Battersea Park Festival

It all happened a few weeks ago and Im just now posting about it. Sowie.

The Queen's Diamond Jubilee at Battersea Park!

More specifically, my booth, in the vintage village section of the festival.

The calm before the storm. 

See my pretty display! It all came together.

My lovely interns and I placed the final touches on our display before getting down to the business of actually teaching them how to make the darn things. hehe. I'd say they did a pretty good job!

My volunteers arrive and get stuck right in. Thanks for helping out Erica!

It got swarmed a few times. Steady most of the time with busy crafters. Everyone loved the idea.

Even had some face painters flown in. Wish I had time to get one myself. Cheers Yasmin!

                                     

Closed up shop a bit early as I ran out of everything! Shoulda done it in shifts. Lesson learned.

Got to leave a little early. Just in time for the walk across the bridge with sideways rain....awesome.

This is my "done" face, all droopy and wet on the doubledecker. But I did really have a fun time. Could not have gone smoother. People were asking about doing workshops at their schools with kids and encouraging me to do more with these. Got very motivated and excited for more.

Well that's it, shows over, nothing to see here, move along please!

xxx

~Valiant V

Battersea Park Diamond Jubilee Festival Prep

 So this is what's been keepin me busy for a while. Im heading up a flower headpiece salon in the vintage village of Battersea Park's Diamond Jubilee Festival. 

The event is sold out! A little daunting but it's happening tomorrow and there's no stopping it so...why worry?

These pics are from some of the prep work I've been doing lately.

 First: Photo shoot for part of the tent salon decor. Big thanks to Joe the photographer & location scout hehe. 

Thanks for being such a sport Mari. I have such hot friends don't I?

 Next: Finding a florist to provide our flowers for Sunday. Of course you need to head over to New Covent Garden Flower Market. So many beautiful flowers and it's open to the public so you can go check it out too! 

Big thanks to Joe and the rest of the Bloomfield team for your services and delivery. Made my life a whole lot easier.

The Tent!: I got so excited and started the prep work before remembering to take an outside shot. 

Tomorrow then.

My lovely helpers for the weekend. Thanks to Martha and Isabel for all your help. 

Look! Final version of hippie-warhol Mariana. Another huge thank you to Hemingway Vintage design team for helping me perfect my original idea. 

I feel like Im giving a speech with all these thank you's but it was definitely a team effort. Could not have done this on my own without all you guys, especially Leona our fearless leader. Can't wait for tomorrow! More pictures to come of the final products and fun during the day. Watch this space.

Love And Flower Headpieces On An Extreme Level!

~Valiant V

Things I Must Do In London: The Ascot Racecourse

I have a list of things that I feel I must do while I am living in London. Iconic, and sometimes very touristy things that I think should be done to truly experience Great Britain.

#15 on my list: Feel like My Fair Lady and attend the Ascot races.

It's really just horse racing, but it's so much more than that. Like most things in london, it's very old and fairly posh. Basically you dress up fancy, kind of like you're attending a daytime wedding, wear an outrageously big or flamboyant hat or fascinator (think sputnik floating around your head made entirely out of feathers)

and drink a huge glass of pimms while watching the horses gallop by.

The place is pretty and HUGE. You can bring your own picnic and grab a space on the grassy area.

I was blessed with tickets to the premier area and it was nice to see how the other side lived. Actually, they lived pretty much like the grandstand ticket holders did only you couldn't bring your own food and drink in because you were supposed to be rich enough to buy their stuffs.

Anyway. As I said, I was given tickets to the event but very much last minute. So I had to improvise and make my own fancy fascinator.

It's basically felt, thick paper and pipe cleaners. I loved making it and thought it stood out among the others that day :) I'd make a tutorial about it but it happened too quickly and fairly late at night that I didn't make time to take pictures of the steps.

I had a great time there and I think I found a new creative craft. There are a few more events on my list that require crazy head gear and I can't wait to make more.

Love and Horse Races,

~Valiant V

New Gallery Jumble Sale April '11

MY SECOND LONDON JUMBLE SALE!

I took part in a jumble sale in an art gallery space in Peckham. Wonderful day. Met lots of cool creative people. Got my portrait drawn, had some yummy cocktails during their happy hour later. fun fun.

My little booth!

The lower level are some odds and ends I thought people would be interested in.

A sewing circle.

They have workshops throughout the day in the space as well. Ellie was the teacher this time helping people to make mini cushions. so cute. People started making other things like fabric crowns and rag dolls and embroidering naughty words on their cushions.

Some of the other tables.

Will makes wallets and bags and oyster card holders made out of old plastic grocery bags! he fuses them together to make single sheets of this plastic then turns them into these lovely items. so awesome.

Ellie's table of repurposed fabric goodies.

Big cushiony pillows and aprons and totes too! And pretty teacup candles. I want to try and make those some day.

They had a portrait booth (instead of a photobooth) and I got a two minute session with the portraitist Clare Wallis. So purty.

Love and Crafty Adventures,

~Valiant V

Regents Canal... IM ON A BOAT

Had a girls day out last sunday with my new friend Ce Cille. We walked all over the place.

Had some lovely tea and cake at the Cake Hole (will change to a link when they get their site up),
visited a flower market, a lot of little local stores

Neon Carrot Decoration!
Didn't even try to eat it. Damn fine carrot cake though.

Tea shop was in the back of a vintage shop.
All these embroidered pictures on the wall were for sale too.

I remember seeing these guys in the mary poppins movie but still have no clue as to what the hell they are.
And I have no intention to find out on the internet either. Gonna just wait til I work up the nerve to talk to one of em.

And we ended the awesomeness with something I've wanted to do since I got here

ride a boat along Regents canal

Her friend owns a canal boat and offered a ride to a canal fair going on down the way.

We got to sit on top of the front of the boat. Was amazing. Mostly because I felt like a prom queen on a boat. Waving at all the people (yes it was mostly kids but I swear there were some adults that waved and smiled as they walked along as well! )

A big thanks to Ce Cille for taking me on this wonderful adventure and documenting it to boot!


Love and Canal Boats

~Valiant V

Boring Life Update: Do NOT Read.

If something is not stated to me in a serious manner then I do not take that task so seriously.

For instance, I am about to start my Montessori training soon but apparently have not officially been accepted yet!? Turns out they are very strict with deadlines there and if I do not turn in my physical portion of the application (which i should have tried to turn in ages ago) they will not even consider interviewing me for the spot in the class. But people in my own company have expressed in the past and up to now that even they haven't turned in all of their application parts, so I was in no way stressed about it. And only until I was actually able to speak with someone at the institute about the situation did I understand their seriousness on that policy. yikes! BUT I got a lot done today to relieve that stress. I registered with a UK doctor and my physical is scheduled for tomorrow, and I have an interview scheduled for the next day with the training institute who will hopefully accept me before the course starts on Monday. Phew! Check and checkity check. I am very excited to start the new chapter of my career life. A new job and training to become a certified Montessori teacher! It will be hard work, or at least strenuous for the next month, so my posting might be a little slow.

Or I might use this blog as a way of decompressing after a day full of lecturing and shtuff.

On a more girly note I also touched up my hair today, and trimmed my bangs.

This home beauty stuff is super easy and so much cheaper.

At least, it will be cheaper once I learn to use a mirror for doing the back of my head so I don't miss a huge spot of roots and have to buy more products to do it all again...come on Ashley!

Love and Life Lessons (dumbass),

~Valiant V

ps.- to all my pen pals I say take heart, I will start writing of my adventures via snail mail soon!

Dia De Los Awesome

Holy Crap Saturday night was great!

It was a semi impromptu party event Jesse and I attended. A day of the dead themed pop up club. This group who puts it on does other themed nights as well, there is another party coming up called Shore Leave and it's nautical themed (Oh I hope someone actually comes dressed up as Shore Leave from GIJOE though). I don't know all the details. So if someone knows the full info let me know!

It wasn't too traditional mind you, mostly people dressed up semi gothy with sugar skull face paint. But it was one hell of an evening.

There was a face painting booth in case you forgot to do your own makeup.

There were some charleston dancers, a fire dancer, a contortionist, and Nosferatu was playing on the wall above the stage.

Even a pinata filled with "guts".

I think the major reason this all worked out was the fact that we barely even remebered that this was happening this weekend, which in turn made me not over think things too much.

But I ended up having the perfect outfit for the night and it was awesome.

I even made extra paper flowers with a little homemade business card attached the the stem. There is no harm in pimping myself a little while having fun.

I've had friends show me how to make these before but I researched a little bit just to be sure. This tutorial was the best I found. They're so easy!