Cape Town

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Back with lavender

January 5, 2009 in Wren | No comments

I had a fabulous break. I always astound myself by how beneficial a break is and then how hard it is to break the break.

I had a lovely Christmas and over the next few days I will share some of the wonderful presents I received. I also had a great New Year and spent New Years Eve day out on a farm in Franschoek - the town once known as the ‘Valley of Elephants’ but now for it’s lavender fields and vineyards. It is a lovely town sometimes referred to as ‘little France’.

lavender-1The farm we went to is called ‘Clouds’ and is owned by a relative of Jeremy’s. They have a small vineyard and every year we all go there to taste the wine and bottle it. It is great fun. lavender-3

They also have a small field of extra scented lavender. This is where I get the lavender for my town bags.

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Beaverlac

November 11, 2008 in Me | 3 comments

This weekend I went camping at Beaverlac. It is about a 2 hr drive out of Cape Town and then over the Cederberg mountains (you need a ‘proper’ car get to down the steep dirt track). Once there it is beautiful: hot dry air met with cold refreshing spring water.

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We took lilo’s and floated away starring at the fish swimming below. There was no cell phone signal so I suffered a bit from ‘internet-lessness‘ but that added to the relaxation factor.

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At the one waterfall there was a very cute Wagtail that hung around.

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Later we discovered that he had nested right next to the waterfall. See the tiny red arrow in the picture below (far right).

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It was a wonderful weekend but now I am back running around and sewing till midnight.

The Designgoods Market

October 20, 2008 in Events, Wren | 4 comments

It was a gorgeous day on Saturday and the Old Biscuit Mill was buzzing.

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Pic Above: To your left is the the Kindergoods Market tent and peeking behind the cars is the Designgoods Market tent.
Pic Below: As you walk into the Neighbourgoods Market tent (food) you are greed by a stream of people. The market has gotten so big it has had to be extended out to the back (though the doors).

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Pic Below: The Wren Store.

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Sheepskin Slippers

October 17, 2008 in Featured Artists | 3 comments

I adore my sheepskin slippers made by my boyfriend Jeremy and his mom Frith. Jeremy cuts and punches the slippers and Frith, who has been making them for 15 years, stitches and glues the soles onto them. They are a great team.

The slippers are made from genuine Sheepskin’s that have been dyed offering a gorgeous array of colours to choose from: purple, pink, lime, blue, charcoal, cream, orange, turquoise, plum…. you name it. (Note: colours are subject to availability).

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For years Frith and Jeremy have sold to Cape Town and they have just opened an etsy shop (www.sheepskinslippers.etsy.com) selling to everyone. They usually only make to order but becuase of the nature of etsy, they have made a few for the shop as stock. If your size and preferred colour is not there, then simply send them a convo and they will make it up for you in no time at all.

Click here to visit their shop.

Designer Goods market report back

October 7, 2008 in Events, Wren | 4 comments

On Saturday Wren had a stall at the designergoods market in Salt River and it went very well.

It is a completely different experience selling off-line. I was extremely (and unjustifiably) nervous but after I sold my first bag I relaxed and had a lot of fun. I met some great people and saw some fantastic things (I could have spent all my money there in two ticks). Instead, I made my Christmas list. It was all so new and wonderful to me that I completely forgot to take photo’s - I’m sorry. I promise that next time (Sat 18th Oct) I will take some pictures.

Description of my stand: I had two wooden hatstands full of bags, wooden crates stained with old oak that Jeremy’s dad had organized for me with glass tops and a small mat. It was very simple but it worked well.

However, there are a few things I learnt that I will apply at my next Saturday market:

  1. My products need more information on them. I am so used to etsy where there is a product description, profile page, policy page etc etc for buyers to read to learn more. At the market the buyers had no way of finding this out. They did not know my bags are made using the ends of fabric rolls, or that each one is unique, or that the coffee bags are organic. Next time, better labelling.
  2. I need a stool. I thought: “agh, don’t worry, I will just stand.” I am regretting that becuase I am still nursing my swollen knees.
  3. Have a space for packaging. It was very unprofessional wrapping the bags on the floor.
  4. Bring extra price tags, string, tape and some clothes pegs. I did not and when I discovered the bird pouches had no price tag, I had to improvise. I also wanted to hang the bird pouches on a string between the hatstands. I could not do this so the bird pouches had to lie down.
  5. I should add the store name somewhere, discreetly. The only ‘Wren’ promotion was on the labels. I need more.

These are simple things I forgot, but non-the-less, it was a very successful and I am looking forward to next Saturday.

Pecha Kucha Night: Cape Town

June 24, 2008 in Events | 1 comment

Last Thursday Cape Town hosted it’s first Pecha Kucha night. I had heard about this event at the Design Indaba and thought it was terrific - and now that I have been to one, it is more than just terrific!

Pecha Kucha, translating to ‘the sound of conversion’ in Japanese, was started in 2003 in Japan. Essentially it is a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each - giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up.

The Cape Town event was hosted at the ‘What if the World‘ gallery in Woodstock. Creatives such as David Donde from Origins Coffee spoke on the the supply of commodities, D7 a group of 7 men who sang amazingly, Pixel on Interactive Design, Dylan Culhane who is a photographer and wallpaper designer from One Small Seed …and many more.

Overall, a fantastic event. I will definitely be at the next one.

Charly’s ‘Mucking Afazing’ Bakery

March 13, 2008 in Events, Me | 2 comments

Whenever I am in town I try and find a reason to visit my favourite bakery - Charly’s! I needed a little gift for somebody yesterday and went to Charly’s with a huge grin to buy one of their ‘Mucking Afazing’ cupcakes.

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Their story is so fun …here it is:


As with most great things, they start far away and humble. So it was with Charly’s Bakery…

It all began with Charly, a 16 year old boy looking for work in a small desert town called Swakopmund. He swept the floor, made puff pastry, and washed dishes day in and day out under the stern guidance of the German Master Baker, until he was allowed to learn the cakes: classics like Black Forest cake and Sacher torte.charly-33.jpg

As with most good stories, there is woman, with long dark hair and a helluva cleavage who shows up and stirs the pot.Her entrance and their union, resulted in two beautiful daughters and a move to Cape town.
First it was Charly’s in Thibault square, with food made to German perfection. Then onto the V & A Waterfront, where they were famous for “those quiches” and “those cakes!” ” that salad buffet”, not to forget the Eggs Benedict that had people queuing up for hours over long weekends and holidays. It was crazy, so they decided to sell and go smaller…

Yeah right! You can’t keep a good thing small (or down).

Now they have this crazy, classic bakery. The girls have joined them. The colours are now brighter, so is the future. The cakes are sexier, so are the woman. The German perfection and standard? Well turn around, it’s still here.

So this is the story of Charly’s… in an Almond shell. A. VDM

Below are close-up shots of some of the things that makes Charly’s Bakery not just another bakery.

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The spray-painted frame around the window is beautiful, the chandeliars are absolutely exquisite and the cupcakes…need I say more. Yum.

I absolutely LOVE Charly’s and if they were on etsy they would have my WHOLE heart (and tummy).