Business Cards

I have been putting off getting some proper business cards made for a while now. I made my own out of kraft card and rubber stamps but they have run out now. I had an email offering 50 free business cards from moo.com so I thought I would give them a go, as it would only cost me the postage. Afterwards, I decided to go for some Mini Cards too, which I ordered separately. They are incredibly cute and eye catching which is why I thought they would be great for The Bee Hive.

Here are the finished article

You can have a large number of images on the back of the cards, so I chose a few of my favourite photos of my makes. What do you think?

I chose the standard delivery which was expected to arrive on the 23rd March however they arrived a mere two days later! Quick delivery and great quality cards - spot on!

Moo were lovely enough to pop in a little discount code should any of you lovely readers want to get creative on their website. Following this link will entitle you to 10% off your order :)

First Craft Fair of 2012

 Yesterday I attended my first craft fair of the year. I shared my table with my good friend Anna. Together we were The Bee Hive Crafts and Sunflower Crafts.

Button Bracelets, Sunflower Crafts

Shambala Bracelets, Sunflower Crafts

Rings, Sunflower Crafts

Whimsy Wallets, The Bee Hive Crafts

Lavender, The Bee Hive Crafts

Felt Rings, The Bee Hive Crafts

Coasters, Sunflower Crafts

Handmade Bags, The Bee Hive Crafts

Earrings, Sunflower Crafts

We had a lovely day nattering and even managed a few sales too ;) Our next fair together will be on Saturday 7th April in the centre of Hinckley again, at Praha. A charity event in aid of Breast Cancer Research.

All Week

Aylestone Meadows: A walk by the canal.

 The sun came out this week: Hello sunhat.

 Baking: Black Bottom Cupcakes

 Shopping with Nana Bee: Trying on every pair of glasses in reach.

 And Bun.

 Bad Haircut: Still happy!

 Craft Fair: The Bee Hive Crafts and Sunflower Crafts.

'Sun'day: Garden

 Sunday Lunch: Lockwoods Tea Rooms

 Idle Fingers: Mr Bee's quilt squares cut

 Laughter a plenty

 Baking: Choccy Chip Cookies

A rundown of our week :)

Sophie-Mae turns 1!

Earlier this week, Sophie-Mae celebrated her first birthday! I can't believe it has been a year since this special little girl came in to our lives!

Fit For A Princess...

Yesterday saw the visit of the Queen and Kate Middleton to our city of Leicester. They were visiting De Montfort University (in which Papa Bee attends) at the start of their Jubilee Tour.

As part of their visit to the university, Kate Middleton was to pick a winner of a very special competition. The students of the Footwear Design course were to design a shoe for the Duchess to wear, in which the winning design would be made and given to her.

Our very good friend, Becka Hunt who you will recognise if you are frequent visitors to my blog, was picked as part of the final 6. Her prototype was made and she had the opportunity to meet the Queen and the Duchess, who would be choosing her favourite shoe.

As you will have probably noticed (as it has been all over the worldwide media!), our beautiful friend Becka won the competition! She has had such a hectic day, with numerous media interviews, including being whisked away to London for an appearance on Daybreak!

The winning design

We are so incredibly proud of Becka, Mr Bee keeps asking to see her on the television again and again, what a novelty for him, seeing his 'girlfriend' on the screen!

This is such an amazing opportunity for Becka and her career, we know she is destined for great things!

Well done Becka, we love you!

Images courtesy of www.thedailymail.co.uk

Bits and Bobs

Bit of a quiet one this week, here is a mish mash of what we have been up to.

1. Playdough in pyjamas before nursery.

 2. A rather foggy but absolutely beautiful drive to work. A busy day but lots of great news!!

 3. Market Bosworth Country Park. The trees are still bare, the ducks were very noisy and we had to don our slipper socks when we got home because our feet were very damp!

 4. A lovely friend of mine gave birth to twin boys on the 29th of Feb, what joy! Congratulations Asta and Darren!

 5. Lots of crafting, Mr Bee was sorting buttons to keep out of Mama's way.

 6. Messy painting... you should have seen the state of the sofa....

 7. Mama wanted to play photographer so dug out Grandpa's tripod which has been in the attic for over 17 years. I knew I would use it one day! However, Mr Bee had hours of fun playing with it, pretending to make films.

8. What a beautiful apron I made yesterday at The Sewing Cafe. Great company and a wonderful pattern. I am very pleased!

Spotlight on: Sunflower Crafts

It occurred to me that I have lots of friends and family who are incredibly talented! I thought that I should share with you their makes and so the 'Spotlight On...' was created! This 'Spotlight On' is dedicated to Sunflower Crafts.

 Anna of Sunflower Crafts is one of my best friends. For as long as I have known her she has been making jewellery and being generally creative. She has recently started going along to craft fairs and has built up a good portfolio of items from bracelets to coasters.

The coasters have been a very popular addition to her repertoire. They are ceramic based, with a felt backing and feature patterns and motifs that are truly beautiful. The coasters are availble for £5 for 4 coasters.

Anna also designs beautiful jewellery including bracelets, earrings and necklaces, here are a few of my favourites.

Button Bracelet £2.50

Fairy Earrings £3.50

Paua Shell Wirework Bracelet £10

You can hop on over to http://sunflowercraftsbyanna.blogspot.com/ for more Sunflower Craft goodies and be sure to visit her Facebook page for more updates!

If you are in the Leicestershire/Hinckley area on the 10th March 2011, The Bee Hive Crafts and Sunflower Crafts will be holding a stall at a craft fair taking place in the Hinckley URC from 10 until 4!

World Book Day

a day late...!

Our Favourite Books (in no particular order)

Little Beauty by Anthony Brown
This book is an enchanting story of a friendship between a Gorilla and his best friend, a kitten called Beauty. Mr Bee loves the 'gorilla book' and that he signs along with the signing gorilla. We have lots of fun copying the various faces and emotions captured in the illustrations.

Penguin by Polly Dunbar
This is such a fun book, with a very simple narrative so great for keeping little ones attention. Love the illustrations and Mr Bee can empathise very well with the little boy in the story.

Sylvia and Bird by Catherine Raynor
Catherine Raynors books never fail to impress with such beautiful illustrations. It is a very sweet story of two unlikely friends. We read this book over and over and is definitely a firm favourite!

Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy by Lynley Dodd
What a classic! Such great rhyme and repetition which always has us in giggles!

The Mousehole Cat by Antonia Barber
A book based on one of our favourite places in the world. It tells of Mowzer the cat and how be brought about the tradition of Star Gazey Pie. This book is a little too word heavy for Mr Bee at the moment, he does lose interest after a while but he is fascinated by the pictures.

Tiger by Nick Butterworth
I remember when this book was first published. I bought it right away, even though I was a student at the time and had no children! I just loved its cute simplicity, Nick Butterworth never fails to deliver wonderful childrens books. (Also see 'The Whisperer')

A Bit Lost by Christ Houghton
Louie chose this book out of a window display last week and he couldn't have chosen a more suitable book. The prose is quite simplistic and Louie can understand it easily and loves the quirky images.

The Kiss That Missed by David Melling
This is the best bedtime story ever! A busy King sends his son a kiss goodnight and it misses! Better go chase that kiss and see what happens!

Who Are You Stripy Horse by Jim Helmore
Such a fun book with such interesting characters. We love pointing out interesting things in the shop and of course finding out who Stripy Horse is, that is the best bit!

Mouk by Marc Boutavant
A great book to inspire children. You can play so many games with the detailed illustrations, learning about different countries along the way. Re-usable stickers are provided for endless entertainment!

Childrens books are one of my favourite things ever. I love to read with Mr Bee, studying the pictures and reading along. I feel so lucky to have worked for so long with Childrens books, giving me a good insider knowledge ;) also, meaning that I could build up an awesome library for my children!