Creative Stitches and Hobbycraft Show at Aintree

Phew! Over four hours at the show with my dear SIL Marg and I'm cream crackered! LOL!
It was as usual, very well attended and well-furnished with tables and stalls.



On arrival, I went over to the programme table and was pleasantly surprised by a freebie with my £2:00 programme - a hardback cookery book by Phil Vickery, otherwise known as Mr. Fern Britton. A good start!



Then we managed to meet up with a fellow Trimcraft forum pal, Kaylas Cards (AKA Michaela) and her Mum. We had a chat and a laugh and then on with the serious business of buying.



I didn't think I'd be buying much because anyone who has entered my craft-room knows I'm short of nothing! There are craft-shops out there carrying less stock!
Wrong......



The very first stall in the very first aisle had Inkadinkado clear stamps -oh, how beautiful they are! Scrummy flourishes, butterflies and birds with scroll-y tails.....Mmmmmm! £9.99 a pack of 13 in one and four in the other (different sizes!) - can't wait to use them!



Then I found a stall (Art of Craft) selling Penny Black stamps! I don't usually care for cartoon-cutesy images but I love Penny Black stamps and bought two Hedgehog ones 'Friendly Surprise' and 'Acrobat'. At £8.79 and £9.49 they're a bit small (I didn't see any of the bigger ones) but I'm sure I'll use them!



Further along the walk was 'Little Claire' the other cutesy stamp maker that I like and I bought two great stamps there too.



I was in for a treat on the home run. Keith Fenwick, the artist, was manning his own stall and I'd just missed a masterclass but I did get a signed book for £5.00. I have a couple of his books and they're very instructive.



The pound stall was the next stop. Jewelled brads in amber/oranges and blue/purples, monochrome brads, black glitter glue, small magnets for card closures, and a pack of black card - £5.00.



I've been looking for Versafine black inkpad for ages - found one! £4.50.

Huge thick A5 patterned card block and two toning smaller ones £6.00



A pocket of Copics at £9.99 wasn't a particular bargain, but I've wanted the pastel ones for a few weeks now so I treated myself!



I also found a couple of othre odds & ends I couldn't live without of course....



...and finally, the items I went for - A4 storage boxes. Two of them filled with the small credit-card sized embellishment boxes (...ideal for ATC's...) £6.00.




Not a bad haul! Oh, I know I could probably get it all cheaper on the internet, and usually I do just that, but once a year I go to one of these shows, so I'm gonna enjoy it....!


On a stash-free diet now.........!