Magic Toadstools Everywhere
I just love all the fantastic toadstool products around at the moment, so here I am jumping on the bandwagon with my new mirrors and clocks. you can find them on my Cupcake Castle shops on Etsy and Not On The High Street http://www.etsy.com/shop/cupcakecastles?ref=pr_shop
Hope you like them as much as I do x
FIRST NEW DESIGNS FOR 2011
At last orders have eased enough so that I have time to actually design some new pieces. I have so many ideas floating around in my head its a relief to get some of them out and onto wood. These are just the begining there are lots lots more to come.
None of these pieces are on my website yet, if you see any you like just email or twitter me
Cupcake Castles top designs of 2010
These arches have been really popular for the last 4 years in both colours
Avery big piece covered in butterflies and flower – always popular
This my princess wish mirror , my biggest seller over the last 5 years, a very special piece unlike any other little girls mirror
I love this one ,just as great for little girls rooms or kitchens
One of my favourite designs, such a unique design with its little Hansel and Gretel house on the top
These are just so bright and cheerful , a reminder of sunny summer days to come
At the moment I am designing and painting lots of new designs which I hope to show you by the end of this month, so keep an eye out for cats, teapots, birdies,fish and lots more x
New Clocks
Have just finished and got some pics of these new clocks, I’m really pleased with them, it’s always much more exciting to create new designs ( especially when they actually work ! See them soon on www.cupcakecastles.com
I really like the blue one , but here’s a pink one – everyone wants pink!
just love my new strawberry clocks !
I‘VE ALREADY PUT THESE ON MY SHOPS ON FOLKSY AND NOT ON THE HIGH STREET
CUPCAKE CASTLES
I do nearly all my shopping online now – even all our food shopping, there’s just so much more choice online ( and I can shop everynight!) So it was high time I did something about my website which had not been updated in 3 years !!!
After a stressful nailbiting 2 weeks my website has finally been retouched and tweaked , it was looking so outdated. About 10 new mirrors and clocks have been added but I have another 12 ( lying on my kitchen table) and I have lots and lots of new designs that will be appearing here first.
red dragon clockgreen dragon clock
green dragon clockblue rocket clock
Check up my redesigned website www.cupcakecastles.com (more…)
I’M BACK
I’M BACK
I hav’nt really been away?
2 years ago I was burnt out , too many shows , too many orders ! – some might say that thats a good thing and if all I did was sit in my studio painting pretty little pink mirrors life would be great, but it was mostly about chasing shops for payment – as it seems to be accountancy policy to pay invoices 3 months late!
Anyway with that and the recession just starting to bite I decided it was time to stop aiming at wholesale and concentrate on private customer orders, so no more trade shows since I last blogged. So I have spent the last 2 years recharging my enthusiasm , digging my new allotment , whist still supplying my loyal shops that pay on time and private internet orders.
Just given the workshop/shed a fresh coat of paint – vibrant yellow, it’s such an uplifting sunny colour, I was getting a bit tired of being surrounded by pink. Come next spring workshop will be getting a complete refurb,french doors, new windows,new flooring and better insulation ( much better- it’s brass monkeys in there at the moment!)
Check out my new website www.cupcakecastles.com ,my hubby has slaved away for the last 2 weeks rebuilding it, and I will be adding lots more new clocks and mirrors every 2 weeks!
CUPCAKES CUPCAKES !
Wow ! ,these are really going well, so I am going to put some more on here, I can’t believe how popular cupcakes still are ?, just email me about prices – I will eventually get all my new stuff on my web site soon www.cupcakecastles.com
This is a new fairy castle – already have a few orders for this one even though noones seen it yet! Still working on a few variations of this though – think it might look better with a pink and white checks around the whole of the outside?, any suggestions welcome. (more…)
TRADE SHOWS !
Now I’m going to have a whinge because things have been niggling me for a while – this is for all those shops that have to trawl through the many trade shows – of which there are far too many ! – I was so disappointed with the Pulse Top Drawer show as it is supposed to be a highly selective British designery type show yet to me it was full of cr** made in China !!! Most of the shops I supply only stock items handmade in the UK and do you know what, these shops are doing really well, maybe we’re all sick of cheap rubbish that’s shipped from halfway across the world with tonnes and tonnes of packaging to only end up in the bin six months later.
So to the couple of shops that have complained to me as to why my pieces aren’t individually boxed I’d have to say that it’s because I care about this planet and I have no wish to contributed to the mess we are all making to it!
Hopefully people will keep my pieces for many many years to come and even pass them down as family heirlooms and not throw them in the bin after six months which is where most of the cr** sold at pulse will end up.
Anyway , now I’ve got that off my chest – I think you can tell that I’m feeling very disillusioned about the whole trade show thing and might not even attend any next year , every year the prices per metre go up more and more ( can you believe that top drawer charged me £48 to store one empty cardboard box!!!)
BACK FROM HOLIDAY
I’m back now and finding it hard to get back into the swing of things, but with a backlog of orders and more coming in everyday I will buckle down to it today!
The main thing I missed while away was my garden so I was really pleased to see how gorgeous it was when I got back, I cut all the flowers off everything before I went (broken hearted when I had to put them all straight in the recycle bin- I could have opened a flower shop just with the dahlia flowers alone!)but they are all flowering away twice as much now! and all the roses are having a second flush too. Weather wise August has been a right off , I know we Cumbrian’s are used to a bit of rain but this year has been ridiculous – I’m feeling decidedly soggy, but the flowers have loved it !!
I HAVE BEEN SO BUSY !
It’s been all go go go since Pulse ( which by the way was a hopeless show – quiet as a graveyard) thankfully my regular shops have been keeping me very busy – thankyou all. For years people have been telling me to do the top drawer shows in London when in fact the Harrogate show is much better ( and easier )- maybe it’s the first signs of the ‘ credit crunch’, yet all my regular shops have been going crazy!! – to the extent that I have been working 7 days a week sometimes 12 hours a day since May !. Anyway – can’t complain, have just managed to get everything sent out before we go on holiday ( I need one )
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Here are a few new designs Itook to the show – just hav’ent had time to add them onto my website – so if you see anything new that you would like to order just email or phone me.
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Getting ready for Pulse
Manic again as usual – trying to get out a lot of orders ( if your one of the many waiting please bare with me !) and get ready for my next trade show Pulse – Top Drawer, so much to organise but everythings booked and ready to go – but look what it all done to my pretty pink shed – chaos and meltdown spring to mind!!! , guess which one’s the before and after pic’s . Pulse is held at Earls Court in London on the 1st, second and third of June
Fairies and Princesses
I’ve got so many ideas for new clocks and chalkboards it’s hard to find the time to get them done, ( I feel some early morning starts coming on again ) My boys often help me with a few ideas – I get them to sit and draw their ideas as clocks or mirrors ( taking out the more gory parts and dripping blood that seem to infiltrate all there drawings!) so there’s plenty more to come ie. knights, more dragons and big scary dinosaurs.
After lots of requests I decided to make some new fairy hangers, they have hooks along the bottom of their skirts to hang jewellery so have a use. They were very popular at their first show with more than a few shops wanting to take them away ! So there may be a whole range of possibilities there.
Anyway it’ll be a while before any of the new stuff will be seen on my website as I came back from the show with only 3 pieces before i’d had a chance to take any proper pics of them ! but if anyone see’s anything they do want just email me for a chat, I’d love some comments too.
rocket clock
Didn’t have much time to make lots of new designs for my first show of the year but did manage a few new clocks and some very new chalkboards ( posh for blackboards?)They went very well at the show so I’ll be doing more for Pulse. It would be great to hear from anyone else attending any shows this year – especially shows around christmas that are slightly less expensive than the big London shows!
Harrogate BCTF 2008
Here we go again, the first show of the year. This is a very little trade show compared to the big shows I’ve done in the past but it has a nice atmosphere. It’s great to chat to other makers , find how their year is going and what shows they think are best – there are so many shows to choose from now and they are so expensive you have to pick the right ones to suit your product otherwise it can turn into an expensive disaster!
I was happy with the with the orders I got as I was already busy and my next ( much bigger show) is only 2 months away ( pulse, top drawer in June ) but the show did feel quite empty and many many people exhibiting did’nt get a single order! which I do feel for them as there is nothing more soul destroying as you sit and watch hundreds of people just walk past the work without a second glance that you have poured your heart and soul into.
I’m an old hat at this now ( eight years) and have developed a very thick skin, many makers that I started showing with many years ago now have “proper” jobs as it does get tiresome hoping for and waiting for orders and then waiting forever sometimes for payment! when supplying – it’s a much happier mix to sell to the public as well, as I realised last year at the Country Living christmas fair.
Have your own mirror designed
Two examples just sent yesterday of mirrors designed completely from swatches of fabric sent to me, I’m always glad to try new designs and one off’s although this was even more of a challenge as I don’t possess any brown paint as I’ve never had to use it before, but it did give me the idea to do some ethnic fairies and princess in various different colours not just white.
Messages
Any piece can be personalised , or messages can be written on the back like this one from last week, turning a pretty clock or mirror into a family heirloom that can be passed down as a momento of a special occasion.
painstaking preparation
Every clay flower, butterfly etc. is hand cut and each petal or edge is hand smoothed ( enough to drive you nuts!)
How to -
A glimse of how my mirrors start there journey, you have to get the boring bits out the way before you can start playing with all that gorgeous glitter!
Hi
I’ve been busy again but at least the kitchen is almost tidy! as you’ll see why further down in my blog. But I also had a try at Etsy this weekend ( my shop is cupcakecastles of course) just to try and get more presence on the net as it’s a very large place!, but I’m not sure about it really apart from the fact that everything is in dollars even though it’s a worldwide site which I think would put off a lot of buyers new to the site it seems that only the sellers know of the site in the UK , so I’m not expecting much. There’s also the same problem that I ‘d have with selling on google that I’d have to stockpile these items for god knows how long till they sold when they could be earning money being sent out with shop orders which I have plenty of, and the website – www.cupcakecastles.com is ticking over quite nicely at the moment, but I can’t help dipping my toe into new things.
Lonely workshop
Doesn’t he look really miserable and lonely out there in the freezing rain, I can feel him beckoning me to come and give him a spring clean and a repaint, he’s aready been pink ,lilac, dark blue, pale blue and now you see him in last years colours – coffee and cream.
It’s that time of year again!
It’s that time again – time to clean the workshop as I’m fed up having pink fairies and pirate clocks all over the house. Every winter , especially at christmas the workshop gets turned into a dumping ground so every march its gutted and repainted ready for the first shows in April. It’s a great place to keep all my toy’s and bits that remind me of when the kids were tiny they are dotted all over the place even in the rafters.
Need more flowers!
To all those mums out there – how was your mothers day on Sunday, I had a great day with my mum ( just mum, no children) and we did what we like doing the most – plant shopping. Some mums feel that mothers day means spending time with your family but I’m with mine a lot as I work from home so mothers day to me means escaping from them! Anyway we had a really nice lunch at Lucy’s on a plate in Ambleside ( Lucy was the first person to ever sell any of my work many years ago , back then she had a shop and restaurant now she has seven outlets so she’s a real inspiration)then we plant shopped till we dropped. Of course I bought lots more lilies and dahlias ( dont know where I’ll find room for them all ?) but it’s too early to buy much else as it’s still frosty so primulas wil have to do for some colour now.
it’s taking over the house again!
Last week was a really busy week which is odd at this time of year? so because of the weather its easier to dry some work in the kitchen
Harrogate fair
I really enjoy attending the fairs gives me a chance to hear peoples comments as they can point you in the right direction and give you so many more ideas, it’s all to easy to sit in your little workshop everyday and forget where your going with your work, it’s also really fab to see what everyone else is doing as most the designers and crafters I have read about for years ( usually in country living magazine ) are at the same big shows , I usually come home with a boxload of new ornaments and jewellery!
Harrogate fair
Nearly that time again – Show time, I am showing at two trade fairs and one big private fair with country living magazine in November . So march will be spent busily designing at least 20 new designs especially for boys – more dinosaurs and monsters , the ones I make now are very popular but I had a few comments from my last fair from mums who wanted scarier dinosaurs ! so I’ll try my best. There will be a lot more seaside mirrors and clocks but what I’m most excited about are my first attempts to make chalkboards and memoboards – I’ve got all the paints and boards ready I just need to experiment and see what works best – hopefully the first ones will be at my first trade show of the year in Harrogate in April – BCTF
Cupcake clock
Found this fairy in my garden ( with a broken arm ) anyway she volunteered to help me take some pics for my website www.cupcakecastles.com, thought this would help potential buyers to see how large each piece is as it’s hard to imagine from just my website pictures – more of these pis can be seen on my about page. Next summer I’ll catch lots of little fairies and a couple of pixies to help with with some new pics.
Fairy in my garden
This is a new clock , not even on my website yet, I’m working on about twenty new designs at the moment – a lot more dinosaurs, dragons, monsters and ships, also designing a complete new range of chalkboards and jewellery boards – so watch this space – they’ll be on my blog spot before my website.
cupcake boxes
Cupcakes are just everywhere at the moment so this is one band wagon I’m definately jumping on, these are just things I make with cupcakes on , the rest can be seen at www.cupcakecastles.com
cutting the cake
Last October me and Ian finally married after 15 years and two children, my mum made the main cake with about six tonnes of white chocolate ( my favourite ) I also had fifty cupcakes made ( of course!) – the kids had eaten half of them before we even got round to cutting the cake.
wedding
This is just after we’ve been married outside with all our nephews and nieces and our two boys of course. We kept it all very informal especially the photo’s, the best memories are from the more chaotic pictures – babies knocking drinks over, kids falling around. I’m still waiting for most pictures to arrive so I’ll put the more chaotic ones on when they do.
more mirrors in the garden
This is my attempt at some “country living” style photo’s in my garden, need to think of some more interesting places to take photo’s this summer for my website www.cupcakecastles.com
The harbour
This is my harbour mirror ( nothing to do with Balamory !) and it has been one of my most popular pieces for the last eight years, a new version is now available with sailing boats instead of a fishing boat, have had a lot of requests to change this one ie add octopus and jellyfish but the strangest request was to paint the sea hot pink, very hard for me to do but she loved it.
Ulverston
These are my boys after climbing up the Hoad a famous landmark of Ulverston and can be seen miles away, it looks really high from a distance and the first time we went to climb it we pack tea and sandwiches and donned our serious hiking gear thinking it was going to take all day , it only took 20 minutes! brilliant view from the top though , you can almost Blackpool in one direction and the Lake district hills in the other direction.
last summer
This week has been so cold!, about minus 7 everyday, I just wanted to remember last summer. It’s always at this time of year that I really really want to start some gardening -I stand staring out of the french doors willing the plants to grow ( fellow gardeners will understand ). I know that sounds slightly sad but I need colour all this greyness is so mind numbingly boring. In the big world of flowers I like the tarts – the bigger and brighter the better thats why I love dahlias and lilies. These are just a few from my garden last summer.
BOB
This is Bob ( another male ) , he follows me wherever I go and especially likes to have his picture taken, he has this uncanny knack of knowing what I’m going to take a picture of !
my workshop
My very pink workshop,( even the floor gets a recoat of pink paint every year ) this is what happens when you have two boys and are surrounded by action men and tanks everyday.This is where I can escape into glittery pink world ( not for long though , they always seem to find me !) When it gets really busy the house tends to get taken over as well – never enough room!
HELLO WORLD
Hi , this is me Liz Mortimer, covered in paint as always ( usually covered in a lot more paint than this!) I am the designer and maker of the glittery mirrors and clocks on cupcakecastles.com and just wanted to set up this blog site so potential buyers could see how , where and who makes them. As I like to offer a very personal service ( you can phone or email me any day of the week – I’m usually working, to chat about a one off commission or special changes you would made to any piece)it’s nice to see where they are coming from.
