Christmas Fayre Dates Announced

Welcome back, it's good to see you, how've you been? 

Summer seems to be long gone and the wellies and coats will be out in force all too soon. We hope you had a wonderful summer and are looking forward to Autumn, Winter and...CHRISTMAS! Yes, we are sorry to mention that word when we are only mid-way through September but we are all very excited about our Christmas fayres and all the lovely goodies on offer. So, pens at the ready, write this in your diaries and on your calenders now...

Christmas Fayre's will be on......

Friday 12th November from 9am till Noon - it will be at Berkhamsted Civic Centre (easy access for pushchairs - yay!) and this year's evening event with mulled wine and twinkly lights will be on Wed 8th December from 7pm till 9.30pm, this will be held at Berkhamsted Town Hall.

Each fayre will have some very different sellers, so pop along in the morning to the Friday 12th November fayre for lots of goodies for children, babies, mummies, daddies, grandparents, aunties.......everyone really with an art table for the little ones to keep them happy while you shop. Then why not plan your Christmas night out with the girls for the Wed 8th December? Start your evening off with some mulled wine and twinkling lights at our fayre and grab a few gifts for you as well as everyone else! There will be fashion and accessories to treat yourself to along with some wonderful stocking filler ideas too.  Details of our sensational sellers will be coming soon, so check back often, we would love you to support us at our fayres, the local area is overflowing with talented artisans and unique cottage industries that we would love to share with you. We will be back soon!

Summer Fair is coming......

Here's a sneaky peek at some of the delightful treats in store for you from some exciting new sellers at our super dooper 

Pimms & Pamper Night, Wed 23rd June, Berkhamsted Town Hall, 7-9.30pm. 

We will have beauty treatments on the night (be sure to pre-book to avoid disappointment) therapists from Synergy, amongst others, will be joining us. Enjoy a glass of Pimms whilst browsing our boutique stalls, with shopping treats including wonderful shoes from Lucy Peach Slice, beautiful bespoke jewellery and one off vintage pieces from Oh Sew Vintage, handmade candles from Heather Emily and a brand new home ware range from Stealing Candy. You can also pick up a yummy cupcake from Nevie-Pie Cakes, a make-up roll complete with gorgeous make-up brushes from IslaB or a handmade corsage from Heartfelt Handmade plus many more treats for you and your family from Rockabye-Baby, Richard Roscoe Photography, Katy Leigh & Vie at Home. You can even have a Tarot Card Reading. More exciting new stalls to come. Keep checking back for more details.

Don't forget to pre-book your beauty treatment (hand/foot paraffin wax, facial, massage) by clicking here.....

p.s. all profits from the Pimms will go to the charity, Jeans for Genes.

Pamper yourself with a bit of 'You Time'

Here's a preview of our latest event..............A Pimms & Pamper Evening at Berkhamsted Town Hall, Wed 23rd June from 7pm. We will be supporting the charity, Jeans for Genes, with a glass of summer, book a pamper treatment and indulge in a spot of boutique shopping, come take a seat at our Summer Party and treat yourself.

Details of treatments and how to book will be coming soon, watch this space......

Pete's Poppies & Bespoke Verse

Yesterday we heard the lovely Samantha Rogers from Pete's Poppies talking to Lorna Milton on BBC Three Counties Radio. Although not a mum herself, Samantha is a young entreprenuer and has been instrumental in our More Than A Mama fayres. On the occasions where she hasn't been exhibiting her beautiful flowers and country style home wares, she has still been there helping out behind the scenes! Pete's Poppies is located at 102, High Street, Berkhamsted, contact them on Tel.0808 144 0808. Listen to Sam's radio interview again by clicking on this link. Samantha will be at the More Than A Mama Fayre next friday.

Today's radio interview is with local mum, Jo Miller, founder and creator of Bespoke Verse, a unique service composing tailor-made poems for all occasions, be it a Best Man's Speech or a Birthday, Jo has it covered.

We spoke to Jo recently to find out more, she said,

"I’m a Mum of three (ages 6, 4 and 1) and turned 40 this year.  Before having a family, I worked as an English teacher and adviser.  Poetry was my bread and butter!  My very supportive friends and husband encouraged me to set up ‘Bespoke Verse’ after I wrote a speech in the form of a poem for my wedding.  Friends started asking me for poems for their special occasions and eventually, the Bespoke Verse website was launched in June 2009.   I have been busy ever since, with a stream of interesting commissions from christenings to civil partnerships, 40ths to funerals."

As for her inspirations,

"Roald Dahl is my literary inspiration – those familiar with his poems will recognise that we use the same style (rhyming couplets, of which Dahl is the master).  Writing poems is a welcome escape from domestic chores, and I find it satisfying having a project of my own.  Every poem is different, and it is fascinating finding out about other people’s lives, and great fun being part of a surprise for them."

Her best sellers are......

"Poems commissioned for birthdays are my most popular request, whether it’s a 40^th, 60^th or 90^th.  Most poems are 2-3 pages long and are composed using the background information provided by the client.  Humour is definitely a feature of my work, although often there are a few tears, too.  I spend lots of time talking to clients and sharing my rough drafts with them, so I know they are getting exactly the sort of poem they want."

Bespoke Verse will be at the More Than A Mama Easter Fayre, a week today, at Berkhamsted Town Hall, Friday 26th March from 9.30am - noon.

Visitors to the fayre will be able to read lots of her poems and testimonials and chat to Jo about the process. Bespoke poems make very original and personal gifts, especially for that hard to buy for relative or friend.

Christmas Cheer

With Christmas music playing and mulled wine warming, Berkhamsted Town Hall was full of Christmas cheer as the stall holders set up their tables on Wednesday evening, getting ready for the final festive fayre for the year.

Boxing Clever

Richard Roscoe Photography

Precious Memories

Prize Draw Basket - winner announced at the end of this post!

Happy Days Designs

Jamie at home

Make Do and Mend Quilt Co.

Millsy Designs

dolly blake

Edgartown Sourcing

Coup de chocolate

Bespoke Verse & Food to Heal

Vie at home

Pampering from Sharon of Vie at home

Katy Leigh Designs

Heartfelt Handmade

Emma from Rockabye Baby visiting Heartfelt Handmade's stall

Stealing Candy

Thirtyfive Flowers

Vintage Clothing from Mary Casserley

Clothes from Love Shack

Nevie-pie Cakes

Isla B Baby

Eco products and cosmetics from Pam Johnstone

Rockabye Baby

Marie Jahn - Funtabiedozie

Bijoux-Bijoux

It was a fabulous evening with a wide variety of sellers, a huge number of visitors, fantastic helpers, our wonderful cellist, Clare from Chroma, played beautifully and the More Than A Mama team were ecstatic that the fayre was supported so well. We are looking forward to a short break over Christmas and then we shall be planning our next fayre dates for 2010.

The Winner of the Prize Draw from the fayre is Sally Leppington, congratulations, you win a basket full of More Than A Mama goodies!

The Winner of the blog giveaway is Bridget from poppyart, Bridget turns out to be a seller from our September fayre we held in Harpenden! Congratulations Bridget!

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all of you!

Love

xxx

Featuring Samantha Rogers from Pete's Poppies

Today we meet Sam Rodgers from Pete's Poppies.....

Inspirations......

The reason behind Petes Poppies and how it came alive is back in March 2007 I lost someone very important to me, my dad (hence the name Petes), and this is when I came to realise how much I loved working with flowers and creating, so I enrolled myself onto some flower courses at college and here I am now creating them in the shop. I think that my dad would be very proud.

At Petes Poppies we pride ourselves in customer service and building a great customer relationship. We really enjoy helping people choose suitable flowers for an occasion, by giving them the advice and support they need.

Best sellers.....

Our best sellers would have to be our floral creations, whether it be a simple hand tied bouquet or basket to the more complex funerals and weddings. We also have an extensive gift range in the shop that is not sold anywhere else in Berkhamsted. I would say that our wooden plaques sell like hot cakes!

More Than A Mama fayre.....

You can expect to see some of our floral creations, including some with a Christmas theme, like our rustic Christmas wreaths. We will also have some of our extensive giftware and Christmas range.

You can find Petes Poppies at 102 High St , Berkhamsted, we are located opposite The Gatsby. If you would like directions just give us a call on 01442 864836 and we will only be too happy to help with your needs.

Also on a Saturday we have a stall on the Berkhamsted Market. We are usually situated outside Bel Caffe.

Special events.....

During the month of December we are excited to be offering a couple of open evenings in the shop where people can make their own beautiful Christmas table decoration, the cost of that night will be £25.00 and this will include tea, coffee, mulled wine and mince pies. Call Petes Poppies on 01442 864836 for booking and further information.

We look forward to seeing Sam and her beautiful stall at the Bumps, Babes & Beyond Fayre THIS FRIDAY 20th Nov! Don't miss it, we are at Berkhamsted Town Hall from 9am til 12.30pm - hope to see you there!

Love

xx