Monday 21 April 2014

Easter Catch up and Crafts!

Well a little post Easter catch up over here on Crafting a Daydream. It's been a busy couple of weeks with four Easter crafting sessions for all the mini makers in Cambourne, Cambridgeshire, Easter egg hunts with family and friends, roast lamb dinners and of course, eating chocolate.

I fully intend to share the crafts we got up to with the mini makers and you may have seen a few details already via my social media sites but here's a little run down for you. The sessions were held in the lovely building that is Cambourne Church. The volunteer run cafe, 19, only opens on two days a week for a couple of hours in the school holidays so the mini makers sessions were held at the same time. On the first day we decorated Easter biscuits and paper eggs. Day two was glue...lots and lots of glue...as the mini makers made mesh eggs and decorated Easter bonnets and panamas. The third session saw some lovely egg cups being decorated and promptly filled with chocolate eggs whilst paper crafting fun was had by all and mini makers in the final session decorated plant pots, made paper flowers and sowed some bee friendly seeds...obviously. Here's a few pictures.

Baby B loved getting involved and came along to the final session but littlest B is still very dependant on his mammy so he joined me at each group. He was very well behaved and joined all the other little babies on the play mats whilst children aged from 2 to 12 crafted and mummies, daddies, grandparents and carers enjoyed a cup of tea and a bite to eat from the cafe. Each session was finished up with an indoor picnic.

I had heaps of fun organising these sessions and was very nervous on the day of each (children can be tough audiences) but I've learned a lot along the way and the children inspired me greatly. It's refreshing to witness creativity that has had minimal influence from the big wide world relative to 'growned ups' and they put me completely to shame with some brilliant ideas and creations. These sessions were a good lead up to something new and exciting coming to 19 The Church Cafe. I can't wait to officially start the first 'Crafty B's Cafe.'

On a Wednesday morning from 9-11am, I will be at 19 The Church Cafe at Cambourne Church armed with creative bits and bobs, kits, books and magazines in the hope that some more Crafty B's will buzz on down, grab a cuppa and join in the crafty fun. Whether they be a new Mummy looking for an hour of 'me' time whilst little'n plays, a childminder with a group of little ones on an outing, a parent or carer with a tot to entertain whilst they enjoy a yummy coffee or simply an adult looking to meet like minded people; I hope that the Crafty B's community will continue to grow.

The Monday night group in Hardwick is still going strong and I have plans for the next craft day in Bourn so I will be sure to keep you posted. Don't forget to join me on the Facebook page (and make sure it is set for you to receive notifications) and I will keep the blog up to date with new events. I also have a new calendar page with all of the events and if you wish to stay posted via email, just let me know at mrscraftyb@gmail.com.

I look forward to seeing you all soon!

Mrs Crafty B

Friday 11 April 2014

A Post From My New Hang Out!

Hola Crafty B's!

I can't believe I'm posting this from a desk. Not just any desk. This is a desk in an office. An ACTUAL office.

Since having the littlest Baby B, I have had a 'plan' to get Crafty B's up and running, meet more people, communicate and generally work through my never ending list of ideas. I've tried to keep Mummy mode the priority but now I'm coming to a natural return to the world of work and I need to take that leap but I'm falling of the virtual radar. I need to get organised, get a work/ home life balance and be more productive in both. Welcome to my new journey crafty journey!
Today I am more motivated than ever because I had the opportunity to hot desk in a co-working environment at Cambridge Business Lounge . I try not to work when I am alone with the little ones unless they are napping and on the occasional hour that I might be 'Crafty B's' focused, I don't tend to get much done at all. This morning, I jumped in the car with Hubby B, got a lift into Cambridge city centre leaving the Little B's in the care of Nanny B, took a lovely stroll across Parkers Piece and boldly set up my desk for the day after a warm welcome at Cambridge Business Lounge. I achieved more this morning than...in a very long time. It's is amazing how focused you can become without the distractions of the dishes/washing/hoovering/lunch making/lunch clearing/pretend food eating and tea drinking. There is a lot to be said for this co-working malarky. I highly recommend it to anyone who works from home or from coffee shops (by the way...they have a Nepresso machine here ;-) ) So whilst everyone on the street below browses shops and enjoys the sunshine, I am getting stuck in and giving myself a head start on the Crafty B's list (and on the childminding admin...I started back with that this week too). LOVE my new hang out! *writes desk fee into monthly budget and crosses out the cost of three coffees*

Hope you're all enjoying the arrival of the sunshine and I'll be back shortly with more crafty news and updates!

Mrs Crafty B