Treasures from the fair!

So yesterday I had the pleasure of a fabulous day out at the Silver Springs Antique Fair with the lovely Miss Mona Bells to hunt for treasure! 

My big prize of the day of course, is this incredible 19th century HMV gramophone, complete with tin horn, a collection of wild swing records and plenty of needles to keep us going for a while! It has the iconic and beautiful background crackling, and I adore the little hand painted logo on the front. Doesn't it look so sweet in our kitchen? Perfect for the odd dance around the place in the morning with Heidi ;) Needless to say, my life is now considerably more complete now.

I also got my mitts on some bits and pieces of beautiful hand painted china, as well as some fun, colourful Royal Tara. I'm come to accept, that a girl can never own too many pretty teacups, no matter how small her kitchen may be and don't even try to resist any more.

I got this dinky little Victorian trinket box, which well to do ladies would have kept on their dresser to store their engagement ring and other precious pieces of jewellery in at night. I love glass boxes and display cases in general, and it reminded me of a terrarium, so I had to have it!

Finally I got a good deal on a handful of lovely silver thimbles which I plan to make into necklaces, I especially love this one which says 'Forget me not' across it.

We also have a date planned for next weekend as I'm going to be attending my very first auction, with lunch and drinks after, and I am beyond excited about what bargains await! What vintage treasures have you dug up lately?

February Giveaway!

This Incredibly Realistic, Tiny Nature-Scape Really Reminds Me Of The Mountainsides Of Kerry, Where I Used To Spend Many Hours In The Heath, Hunting For Tiny Quartz And Amethyst Crystals As A Child. 

I Made This Piece By Surrounding A Rich Purple Raw Amethyst Crystal With Real Specimens Of Irish Lichen Before Preserving Them Inside A Beautiful Glass Orb. 

If you'd like a chance to win oe of these precious little beauties for yourself then pop over to the Ruby Robin Facebook page to enter, and if you just can't resist, you ca buy one right away over at RubyRobinBoutique.com.

Welcome to Chaos..

Ever wondered what the home of a self-employed person around Christmas time looks like? Well, it's not pretty that's for sure, and this is only one of the THREE rooms that have been completely devastated this week. Sometimes I do have to pity my boyfriend. I **really** need a day off soon!

 

Treasure from the woods..

 

  

 Hello everyone! Just a quick post to share my latest news with you :)  First off is that my website is finally up and running at long last! There are still some kinks to be ironed out, but I'm hoping to have it pretty much perfect by Christmas, pop over here for a look!

 

This little botanical specimen locket is the latest addition to the Boutique! It is made with  real Irish lichens which I gathered in Gougane Barra National Park a month or two back. Gougane Barra is one of our new favourite places to go for a hike, I can't believe we only discovered it this year after living in Cork County for nearly ten years! 

Lichens like the ones in this locket grow profusely throughout the ancient, mountainous woodlands that have survived in the South of Ireland since the last ice age almost 10,000 years ago, and some have lived for many hundreds of years. Lichens are an extremely important environmental indicator and indicator of air cleanliness, so it's reassuring to know that Cork and Kerry (my two homes) are absolutely covered in the stuff!

I don't know how old these particular specimens are, but the thought of carrying around your own little bit of Irish natural history is pretty cool! I did a bit of research online,and found some great websites just for identifying Irish lichens, and managed to identify these specimens as; Parmotrema Perlatum (Black Edged Leaf Lichen), Evernia Prunastri (Common Oak Moss) and Usnea Subfloridana (Old Mans Beard). 

And you can find the Lichen specimen locket is here!

 The first day we found Gougane Barra, we were both having a sad day and desperately needed to get out of the city to clear our heads, we were blown away by the battered old mountains that greeted us as well pulled up. Soon after entering the park, we wandered off the path, through the trees and followed a meandering little stream deep into the forest.

As we walked we found all sorts of strange little mushrooms and were surrounded by hundreds of butterflies and dragonflies, neither of us had ever seen anything like it! We took turns getting photos, and if we had stayed still long enough I think they would have come and sat on us. It was one of the most beautiful encounters with  nature I have ever been lucky enough to have experienced.

 

 

 

After having a picnic and getting quite lost for a few hours, we headed back home recharged and happy. Nothing grounds you more than spending some time reconnecting with the natural world. I can't wait to go back again.

Away from it all... if only for a day

 

Latest creations.. butterflies and gold

My latest creations for the Boutique! terrarium bottle pendants made with delightful little things like *real* butterfly wings, wisps of gold flakes and native Irish mosses and lichen. The butterflies were sustainably sourced from a butterfly farm, no wild or endangered butterflies here!

These vials are reminiscent of dusty old natural specimen jars, odd in their beauty and oozing with irresistible intrigue and mystery. A tiny world preserved, for you to wear.

I'm working to get these ready for a weekend I'll be spending doing demos and selling my wares at the Shanagarry Design Center in East Cork, so pop in and say hi if you're in the area this coming Friday, Saturday or Sunday. If you don't get a chance to see them in person, these bottles will be making their way to my Etsy Shop sometime next week (if any survive the weekend that is!).