Laura and I had an interesting day at the FLAIR artists and makers Craft Fair in York today. The weather was a challenge. York was covered in a blanket of snow and the temperature was very low. The fair was held in the Chapel within the historic York Cemetery which was a beautiful venue. Unfortunately it wasn't a very attractive day for people to come out but we did meet some very talented crafters and some very robust customers who braved the snow storm and the freezing conditions. Thank you especially to our friends who made a special effort to attend and give us support, it was very much appreciated.

We met Jilly Lovett a brilliant crafter who makes folk art dolls (the Johnny Depp pirates and mermaid were our favourites), berets, gloves and accessories from recycled wool and cashmere. We recommend a visit to her etsy shop.

I had two new bowls on display which I really enjoyed making. They will be available on our web shops next week. I have been working on designs which feature flowers lately and people seem to like them which is good news. While we were away in Scotland recently we noticed that on the Isle of Arran there are many gardens with fantastic blue hydrangeas growing in them I expect with all the snow since we left many of them will have gone over now. Laura and I have been working on a series of designs with hydrangea flowers as the basis so hopefully those will be available soon on out web shops too.

Laura and I have spent this week working on new designs for our products. We are very keen to work with recycled, reclaimed and pre-loved materials and we notice that there are other artists and makers out there who have the same commitment.

We particularly like Julia's Genius throw, featured in today's Guardian Magazine which is made from vintage sweaters and available from anthropologie.eu

We will be exhibiting at the next FLARE craft fair, tomorrow Sunday 28 November at The Chapel, York Cemetery, Cemetery Road, York YO10 5AJ. The fair is open from 11am until 4pm. We would very much like to meet you there if you can make it.

Last Sunday we exhibited at the FLARE artists and makers Craft Fair held at the Town Hall in Ripley, North Yorkshire. It was very nice to meet new people both customers and fellow crafters and artists. Once again we found some really wonderful creations for sale which inspired us to keep working on and improving our own products.

The people loved Laura's corsages and fascinators. The feedback we had from customers was that it was great to find something original, handmade and produced from recycled materials. My little Christmas tree decorations were popular too! We placed sweets in the sparkling little bowls and they were enthusiastically sampled (and bowls purchased). We are very happy to be meeting a need for special gifts and accessories especially as we are getting so close to Christmas now. Our range as always can be found on our web shops at Folksy and Etsy.

Like us, a lot of people are enjoying Kirsty Allsop's new television series "Homemade Home" and it is very pleasing to find that she is championing making things from recycled, reclaimed and pre-loved materials too.

While Laura and I were away visiting the Isle of Arran we spent some of our time there designing new bowls which reflected some of the amazing things we saw. The sunrises and sunsets from the beach at Pirnmill, the little village we stayed in were very beautiful. We took some champion walks along the beach and up in the hills behind the village. One of these walks took us to Corre Lochan above the hamlet of Thunderguy. The colours and textures of the scenery are majestic. We took lots of photographs of the little loch which is about 1000 feet above sea-level and when we returned to our cozy cottage we painted bowls. We hope to have some of these posted on our web shops very soon!

In the meantime we are prepare for another FLARE craft fair this coming weekend which will be held at the Chapel, York Cemetery in York. It is a really fascinating and historic location and we would recommend a walk around the grounds which may be covered in snow by the weekend if the forecasts are correct. The event is on Sunday 28 November from 11am until 4pm and we would love to meet you there.

Laura and I have been away for the last week visiting friends on the Isle of Arran on the west coast of Scotland. It was an awsome visit, Arran is such a beautiful island. We will write more about our adventure there next week.

On Sunday 21st November we will be exhibiting at the FLARE artists and makers Craft Fair at The Town Hall, Ripley, North Yorkshire HG3 3AX between 11am and 4pm. It would be lovely to see you there.

David's Stanley bowl has been featured in a lovely Christmas gifts post by Found on Folksy! The blog, entitled 'Exclusive Gifts for Christmas', has a great collection of gift ideas for the coming season and we're very pleased to be included!

My new bowl "Paper Flowers" is now available for sale on our Etsy and Folksy web shops. I really enjoyed painting this bowl, the design is a bit of a departure from my usual style. I am developing a series of flower designs and I'm looking forward to getting started on them.

Laura and I are preparing to make a trip to the Isle of Arran on the coast of West Scotland. We are staying in Pirnmill which is a very pretty little hamlet on the coast overlooking the Mull of Kintyre. I was fortunate to spend some time on the island last year and it is extradinarily beautiful. I have a bottle of Arran Malt which is produced at the Isle of Arran Distillery. If you have an opportunity to try some I think you find it is some of Scotlands very finest whiskies. We are looking forward to a break and spending some time with friends who live there. We are sure to be inspired by the beautiful scenery and the sea, so we expect to be even more productive when we get home.

I have been away visiting Northumberland recently. Mark and I stayed at Spylaw Farm near Chatton which is beautiful and restful place to vacation. We occupied Cuddy's Croft which is a small but perfectly formed self-catering cottage for two. It is very generously and comfortably equipped with pretty much everything you could possibly need. The owners Lorna and Andy are friendly and accommodating. Lorna leaves a tray of cake and tea things when you arrive and she can provide a three course meal made from goods grown on their farm wherever possible. There are chickens and geese and sheep and lots of land to roam on. It is by far my favourite home from home.

While we were there I was inspired by the countryside and the incredible local beaches. I painted a few bowls which I am pleased with at Spylaw. The first includes a pre-historic 'ring' stone carving we found on nearby heathland. These carvings are found across Northumberland and North Yorkshire and are pretty amazing. The one we visited was near Chatton.

We did a lot of walking in Northumberland and fortunately the weather was pretty kind most of the time. On one of the walks we collected crab apples and rose hips which we brought back home. I have since made a load of Rose Hip and Apple jelly which will be given away as Christmas gifts I expect. I found an excellent recipe at The Cottage Smallholder, a web site I visit often. It is full of great tips and advice for Hugh Fearlessly-Eats-It-All types and Kirsty wannabes. I love it. The walk also inspired a bowl with an autumnal woodland theme which I really enjoyed painting. I think it has a 'nursery' quality about it and I think perhaps the lost child in me came out whilst making it!

The best walk we had was taken on the advice of our landlord at Spylaw, Andy. He sent us off to Ross Sands Beach which is about five miles from the farm. You can get to it between Budle Bay and Lindisfarne after a short trek across the bird sanctuary and dunes. it was an very windy day! The sand was shifting like a flat cloud across the empty beach and the waves were wild and sparkling. It was magical. When I got back to Spylaw, weighed down with pebbles and shells I started to paint a little bowl to remember the day by.

Each of the bowls mentioned above are now for sale in our web shops at Folksy and Etsy.

Now I'm back in Harrogate I have been working on some new ideas. I have designed a new bowl which is decorated with pink flowers and I hope you will like it too. we have also produced an ameliagreenheart calender for 2011 which features images from some of the gifts and accessories Laura and I have been producing this year. It will be for sale at the craft Fairs we are participating in later this month and if anyone would like a copy please get in touch and we can send you one.

We do hope to be able to meet you at the FLARE craft events at Ripley, North Yorkshire on Sunday 21st November and at York on Sunday 28th November. We will also be at The St Aidans School Christmas Gift Fair in Harrogate on 3rd December.

Very excitingly, David's papier mache bowls have been featured on the Folksy blog! The blog is titled 'Paper Mache Art: Inspiring Creativity' and is about encouraging others to have a go at new crafts and learning new skills.

David and I are both very busy at the moment making products for the two FLARE craft fairs that we are selling at later this month. You can find information for all their events on their blog, and we will be there on Sunday 21st November at the Town Hall in Ripley, 11am to 4pm, and Sunday 28th November at The Chapel at York Cemetery, 11am to 4pm.

We are looking forward to both these events, but they will be my first craft fairs so I'm a little nervous! We hope to take part in more of these in the new year, both in Yorkshire and Hampshire. We'll keep you updated with any events we're taking part in.

In the meantime, it's back to the sewing machine!