We were immediately greeted by some art work by Francisco De Pajaro, who has been working on various pieces around Darlington this week and was doing the same around the site today. They are so much fun, and it was great to spot them throughout the day![/vc_column_text][vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”3″ images=”5581,5582,5583,5584″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” column_number=”2″ grayscale=”no” choose_frame=”default” img_size=”large”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411851233983{padding-top: 30px !important;}”]Right from the beginning of the day, there was such a lovely atmosphere and SO much going on. We started at the Arena and main stage and pottered around the stalls there. I loved the Charity Shop DJ where people could choose cheesy tunes from a box of LPs from local charity shops, and have a go at DJing.

 [/vc_column_text][vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”3″ images=”5587,5588,5589″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” column_number=”2″ grayscale=”no” choose_frame=”default” img_size=”large”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411847878771{padding-top: 30px !important;padding-bottom: 30px !important;}”]Next, we headed into the Beehive – just look at that writing! I love the retro styling of Lingfield Point.

There were some fabulous stalls in there, and I was super organised and got a couple of Christmas presents. It was here where we bumped into curators of the Festival of Thrift, Wayne and Gerardine Hemingway! I explained that I’m a part of the School of Thrift, and they very kindly agreed to having their photo taken – thank you so much to you both!

After that we left them to rummage through some LPs and continued on our way. We came across a stall from The Beehive Brand, which had the most beautiful knitted garments in traditional patterns. I can’t really describe how beautiful they were, so you’ll have to take a look : [/vc_column_text][vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”3″ images=”5596,5597,5598,5595″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” column_number=”2″ grayscale=”no” choose_frame=”default” img_size=”large”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411851507792{padding-top: 30px !important;}”]The Beehive Brand was established in 1785, but after a period of decline has recently been bought by Andrea Freeman, who’s passion for this exciting project really shines through. Not only is she recycling the old brand, but the old patterns too, and new garments using old patterns are being gradually released once more. I’m really excited to see how the brand develops! If you’d like to find out more, visit her website.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411850503131{padding-top: 30px !important;padding-bottom: 30px !important;}”]Here are a few more photos from around the site! Look out for the tea ladies with the invisible dog (if, indeed, you can ‘look out’ for an invisible dog!) if you’re going tomorrow – they’re hilarious![/vc_column_text][vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”3″ images=”5602,5603,5604,5605,5606″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” column_number=”2″ grayscale=”no” choose_frame=”default” img_size=”large”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411849392734{padding-bottom: 30px !important;}”][/vc_column_text][vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”3″ images=”5607,5608,5609,5610,5611,5612,5613,5614,5615″ onclick=”link_image” custom_links_target=”_self” column_number=”2″ grayscale=”no” choose_frame=”default” img_size=”large”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411849832037{padding-top: 30px !important;padding-bottom: 30px !important;}”]Mum had a go at weaving, and made this to add to the huge spider’s web – fab!

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]There were so many lovely stalls around the event, but I was really pleased to catch up with my friend Victoria, aka Dizzy Miss James! We met a few years ago at a craft fair and it has been wonderful to see her shop develop. She designed all of these little guys herself – aren’t they adorable!?

It was also brilliant to meet some new people at the event, including Angela from Maison Royale – her stall was fabulous and she was so lovely to chat to! You see that gorgeous arrow light? That will be hanging in our new kitchen in a few months! Yes!

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1411851452668{padding-top: 30px !important;}”]I took so many more photos, but I don’t want to give everything away! If you’re in the area tomorrow then you MUST go along. And don’t forget to tag your photos on social media – #FOT14

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To make a floral bouquet you will need:

Some flowers (I used roses and spray carnations for this bouquet)
Some floristry tape (not the waterproof one)
Sharp scissors
Floristry pins
Ribbon

Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:

You’ll need to do a few practice runs before the real thing – experiment with different colours and flowers and pick your favourites too This is my actual wedding bouquet – I bought flowers from various stalls on York market to put it together:

Here are a few final tips!

I’ll be doing one more post about wedding planning – look out for that this weekend! :-)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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We were lucky enough to be able to borrow our family bunting to decorate our wonderful wedding venue, and the bunting is made from fabric contributed by Tom’s Aunt’s wedding guests a few years ago. It was such a lovely project to make and I thought this would make a perfect tutorial to share with you – you can recreate it with your friends and family for a wedding or any other special occasion!

This tutorial is available exclusively on the Festival of Thrift Google+ page – I’d love to hear what you think! Look out for more wedding-themed content this week too!

The post The School of Thrift: Thrifty fabric bunting tutorial appeared first on Hello! Hooray!.

It’s almost Easter, and I’ve designed this little project to help you celebrate! I love Easter eggs (who doesn’t?!) but I really dislike all of the packaging that they come in. So this is just like your stocking at Christmas – an Easter egg that you can re-use each year!

This project has been designed for The Festival of Thrift’s School of Thrift, and is exclusively available through their Google+ page. So if you want to see more, follow this link! I’d love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to leave a comment here

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The Festival of Thrift was launched last year at Lingfield Point in Darlington, with the aim of showing just how much fun and creativity there is to be found in living thriftily and sustainably. Thrifting, the idea of creating something yourself or ‘make-do-and-mend’-ing has definitely seen a huge revival over the past few years and this is something that the festival celebrates wholeheartedly.

The team behind this fantastic event includes Co-Curators Wayne and Gerardine Hemingway, Festival Director Stella Hall and John Orchard, a Director of Marchday, owners of Lingfield Point. When speaking about the festival, Wayne said: “The success of last year proves even further that thrift is not just a flash in the pan but a set of values applied to the way you live your life. Thrift has become a vital, contemporary movement reflecting traditional values, and it’s evolving each day as our needs and the needs of our planet change”.

Activities at last year’s festival included sewing, dancing, foraging, playing, music-making, hula-hooping, theatre, gardening, upcycling, eating, bargain-hunting, learning, oven-making, quilting, baking, crafting – and plenty of inspiring talks on sustainable topics taking place. Sounds amazing, doesn’t it? I must admit that I couldn’t actually go to last year’s event (because we had a family party following our wedding) but the excellent news is that the festival will be returning to Lingfield Point in September this year!

As part of the launch for the 2014 Festival of Thrift, the Festival of Thrift’s ‘School of Thrift’ has been set up online at their Google+ page. Here you will find expert advice from the lovely people at Festival of Thrift, plus they have recruited some fantastic bloggers to share their ideas and tips about how to upcycle and generally lead a more thrifty life. Throughout the past week, contributors to the School of Thrift have been announced and these bloggers include:

Vicky from The Owl and the Accordion (I absolutely love her style and have been following her on Instagram for a while now)

Elizabeth from Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary (possibly Britain’s most Northerly food blog – the photos will make you hungry just looking at them!)

Sarah from Drawn Threads (who has declared 2014 her ‘Year of Thrift’ – find out more on her blog!)

Kim from Witchmountain (based in the one of the most glorious parts of the UK, the North York Moors, she’s one super-crafty lady!)

Karen is an international contributor to the School of Thrift, and she makes amazing videos with her husband, Danny, of their thrifted makes in Australia – see them on her YouTube page.

And the next contributor is…me!  Yay! I’m so excited to be a part of this wonderful project alongside some really talented people. It has been brilliant to find out who else is involved and to meet new bloggers, crafters, artists and thrifters. And there are so many more to come! I’m already planning some exciting projects, so stay tuned…

The Festival of Thrift takes place on Saturday September 27 & Sunday September 28 2014 at Lingfield Point, Darlington. You can find out more and sign up for updates at the Festival of Thrift website. I hope that the van is there this year – I’d like to have afternoon tea in it too!

All photos courtesy of Festival of Thrift 2013.

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