The Biscuity Workshop with Nikki McWilliams

You may have seen on my Facebook or Instagram that a couple Saturdays ago I was lucky enough to spend the day with Nikki McWilliams and a lovely group of ladies at Hill Street Design House making Biscuit themed clutch bags.

You might recognise Nikki's name from my Wish List Wednesday post a year ago about her Tunnock's Tea Cake cushion that I fell in love with. Nikki is a Scottish designer, has her own blog and one of the best Instagram accounts you'll find! Her home ware and accessories label launched in 2009 and was inspired by 'a love of British culture, contemporary Pop-Art and her fascination with the ritual of the Tea Break'. You can check out the full range on her website!

The workshop was one of my Birthday presents from Martyn (after a very large hint). We all had to be at Hill Street Design House, on Hill Street, for the class starting at 11am. I wore my Collectif Dolores top, skinny highwaisted jeans, new red pumps and, of course, my custard cream brooch.  

The bright room was laid out beautifully with a big pink covered central table covered in craft supplies and plates piled high with biscuits! Everyone took a seat and Nikki introduced herself and explained the plan for the day. We were all making biscuit-inspired clutch bags with our own designs using simple printing and sewing techniques.

Nikki demonstrated set up our fabric for printing and folding for sewing. she then showed us how to mix the acrylic paint and printing medium then how to print on the fabric using craft foam designs we had to create. We had brown or cream fabric to choose from for chocolate or vanilla biscuits and I chose the cream as I wanted to create a Nice biscuit bag.

We all settled in and started drawing and cutting out our designs, there were some great ideas and we were all chatting and helping each other with ideas, Nikki was floating around the room checking out or designs and offering help where it was needed.

Before we knew it it was time to start printing, Hannah who was sitting by me was doing a custard cream design so we decided to share paint and Nikki helped us mix up the perfect biscuity, creamy yellow.

I think the printing is the most nerve wrecking bit, making sure we didn't print letters the wrong way up, making sure they didn't smudge or even just spill and splatter everywhere! Nikki introduced us to the concept of Wabi-Sabi which roughly translates from Japanese as 'Finding the beauty in Imperfections' which I just love and can totally relate to. Most things that I craft have an imperfection somewhere but I like to call 'Character'. 

I was very happily surprised with how mine turned out, it had just the right amount of 'Character'. We had a break for lunch while the paint dried and when we returned it was time to sew them up and embellish them. The table was covered in wool, ribbons, pompoms, pompom makers, beads, ricrac and all a girl could need to jazz up her biscuit bag. 

We glued craft foam to what would become the inside front and back of our bags and folded them up, sew stitched up the side while it was inside out and them turned them out. We were left with envelope style clutch bags that just need the top flap tidied up with a couple more stitches and we were ready to embellish. 

I love a pompom but I also wanted to keep my bag quite simple so I chose the bright yellow ribbon with mini pompoms all along it, simplicity isn't my strong suit. I stitched the pompoms along the edge of the envelope opening and then made a wee bow that I popped on the back too. Everyone was having a ball making pompoms and tassels it was infectious so I made a tassel for the side of my bag from some thin ribbons in the yellow I'd used for my bow, blue and violet.   

I'm so happy with the final product and was so inspired by all the ladies around me and their creative designs, we had Kit Kats, bourbons, custard creams, jammy dodger and party ring designs too. 

Once we had all finished up, or at least as far as some of the overly adventurous were going to get, we took them all outside so we could take some pictures in the good light and Nikki even took a wee Boomerang video. 

I had an amazing day, it was lovely to meet some lovely new creative ladies as well as Nikki McWillliams herself and check out Hill Street Design House too. I know Nikki is running more of these workshops and Hill Street run events like this all the time making all sorts like jewellery, lingerie and flower crowns as well as hosting private events too. So keep an eye on both of them.

Wish List Wednesday - Lucky Dip Club

Luck Dip Club takes you right back to the lucky dip bags that you would get at school fetes or the corner shop combined with the amazing feeling when you receive snail mail that isn't a bill or from Farmfoods and that is why it is this weeks Wish List Wednesday!

Once a month a new themed Lucky Dip box is launched. Themes have varied from Valley of the Unicorns to Magic Forrest and this months Sleep Over box. Each box is crammed with goodies like pretty handmade jewellery, kitch stationery, lovely homewares, paper goods and wee DIY craft kits. Each and every box comes with a personalised item and all the products are unique for the Lucky Dip Club boxes dream up by Leona, the bright spark behind it all, apart from one piece in each box where she invites creative makers, designers and illustrators to add excusive new designs for the boxes. The upcoming October box collaborator is Nikki McWilliams whose Tunnocks Tea Cake cushion I featured in Wish List Wednesday a few weeks back.

It all start in May 2014 with 100 boxes that sold out in a day, now over a year later she is making 1400 boxes a month (with a little help) that sell out in hours! There are two ways of of nabbing one of these beauties, you can buy a one off box or you can subscribe to a monthly box for slightly less and you can unsubscribe when every you want but you need to get in there quick. With so much packing to do hold Leona holds monthly Packing Parties with donuts & cocktails to pack the boxes in the Lucky Dip Clubhouse. You should really check out this ladies Instagram - she knows her donuts and cakes and marshmallows... Leona describes the Lucky Dip Club as 'A super fun confetti cannon of original surprises to inspire, encourage & celebrate your unicorn life!' Set your alarms for 7am on the 1st of October folks if you want to get your paws on the next box.

Wish list Wednesday - Tunnock's Tea Cake Cushion

It’s Wednesday again already! This week I am featuring Nikki McWilliams’  Tunnock's Tea Cake Printed Cushion. She has created many amazing biscuit based cushions including Digestives, Malted Milks, Rich Tea Fingers and Party Rings but my favourite, and the first that caught my eye, is the Tunnock’s Tea Cake cushion. I love Tunnock’s tea cakes, they are amazing, generic tea cakes are never as good as a Tunnock’s tea cake, one of the main reasons I give blood is to get a tea cake at the end (that and the saving lives).

Look how big they are! 

The tea cake cushion is 16” in diameter, made from 100% and has a concealed zip, they are so big and fluff, they’d look amazing on any sofa, chair or even bed as a statement piece. Personally I’d love a couple Caramel Wafers on my sofa and the Tea Cake Cushion on my armchair.

Some of the cushion range

Nikki is Dundee based and also has her own blog and one of the best Instagram accounts in town! She launched the homeware and accessories label in 2009 and id inspired by 'a love of British culture, contemporary Pop-Art and her fascination with the ritual of the Tea Break'. Not only does she produces beautiful cushions but you can also pick up biscuit based brooches, necklaces, pocket mirrors, stationery and amazing prints on her website - nikkimcwilliams.com as well as over 60 stockists around the UK. At Christmas time last year I fell in love with the Gold and Ruby Jammy Heart Foil print but Santa didn’t deliver, maybe next year.