Tag Archives: Creative Stitches

A fabulous first day at Creative Stitches & Hobbycrafts!

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As many of you will know, yesterday was the first day of our Creative Stitches & Hobbycrafts in Exeter – and what a first day it was! When the ICHF team arrived at Westpoint in the morning, scores of people were already swarming into the exhibition area to discover what irresistible gifts and craft products lay in store!

As the first visit to an indoor creative show for the new Sales and Marketing girls, yesterday was an overwhelming and inspirational experience – we enjoyed meeting all the lovely exhibitors and were swept up in the excitement of it all! We were delighted to finally see the Downton Abbey costumes that everyone has been talking about - and they certainly lived up to expectations!

     

We were particularly taken with the gorgeous jewellery and unique accessories offered by Michelle from Handmade by Me. So much so, we just HAD to have this photo taken with her cute pink Scrabble rings! Besides these adorable and unusual pieces, she had Liquorice Allsort charm bracelets, Lego earrings, Loveheart pendant necklaces, plus so much more!

The smell of nuts from the popular Gourmet Nuts stand drifted through the arena, tempting everyone around! We also sampled some dark chocolate infused cheese from The Truckle Cheese Co which was surprisingly tasty. We couldn’t help but stop by Annah Stretton’s ‘Chameleon’ stand, as the stunning array of dresses was just too good to miss! One of the ICHF girls became a willing clothes horse, and was shown all the wonderful ways you can wear these beautiful dresses – up to 30 in some cases!

    

We also had a quick chat with Alison Murray – the mastermind behind the fabulous international knitting project Above and Below the Waves – who told us all about her next exciting project, The Big Books, which comprises three books, each with a separate theme – ‘Mythology’, ‘Nature through the Day’ and ‘Future and Science’. We had a sneak preview of her first book, ‘Mythology’ and she’s hoping to take the main feature of that book, the Dragon’s head, to the Cardiff show next week. Fingers crossed! And although we didn’t take part in any workshops ourselves, Stephanie Weightman’s Make & Take workshops and the SAA workshops and demonstrations certainly drew in the crowds.

If you came along yesterday, we hope you enjoyed yourselves as much as we did! And if you’re visiting over the weekend, we hope we’ve whetted your appetite for all the inspirational displays, supplies, demonstrations and workshops awaiting you.

Until next week,

The ICHF team x

 

Creative show news and celebrations…

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Welcome to our very first blog entry! We have decided to bring this blog to you, our very loyal fans, customers and exhibitors, so you can get a glimpse of what really goes on behind the scenes at ICHF Events.

We’ve had a super busy week in the ICHF offices, as final preparations for the Creative Stitches & Hobbycrafts show at Westpoint, Exeter are well underway! We have a variety of exciting features in store for you this year, notably the capsule collection of Downton Abbey costumes from the first series. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last year, you may have noticed how Downton Abbey fever has truly swept the nation! Dame Maggie Smith, Hugh Bonneville and co have captured our hearts with the passions, scandals and conflicts of a vanishing class system in Edwardian Britain, cementing the TV show as one of the country’s best loved costumes dramas. And, with the second series starting this Sunday, (Downton Abbey AND X-Factor – we love you ITV1!) there’s no better opportunity to see these exquisite costumes in all their glory!

  

The Chilterns Craft Show & the Weald of Kent Craft Show Report

For those of you who came to one (or both!) of our outdoor craft shows, we hope you had a fabulous time! There was an abundance of arts and crafts on offer from hundreds of exhibitors, plus plenty of exciting features, workshops and demonstrations to keep the family entertained, including Birds of Prey displays and the irresistible Good Food Live Area. As always, Linden Lady proved very popular with visitors with her sumptuous selection of handmade chocolates!

  

Despite the varying forecasts, we managed to escape the majority of bad weather, apart from a couple of on-off days of rain at Stonor Park. Not that this dampened spirits! Visitors arrived in their droves throughout both long weekends, and when the sun did decide to grace us with its presence, it was like a gorgeous summer’s day.

Amongst all the preparation for the upcoming shows, these last few weeks have also seen an influx of cakes and treats appear in ICHF’s kitchen! Birthdays, show successes, the opening of a letter – you name it, we’ve celebrated it! Well, it’s not like you need an excuse to enjoy a cup of tea and a slice of cake is it?

We would love to hear from you, so please feel free leave comments below.

We hope you have a fun and creative weekend!

The ICHF Team x