Recycled Seating!!

There are so many ways to recycle and up-cycle products to give them a new life and we love the idea of up-cycling old bits and bobs to make crazy and functional seating!

The possibilities are endless to what you can do and we have found some fun ideas to add something unusual to your home.

We don’t know how much wine you would have to drink to make this chair out of old and up-cycled wine corks, but we bet they had a jolly old time in the process!  It would definitely make a focal point in any room!

 

With so many cars going to the scrap heap this is a genius way of making use of the thousands of seat belts that are thrown away every day. It would make a great outdoor bench or seating for the kitchen! 

What do you think?

   

Here are some other great ideas for recycled and up-cycled seating, we love the reuse of the bath for a cosy sofa seat and the boat will make a statement in any room!

 

Have you got any recycled chair ideas?

Ellie Ellie Wears: It's getting colder outside

The days and nights are getting colder and there is nothing better than wrapping up in a warm jumper and keeping warm. This stripy jumper from Mudd and Water is perfect with a great pattern and colours. Mudd and Water are a great company producing ethical, organic and sustainable clothes with brilliant attention to detail! Pairing this jumper with Monkey Genes creates a great look, and Monkey Genes are also a great independent label which offers organic jeans with 'No blood, No sweat, No tears' and makes huge ethical considerations when producing their jeans. Finish the outfit off with these great loafers and an Ellie Ellie Vintage Letter Tile Necklace which can be personalised with your initial!

 

Stripy jumper: Mudd and Water

Jeans: Monkey Genes

Brown Loafers: Hobbs

Vintage Letter Tile Necklace: Ellie Ellie

Brighton SD2 Festival! Join in the Fun!

This Sunday sees the SD2 Festival take place in Brighton, with performances from The Wanted, The Saturdays, Conor Maynard and The Vamps, as well as many more. This festival is a great occasion in the heart of Sussex that can be enjoyed with friends and family, and the chance to take in the great surroundings of Stanmer Park.

A first for Brighton, the SD2 Festival in Stanmer Park is in its first year and comes from the organisers of Shakedown festival, which is currently in its third year!

Visit the website for more information on the festival and a chance to get tickets for this Sunday! With what is sure to be a great day with entertainment and fun! The website is full of information on travel and parking, making the day as hassle free as you can.

SD2 Festival

Tasty Tea Time Treat

Settle down to tea with Rock Cakes, the always enjoyed teatime favourite.

It's always nice to get baking in the kitchen, and rock cakes compliment a lovely cup of tea or latte perfectly, especially when they are still warm from the oven!

The ingredients for rock cakes are cupboard staples, so you may only have to go and get one ingredient and voi la, a tasty tea time treat is yours.

Ingredients:

Self-raising flour

Caster Sugar

Baking Powder

Unsalted Butter

Dried Fruit

Free-range Egg

Milk

Vanilla Extract

To bake these tasty treats:

1. Preheat oven to 180c/350F/Gas 4 and line a baking tray with baking parchment

2. Mix the flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl and rub in the butter (cut into cubes) until you get a breadcrumb looking mixture

3. Mix in the dried fruit to the mixture

4. In another bowl, beat the egg and milk together with the vanilla extract

5. Add the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until it's thick and lumpy (add more milk if needed)

6. Place golf ball sized spoons of the mixture onto the baking tray, remember to leave space between them as they will spread out when cooking.

7. Bake for 15-20mins, allow to cool and tuck in!

You can see the full recipe here!

Lets Get Dressed Up!

It's always great getting dressed up for a wedding or event, specially choosing what to wear and how to accessorize. This week Ellie Ellie wears is all about getting dressed up for that special occasion. This Bella Spot Dress from Coast is perfect for a happy occasion and the colour is right on trend, pair the dress with these simple but great wedges for a great look as well as comfort! If you're going to be on your feet all day mingling and dancing you don't want to wear too high heels. Complete the look with this Encrusted Envelope Clutch from Accessorize, which adds a touch of glamour and is the perfect size for all your essentials. Last but not least add Ellie Ellie's Music Love Song Pendant Heart Necklace for a finishing touch.

Bella Spot Dress - Coast

Black Wedge Heels - Dune

Clutch Bag - Accessorize

Music Love Song Pendant Heart Necklace - Ellie Ellie

The Isle of Wight 'Festival of the Sea'

We love the seaside at Ellie Ellie and we are very excited at the idea of visiting the Isle of Wight for the Festival of the Sea.

The Festival of the Sea will take place across the island over nine days between Saturday the 14th and Sunday the 22nd of September and there are so many great events and activities going on that it is definitely going to be a fun filled week!

During the festival there will be musical events, beach art, fishing events and cookery as well as many more interesting activities to get stuck into, all revolving around the seaside theme and celebrating the Isle of Wight's maritime history.

For more information about the festival visit the website

The Agatha Christie Festival on the English Riviera

'Since the early 20th century, Agatha Christie has been thrilling readers and TV audiences with her gripping stories of crime and mystery'.

'The statistics behind her life are impressive enough. In her 85 years she wrote more than 80 books, many of them best sellers, altogether selling an estimated two billion copies worldwide and making her the best-selling fiction author of all time. Her global appeal is testified to by the fact that her stories have been translated into more than 45 languages'.

In honour of the Queen of Crime, who was born in Torquay in 1890, the Agatha Christie Festival is the event on the English Riviera, South Devon's beautiful bay that sees ladies and gentlemen immerse themselves in a host of activities, from today till Sunday the 22nd of September.

With tea parties, theatre, vintage bus tours and dinners, this festival is sure to be a fabulously fun week to celebrate Dame Agatha Christie's life!

The Official Agatha Christie Theatre Company perform their latest Agatha Christie production to the delight of audiences, as well as book launches, competitions and other exclusive events.

To read more about the festival and more of whats going on see here!

Ellie Ellie Wears - Day to Night Outfit

London Fashion Week is kicking off today and Ellie Ellie is honouring the huge fashion event in the capital this week with an outfit that can easily be transformed from a day to evening look.

A simple cream long sleeved blouse can go with any outfit, whether day time or evening and teaming it with these monochrome trousers from People Tree makes a great statement and insures the trousers stand out! Simple loafers such as these Rebel Vegan Tassel Loafers will work really well in the day time, and you can easily add a heel to transform this outfit for an evening event!

Finish off the look with our Ellie Ellie Artist Pencil Silver Stud Earrings for a pop of colour and an unusual touch!

 

Loafers - Rebel Vegan Tassel Loafers

Long Sleeved Blouse - Oasis

Pencil Stud Earrings - Ellie Ellie

Trousers - People Tree 

Crafty Wedding Favour Ideas!

It's always great to get creative when it comes to planning a wedding or if you may want to have wedding favours or thank you gifts for your bridesmaids. Crafting the perfect wedding favour could seem like an impossible task, however, there are simple ideas that can look absolutely lovely on your table on your big day.

A great idea for wedding favours or treats for your bridesmaids is to collect old and unused jars (you can get friends to save their old jars for you too) and put something delicious in them to satisfy your guests' sweet tooth, homemade jam or chutney, shortbread or sweets. You can finish off your jars with colourful ribbon to match your colour scheme or lovely lace!

Another great idea is to give all your guests seeds of your favourite flower or plant in a recycled bag or jar. This way they can take the seeds home and plant something that will last and they can see grow (and it will always remind them of your wedding). 

Personalised cookies are a great way to give your guests something to nibble on during speeches or to soak up the champagne! They would look lovely on the place setting and world no doubt be enjoyed by all the guests.

Making your wedding favours is a great way to get crafty and enjoy making something for your guests to enjoy!

Suport the London Duathlon Athletes

If you want to give yourself a challenge this year, or if you just want to support others, the London Duathlon is a great event which sees athletes of all abilities race through Richmond Park in South-West London on closed roads.

A duathlon is similar to a triathlon but without the swimming element. It just involves two disciplines, running and cycling in three stages. Run-bike-run.

The London duathlon is the world's largest duathlon, and attracts thousands of competitors and supporters each year and takes place a week today, on the 15th of September.

If you fancy going along to give your support for those taking part, the Event Village in Richmond Park provides a great day for friends and family. There is spectator access to see most of the event so you can cheer on the athletes, alternatively join in the fun with a family picnic while watching the event!

For more information see the website here!

Ellie Ellie Wears - Tailored Chick

The summer holidays are over for the kids this week, and you could be back at work after some time off in the summer. This weeks inspiration is tailored chick, an ideal back to work outfit that’s comfortable and looks great! 

This contrast collar shirt is on trend and very versatile, tucked into a high waisted skirt or paired with black trousers like these from Reiss. Adding a touch of vintage to the outfit are our Ellie Ellie Music Score Sheet Stud Earrings, made from authentically vintage sheet music! Finish off the look with these statement flats by whistles, which add a great touch of monochrome to the whole look.

Fairly made contrast collar shirt - Ruby Rocks
Black Trousers - Reiss
Music Score Sheet Stud Earrings - Ellie Ellie
Lexie Panelpoint Flat Pump - Whistles

Scrabble Cookies!!

We all love baking here at Ellie Ellie and there is nothing better than a homemade treat in the office. When we came across these scrabble cookies we were so excited to try them out and see if we could make them look as good as the picture (never happens). Our love of Vintage Letter Tiles, used in our cufflinks and pendants made these cookies look even more tasty!

Here is a great recipe and step by step guide of how to make them! Scrabble cookies 

 

Keep your eyes peeled for Ellie Ellie's attempt at Letter Tile Cookies, fingers crossed!! We hope you enjoy trying out this recipe. 

To find out more about our Letter Tile Jewellery, take a look!

Have you found any other great cookie ideas?

The Museum of Brands - A Must Visit!

Ellie Ellie has stumbled upon a gem of an attraction in the Capital that is definitely one to be enjoyed and put on the to do list!

Located near the world-famous Portobello Road Market is the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising, a treasure trove of retro designs and memories, two of Ellie Ellie's favourite things!

Walking through galleries full with oddities and wonders, every decade is documented at every turn and you can see brands from the 1890s, such as Rimmel or Mars Bars, Rolos and KitKats from the 1930s. Items displayed in this museum are bound to get you thinking and imagining how people lived and shopped back in the day!

The museum moved to London in 2005 after previously being situated in Gloucester and continues to attract visitors and expand year on year!

 Opening times are:

Tuesday - Saturday: 10am-6pm

Sunday: 11am-5pm

Monday: Closed (except bank holidays)

Learn more about the museum and plan your visit here