The Tatty Tour: Jewellery Workshop with Tatty Devine

Long time readers of New Girl in Toon will probably remember my previous crafting disasters, like the time I made a stuffed bird with the Crafty Hens or when I attempted to learn how to decorate cupcakes.  Just re reading about those disasters is enough to remind me that Chloe and crafts do not work well together!

So when an invitation from the Baltic popped into my inbox asking me if I'd like to spend a Sunday morning making jewellery I probably would have been sensible to politely decline.  Why didn't I?  Because the morning was hosted by Tatty Devine, a brand that I have adored for a long time.  Blinded by my love for the funkiest jewellery on the planet I decided to give crafting one more go.

Catching the first bus into Toon I sleepily ambled by way down to the Quayside and across the river to the Baltic, feeling pretty impressed with myself that I'd managed to get myself up and dressed so early on a Sunday morning.  I was greeted by the welcome site of fresh fruit, croissants and glasses of orange juice, just what I needed to prepare myself for the morning ahead.

The founders of Tatty Devine, Harriet Vine and Rosie Wolfenden are taking their Tatty Tour to three cities in the north this Autumn, hosting talks and jewellery making workshops and we were very lucky to be given a little bloggers sneaky peak before the main event.

Our morning began with an introduction to Tatty Devine from Harriet and Rosie.  Their origin story from meeting in art college to setting up their own business was very inspiring and it's great to see that their hard work and passion has grown into such a popular and well loved brand.

Tatty Devine are an independent British company that I'm sure most of you are familiar with.  Making jewellery that "blurs the boundaries between art, fashion and culture", their pieces are fun, colourful and are made for everybody.  Personally I've always been a fan of their customised name necklaces.

The mission was to make our very own bunting necklace and the first job was to select some bunting.   This was easier said than done with trays upon trays of the most beautiful coloured pieces to choose from.   Each design was very unique to us with everyone going for completely different colours.  I took my inspiration from a certain rather special event that I'm currently planning!

Once we'd picked our colours we were taught how to use pliers and jump rings to start piecing together our necklaces.  It looked and sounded easy but was very fiddly and took a great deal of patience. 

I lost count of how many rings pinged out of my pliers and ended up in my lap, and I will admit making the necklace didn't come easily to me.  Luckily the team at Tatty Devine were on hand to help us out and because of their patience and encouragement I managed to complete my whole chain of bunting without giving up!  It may have taken me far longer than the rest of the group, but I was very proud of myself for persevering and getting the job done.

The result was one absolutely stunning necklace, made all the more special as I put most of it together myself. 

If you fancy a go at making your own bunting necklace then you can sign up to Tatty Devine's Bunting Necklace Workshop.   It would make a brilliant Christmas present!