Tuesday, April 23, 2013

A wish and a whisper..


I am so excited about my latest little creation for my Etsy shop Ruby Robin Boutique! It's my 'Wish and a whisper' bottle necklace, which I made by encapsulating a single Dandelion wish from my garden in a lovely little glass vial.
 
I love Irish folklore, and especially when it comes to herbalism! Even the most neglected and unloved of weeds have such wonderful stories and superstitions associated with them in this country, and the humble dandelion is surely no exception.

There are so many romantic myths surrounding the dandelion, the obvious one I remember from my childhood was that if you didn't wash your hands after picking them, you would be your bed that night :) I have a feeling that might have been a conspiracy on the part of some grown-ups to make kids wash their hands more often than they are naturally inclined to, and it worked too! Another fun one is that the longest stalk of dandelion you could find in spring indicated how much taller you would get by the end of the year, or that you could predict if a child would grow up to be rich is their chin shone golden when you held a dandelion flower under their chin!

Dandelions also have lots of romantic and whimsical connotations associated with them, included in a hedgerow wedding bouquet they bring good luck to the new couple, and planting dandelions Northwest of your house is said to being you good weather! If you blow all the seeds off a dandelion head in one go, someone loves you dearly and truly, if any are left, you have been forgotten. Furthermore, blowing the seeds off is also said to carry your thoughts and dreams into the mind of your one true love.

 So I decided to create a necklace in wish you could have your very own wish and a whisper, encased in a tiny little glass vial for safe keeping, until the time you might need it. 






Photobucket

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Fun, fashion and frolicking at Le Chat Noir Easter Vintage Fair



Last Monday I had the pleasure of trading at the fabulous Le Chat Noir Easter Vintage Fair in my hometown of Cork City. This is probably the most anticipated vintage event in the South of Ireland, so it was an absolutely manic week of preparation and excitement for us traders! 

It's such a fun event, aside from all the beautiful vintage and handmade clothes, the place is jammers with some of the most innovative designers and craftspeople from the south of Ireland, not to mention there is a vintage fashion show, a pop-up vintage hair and make-up salon, cupcakes and coffee and some seriously funky tunes from the resident DJ to keep you pepped up for the day!

I barely had a minute to catch my breath all day, but when I did I snuck off to snap some pics off all the beautiful sparkly, delicious and colorful things on show!



 
 
Here is the Ruby Robin Boutique display, incredibly it took two of us one and a half hours to set this up! I had a bit of a brain lapse at some point, as I haven't done a market for about a month, and I somehow forgot how I usually did it, but we got there eventually :)



My two girlies Lynn and Trish of Re-Vintage looking very punk flogging teacup candles and all manner of other pretty lacey things! 



 
My dear friend Miss Molly Ellis of Ewe Sir looking adorable with her Maisy lunch box/cash register and beautiful display of needle-felted artwork and retro prints.


An incredible selection of antique home-ware from Number 5 Vintage and Antiques



The most beautiful and original display of homemade treats I've ever seen from Swell Bakeshop


 Beautiful girlie cushions and bunting galore from Pollys Pretty Prints 

 
Wedding treats, DIY supplies and more pretty wonderfulness from My DIY Day



All sorts of mysterious and vintage treasures from  Mona Bells Vintage and Curiousity Shop including a green velvet sewing kit and dainty little teacup full of buttons!


and the proprietor herself looking glorious!


Trims,fabrics and lace galore from I of the Needle



 Stunning handmade clothes and all manner of gorgeous sparkly wearables from the wonderfully talented Samantha of Samantha Kennedy Designs



 

Me and my market girlies having a much needed catch-up and giggle and the end of the day :)

 Thank you so much to the girls Jill and Leona for organizing such a fun and fabulous day out, I can't wait for the next one already! 

Photobucket