2011 :: in pictures :: July - December

July :: the first weekend of July was the first weekend I started working 7 days a week....little was I to know then that I'd still be doing them at Christmas!!

...of course, evenings were and still are my favourite time for hand sewing!This month I had to find a box supplier to custom make boxes for me...that was easier said than done!
...but I found one in the end and my first ever delivery to John Lewis was boxed and ready to leave ::August :: This month got off to a flying start...piling felt for kits......dyeing buttons for stock...re-negotiating with my suppliers so I could lower my felt prices...which meant I could offer mini rolls, now a best selling line!My first delivery of my kits hit the John Lewis shop floorand I had a stock room full of kits ready for the next delivery...then we received the awful news that Nan had had a fall and been rushed to hospital.......I'm glad we all got to see you one last time....I miss you every day Nan xxx September ::I signed up for an account with Royal Mail and received my own Post Office in a box!my first item appeared on the John Lewis website wholesale customers were stocked upand the box making started in earnestOctober ::the start of the month saw me celebrating my 34th birthdaylots of lovely new supplies were added to the shop & Christmas designs were worked on ... along with free Halloween patterns. making and packing website orders, and making kits for John Lewis started to take over all my time.. November :: John & some friends went on the Monte Carlo Rally (I lost my kit helper for a week!! I certainly had to work hard to keep my head above water!!) I squeezed in lots of late night sewing to make 40 Woodland Friends for a display in John Lewis December ::With one last rush of hard work John and I finished the final John Lewis order plus the emergency fill-up orders they'd requested!!My Woodland Friends went on display in Oxford Street...and I was able to tidy up the chaotic workshop ready for a New Year!

Phew! Just compiling all the 2011 highlights has been hard work!! What a year we've had here...here's hoping 2012 is just as much fun!

holiday time

the last few days have been a blur of sewing & packing parcels...here are my last few quick-snaps of my making::
phew! such a lot of work, but I enjoyed it all!
I'm now on my way to do my last Post Office run of 2011 and then I am officially on holiday...I'll be back Tuesday 3rd January so I'll wish you all a Very Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year

freebie winners

the random number machine has done it's duty and picked 6 numbers from the 230 comments ::
and the 6 winners are ::
comment # 19 :: sewmbie said...
That would be beyond amazing!elisehattersley (at) utopian-**********.co.uk :)

comment # 64 :: jò said...
oh, thank you so much :)I hope to be lucky again ;)joyblonde at libero . itciao dall'Italia

comment # 114 :: I was just admiring those in John Lewis yesterdayI ! would love one of those from Santa! xxxelizabeth.l@**********.co.uk

comment # 144 :: Anonymous said...
theyre soooo pretty! I hope I get one!xsarah.shiu@******.com

comment # 148 :: Oh!!! I love your kits. I am from spain, but I can wait until next year.Thanks for the chance!! And have a nice xmas.xoaninafeitoaman@*****.com

comment # 214 :: craftymummy said...
I love your work! I'd love the chance to win one of these kits :)

please can all the winners email me their address?
my email is mail [at] paper-and-string [dot] co [dot] uk

thanks to everyone for taking part, freebies are always good fun!

in the nick of time!

the freebie post can be found here yesterday I received a small top-up order from a supplier in America...Lots of ribbon favourites have been re-stocked, and I have some *new* bright and cheery wide ribbon spools :: My order didn't take long to arrive but they included a back order from an order I placed in October...not so bad, except it was for a lot of Christmas Ribbon! gggrrrr I'm not too mad about it though because it is lovely ribbon!!
quick links to ribbons ::
new wide ribbon click here
new Christmas ribbon click here
all other ribbon click here

december freebie 2011 :: part two :: NOW CLOSED

welcome to December's freebie :: part two

I couldn't let 2011 pass by with out having a freebie for my newest kits could I?

I shall be giving away six kits to six different blog readers...as usual I will post worldwide BUT if you're outside the UK I will not post your prize until the New Year (UK winners will receive their prize in time for Christmas)
HOW TO ENTER
simply leave a comment on this blog post
RULES
one entry per person
I must be able to contact you via your comment
CLOSING DATE
Comments/entries can be made until the freebie closes on Sunday 17th December
good luck!
the freebie is now closed

more quick shots!

I've gone into stitching overdrive! all these decorations were posted out today...and the next batch are cut and will be sewn tonight...the very last John Lewis delivery of 2011 will be leaving on Wednesday, so I should have much more time for sewing then...
last order dates for Christmas ::
made to order items from Not On The High Street :: Wednesday 14th December
all other orders :: Monday 19th December 11.59pm (late orders will be posted on Tuesday 20th)
after that the next day I will be posting is Tuesday 3rd January 2012

special orders

Over the past few days I have been making a lot of boxes!

31 boxes in total, with more on the to-do list...sorry the photos aren't fancy, just quick snap shots taken before they get wrapped, packed and sent to their new homes......things are busy but I'm having fun!

and the winner is....

the winner of December's freebie (part one) is ::comment number 14 which was made by :: Is it just me or...
Hooray & Congratulations! I will contact you shortly...for everyone else, December Freebie Part Two is in the pipeline...keep your eyes peeled!

Oxford Street

As promised here are photos (taken by the merchandiser from John Lewis) of my woodland creatures in the Make Hub of John Lewis Oxford Street ::

Freebie Day :: December 2011 :: Part One*

Kid's Crafternoon Felting is a fun book...and I have been sent a copy to use as a freebie prize! I'm also going to include a 9" felt rainbow so the lucky winner can start making straight away.
there are loads of projects in the book for all kinds of felt, and for all craft abilities too so if you're new to felt craft or a felter extraordinaire, there's something fun for you to make in here...my favourite is this little dog money box, how cute is he?
I also love the finger puppets on the front cover AND these scary zombies tooas usual all you need to do to enter the freebie is leave a comment on this blog post, easy peasy!

RULES
one entry per person

I will post worldwide

I must be able to contact you via your comment

GOOD LUCK!

*this month's freebie is split into different parts, keep your eyes peeled for the next instalment!

*********************************************************

this freebie has now closed at comment # 179