I hope everbody had a lovely Christmas. Me & Boo Vake will now be taking a wee break & we will be back, fully recharged, on Tuesday the 8th of January. A big thanks to everyone who has supported us this year! Arlene x   

new gift guides

Have been busy updating the gift guides on our website. Almost there now, just a few more guides & a refreshing of the home page to do (why does this always take me so long?!). So here's s few to start off with...

house - details here

 jewellery - details here

  woollies - details here

Hope you like!

before it's just a distance memory....

When I got married last year my lovely family clubbed together to get us a weeks hire of a 70s VW campervan. Last month, more than a year later, we finally got to take that trip! The obvious choice for us was to head to the Highlands.

 

Our route (somewhat dictated by the weather): Inverness - Lochcarron - Applecross - Shieldaig - Kinlochewe - Red Point - Gairloch - Poolewe -  Altbea - Ullapool - Achiltibuie - Inverkirkag -Lochinver - Loch Assynt - Bonar Bridge - Croik (detour)- Portmahomack - Nigg - Cromarty - Fortrose - Inverness. 

Bealach na Bà

Our van 'Blanche' (she was white just a few weeks before) managed the singletrack hairpins over the Bealach na Bà into Applecross like a trouper (all thanks to Ken).

Applecross   

on the Applecross Peninsula

Badachro

Red Point

the viewpoint at Red Point

Inverewe Gardens, Poolewe

The brightest day coincided with us passing through Poolewe so the perfect opportunity to take a wee wander around the Inverewe Gardens.  

under Stac Pollaidh

Altandhu

We had a mixed bag of not so bad weather from the beginning but on the sixth day our luck well and truly ran out - above being our view for most of the day (think windows open and squeegee in operation for full effect - got to see through that windscreen somehow!). So cruel since we passed through some of the most amazing landscape that day. Just as well we got a good look at Stac Pollaidh the day before as Suilven and Canisp were no where to be seen. So instead of continuing north we followed our noses and headed back eastwards.

Ardvreck Castle, Loch Assynt

Croick Church

On the way back east we took a wee detour to Croick Church best known for it's connection to the Highland Clearances and the sheltering families of Glencalvie, who recorded their plight in stratched messages on the window in 1845. The small churchyard is also the last resting place of a dear family member so a rather poignant place for me all round.. 

close-up of Croick Church window

Portmahomack

So where to head next? Portmahomack of course -  the driest place in Scotland (apparently). At least that day it lived up to it's reputation.

Nigg

on the Nigg - Cromarty ferry

Cromarty

Chanonry Point

We spent the last night on the Black Isle before returning 'Blanche' back to her home in Inverness. After a week of being greeted with waves and smiling faces it was quite a comedown to hand over our 'mobile tearoom' & drive away in our very ordinary car. 

new hilke macintyre

'blackbird in the rain' - approx 13cm x 13cm (£60)

It's always a joy to get some new ceramic reliefs from Hilke MacIntyre in the shop. Here's our latest offerings....

'sunny day' - approx 13cm x 13cm (£60)

' just a shower' - approx 17cm x 11cm (£60)

'countryside in september' -  2 parts, approx 27cm x 27cm in total (£160)

  'snowball fight' - approx 20cm x 11cm (£70)

'football in the village' - approx 11cm x 22cm (£70)

'woman & cat' -  approx 5.5cm x 11cm (£35)

(Sizes & prices to follow when I'm back in shop tomorow)

taking a break...

Boo Vake will be closed as of 1pm tomorrow! But don't worry, we're just taking a break & will be back open on Tuesday 11th September with lots of new things in store!

new at boo vake....

Ok, I'm fickle.  I had actually intended to reduce down the jewellery section in the shop, having already removed a number of jewellery cabinets in favour of new shelves. But then, in the space of a few days, I was contacted by two jewellery designers, one long established & one fairly new, and resistance was indeed futile!
 

 Tatty Devine

So there you have it.... We now stock a selection of jewellery from London-based Queens of perspex Tatty Devine AND beautiful silver jewellery from Glasgow-based Hey Jenny Jenny (aka Jennifer Nicolson)! And I'm very happy about that!!
  

Hey Jenny Jenny

roddy & ginger

We are very pleased to be stocking gorgeous screenprinted cushions & screenprints by Roddy & Ginger! The cushions are hand-printed onto white or natural linen, and have a dark cotton back-panel.

Screenprinted cushions £34-£36 (£28-£30 without duck feather cushion pads).

cushion sale...

Olaf Owl cushion from the Lisa Jones Studio now £20 (was £34)

It would seem our blog has been a bit neglected lately (I've been finding it easier to update our facebook page with all the happenings, to my shame), so to get back in the swing of things here's a taster of our designers cushion sale in the shop....
  

 screenprinted cushion from Sukie now £20 (was £34)

Birdsong cushion from Lush Designs now £20 (was £29)

Of course, apologies if you've already seen this on FB!

building huts

On Sunday, whilst everybody was glued to the tennis, myself & K  were out lending a hand to my architect brother's hut building project in Falkland in Fife. Two site-specific woodland huts that are being built as part of Falkland Estate's Big Tent Festival (a music & environmental festival happening later this month).
                     

The onsite construction is being done by volunteers (which inevitably means a good dose of friends & family in these things) and by the time we got there Sunday midday f&f troops Bill & Stewart had already been working away with Alasdair for a few hours and were ready to be relieved. 

My chief role was of being 'the extra pair of hands' - holding things, passing things, and going getting things (like lunch/tea). Not the glamour end I know but all very necessary when there's only three of you! By the end of the day the roof was watertight and the canopy was ready to be fixed on. Very satisfying. 

 

You can read about the project (a bit larger) by clicking on the above picture.

The canvas canopy was put on the next night.

This is the first of the huts, with the second being at a less advanced stage, so still an awful lot to do.  Hopefully will be back again to help out a little bit next Sunday. 

Studio Baird Architects

Big Tent Festival