perfectly with her earrings.

We of course picked up some wonderful L’Occitane products, being drawn to the Verbena and Cherry blossom scents. Verbena is a gorgeous fresh citrus scent that has a hint of sherbet to it and Cherry blossom is of course a floral scent that’s really delicate and beautiful. We came away with several products in these scents and lots of lovely samples to try too.

I couldn’t help but notice L’Occitane do men’s products too, something that I hadn’t realised and with Chris growing a beard nowadays I picked him up some Cade Oil which can be used for shaving or to smooth and soften facial hair. I've certainly noticed a huge difference in his beard’s softness and it smells SO GOOD!

All in all it was a fantastic evening, coming away with pretty jewellery and amazing products. It was also lovely to catch up with the other #cambmeetup girls again!

Thank you to Olivia and Lauren for putting on such a great event and I hope to attend another in the future!

Have you tried L’Occitane or Stella & Dot?