My etsy

My Spies

Wednesday 7 November 2012

One last sale

A lot has happened. I mean a LOT. I have finished my degree, got a full time job, worked for my whole contract, and now my job is finished.

So what next? Well, I am getting older, and I thought it might be time to consider settling down, you know, house and kids and all that jazz. Then I thought no, there are still things I want to do before I commit myself to one location. So, before I knew it, I had applied for a working holiday visa for Australia, and got myself somewhere to stay when I get there too.

WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN? Well, I have a one way ticket, so I am selling off a load of stuff both on Ebay and I have greatly reduced all of my items on Etsy, so please go and have a look! Everything has to go by the end of Novemeber!! So, happy shopping and also if you have any travel tips for when I leave, please feel free to share them with me!!

Image from here

Friday 25 November 2011

Black Friday to Cyber Monday sale

Yes that's right, it's black Friday in the US which means etsy has gone mad with sales. I have also jumped on this bandwagon and I am offering 15% off the goodies in my shop. I have a sale section where stuff is already reduced by 50% (coupon code not applicable there) so please do have a look!

I, along with many other sellers are offering this discount through to Monday 28th November, so don't miss out! My coupon code is BFCMSALE15

I have also recently re-listed the faymoose union jack wallet get yours while they're hot! (And before I run out of blue, red and white duct tape!)

That's all for not folks :D

Feel free to comment with your fave sale items or coupon codes for your store!

Saturday 5 November 2011

I'm back

Well after a fairly long break from etsy, I am now back. My shop is open and stocked and I have been updating my facebook page as well :) Become a fan of my facebook page to receive updates and there is also a coupon code for free shipping on there!

I feel there is a need to add an awesome photo of a new wallet here, however I do not have a camera at the moment, so I will upload a funny picture of myself for the time being. Enjoy :)

Friday 4 March 2011

Back at uni

Well I am back at uni once again. Now I live in a cute little bungalow near Penrith. I have two awesome housemates and a new hobby!! Of course my new hobby is as death defying as all of my other hobbies, it is of course, downhill mountain biking. SO much fun!!


Me (left) and my housemate on Sharp Edge on Blencathera

Me riding my bike through the snow on my first C2C attempt!
Summer was LONG and I did not like working at camp very much, so I won't be going back there this year, although they did invite me back, which was nice :) This year I hope to work closer to home!
My second year at uni is going well, I don't seem to have failed anything and I am having lots of fun. There was a 4 month delay in getting the internet, but I got there in the end!!

I will try to update my blog again soon :) Oh but I am back on twitter!! You'll find me as KMCdesigns surprisingly!

Tuesday 1 June 2010

The dream....gets better!

Well after attending uni most days for the last 9 months, it is now time for summer! No more lectures, no more work...so what did I do? I went and got myself a job at a summer camp in America!! I fly out in about 10 days and I have basically no idea what I've let myself in for! I've spoken to some people who went to the camp last year and they all loved it so much that they are going back again this year, so it can't be too bad, right?
This does mean that I will be closing my shop over on etsy over the summer, so if you'd like to buy the one remaining item, then please feel free! It does look rather lonely!

I will no doubt post you all an update about how awesome/rubbish/mediocre camp was :D
Have a great summer everyone!!

Thursday 26 November 2009

Living the dream

I am now at university and I thought it was about time I updated my blog! So, not that I have remembered my login details, I thought I'd fill you all in on what I've been up to! I'm doing a degree in Outdoor Leadership, which basically involves sitting in lectures 90% of the time and making notes and then wring essays or doing an exam. The lectures are fairly fun most of the time! The other 10% of the time we spend outside, kayaking, canoeing, climbing, navigating, walking, gorge walking or mountain biking! It's so much fun and I've made some awesome new friends! This does mean however, that I am really busy and so probably won't be making many new wallets or clothes for my shop :( But fear not, I still have some for sale :D
So, what follows is some random photos from the last few weeks of my life!


Walking up a mountain as the weather was turning, and it was getting dark!


Uni work drives me up the walls!


Being in the library is always productive!


Night hike


(Yes I am climbing at night in my PJ's!)


Extreme twister on a bridge! (for a uni presentation!)


Wake boarding


Some of my friends that I met in the first week :)

Well that is enough photos for now! Sorry it's been so long, and it will probably be a while before I post again! Have fun peeps xx

Sunday 16 August 2009

Sneaky Peek...

I have teamed up with RobotMunkey and we have been making some awesome t-shirts! We have been busy little bees and have been designing, screen printing, mixing, cutting, embroidering, and sewing to create some fabaroo stuff. It will all be going in my shop over the next few days, and we still have loads of ideas left to make! Here are a few sneaky peeks at one of the designs...





I hope you like them!

Tuesday 14 July 2009

University!

On June 13th 2009, I decided to attend an open day at the University of Cumbria. I was really impressed, and found out about a course which sounds ideal for me, Outdoor Leadership. Problem is, I already have a degree, so finding funding would be tough, and the closing date for applications (the dreaded UCAS form) was June 30th! I had a good think about it, and decided to apply anyway. I finally managed to get my UCAS form in on the deadline. That was stressful!

On Thursday 9th July I got a phone call....I got in!! I start in September!!

At the moment, I am not sure if I will be taking my duct tape with me so I am currently offering free shipping on EVERYTHING in my etsy shop, so please go and check it out!

Tuesday 28 April 2009

Slash/Slash Nottingham

What are you doing Saturday 2nd May? I'm going to be having a stall at the Slash/Slash event in Nottingham!


The event is on from 12 noon until 6pm, at the Rescue rooms, Masonic Place, Goldsmith Street in Nottingham. Entry is FREE! I will be there, with my duct tape wallets and bags, and even little Wally will be there to give me a hand!! I will also (hopefully!) have my new hula hoops making their debut appearance!! Get yourself there :)
Check out the Slash/Slash event on their facebook page 

Thursday 12 March 2009

How To Clean and Re-Proof Your Tent

After cleaning and re-proofing too many tents, I realised that there aren't many good, up to date guides on what you're meant to do, so I figured I'd write my own simple and easy to understand guide on How To Clean and Re-Proof Your Tent. If you've just been camping and your tent is wet and muddy, dry it out as soon as possible.

You will need;

  • A bucket of water
  • A sponge
  • A soft brush
  • Tent wash or pure non-detergent soap
  • Rubber gloves
  • Clean but old tea-towels
  • Waterproofing products
  • Hosepipe
  • Good weather
  • Washing line


1) Wait until summer.
Now, I know summer might be a long way off, and there are only 2 weeks of good weather anyway, but waiting until summer is usually the best option. Your tent will need to completely dry out, and this could take up to 3 days. Depending on which proofer you use, you may need to let your tent dry twice (taking up almost half of those 2 weeks of summer). Of course, if you really can't wait, you can always check the weather, and hope it's actually right.

2) Pitch your tent, slowly.
If your tent has an outer which you can pitch on it's own, do that. Pitch it slowly so you can check all the seams, joins, stitching, zips, elastic, Velcro, eyelets, poles, guy lines etc. Make any necessary repairs. Remove the guy lines to be washed separately.

3) Wash your tent.
If there are any big clumps of mud, get rid of them using a soft dry brush. Get the hosepipe out and wet the tent. Using a soft sponge, go over the tent, section by section to remove any dirt. If you don't have a hosepipe, a bucket of warm water and a sponge will do. If your tent is being particularly naughty, and insisting on keeping it's muddy stains, you're going to have to tackle it a bit harder. Don't use bleach or any strong detergents, the clever people at Nikwax and Fabsil have developed a tech wash and a Universal Cleaner for cleaning things just like tents. Handy! Follow the instructions on the bottle; dilute in a bucket and apply with a sponge. If you don't have this, or can't be bothered to go and buy it because you are already soaking wet from washing your tent with water, you can also use a non-detergent soap, or 'pure soap' if you happen to have any! Don't forget to wash the inside of the tent too!

4) Rinse.
Get the hose back out, and give the tent a really good rinse. It might take a few gos to get all the soap out, but make sure it's all gone! Leave to dry, preferably in the shade.

It's time for Questions and Answers!

Q. Why can't I just put my tent in the washing machine?
A. Firstly, would your tent actually fit in the washing machine? Secondly, you shouldn't put your tent in the washing machine because it is waterproof. The fabric would get full of water and when it spins, it would put far too much tension on the seams, and you wouldn't want busted seems! Thirdly, unless your washing machine is brand spanking new, it will have bits of detergent and fabric softener left in it. These will all break away the protective coating already on your tent, and we don't want to do that! Although we will be re-proofing the tent, it is best to just 'top up' the original proofing, rather than start from scratch.
However, if you really must fulfill your urge to put your tent in the washing machine, please don't let it spin, clean the drawer out fully before hand, only use a cool wash cycle, and stick some Tech Wash in there too. Happy now? Is your tent OK? Is it?? IS IT??? Mine was :D

Q. My tent is moldy!! Will that wash off?!
A. Eewww! That's what happens when you pack your tent away when it's wet and then leave it, packed away, all wet, I bet you put it next to a radiator too, hoping it would dry out, when really you've just created the perfect breeding ground for mold. Lovely.
Mold and mildew are alive! No matter how much you 'wash' it, it won't be gone unless you actually kill it off (sorry mold & mildew).
This is the ONE and ONLY time you can use BLEACH. Don't go overboard, just dilute a little bleach with some water, and get scrubbing that mold. The bleach will kill the mold & mildew and it should also remove that lovely stain. Wash the area as soon as you're done, don't let the bleach sit there for any longer than it has to. Warning: Bleach might damage the colour of the fabric and it will strip off a lot of it's original protective coating. Prevention is better than treatment. There are also some more natural methods, but bleach kinda works best :)

Back to the tent!!

5) Inspection!
Is your tent all nice and dry? Is it all clean? Inside and out? Is the mold/mildew gone? Yes? Sure? OK.

6) Re-Proofing!
There are many different products on the market for re-proofing your tent. What you are wanting to do, is to waterproof and protect your tent so it is back to being as good as new. Please be aware that not all tents are actually meant to be 100% waterproof, and if your tent has an inner and an outer, you really don't want to be proofing the inner. If your tent has a single skin (i.e. no inner), when you re-proof it, you need to make sure the fabric maintains it's breathability or else you'll end up with a very sweaty tent.
I recommend Fabsil Aerosol, Fabsil Liquid, Fabsil Gold (applied to dry tents) and Nikwax Tent & Gear SolarProof (For double wall tents i.e. tents with inner & outer) or Nikwax TX. Direct (for single walled 'breathable' tents i.e. no separate inner). Both Nikwax products are applied to wet tents. Always check the bottle before you buy.
Tips!
  • UV damage is the biggest tent killer (after drunk people and really bad weather I'm guessing) so make sure your proofer has UV protection too.
  • Wear either old clothes, or waterproof clothes when re-proofing your tent.
  • Wear rubber gloves (waterproofing your hands is just too weird)
  • Have at least 2 old yet clean tea-towels to hand (these will end up waterproof too and of little use!)
  • Check the weather before you do it, your tent will need to dry for at least 3 hours.
  • Oh and you only need to re-proof the outside of the fabric!
  • Re-proof one section at a time
  • Use the old tea-towels to remove any droplets and also to give each section a wipe over after spraying, but check specific instructions first.

7) Let it dry and clean the other bits which you removed in step 2.
I washed all of my guy lines and tent pegs in a bucket of hot soapy water. Make sure you wash all of the soap off as you don't want it leaving a residue on your tent next time it rains when camping. Sort our your tent pegs, are any of them too bent and rusty to be used again? Now might be a good time to chuck them out and get some new ones. I also washed the bags from the tent poles and pegs, and also the bag my tent lives in. It is a good idea to pad-out your tents bag with plastic bags, and re-proof that as well. Once your tent outer is completely dry, you can pack it away.

8) Cleaning the inner and groundsheet.
If your inner and ground sheet are separate, great! It is fine to wash the inner in the bath, with some warm water and your feet. If there is any mold/mildew, follow the Q&A bit to remove it. If you can pitch the inner to let it dry, do so. If not, hang it on the washing line. The groundsheet can be hosed down quite easily (do this outside, don't try to hose it in the bath!). Hang the ground sheet on the washing line to dry it off, remember to turn it over to dry the other side too! If they aren't separate, clean as much mud off the ground sheet as possible, before getting the inner wet. Once the groundsheet is clean, you can clean the inner fabric with some universal cleaner or tech wash, or even just some mild soap. Make sure you clean the inside too. Don't waterproof the inner!

9) Check your groundsheet.
You can often spot any holes in your groundsheet just by having a quick look. If there are any obvious ones, you'll see them. If not, it's a good idea to have some friends hold up the groundsheet while you tip some water over it. Check for leaks. If you find any leaks, you can patch them up with your tent repair kit.

Your tent doesn't have a repair kit?! You can often buy or 'obtain' small samples of groundsheet fabric from outdoor shops or army shops or by contacting your tent manufacturer. Alternatively, you can patch it up with duct tape! Put duct tape on both sides of the area in need of repair so you aren't left with any sticky bits. You can re-proof your groundsheet (I'd recommend re-proofing the side that goes on the ground) but this isn't always necessary.

10) Check your tent poles
Clean all the tent poles and pegs as you are putting them back in their bags, look out for broken poles. If you have any broken poles, they might be covered under your tents guarantee, so check with the manufacture before you go buying new ones. Split poles can be repaired with good duct tape, but are best replaced with new ones. Just make sure you get the right thickness, the length can be cut down with a junior hack-saw. I have found some in Millets and also all over the internet. Reattach your guy lines.

11) Pack tent away and....
go camping! Don't let that tent get too muddy this time! The new waterproofing awesomeness of your tent should help keep the mud off, so it shouldn't get as dirty for at least a year. Happy camping!