I am a fan of all things homemade. This was not always the case, maybe because until the age of ten I was forced to wear homemade outfits by my mother with a tag proudly announcing it was “Homemade with LOVE”. A sure sign for bullying!

But these days’ arts, crafts are not only for your Grandma! Everything homemade is cool – particularly as mass produced items get looked down upon due to a perceived lack of individuality. I was recently in my element at The Auckland Arts and Crafts Fair -a true representation of all the talent we have locally. Gummy Bear pendants, old-fashioned plates with quotes painted on them, candles in teacups, handmade postcards were just some of the goodies on display. I walked away with a handmade journal, postcards and a nifty Alice in Wonderland bookmark.

Craft has also found a home online! The handmade markets are open 24/7.
Some of my favourite websites to find these unique goodies online include:
www.etsy.com
www.madeit.com.au

Luckily for me, I get to promote the Craft & Quilt Fair which will be in Hamilton on 10-12th September and Christchurch 17-19th September. The fair has over 50 exhibitions containing all things crafty including quilting! Quilting has definitely come back into fashion, but isn’t a talent I have mastered yet. Seeing images of the quilts that will be on display makes me realise just how talented these women – young and old - are and I’ll be sure to give it a go over the next few weeks!

Achieving TV News

When you have been in PR as long as we have it is nice to remind yourself of the buzz of achieving great coverage for a client. We were lucky to have one such experience on TV One news – a quirky angle, a snappy product design and a bloody good sell in and we had a story to make us proud. It just so happened we were all TV side watching it as a team, which made the success that much sweeter – the link is here for you to enjoy http://tvnz.co.nz/technology-news/revolutionary-umbrella-deemed-unbreakable-3625030

Real Food - Literally

After many years specialising in food and drink PR I have witnessed a lot of food trends that have come and gone – organics, anti-carbs, gluten free and low glyceamic and FINALLY, a food trend is appearing that I can feel passionate about. Real food. Food that is served with honesty and integrity. Food that is not purported to make you thin, smarter or shave hours off your day, but food that is made with natural ingredients no added anything and tastes just like nana used to make. Homemade tasting food is what we need to be craving and while there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to spend concocting delicious recipes in the kitchen I applaud all those manufacturers who are creating incredible food that not only make my life easier but my food tasty and appetising (and allow me – on rare occasions – to pass it off as my own). Kohu Road, Tasty Pots, Country Culinaire – you know who you are – take a bow and may many more enter the fray as they’ll be on my shopping list.