A fun day out

Mum's Victoria sponge cake

Nothing like a deadline to focus the mind and get things done -  OLD RECTORY garden party 2011! After a busy week of mulching flower beds, lawn cutting, baking and generally prettifying the studio we offered up a saturday afternoon of tea, sponge cakes, sample sale and an array of children's crafts. Grown ups enjoyed mingling and shopping whilst the children delved into some some jewellery making, clay painting, stamp printing and having their faces painted. The sunshine lured us all onto the courtyard with copious cups of tea and Mum's delicious sponge cakes. This is the fun part of launching a range of children's clothing - an excuse for a party in the sunshine!

Paula from Uccelli Jewellery stringing some creations with the girls

Children painted clay moulds

Like all parties, the fun is in the planning as well as the partying. Reasons for having the party were to show our range and sell samples as discounted prices, this is the reality of thinking up a children's clothing brand - we have to move stock, sell and create space for new stock. Another reason for the party celebration was to give us a firm date on which we would start selling online - the time is nigh, we are selling at www.oldrectory.ie. We also love our studio and where we work, it's a pleasure to share it with you on a sunny afternoon in June. Planning was fun; a bit like thinking up childrens' birthday parties but for boys and girls (I have 5 sons and my 11 and 9 year old definitely don't want girls at their birthday parties right now!). Mum thinks nothing of baking for large social gatherings- years of parish fetes, children's parties and fundraisers, even my boys request 'Didi's cake' at their birthdays - so I admit I didn't worry an iota about food. Stephanie and Luca did a fair amount of gingerbread making and eating so hats off to the bakers. We managed to install a working kitchen into the studio in time for the party, which was always the plan but previously on the back burner. This has transformed the space and will make easy the cooking preparations for any future print workshops

Kitty in Old Rectory top with Coco

Paula Boyle, an NCAD college friend of Stephanie's came down from Co. Armagh with her eye catching range of jewellery. Paula, founder and designer of www.uccellijewellery.com focuses on strong colour combinations in the use of fused glass, laser cut perspex and fine wire silver to create an expressive collection of bold pieces. The combination of her talent and the sunshine converted non jewellery wearers into jewellery wearers. I am loving my necklace.

Pirates in waiting

Future Old Rectory model

Our first delivery of clothing will be going out to the shops next week - can't wait. This will be truly exciting. But we got a precursor of the enjoyment gained from seeing people wanting to buy our clothes at the Garden party. It was such a feel good factor selling face to face and getting feed back from customers. We will have to resist the temptation of stalking our stockists and interfering in the selling process. I'll take umbrage if our darlings are at the back of the shelves!

Painted butterfly

Busy at the craft table

I love the fact that children enjoy disguising themselves as butterflies, pirates, bugs, robots or what ever else takes their fancy. Our face painter Rosie was inundated with eager children lining up to be someone/thing else for just a few hours. So much fun and imagination.

'Thrash the rat'

When we were growing up our local parish always used to have it's summer fete in the most picturesque field overlooking Brittas Bay. Held during the August bank holiday weekend it would attract locals and hoards of holiday makers from the caravan parks. My favourite games at the fete were the Greasy Pole and Thrash the Rat. With such a strong memory for these games I can only guess that I was quite a tomboy during those years, or else I was at an age of which games that attracted boys where even more exciting for us girls; A bit confusing but one way or another we used to love pummeling/or be pummeled by our opponents off the Greasy Pole with old pillows and thrashing the  rats that were dropped down the drain pipe. Thrash the Rat was my Dad's game at the parish fete so we reinstated it in all it's pride and glory at the garden party and glad to say it's still as popular as ever. The Greasy Pole will just go down in history as a wonderfully risky game which we parents would have heart failure over today!

Stephanie and Luca in Old Rectory owl

Shop till you drop girls!

Notes for the next party -  Plenty of tea and cake. New stock. More interior accessories for sale. Pyjamas for the big brothers and sisters(in the pipe line). Can't wait for Paula's new collection of jewellery. Loving the mixed collection of cups and saucers, keep an eye out for more at car boot sales etc. Be a bit braver in enticing a bigger crowd through the doors now that we've cut our teeth on first party. Another sunny day please. Greasy Pole - maybe not!

Wrapped in soft organic Old Rectory blanket

Printastic!