gift guide...cosy christmas!!

let our designers keep you toasty warm and curled up this Christmas!
1. cosy slouchy bedsocks by Catherine Tough in lambswool. a variety of colours/designs £18. UPDATE: not many left!

2. horse cushion by the girls at Lush Designs £34

3. sleepy pom by Donna Wilson. he loves a snooze too! £34

4. who wouldn't want to cuddle up with harry hairy head by Donna Wilson! £45

5. breakfast in bed tray by Donna Wilson.......wouldn't that be nice! £28

6. buckwheat & lavender filled heart cushion by Catherine Tough. can be gently warmed on a radiator. in various colours £32

7. short cosy bedsocks by Catherine Tough £10. not many left!

8. robin cushion by Donna Wilson in lovely soft lambswool £57

9. cuddly cloud lambswool cushions by Donna Wilson for those of us who have our head in the clouds. mini £30, medium £42

10. rainy days lambswool cushion by Donna Wilson £42

11. hotdog wheat bag warmer by Showpony. pop daisy in the microwave for 2 minutes and she'll keep you warm for a couple of hours! £24

12. ...and if you have to venture out wrap up warm with a dotty lambswool scarf by Closeknit £25

gift guide...accessories

1. felted grey & red wool purses by Donna Smith. made in Shetland. £15.
2. Harris Tweed bag by Cadadh. made in Poolewe. Available in grey, blue & brown tweeds and in 3 sizes. £54, £60 & £64
3. another pair hand screenprinted leather purses by London's Miss Budd. £32
4. jade & tigereye bracelet by Mojo. made in Glasgow. £34
5. lambswool scarf by Saltire Designs. Available in red, green, pale green, pink, pale blue & grey. Made near Loch Lomond! £22
6. maya Harris Tweed bag in bubblegum pink by Edinburgh designer Katherine Emtage. £125
7. Borders & Harris Tweed corsages by Katherine Emtage in assorted colours tweeds. £15
8. love bird hand screenprinted gold leather purse by Miss Budd. £45
9. handmade felt corsages by Lynne Ramsay. assorted colours & sizes. made in Edinburgh. £6-£11
10. vintage curios bracelet by Louise Pringle. £45. made in Mid Lothian. many other of Louise's pieces available.
11. mariposa hand screenprinted silver leather purse by Miss Budd. £35. also available in gold in smaller size. £32.
12. gertrude bag in Borders tweed by Katherine Emtage. also available in indigo Harris Tweed. £60
13. biomorph necklace by Islay Spalding in hand dyed resin and silver. made in Broughty Ferry. £82.50
14. sandwich bracelets in felted wool by Edinburgh designer Lynsey Walters. £20 each
15. felted wool escher scarf by Donna Smith. in assorted colours. £29

gift guide....be creative!

1. recycled leather covered notebooks by Artbox£9.50
2. make-a-book kit by Alison Hardcastle. screenprinted cover, A4 sheet & instructions to make your very own artist's book. a great introduction to bookbinding £8
3. paper making kit by Flights of Fancy. with deckle, mould, press & instructions £18
4. a bright idea notebook by Sukie. a different lightbulb on each page for all your eureka moments!£9
5. make-your-own monster kit by Donna Wilson. each kit unique with pre-stitched shape £14
6. handmade notebooks by Pumpkinsputnik £3.50-£8
7. turn over a new leaf notebook by Sukie. a different leaf on each page £9
8. make yourself a sausage dog by Lucy Jane Batchelor. with 2 balloons & instructions! £3.70
9. create your own daisy chain mobile by Lush. £13

gift guide.....under £50

1. hedge warbler by Hannah Turner £36
2. blah blah blah cushion by Donna Wilson £42
3. Mr & Mrs Jones ceramic bottles by Polly George £22 & £18
4. jade, onyx, turquoise & agate bracelet by Mojo £43
5. stealth lamp by Blue Marmalade. complete with 7 colour filters £36
6. breakfast in bed tray by Donna Wilson £28
7. rainy days cushion by Donna Wilson £42
8. screen printed leather purses by Miss Budd £32
9. wild pig cushion by Lush £29
10. cyril sqirrel-fox by Donna Wilson £47
11. digging ceramic relief by Hilke MacIntyre £25
12. vintage curios bracelet by Louise Pringle £45
13. monkey lampshade by Lush £26
14. vessel ceramic tile by Ceri White £23
15. horse cushion by Lush £34

gift guide...£25 and under

1. tape-measure wash/make-up bag by Erin Hensley £22
2. felt coasters by Donna Wilson £12
3. vintage shopper by Showpony £12
4. trevor the tiger necklace by Haberdash House £25
5. lambswool bedsocks by Catherine Tough £18
6. Rex & Regina tea-towels by Lush £11 each
7. short lambswool bedsocks by Catherine Tough £10
8. Borders & Harris Tweed brooches by Katherine Emtage £15
9. lambswool dotty scarf by Closeknit £24. Lots of other scarves available too!
10. make-your-own monster kit by Donna Wilson £14
11. small fused glass pendants by Alicia MacInnes £21
12. limited edition tea-towel by Donna Wilson £16. Hang it on your wall!
13. butterfly candleholder/wee bowl by Polly George £12
14. stripey head by Donna Wilson £19
15. flock ceramic horse tile by Ceri White £22

santa's swallie

Another idea for those especially difficult men in your life.....how about a mini-cask of real ale from The Inveralmond Brewery? A 5 litre mini-cask of Santa's Swallie or Ossian Ale will set you back around £16 (from memory). For more information you can phone 01738 449448 (if George isn't by the phone then you can leave a message). If you're not in Perth you can order online from Cellarman Direct.

gift guide....mangifts!

1. space hopper by Edinburgh designer Kate George. box framed to sit on shelf or hang on wall. £36
2. recycled leather covered diaries in many manly colours! small £16 and large £21
3. screenprinted leather keyrings by Prod. £2
4. Pea badges by Kate Sutton for the budding gardener. £3
5. Twig pencils by Flights of Fancy. thin £1.50 and chunky £2
6. mansocks by Catherine Tough. Cosy lounging socks in size 8-10. £18
7. driftwood clocks by Garry Brown. £68-£105
8. catapult pencil by Flights of Fancy. £5
9. groover by Kate George. For all those groovers out there! £36
10. fused glass cufflinks by Alicia MacInnes. £24
11. screenprinted hankerchiefs by Sukie. £8
12. beetle and mini - retro digital artwork by Kate George. boxed out to sit on a shelf or hang on a wall. £22 each
13. angry ginger by Donna Wilson. He's grumpy but soft inside,- sound familiar!! £34
I think there's going to have to be a part 2 to this one!

open every day!!

We are now open every day until Christmas!!! On Sundays we will be open from 12-4pm, Mondays from 10am-5.30pm.....and if you are in town tomorrow join us for some mince pies and mulled wine!

katherine emtage

Just in....tweed bags & brooches by Edinburgh designer Katherine Emtage.
above from left to right: bubblegum pink Maya bag in harris tweed(£125); poppy red & indigo Gertrude bags in Borders or Harris Tweeds (£60). below: assorted colours of brooches in Borders or Harris Tweeds (£15).

gift guide....£10 & under

1. Prod leather screenprinted badges (£2, £3), earrings (£8), pendants (£5);
2. Soop rings...wear together to make a country scene on your finger! (£6 each);
3. 'I've joined the circus' wooden brooch by Haberdash House (£10);
4. Lavender Bod keyrings by The Black Rabbit (£4.50)
5. Tape Measure purse & corsage by Erin Hensley (£10 each);
6. Scented candles byPintail. Cinnamon & orange, mulled wine, cranberry spice, mistletoe & wine, warm gingerbread and many more! (£7)
7. Lush hanging wooden birds. Orange, teal, grey, pale blue & green. (£10)
8. Handmade felt flower brooches by Lynne Ramsay (£7). Also heart brooches (not shown £6)
9. Set of 4 pencils made from a variety of Coniferous (or deciduous) trees by Flights of Fancy. All from managed forests in Scotland. (£8). Also catapult pencils (not shown £5) and twig pencils (not shown £1.50 & £2)
10. Sukie plain/lined notebook in pink, blue, green or yellow (£7). From one side lined paper for notes and from the other plain paper for doodles.
11. Bothy bottle stopper by Glenshee Pottery. Variety of colours (£2.90)
12. Monochrome mug by Dundee designer Johanna Basford from her very popular hand drawn designs. Black on white or white on black(£9)

giftbags

We've been asked quite a lot about giftbags over time so I've finally found ones by Caroline Gardner that I think fit the bill. Especially good if you want to put a few wee things together. Complete with matching gift-tag. From £2.25-£2.60
*coming up.... some Christmas gift guides*

new donna wilson

New melamine trays by the lovely Donna Wilson!! I have a bit of thing about trays at the moment so I was really very pleased to see these by one of my favourite designers. 4 different designs to choose from. £28

And some new lambswool cushions. Fox & Robin. Each £57

greyfriars christmas fayre!!

Greyfriars Bar will be holding their annual Christmas Fayre on Monday the 17th starting at 7.30pm!!
boo vake will be there, as will Brig farm shop, The Smart Good Food Shop, & Blues & Browns.
And if that’s not enough Fergus & Ken from the Inveralmond Brewery will be giving a beer tasting upstairs!! There will be plenty of opportunity to talk to the guys and pre-order Inveralmond mini-kegs and giftpacks.
boo vake will have a small (but perfectly formed!) collection of goodies and I’ll be giving a discount of 10% on the shop prices on the night!!!!!
greyfriars bar, 15 South Street, Perth ph2 8pg

join the circus!

Just in from Edinburgh's Haberdash House are these brooches and necklaces from her new Circus Collection. The wooden 'I've joined the circus' brooches (I love these!) come printed with red, pink, or black, Henrietta the horse in red, black or white, and Trevor the tiger in red. Brooches are £10, perspex necklaces are £25

...and here it is!

Not a great photograph but I'm sure you get the idea!

advent calendars

We have just got some advent calendars from Lucy Jane Batchelor which you put together yourself from her cut-out decorations and stickers. I'm taking one home with me tonight so I'll take a photo of it when it's finished and hopefully it will be in the shop window next week! They are £8.50

We have a new batch of goodies from Lush Designs including these Rex & Regina teatowels. A perfect his & her gift! £10.50 each. And their new horse cushions. £34

cosy toes!!

We've just got a delivery of cosy lounging (bed)socks by London based textile designer Catherine Tough. Great for keeping cosy on these long dark nights. In three different colours at the moment...and more to come next week! £18

pumpkinsputnik

We've had lots of new things appearing this week but I'll start off with these very lovely handmade notebooks by Glasgow designer/maker Emma Wilson (aka pumpkinsputnik). I was really pleased to get Emma's work here as it really is gorgeous. From £3.50-£8. Perfect stocking fillers!

well done Ken!!

My very brave partner Ken (a brewer at The Inveralmond Brewery ) made his debut on the new Gaelic television channel last night on a programme about food and drink called Slighe gu Biadh. Brave because he's a Gaelic learner and was extremely (& uncharacteristically) nervous on the day! The whole programme is set in Perthshire (the bit in the brewery is about 8 minutes in) and has subtitles in English. You can see it HERE on BBC iPlayer for the next week.
*UPDATE* My mum (a gaelic speaker) thinks he did very well!!! He'll be pleased about that!

miss budd

New in are some gorgeous leather purses from London's Miss Budd! Above is the 'lovebird' large purse/clutch. Each one is hand screenprinted onto leather (in this case gold leather) with a different image on either side. At the moment we have yellow on gold (as above) and mauve on gold. They would make a very special present! Priced at £45.
More designs and sizes soon!

hilke macintyre - ceramic reliefs

garden with wheelbarrow. approx 27cm x 9cm. £70

We have just got in these fabulous ceramic reliefs from Fife based artist Hilke MacIntyre. Enjoy!!

dark tulips. approx 15cm x 15 cm. £65

chocolates. 16.5cm x 11.5cm. £65

cats & flowers. approx 15cm x 15cm. £65

4 gardeners.
digging, raking, cutting & picking. approx 10cm x 7cm. £25 each

anke weckmann

I was really pleased to receive a fabulous package of goodies this week from one of my favourite illustrators Anke Weckmann. Inside was a wonderful collection of badges/brooches, pendants, mirrors & stickers. I wish I'd taken picture of the box. It was a joy to look at in itself...and a treat to open! Even the invoice is beautiful to look at!

badges £7

pocket mirrors £6

screenprinted bird stickers (pack of 20) £5

I hope you like Anke's work as much as I do! Prices range from £5-£7.

lov-li!!

Other recent arrivals to boo vake are these fabulous little notebooks by illustrator Kate Seaward for Lov-Li. They are £3.50 each.

a catch-up....no 2

Adding to the aromas floating around boo vake at the moment are these colourful scented candles by Pintail in Cumbria. As well as the ones pictured above we have jasmine & lemon balm, elderflower & champagne, peony & pink rose bud, and suitably seasonal cranberry spice. mistletoe & wine, and mulled wine. They are £7 each.

a catch-up.....no 1

We've had a lot of new bits & pieces appearing recently. I'll start off with the soaps, candles and shower gels from Clare at Barony Crafts. Her scented soy candles last twice as long as normal candles and if you spill them you can clean any spillages with soap and water!

We also have a collection of 8 of her soaps including Relaxing Perthshire Lavender, Scotch Mist & Raspberry Dreels. And lovely Soothing Honey & Oatmeal Shower Gel. All made in Perthshire.

perthshire open studios - ceri white

The Perthshire Open Studios event started at the weekend and runs until next Sunday. We managed to visit a few venues on Sunday including that of boo vake favourite Ceri White (above!) at Baldinnies near Dunning. The highlight for me was finding out how she does her animal 'flock' tiles (I've spent many a quiet moment pondering this!) .... and was impressed to find out that it's all down to good old-fashioned time-consuming labour-intensive fiddly stuff!!!
If you want to visit Ceri or any of the other artists & makers taking part most venues are open daily from 10-5 right up to and including Sunday the 5th.

my brother....

My brother, Alasdair Baird, is an architect. The house he designed for his mother-in-law features in the Sept/Oct edition of Homes & Interiors Scotland. It's a fabulous, beautifully crafted house with incredible attention to detail. My jaw did drop when I read the budget was £450,000 (as I still harbour thoughts that someday I might be in the position to benefit from his services!) but phew!!! they made a mistake (quite a big one) - it should have said £250,000! I'm sure this issue will still be in the shops if you want to take a peek.

islay jane spalding

We've just got in jewellery by the lovely Islay Spalding. Islay graduated from Duncan Of Jordanstone College of Art in 2005 and has been creating fabulous one-off pieces ever since. Her biomorphs range is made from silver and colourful hand-dyed resin, and we also have some of her resin & chain pieces (...made from resin & chain!). Prices from £33-£90. Islay also specialises in designing & making bespoke kiltpins so if you're looking for something special for somebody special check her site out here!

recycled leather notebooks

Recent arrivals are these recycled leather covered notebooks and photo-albums by artbox from East Sussex. You may have guessed it but I was attracted to them by their fabulous colours! Notebooks are £9.50 and photo-albums are £15. We will also have leather covered 2009 diaries later on.

tour de Mull!!

It wasn't quite Mark Beaumont but myself and the other (Ken) are just back from 5 days cycling (and camping!) round the Isle of Mull! Here's a few pics from the 'great adventure'.

A quick detour to Duart Castle.

Ken at Lochbuie.

Me having a well earned cuppa after reaching the end of the long rise in Glen More (and the sun came out!).

Leaving Calgary behind.

Ken at the top of the long upwards stretch on the Calgary/Gruline road.

Glorious sunshine overlooking Ulva.

A waterfall!

On the road back from Glengorm to Tobermory.

Some might remember I did a bit of damage to my knee a wee while back (many thanks to Mr MacLean and PRI for sorting me out!) so I've been doing a bit of cycling since to keep things working, hence this trip. I was a bit apprehensive about tackling Mull's long slow (never ending!) hills as I'm more used to undulating Perthshire as far as cycling is concerned. But it was all good in the end and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Single track roads were a bonus as it meant many more opportunities to stop - which I'm all for! Although I spent a large chunk of my childhood on Mull it was great to get round to parts I wasn't at all familiar with. And can I just recommend waterproof socks - I couldn't have done it without you!