Happy Hogmanay: 2011 Highlights

I say it every year- but I can't believe how fast this one's gone. There's been a lot of hard work, and I feel like so much has changed after looking back on my blog posts from this time last year. I'm planning on celebrating Hogmanay and the end of a really good year with the people closest to me in Glasgow this year. Here's a run-down of my highlights of 2011:

• I introducing a new collection of 6 cushions throughout the year

• Exhibiting at my very first Trade Show with Spotted at Top Drawer Autumn

• Meeting some exciting new stockists (who I'll be unveiling in 2012)

• Quitting the day job (WOOHOO!)

• Hitting the 800 sales-mark in my Folksy Shop

• Acquiring my first International stockist in Australia

• Receiving the Dundee Craft Maker's Award

Happy Hogmanay Everyone!

Spotted PLUS at Top Drawer Spring 2012

With the whirlwind that is Christmas and the festive season almost over I'm making plans for the coming year. Thank you to everyone who visited my shop this festive season- I hope that everyone who received a biscuity gift this Christmas was chuffed with it!

I'll be blogging a round-up of highlights from 2011 tomorrow- but until then I can't wait any longer to announce that I will be returning to Top Drawer Spring this January as part of Spotted Plus! While I was part of the Spotted feature last time around (see my blog post), Spotted Plus is a new addition to the Spring show. I've been invited to be part of Spotted plus alongside 5 other Spotted exhibitors from the 2011 Autumn show: Goodwin + Goodwin, Snowdon Design, Laura Spring, Bong & Rag, and Cutture.

I've been seriously lucky this month- and was awarded the Dundee Craft Maker's Award- which will be used to fund my attendance at Top Drawer this January.

The Top Drawer show mag popped through the letterbox this morning- and I'm very lucky to have had one of my Custard Cream cushions featured! I'll add a link to the digital mag as soon as it's released- until then there's a few snaps above.

If you're planning on coming along- don't forget to register. They'll give you a shiny show-badge to wear!

A Day In The Life: Boxing Day 2011

10:45am. Wake up after super-long lie. Was dreaming that I'd quit my day-job and was living in Cyprus. Nice!

11:00am. Get Bacon and Pita Bread for breakfast. Stay in PJ's.

11.30am. Help my mum design her new kitchen. She's excited! I am too- I like organising spaces so this a treat for me!

14.00pm. Stop kitchen-designing for lunch. This is homemade Nigella Lawson babycakes and Swedish Glace icecream. My brother calls them Heart Attack puddings. He's probably right.

16.30pm. The kitchen design is complete!

17.00pm. Start making dinner. Play with my mum's cat, Alfie. Discover that he loves it when you sing to him- it makes him roll on the floor!

18.30pm. Dinner time!

19.00pm. Settle down on the couch for the Boxing Day Eastenders. My brother improvises a song on the guitar about the on-screen drama. There's not enough memory in my phone to record it!

20.00pm. Brother announces he has a new business idea. Asks me to design his website layout. He is impressed by my knowledge of typefaces.

22.00pm. Website design complete. I realise that I have accidentally done a fair bit of design work today. Try to watch Ocean's 12 on the TV but it is awful. Playing with the cat is far more appealing. He's hyper.

22.30pm. Eat a mini Turkey sandwich and have a cup of tea. We watch something on the telly but I can't remember what (food coma setting in).

00.00am Bed!

Click below to read about other blogger's days:

Claire

Laura

A Day in the Life- December Date

For those of you who regularly read my blog posts you may have noticed a few posts entitled A Day In the Life. It's my turn to choose the date for the next post, and I have chosen Sunday the 26th of December- Boxing Day!

Everyone has their own rituals at this time of year and I thought it would be nice to share a slice of our lives at this much-hyped time of year. If you're taking part- don't forget to leave me a comment with your post's url so that I can collate them all at the end.

You can read the lovely Laura's belated Day In the Life from November here- along with a list of all of the other posts from this day.

Happy blogging!

FLASH Giveaway

I totally forgot that I'd made up these little gift selection boxes, (contents pictured above) so I'm having a FLASH Giveaway over on my twitter this evening (closing at 9pm this evening)! If you don't already all you have to do it follow me, and Retweet the giveaway tweet- when I tweet it!)

I only have 2 of these available only in my folksy shop- at the price of £15.00, including totally FREE postage for Christmas. These wee boxes contain £19.00 worth of my stuff- and come gift-wrapped up all nice, ready for you to give to someone for Crimbo!

Get yours HERE or head on over to my twitter for the chance to win one this evening!

Get it for Christmas 2011: Last Posting Update

If you're keeping up to date with all of my news at the mo- you'll know that my last posting dates for standard UK delivery have been and gone.

I know how busy everyone can be at Christmas (I, for one am nowhere near finishing my Christmas shopping) so I thought I'd give folks a chance to carry on shopping and still get their orders delivered in time for the big day with the option to upgrade your postage.

I'm offering an upgrade to First Class, or Next Day Special delivery, starting at only £1.00! This is available only for orders from my Big Cartel Shop, so avoid my folksy or etsy if you want to go for this! Check out the listing here for more information.

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Hope everyone's starting to get into the Christmassy mood now! If you're not- here's a really brilliant How-To by Flora of Through the Round Window for beautiful Eastern European Embroidery inspired paper chains! She's even included printable PDF's of the lovely patterned paper she used. Thanks Flora!

A Festive Week in Pictures

TOP (Left - Right): Snowy skies over Perth; Hand-painted tree decorations; Twinkly lights on our tree; Wrapped up warm in a Hilary Grant Scarf; Festive Nails with emerald Swarovski; Our tree this morning

With less than 2 weeks until Christmas (10 days if we're being precise) it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in our wee flat! Here's some photos from my week via my beloved instagram.

This week sees the last order date for Christmas in my online shop which is tomorrow, the 14th of December!

I'm also looking forward to the Creative Dundee Christmas Party, and posting my #TwitterSecretSanta gift. Hooray for Christmas!

Stay Cosy STORM Discount

The severe weather warnings were dished out early this morning with winds reaching up to 100MPH up here in Bonny Scotland!

Take advantage of being housebound today by putting the kettle on, doubling-up on the wooly socks and getting some Christmas shopping done from the comfort of your living room!

To help you in your quest for cosy home-shopping, I'm giving 10% off everything in my Big Cartel Online Shop for today only! Just enter the code STORM at the checkout.

You can use the code on absolutely anything in my shop from badges to cushions- until 23:59 GMT tonight. Remember, the discount only applies in my Big Cartel shop- the code won't work in my Folksy or Etsy.

Have a great day- and stay toasty!

Vitra Christmas Market 2011

My fabulous central Glasgow stockist, TOJO Design at The Lighthouse are setting up a little slice of TOJO magic as part of the Vitra Christmas Market at the Vitra Showroom, Clerkenwell London. (Above is a photo via Someday London off last year's market. Doesn't it look lovely!)

They'll be showing my Teacake and Caramel wafer cushions as part of their stand at the market which opens today (Monday 5th December) and will run until the 22nd of December 2011.

You can stop by Vitra for all of your Festive shopping (which in my opinion is always more fun when the shop looks like a little Swiss Chalet!) as well as picking up some classic design for your home (Santa- if you're listening- you could pick me up a nice Eames Chair for my studio desk!)

Check out the Vitra Blog for the official press realease. Hopefully I can squeeze in a trip to London before the end of the year to have a look myself and see how my cushions are getting on!

UPDATE: The nice people over at @VitraUk have tweeted some photos of the market as it is- now all set-up and open to your good selves! Here's their snap of my cushions alongside the beautiful work of Donna Wilson!

Photo Blog: Bunty and Bella's Boutique Bash