Empty promises...

Oh dear! i owe myself and you an appology, i failed to post images of my work and studio up for you...
I do however have an excuse.... i lost my camera in my house! Yes, because of the chaos that is currently my house my poor camera got lost beneath the clutter, as i said in my last post, I'm having some work done and all of my belongings and half a kitchen are currently residing in my bedroom. This not only makes getting out of bed difficult for me but also means i cant find anything!!

I thought this week id make a little summary of what i have been doing this year, it sometimes feels like I'm not been very productive, neglecting my blog, Etsy, Facebook etc so i think reminding myself what i have been up too is a good start to getting back on track...

January.

• Teaching at Central Lancaster High School every Thursday. Helping Yr11 Creative media students make head dresses for the schools upcoming fashion show.
• Working around 30hrs per week in a bar called Roper Hall in Preston
• Looking for inspiration
• Helping a friend
• Physio for my back, due to a car crash last year
• Attending the doctors alot
• Buying a bathroom suite
• Feeling uninspired

February.

• Feeling better!
• Hair modelling
• House remodeling, mum and dad staying over alot.
• More physio (last few)
• Working 30hrs per week
• Teaching on thursdays
• My nanna became ill
• Helping with a magazine for work
• Learning how to 'de nib' pva and 'white out' my kitchen
• Planning for a fairtrade project in march
• Preparing for an exhibition of some of my sculptures
• Preparing and making more brooches for a Vintage and craft fair in march
• Saw All time low in manchester

March

• Teaching on thursdays
• 30hrs in the bar
• Yoga
• Pole dancing
• Physio
• Feeling great again
• Made a mini top hat for a friends birthday
• Making a fascinator for a regular customer
• More house remodelling, parents staying over more often than not this month
• Hair modelling
• Handed in my sculptures for exhibition
• Had a very succesful craft fair at the Continental Thanks to Not Just Vintage Uk
• Made fairtrade banners for Fairtrade fortnight with Yr9 pupils (photos will follow)
• Observed the creative media students do a project at Dallas road primary school. They are Designing a mural for a wall oin the school carpark with help from Zap Graffiti
• Staff meeting at Roper

When its all written down like this i realise that i have had quite a busy year so far, not prehaps so many crafty creations but a whole load of other things.
Im feeling very positive that the rest of march is going to continue to get busier and more and more productive! I already have a To do list for the rest of the week, my organisational skills look to be improving.
Exciting times ahead for me and my crafty creations!
Thats all for this week im on a lunch break, time to finish off these head dresses!
Ta ta for now (no promises this week, ill see how the house goes, find my camera and attempt to find a clean space to take some pictures)
Carrie xxxx

Spring clean

Well its been a week and i have almost sorted out my studio, i have also been getting my house ready for a makeover, working in the bar and teaching at a school if you were wondering why it has taken me so long!

All i need to do know is transport all of my making supplies i have stashed in my house over to my studio, this may take a while as  i have no transport of my own, so will have to carry a few things at a time on the train and along the 20 minute walk up a hill to the school where im based.

I am going to make a promise to you and to myself that i will have some pictures of my lovely studio to show you next week and possibly a few new things iv made too! :)

Productivity in february is definately on the rise.

Ttfn
xxx

Its funny....

....where inspiration finds us. With January proving seldom inspiring i have been waiting for that moment, the moment when inspiration comes unexpectedly and fills you up excitement and enthusiasm. Today was finally the day! It wasn't inspiration for an idea or project as such but just for motivating me to get moving with my creative goals, to tackle the TO DO list which has been growing rapidly since Christmas.

What was it that finally inspired me?

It was simply an early morning dash to Greggs to buy my lunch before school, where i help teach creative things on a Thursday! I was waiting for my tuna crunch sandwich and latte when as i was eyeing up the yumyums i saw the cutest little cake with a red plastic heart shaped finger ring stuck into the icing on top, all of a sudden... whooosh... i felt great, i couldn't wait to get to my studio and start sorting it out so i can make things again!

Seems strange that such a silly thing can make your day, i feel like iv woken up and am seeing everything fresh and new again and filled with things to inspire me and make me happy! This is my 2012 starting right here! Goodbye January and good riddance!

The Big vintage and fashion fair at the Printworks Manchester

The Printworks was a great location for this fair, with vintage stalls lining the streets and handmade creations begging to be perused. Then down in the depths of Pure nightclub was me, my stall and a whole load more than that!

Vintage fashion was very much alive at this fair as well as many lovely people trying to make a living by making and selling their wares like me!

The day started off slowly with just a few people trickling in and out, i was lucky enough to have a great position at the top of the stairs which everyone coming in and out had to pass!

Half way throught the day i had a visit from my friends Elly and Jess from Nellie and Elsie

who kindly looked after my stall for a few minutes while i dashed off for some much needed food!

I managed to re home a few of my creations and had an all round great day!

Heres a few snaps (appologies for the lighting but nightclubs with oraange and green lights make difficult working conditions!)

New fascinators with a bit of sparkle!

Well my weekly blog target seems to have gone out of the window! so this is me catching up.
I made a few new fascinators recently that im really excited about, have a look and let me know what you think.

Autumn flower

This piece is made from an old suit jacket, sequin

waste, gold flower brooch, upcycled wool samples,

and vintage and thrifted buttons.

 

Little green centipede

This piece consists of a lovely white fabric flower,

a very beautiful green and silver centipede brooch,

upcycled lace, reclaimed wool samples and

vintage/thrifted buttons

Big purple flower

This piece is a thrifted brooch nestled on a bed of reclaimed

wool samples and silk fibres all sitting on top of a lovely

white fabric flower.

Well thats all for now...

Thankyou for visiting as always!

Much love

Carrie x



C- Arts

I currently have some of my creations in an exhibition at Central Lancaster high school. The exhibition celebrates the work of local artists and makers as well as some lovely work from the pupils
I have taken a few snaps of my work and some of my faourite things from the preview night...
Hope you like them as much as i do!





Workshop!

I did my first family learning workshop last night! I think it was a success, everyone is coming back next week and they all made two brooches each!

I had alot of fun and i loved the final creations, im going to be more organised and take my camera next week :)

Iv had a very busy week making things for an exhibition this weekend, the preview is on thursday so i will post pictures as soon as i get chance!

In the mean time i think you should all check out Miss Matilda's Boutique in Preston, a lovely little boutique selling lovely accessories, clothing and gifts!

xx

Just a quick one!

Hairy brooches!

Just a few new things im working on, i love my hairy brooches!

Ill be blogging more often from now on! Things are starting to come together for me, i just need to organise my time so i can fit everything in!

There are lots of exciting things happening for Carriemariah, ill fill you in on my next post and i will have some more pictures of new things iv created too!
Love
xxx

Harvest Festival, creative market

Hello, today I'm going to tell you about Harvest Festival in a little city called Preston.

Harvest Preston is a new creative collective which is bringing together local talent for networking and showcasing work. It is open too artists, musicians, photographers, designers etc

This weekend was the launch of Harvest in the form of an amazing festival which brought together many local creatives for live music, exhibitions of art and photography, comedy and creative market.

I had a little stall in the creative market selling fascinators, brooches and even my first attempts at cardmaking!

I also sold a few copies of Twigs and Apples whic i recently wrote a piece for, this a new zine based in the north west which aims to provide an outlet for creatives from many different disciplines, this ranges from music, gardening, cooking recipes and art and a whole load of other things in between! They are open to suggestions and consider submissions from anyone, if you are interested in contributing click the link above which will take you to the facebook page.  Here are a few pictures...

There were some amazing other stalls too which i am now going to tell you about.

Rachael's Pinups 2011

This is a Pinup calendar created by to raise money for a local girl who was last year diagnosed with MS. She desperately needs treatment which is not available on the NHS and will cost thousands.
Please click the Link above to find out more and to find out where you can get one!

Katherine Johnson

Katherine is an artist/maker. She makes various things including book sculptures, cat toys, drawings, stamps and notebooks.

Looking Glass

Looking Glass is pretty Jewelery with a thrifty twist all lovingly created by Zeynep Ozsabuncu, check out her facebook page by following the link above!

Kandiihaar Dreads

Hair extensions specialising in Synthetic hair dreadlocks in many colours and styles. She also makes fabulous cakes which i induldged in! If you have any questions or special requests just contact her.

SeaJules

Beautiful Seaglass jewellery, driftwood hearts, headbands, charm bracelets and other pretty things.

Drawn By Dreamers

Cute arty products including badges, post cards, customised shoes, magnets etc I bought myself a gorgeous post card and some little butterfly badges.

The Haberdash Steampunk Shop

Lovely Steampunk inspired jewelry and creations. Join the facebook group and buy yourself something pretty now and possibly win yourself a necklace (runs until the 25th November) see facebook post for details.

Thank you Harvest for a great weekend, looking forward to the next event!

That's me done for today, hope you enjoy discovering some of Preston's finest talent. You can find out about the other artists, photographers etc and Harvest at www.harvestpreston.co.uk

xxxx

Styx!

Crafty creations of Carriemariah will be back shortly, but for now let me tell you about this amazing little shop in Preston indoor market that once was a haberdashery...

Styx...Gothic and alternative fashion, accessories and other weird and wonderful things!
Tucked away in the top right hand corner of the upper floor in the market, Styx grabs your attention straight away as you walk past the fabric stall and the last remaining haberdashery! The green and black hand painted sign tells you immediately that this shop is worth checking out, not to mention the fantastic array of colours amongst the quirky clothing that decorates the entrance to the shop!

Rachel and Gina are responsible for this venture they both make clothing and accessories which they sell in the shop along with various other labels. They also welcome custom orders and are more than happy to do alterations, what more could we ask for!

I bought a pair of hand crocheted hand warmers, iv had so many compliments and my friend wanted some in the same wool so Gina kindly made her some from scratch, now that's good customer service right there!

I popped in the other day and snapped a few pics for you, I highly recommend visiting more than once as there are always different little treasures every time i swing by!!

Thanks Styx for being awesome!! xxxxx