A friend in London called me a few months ago. "Please can I visit this artists who will be exhibiting at Tierlantynkies, and buy her something beautiful?" Said friend is a big art collector and she wanted to support this creative lady - Makkie was her junior in res years ago (how is this for supporting local!) .

And that is how I met Makkie (Maricke) and fell in love with her work.  It just touches something in my soul and creates happiness within. And on top of it all, just such a wonderful, fun, unique person (character), I could drink coffee with her all day long (she even served my chocolates and biscuits because she knew I had had a really crazy day and thought I needed them!).

Thank you so much Maricke for chatting to me and this lovely prize - Love your work!  

​Vertel ons bietjie meer van jouself, jou kinderdae en jou pad tot waar jy jouself nou bevind?
Die reuk van reën, gras, sade, kaalvoet, in die bosveld. Meeste van my dae: dagdromend, singend in die veld of singend in die huis. Gereeld saam broers en neefs op n boshuisie-bou missie of sokker op die grasperk. Ons kinderdae was geanker in ons speelkamer.

'n Vertrek in die huis waar allerande kuns materiale en speelgoed  gereed gestaan het vir enige ding, met n tafeltennisbord in die middel. Hier het allerande idees uitgebroei tussen die ses van ons kinders, neefs inkluis (eks die jongste van vier) en die avonture kan boeke vul.

Met ouers wat lief is vir reis, is dit die eerste ding wat ek doen na skool. Ek plak klomp papiere aan een sy bymekaar en noem dit n boek. Die verdriedubbel in breedte, van sketse, verknipte fotos en al my ervaringe, en my drome vir my lewe, oor 9 maande se toer, werk en oorleef in Europa. Ek kom huistoe met gekoekte hare en n hart vol verwondering vir die oneindigheid van die wêreld.

Toe begin ek Beeldende Kunste studeer by Tukkies. In my kursus en in koshuis maak ek die beste maatjies van my lewe. En skielik vang ons graad en die lewe is veronderstel om te begin. Maar hoe moet dit nou eintlik begin? So begin ek toe 'n kralewinkel saam met my broer. Hy sit alles in, ek moet dit net bestuur en so my deel verdien. Dit hou my besig vir 7 jaar en leer my van besigheid hou en bou, en kraletjie werk.

Toe word dit tyd om te doen wat ek moet doen. Verkoop die winkel. Kuns!

Makkerrakkie?
…was n sweetvrye naam om te gebruik omdat dit reeds my epos adres was toe ek my eerste inskrywing na Kamers vol Geskenke toe gestuur in 2014. Dit is sulke platforms soos Kamers en Tierlantynkies wat jou eie kreatiewe besigheid 'n platform gee. Ek sou nie naastenby soveel kliente en selfvertroue bymekaar kon maak sonder hulle nie. Ek sou heelwarskynlik al opgegee het.

Dit is baie braaf om jou eie besigheid te begin, veral as dit afhang daarvan om die heeltyd met nuwe werke vorendag te kom.  Wat het jou die besluit laat neem en hoe hou jy jouself positief in daai dae waar die inspirasie net nie wil kom nie?

Hahaha. Wat braaf lyk van buite, is maar net noodsaaklikheid van binne. Dit help. Dit help ook om te luister na wat ek wil doen, en nie wat ander mense wil hê nie. My draaipunt was die begeerte om iets uniek in die wêreld in te bring, om 'n doel te dien wat eie is aan my.

Buitendien is ek versot op die oomblik wanneer die emosie wat ek probeer uitdruk in pen en ink uiteindelik werk. En jy sal weet, want ek sal giggel of een of ander klank van genot uit my buik laat glip wanneer daai gesiggie “lewendig” word.

Inspirasie. Die inspirasie is daar sodra ek gaan sit om te teken of te druk. Dis om te gaan sit wat die harde werk is. So as ek sukkel gaan werk ek by Mimi van der Merwe se studio. Dis waar ek my etse druk. Mimi is dan ook daar en dan werk ons lekker saam en apart soos in my “speelkamer” dae.

Vat ons bietjie deur jou kreatiewe proses, vandat die idee by jou posvat, tot die finale produk.
Dit kom gewoonlik van 'n gebeurtenis, 'n begeerte of iemand se kind wat iets op n manier doen.. Dan speel daar n storie in my kop af en dan is dit teken teken, blaps blaps, nuwe idee, okei fokus weer.. eureka!
Dan afteken op metaal plaat. En dan weer teken met droë naald. Toetsdruk. Poets met braso, en “fine-tune” n paar lyne, Toets druk totdat al die lyne reg is vir my. Dan hoeveel van die plaat om weg te sny sodat dit prakties bymekaar sal bly, maar tog visueel reg sal vertoon. Toets druk, knip en poets, toetsdruk. Tevrede!
Sit n stukkie fancy papier in die water soos Fabriano. Ook 'n lekker oomblik. Want op die katoen papier lyk alles ryker en dieper. En dan is daar 'n nuwe kunswerk!

Vertel ons meer van jou karakter wat ons deurlopend deur al jou werke sien.
Kleine Mart. Sy arriver in my lewe in 2009 Ek was besig om met akriel op bord te verf.  Patrone, tekstiel en muurpapier patrone, maar ek wou nie uit 'n boek kopiëer nie ek wou my eie onwerp met spitsvondige elemente maak.
So begin ek met strepies, en stoele en toe begin daar mannetjies aan die stoele hang wat opstyg in die lug. So arriveer die idee van  karaktertjies in my kop, en die interaktiewe aspek wat hulle na die kunswerk toe bring, was vir my opwindend en lig.  

‘n Vriend het my n storie vertel, of dit sy eie was of ‘n oorvertelde een weet ek nie; van n mammatjie of 'n sussetjie, kom ons sê 'n sussetjie, met die naam Mart. Mart het altyd vir haar boeties sulke heerlike kos gemaak. En haar geheime bestandeel was hoog in n blik gebêre. So is sy op n tyd nie daar nie, en die kindertjies wil vir hulself ook sulke lekker kos maak. Maar dit wil net nie reg kom nie, Een sê toe maar Mart haal altyd iets uit daai blik uit wat so hoog gebêre is.
Toe is dit nou n groot  gedoente om die blik op die hoogste rak by te kom want al hierdie kindertjies is taamlik klein en die rak redelik hoog. Uiteindelik bygekom, voel hulle maar hierdie blik is feitlik leeg. En toe dit oopgemaak word is al wat binne lê, n papiertjie waarop daar geskrywe staan: “net n bietjie liefde”.

Ek was dol oor die storie, en die eenvoud waarop dit eindig. So op die volgende bord word die strepies die binnekant van n kombuis met n koddige stofie en fyn kantgordyntjie, klomp blikke op die vloer en een spesiale blik op die rak daar bo. By n hout tafel sit n dogtertjie wat stil en tevrede koekies uitdruk.

​En so manivesteer Mart toe haarself in akriel verf. Dis juis toe ek 'n klein portret van haar verf, ewe gevoude arms en selfvoldaan, dat daar skielik n cheeky meisietjie na my toe terug kyk (en ek my eerste gilletjie van genot gegee het) dat  ek geboei was om nog emosies en situasies uit te beeld op hierdie manier.  En so word sy al hoe meer deel van my en ek deel van haar. Dis toe dit by die briewe boom kom en  sy n briefie afpluk dat sy my persoonlike storie begin raak het. 

Is daar enige kunstenaars wat jou ge-inspireer het om self ‘n een te word en wie inspireer jou nou?
Ja my Ma. Al maak sy nie n beroep daarvan nie. Sy's incredible. En Jane Knight my kuns juffrou op hoërskool. Deur haar passie, het ek nog liewer vir kuns geraak, tot op die punt wat dit net van selfsprekend was dat ek 'n kunstenares is.

Op Universitetit terwyl ek veronderstel was om ernstige kuns te maak, het ek op Abner Dean se werk afgekom. Die krag van kommunikeer met karrakters op n 'Cartoon' manier het my meer geraak as meeste wat ons toe bestudeer het.  

Reflekteer jou persoonlikheid in jou werke?
Ja.

Grootste teleurstelling in jou loopbaan tot dusver?
Toe ek moed verloor het.

​Hoogtepunt?
Hierdie onderhoud.

Grootste lesse geleer en raad aan aspirerende kunstenaars/ mense wat hulle eie besigheid wil begin?
Moenie dit nie doen nie. Dis TE lekker en vreesaanjaend op die selfde tyd.

Wat is jou gunsteling kunswerk?  En op watter een is jy die trotste? Hoekom?
Elke nuwe een is my gunsteling

Maak jy kunswerke op kommissie?  
Ek maak kunswerke op kommissie. En ek Illustreer ook boeke.

Waar kan mense jou ontmoet en jou werke sien en koop?
Ek gaan uitstal by Tierlantynkies 27 September tot 2 Oktober 2017. Tans is my werk ook beskikbaar by Golden Goose Artisry in Southdowns Shopping Centre, asook by The Bub Hub & co. in The Village, Moreletta, Pretoria en The Bub Hub & co. in Broadacres Johannesburg.

Hoe kan iemand kontak maak met jou?
Hulle kan my epos, wat hulle kan kry op my Facebook Page: Makkerrakkie Illustrations

1. Like Makkerakkie Illustrations on Facebook below.
2. Like Plan Me Pretty on Facebook below. 
3. Tell us in the comments below that you have liked both pages, and where in your house this lovely piece of art will go up!
​

Terms & Conditions:
- This prize is not convetarble to cash.
- Competition closes Friday, 28 July at midnight.
- The judges decision is final.
- Anyone is South Africa can enter.
- The prize will be couriered to you, however, should any damage be done during the journey, we will not take responsibility to replace the frame.  
- You are more than welcome to collect the prize or arrange your own courier if you prefer.  

I’m not a princess and fairytales kind of person, so naturally, I’m not a princess and fairytales kind of mum. But I make an exception for Beauty and the Beast.

How can one not love Belle and her love for books, reading, and adventure? And how can one not love a romance the grows out of friendship? And so Beauty and the Beast became the theme for Madison-Sophia’s first birthday.
​It just so happened to also be the year that the new movie was released, so hey, we would be current, if not anything else.

The story of Beauty and the Beast has so many wonderful elements to it – books and reading, adventure and travel, love and friendship, the importance of family – and so I wanted these elements to be the focus of my décor. 

​I also wanted it to be different to other Beauty and the Beast parties, I wanted to stay away from the usual yellows, reds, and navy blue so I opted for a vintage and rustic approach. With the exception of yellow, and the deep red, I used pale pink, gold and pale blue as my colour scheme.

​As we live in South Africa, it is very challenging to find Beauty and the Beast props for décor. This inspired me to make many of the décor elements myself, and this is why I wanted to share this party as I hope it can inspire others in the quest for unique Beauty and the Beast party ideas.  

For the guest tables, I spray painted old coffee and baby food jars gold. I then varnished onto the jars, printed Beauty and the Beast musical sheets, and images from the 1991 movie and also added rhinestones to finish the look.

I dusted some of the jars with glitter and added tags with music notes on them. I chose yellow and pale pink roses to compliment the jars. Through the images and music sheets, these jars told the tale and song of Beauty and the Beast. I used pale pink tablecloths with bronze sequence box runners with floral and gold paper plates. ​

 For the cake table and backdrop, I used a ladder, dresser (it was impossible to locate a tea trolley - which would have been ideal) and suitcases to show case other elements of the movie. These were Belle’s love for reading, her desire for adventure, many of the enchanted characters from the story as well the enchanted rose and mirror. I love the effect of the different coloured paper flowers with the gold bunting. 

To showcase the characters of the movie, I placed an open Beauty and the Beast book on the ladder. Also on the ladder were gold spray painted easels, which held biscuits with the different characters on them. This also speaks to Belle’s dad as an artist. 

The ladder also had the enchanted rose and dome as well as rose designed cupcakes. The suitcases, vintage books, and globe map encapsulated the story of Belle’s love for reading and adventure. The main dresser had the gold and pink cake with the topper “Tale as old as Time” as well as the party packs and the tea set floral arrangement. 
​
Another handmade item was the “Be Our Guest” hessian bunting which was displayed at the entrance of the venue. In keeping with the reading theme, I also designed bookmarkers as keepsakes. ​Hope you enjoy the pictures! 

Planning, styling and décor: Rivonia K Naidu-Hoffmeester
Venue: Post House Parties
Photography: Creationography - Lifestyle and Birth Photography
Linen: The Tablecloth Hiring Company
Paper flowers: B-Lumiere Designs
Vintage Decor Hire: Hand Creations - Vintage decor hire and Crazy Parties
Flowers: The Flower Market
Bookmarkers printed and laminated: 3at1 Jean Crossing
Catering: Lucky Bread Company
Cake, cupcakes, cake pops, biscuits and macarons: The Turquoise Squirrel Patisserie

Today's bridal shower was planned and styled by Melissa, from Ever_After, for her soon to be, sister-in-law Janine.  My favorite part?  Love the french photo-booth backdrop! 

Glühwein, or mulled wine as it is also know, is a spicy, red wine drink I got to know when I lived in London.  I adore spices and red wine, so no surprises that I just adored the taste of it.  But what I loved most about it, is how it really warms you up from the inside.  I was always grateful when we arrived at someone's home for dinner and we were welcomed with a warm cup of mulled wine.

It is cheap, easy to make and a quick way to warm up your guests when they arrive in from the cold. So this Winter, spoil yourself or friends with this yummy drink that tastes of holidays and foreign places. Enjoy!

Glühwein Recipe
​(Serves 4)

1 Bottle of Red Wine (I used Woolworth's Juice Red)
1 Orange
2 Cinnamon Sticks
8 Cloves
6 Star Anise
4 Cardomom Pods (slightly crushed) 
3 Tablespoons of Brown Sugar (or substiture with 2 Tablespoons of Xylitol) 

The secret is to never let the wine boil.  Pour the bottle of wine into a pot.  Warm up gently.  Add the juice of half the orange, and slice the other half into 4 slices. Add them into the wine, along with all the spices.  Gently simmer for 15 minutes.
Keep warm until your guests arrive.
Garnish each glass with a cinnamon stick and a slice of orange from the pot before serving.
Because I prefer the wine to be very spicy, I usually make mine an hour to two hours ahead of the time so that the spices can really steep well.  Warm up again just before guests arrive. 
I served mine in these lovely Geometric Tumblers available from Mr_Price_Home.

​Photography
Thank you to the lovely Marethe.com for the images. 

To celebrate Father's Day, 'wallet and earth friendly' BunduBeard is giving away a grooming set worth R1300 to one lucky dad and/or husband! 
Because I am so passionate about natural products that do not harm me or the environment, I am so excited about this brand and trying out their products!

Tell us a bit more about the research and developing of the products before you launched your business.
Bundubeard started about 3 years ago, but only went online about two weeks ago, Classic, wet shaving offers a huge range of products, and getting a variety of budget, and high end items together, from various countries, took some time. We also experimented with our soap a lot, but we can only shower, shampoo and shave so many times a day!

How did you decide on your range of products?
​We love the environment, and offering lifestyle products that lightens the load on our beautiful planet gives me great satisfaction. Stuff must work. Ours does. All of our hardware will last you a decade to a lifetime and longer. There are many sites selling classic cutthroats that are over a century old, this certainly breaks the linear economy and turns it into a circular economy. A good razor can serve several generations of men. I wish I could get some of my Oupa's shaving equipment today, it would have been great reminders of a great man. 

Your soaps are pretty – what makes them special?
​Raw materials; we source from a few countries on the continent. Virgin, cold pressed coconut oil from Mozambique being one of my favorite go-fetch-trips, as we also love the country, its people and scuba diving.
We use a glycerin base which is very cool, you can actually melt your shaving soap into your container of choice. It makes the product so versatile as lathering up can be frustrating when you are pushing a bar of soap around in a bowl. Keep an eye out on our website, I will do a video on this in a few weeks.  

So, anything for the ladies?  Those feet and hair care products look good?  
Ladies make up a huge portion of our buyers, they don't seem to mind the 'Bundubeard' logo at all! I have introduced some ladies to our shaving soap and they now love using a brush to work up a great lather for a shave. The product line will expand though, and Bundubeard should find his love in the foreseeable future. Essentially all products can be used by both sexes. I make some custom sets also, matching a razor set to your bathroom gives me great pleasure.
The brightly colored commercial goop (a.k.a. as canned shaving foam/gel we get sold in stores), just look so out of place in a typical South African bathroom.
 
Where is your business based? We are working from our smallholding in Donkerhoek, east of Pretoria. We have our office and workshop on the premises, we love it as it attributes to a low carbon lifestyle we value so much.

Advice for others wanting to start their own business?
Hmmm, this one is easy as I am a son of God, I give him all the tough stuff, I simply do what pops into my head, it is quite simple! If I had to highlight an ethos it would be people before money. I aspire to help people and our planet.  
 
Biggest highlight since starting your business?
​Falling in love with the business! The products and concept is so simple yet brilliant! Show me any other product that saves you money, looks cooler than your current stuff, is better for the environment, and also better for your general well being and health?
It is such an awesome lifestyle change, I have come to love shaving so much and hope I can convert thousands more to switch to classic wet shaving. Shaving used to be great, an act that got your day off to a great start, and lifted one's mood. The huge corporates have turned it into a rushed, disposable chore, it is time to turn back the clock.
I have done a blog post where I explain how shaving with mainstream products will cost a young male approximately R2.3 million in his lifetime. If you are clever and switch to classic wet shaving you can cut that down to 10K! 

Biggest lesson learned?
Life in itself is a lesson and I think my biggest lesson is still to come, but one thing I have perfected is not to worry about stuff, in my previous line of work we have lost huge amounts of money on account of bad creditors, we wrote it off and moved on. Nothing inhibits progress as much as getting stuck in the past.

What is your favorite product? It is actually a razor with a black ivory handle that did not come out as planned, the handle was slightly misaligned and I could not sell it to someone, it is my go-to razor for my weekday shaves. That being said, I love our custom straights, and find it very difficult not to build up a massive personal collection of cutthroats!  

Where can people buy your range? 
On Facebook: facebook.com/bundubeard
Online:   www.boendoebaard.co.za and www.bundubeard.co.za 

How can people get in touch with you?
All our contact info is on the web locations listed above.

And lastly:
Best bachelor’s venue ever… The bush with lots of firewood and companionship, Couple that with good conversation and a couple of frosty beers and you will come out wiser, not poorer! 

Your favorite beer & burger spot? Eish, have not had a burger in ages, but I love small, local establishments, 'Die Hoefyster' is one such place with very good food, ice cold beer, and value for money to boot, I would head there if I had to get a burger anytime soon.

Congratulations to:
Lebogang Khalo!

Stand a chance to win yourself or your Dad a 'Bundu Theme Shaving Kit' worth
R1300.00 from BunduBeard!
The Prize will consist of:
Safety razor and black badger shaving brush and stand.
A year's worth of BunduBeard shaving soap.
A BunduBeard body soap.
4 Shampoo soap sticks,
A shaving bowl.
Five types of different razors so you can find your perfect fit!
​

Terms and Conditions:
1. Entries close at 8pm on Thursday evening.
2. The prize will be sent to you via overnight courier and will be delivered on Saturday - in time for Dad on Sunday.
3. You give consent that we can send you an introductory offer.
4. Prize is not convertable to cash.
5. Judges decision is final.
6. Competition is open to all South African residents. 

As I was going through these stunning images from Nadine's baby shower, I came to the realisation that I am an absolute sucker for a woodlands theme!  
It really is timeless and can be used for so many different types of functions.  My favorite detail in this shower is the wooden cut-out animals, especially the wolf.  

Thank you for sharing your lovely shower with us Nadine and may baby Danzig bring you lots of Joy! 

S'mores have been a favourite for a while now, popping up on Pinterest and cooking shows, and I always wanted to try them, but where am I to find the elusive Graham Cracker?

Always in the back of my mind, a while ago I saw 'McVities Digestives' in a Clicks Store, and remembering the taste from my days when I lived in London, I knew they would make the perfect biscuit for this recipe, viola!

So I decided that this will be my first post for our June theme - WINTER WARMERS! I am going away for a few days of R&R, so I decided to post it early, enjoy! 

Now that I had the biscuits, I started to browse the internet for S'more 'how to' instructions, and came across this indoor version.  As it turns out, I also found the easiest, yummiest dessert you could possibly serve your friends and family this winter! They are so delicious (really!) and so much fun to eat and also very pocket friendly!
PS*  Dad will also love it! 

​Tell us a bit more about who you are and your background? When did you start your business?
Why? After searching high and low for the perfect baby shower gift for my best friend (who happens to live abroad), I realised that there wasn’t much of a selection of beautiful and original proudly South African gifts on offer. As I soon discovered, most local baby shops offer imported gifts and items and, since her gift was going to a baby born overseas, I wanted something that was designed and
handmade in South Africa. It was at this point that I put my creativity to good use and started Cotton Candyfloss – a selection of handmade baby gifts to suit any occasion.

What products do you supply?  What makes your products unique? 
We offer a unique range of baby shower gifts, as well as one-of-a-kind gifting options that
are suitable for first birthdays, newborn hospital gifts, and other special
occasions. We are proud to say that all our gifts are PROUDLY SOUTH AFRICAN, and are designed and handmade with love right here in SA.

The combination of blue and pink is still one of my all time favorites and this beautiful styled shoot by Marissa from Konfetti Love, proves once again why.  This lady has some serious styling flair and manages to always come up with something unique and different.  So if you have not decided yet how to make Mother's Day special for your mom this year, draw some inspiration from all of Marissa's lovely ideas.
- A beautiful breakfast tray
- Custom placemats or card by having your little one drawing something for grandma
- Quality time together by enjoying a lovely tea or lunch together as a family.

My favorite detail?
The perspex flower center pieces!  Such a cost effective way of incorporating flowers without spending a fortune,  

Enjoy the images and have a lovely Mother's Day - whether you are spoiling your mum or the one being spoiled.

I love that we set aside a whole day to honour and celebrate the women who raised us. Doing something special for mom on Mother’s Day is the best way to celebrate all of the love, support, guidance and care that a mother puts into raising her children. And only after becoming a mother myself did I realise just how much time and effort it takes!

Mother's day is such a special celebration for me as it is the only 'holiday' every year that the whole family spends together. Me and my sister, our mom, my husband’s parents and my brother-in-law's parents, and all the other siblings and grandchildren in between.  

We love spending time outdoors, so we always have a picnic-type lunch, usually at the Botanical Gardens, and then we do a big harvest table with lots of bread, cheese, fruit and charcuterie.

We bring enough blankets and cushions so that after lunch we can take the obligatory Sunday afternoon nap and others sit around reading.  After nap time it is time for coffee (which we bring in flasks) and dessert.  A slow day with our nearest and dearest and I love it!

To add a bit of whimsy to your Mother's Day - we have these lovely paper placemats and name cards for you to download and print if you are having a more traditional lunch at the table or in a restaurant.  The placemats have two beautiful quotes, available in Afrikaans and English.

​

My sister and I decide beforehand what all the Mother's will be treated with, usually a plant, a treatment and a hand-written card.  This year I will definitely be using these pretty cards designed by I Love Design Love.  The cards are available to download in Afrikaans and English. 

​Wishing you a very special Mother's Day! 

Vendors:
Design by I Love Design Love
Flowers by Kabloom Flowers
​Styling by Plan Me Pretty

Jy kies nie jou familie nie - Placemat 1 Afrikaans
You don't choose your family - Placemat 1 English
Om deel van 'n gesin te wees - Placemat 2 in Afrikaans
To be part of a family - Placemat 2 in English
Liefste Ma - Afrikaans Card
​Love you Mom - English Card
Empty Name Cards - you can edit these in Paint  

​

Today's Easter styled shoot submitted by Marissa, owner and creative lady behind Konfetti Love, brings to life a lovely pastel Easter garden scene showcasing the work of some of our most talented, Pretoria based service providers. 
It is whimsical, fun and makes me super excited to start putting together my family's Easter lunch! 

I’ve been excited about Easter for quite some time now. Easter has all my favourite colours wrapped up in one holiday and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it! 
The colour palette I decided on was inspired by a selection of macaroons by Nicole’s Macaroons. They are releasing their Easter Collection with two yummy new flavours and I decided to use the colours that would best compliment their selection. In their Easter selection box they have teal, pink, yellow, brown, purple and white macaroons all wrapped up in a little egg carton. When working with a few colours, such as in this case, I normally choose three main base colours and do variations of the colour here and there for maximum impact. This time around I chose yellow, pink and teal as my base colour. This might sound repetitive but more often than not, it makes for brilliant images as any other contrasting colours immediately stand out. ​

That is partly the reason why I chose a garden setting. We shot these lovely images in the immaculate garden at the Osborne House in Brooklyn, Pretoria. The perfectly groomed hedges and evergreen lawn worked as a fantastic backdrop for our soft and muted colour scheme. The contrast of the green and dark foliage is exactly what I aimed for.

We have two lovely printable's for you to use this weekend! 
The one is an A3 Happy Easter sign that you can use to stick onto your front door to welcome your guests, or stick the sign onto a wooden skewer and pop it into your flower arrangements on your Easter table (for this purpose it is better to print the sign on A4, otherwise it is too big).
The second one are the cutest name card bunnies to use for your seating placements. 
Enjoy! Thank you to DESIGN LOVE for the pretty prints!

Download here:
Easter Banner
Bunny Name Cards

There is something about pink, black and gold that just works! I love the color combination and a tried and tested color combination to create a sophisticated, but fun look.
​
​Today we are sharing a baby shower that was styled by one of our listed party and event planners, Melabee Bespoke Events and the event was held at KCC La Vie and Rose, also one our our listed venues in Johannesburg.

Enjoy the pictures, I am sorry, I got a little out of control with the food photographs, but it all just looks so good! Especially those Nutella and Peanut Butter tartlets! 

What can I say...I'm totally in love with this theme. It suited the the mom-to-be perfectly. I can't believe that in December last year I styled her bachelorette and now her baby shower. It was truly an honour to be part of yet another milestone, Nicolette Pesev you are beautiful both inside and out, and wish you and Orce only the best memories with your bundle of joy.

With each blog post I am just amazed and the artistic talent and creativity that some people have!  This year-end function by Bunting & Blossoms, once again, made my jaw drop, love it!  I think this is possibly the closest you can feel like being in Hawaii, other than actually being in Hawaii!

Usually when companies contact us to organise a yearend function, we expect rather lavish and grand briefs; followed by rather boring themes. This was not the case with one of the yearend functions we organised late last year. It was certainly an instance of “been there, done that” and the company wanted something totally different and fun for their yearend function. We were given a blank canvas and a budget, thus the function would still be lavish and grand – but with a fun twist!

Oh be still my beating heart! What else is there to say, gold, pink, black, bubbles, golden tattoo's.  
So I will leave it to Marissa, owner of Konfetti Love to tell us a bit more about the event and where her inspiration came from!
Detail I love most?  Those Macaron Favors are too cute and I just adore them! 
Enjoy the pictures.

​If you are dreaming of a chic and stylish bridal shower to celebrate your upcoming nuptials, this chic black, pink and gold theme will have you covered in no time. It embraces all things girlish and showcases such lovely contrasts and textures. 

I think today's free printable's are some of the coolest we have ever had!  
Four pretty prints, for free, that you can do the following with:
- Print and put it into a frame for your Valentine today.
- Perfect as a cost effective gift for a friend, again, just pop it into a pretty frame.
- Such a simple way of prettifying your walls in your home.
- Hosting a baby shower, birthday or bridal shower?  Print them, roll them up, tie with a ribbon - this is almost the perfect thank you gift.  Cost effective, but will not be wasted. 

We have four designs that you can download and print, two in Afrikaans and two in English.  
Happy Valentine's Day xXx

PS** Winner announced at bottom of post.

At the beginning of this month I was lucky enough to sit down for a cup of coffee with graphic designer, Tharien Strydom, mastermind behind creative design company, Swagger Collective. 

Tharien was to be my 'Vendor Spotlight Subject' for the month of February.  While chatting away to get to know Tharien a little better and find some inspiration from her for our readers thinking about starting their own businesses, we decided that it would be great to team up for the month of February and spread some love by giving away something pretty to one lucky reader.  **Competition details at the end of this post.

I was amazed by this lady's creativity and the uniqueness of their products.  Their business consists of four departments:  Object, Babble, Construct and Events, with their specialty being custom decor pieces.

Tell us a bit more about who you are and your background?
I grew up in Vereeniging and moved to Pretoria when I started studying at Design School South Africa in 2006.
I finished my interior design degree in 2008.
I loved making things for myself and friends since I can remember.
Things that make me happy: my husband, our home, walks with our dogs, art galleries and pizza.
 
When did you start your business?
Swagger was born in 2009. First as a part time business and I went all out in 2011 when I decided to quit my day job and focus all my time and energy on creating products that I love.

Why?
I started Swagger as a creative outlet on the side. I started making accessories that I wanted to wear but couldn’t buy anywhere.
My business evolved from accessories into home décor, as well as doing custom products to match client’s needs. Planning and organizing is one of my best assets, so when I combine these with creative elements I love the end result. I started doing events for friends and family, and realized that it really makes me happy, so I added it to my services.

What products and/or services do you supply?
Services:
Events coordinating, designing & styling. Making each event unique.
Interior Design/Decorating & Space planning.
Product design:
Existing range and custom/personalized items.
 
Where is your business based?
Pretoria, but we do post products all over South Africa, and events anywhere in Gauteng can be managed.
 
Advice for others wanting to start their own business?
Don’t be scared to take chances. If you believe in your idea, then everything else will fall into place. Hard work pays off, but it takes time. You are only as good as your last products so always make sure that you deliver your best product/service. “If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life.”
 
Biggest highlight since starting your business?
When your products are featured in magazines and when events that you were part off are featured on blogs that you admire.
Also the moment a plan comes together and the end result is exactly what you imagined.
 
Any low's and biggest lesson learned so far?
Saying yes to a job that was too big for my company at the time. Disappointing the client and learning a very expensive lesson.

How can people get in contact with you?
You can contact me directly on email: hello@swaggercollective.co.za
or on my cell phone 082 876 9357
My website has a contact page: www.swaggercollective.co.za
Facebook message me via my page: Swagger Collective

And lastly:
Most recent function you attended, theme, color scheme and venue.  What was your favorite detail?
A carnival themed year end function. Red, black & gold.
Kleinkaap Venue, Centurion.

Favourite detail: Gold animals stacked onto each other as part of the centre pieces.
​
​Best Cake & Coffee spot anywhere in South Africa.
Best carrot cake: Tribeca Standard, Lynnwood Bridge, Pretoria.
Best coffee: Carlton Café Delicious in Menlo Park, Pretoria.
 
What was the last present that you bought and for whom?
I bought an indoor plant, which I paired with one of my steel planters for a friend’s new home.

Today I am sharing the birthday party of 3-year old little Ivy, who is one lucky girl, because mom, Nicky, put together the most precious Enchanted Fairy Forest themed party for her.  I just love the floral elements and the crochet mushrooms are the best! 

I really have enjoyed planning my daughter Ivy’s birthday parties for the last few years… But this year has probably been my favourite. 
Firstly, because now that she is a bit bigger (she turned 3), she understands the concept of her birthday and her party so much more- there has been SO much excitement during the last few weeks, leading up to the “big day”. I am a bit of a sucker for online shopping- and every single parcel that arrived she very excitedly asked “Is that for my party!?”… Luckily, most of them were! 
​
Secondly, I absolutely loved the theme this year. We initially decided on a “fairy princess theme” – Ivy loves anything “pretend & pretty” and dressing-up is one of her absolute favourite things to do. I wanted to do a theme that would allow us to create a fantasy world for her special day, so decided to add “Enchanted Forest” to the theme. Making it her “Enchanted fairy forest party”…

​It is the start of the new year and I know many of you are diving straight into planning some type of celebration whether for yourself, a friend, your little one or your company. We all know the hardest part of planning any party is deciding on the theme and this year I have decided for you - 2017, the year of the Unicorn!

Corporate, pool party, product or store launch, first birthday, it does not matter, unicorn is the theme for 2017.
Why?
1. Because everyone all over social media says so.
2. Every person should get to wear a unicorn horn/outfit at least once in their lifetime.
3. Unicorn hair.
4. You can re-use the decor from event to event and that is good for the environment.
5. You get to float on one of those unicorn water floats if you have a pool or just sit around on them.
6. Cotton candy and sparkles.
7. So many shades and combination of pastel to play with your eyes could possibly start to see in shades of pastel forever - okay I am actually going to try that.
8. You can put glitter on everything. I mean everything.
9. Unicorn bark.
10. You get to spend hours an hours on Pinterest and Instagram deciding on exactly which design of unicorn cupcake, cake, invitation, biscuit is the most perfect for your party.
11.  People are making unicorn cake pops and they really are amazing.
12. They are also making unicorn donuts and that gives you a legitimate reason to have a donut.
13. Unicorns make people happy - that takes a lot of pressure of the planner - you are halfway to a succesfull party!
14. It looks pretty.
15. It is colorful.
16. It photographs really well.
17. I will publish your party on my blog if you do it really well.
18. Think pink drinks and milkshakes and bubbly with cotton candy.
19. You can make people feel good by putting up inspirational unicorn quotes everywhere.
20. It's a horse, with a horn, how cool is that?!

Please see below a few of my favorite images from Pinterest, there are many, many, many more on my 'Unicorn' board, so go and have a look.  These images are not mine, and are linked to original source on Pinterest.

HAVE FUN &WISHING EVERYONE A MAGICAL 2017!

Unicorn bacon, a unicorn biscuit is a cute, edible gift and lastly another great idea is a glass bottle filled with anything you want to fill it with!  Just remember to stick a unicorn on top.

Christmas is exactly 13 days away!  2016 has by far been the year that flew by the fastest, I feel like my head is still spinning!  Has it been the same for you?  Either way, this week we are winding down and from Thusrday it is time for holiday, relaxation, family & friends!

So to round the year off, here are some beautiful free chsristmas printables from  Design Love
​I would also just quickly like to take this oppurtunity to thank Monique for all the stunning printables she designed for our readers this year - what a blessing and a huge luck on our part! 

Download Paper Placemat 1:  Merry Little Christmas
​Download Paper Placemat 2:  Merry Christmas

Download set of 6 Christmas Gift Tags