1 December 2020
So, first day of December and it’s officially Michael and Mariah time (Bublé and Carey – bring it on!) Before we jump in feet first and sink happily into the depths of twinkly nostalgia, Quality Street tins and Sunday afternoons of watching Elf (in our new Lidl Christmas jumpers) we’ve been looking at what’s been going on over the last few weeks.
As ever, Hilary’s been busy in the workshop making bags for the early seasonal shoppers – looks like quite a few people will discover a bespoke bag under their Christmas tree this year!
She’s also made some gorgeous brown gentlemen’s wallets – the tactile sort that you sniff and rub your thumb over the first time you hold one as the leather is just so earthy for want of a better word. Lovely and malleable they’re proving very popular already.
And while this was happening we packed up our in-stock bags and purses and sent them with our university lecturer friend Gem across Dartmoor to the Plymouth College of Art. They then had the full works in terms of photo-shoots, being styled and photographed by some of the College’s up and coming creative talent. 
It’s a world away from our own photography sessions in the local park or in ‘the lane of interesting garage doors’ opposite the shop. Thanks guys – we loved your images.
We went on more walks with a friend (in between those rainy bits that happened and seemed to last for days on end). Clinging on to the last bits of green around the edges whilst gracefully growing more fiery the countryside was a calm place to be for an hour’s stomp with the dog. If only we could age so beautifully.
And then we tried to do a festive photo shoot outdoors in front of some very bright Cotoneasters before all the berries fell off or were eaten. It was going well – all things considered. But then the light suddenly went and it started drizzling a bit. In our haste to cover everything up the glass baubles rolled off the sledge and the nicest ones broke. Then they got trodden on. But it was ok as we had more – but then the cat joined in and a few more rolled off. The fairy lights then decided randomly to stop working. Arrggh!
You get the picture (unlike us). So in the end it didn’t really work but we did at least follow a Hilary Johnson Handmade tradition and rope-in a passer by to hold the bag for us. This time it was Graham (or Farmer Christmas as he is now known) with his sidekick Rover; the world’s smiliest sheepdog. Thank you you two!
So that is why our current homepage picture Christmas Squishes was eventually taken indoors on the sofa without any berries, rainclouds, animals or baubles present. Much less stressy!
