We've all heard of hand and footprints and here at Crafty Monkey they're extremely popular with all of our fabulous designs and ideas, but recently there's been a revival of bum prints! Yes, we know, it's slightly unconventional and definitely a bit cheeky but they are oh so cute! While we've been doing bum prints since we opened over 11 years ago, it's only in the last few years that they've become more popular. If you're looking to make some pottery as a keepsake of when your little one was small but want something slightly different and with a little bit of humour on the side then our bum print designs are perfect for you! We have an array of different designs from the more traditional naked bum print with the slogans 'Cheeky boy' or girl, 'Does my bum look big in this', 'Love you to the MOON and back', 'There's no BUTTS about it but you're the best nanny/daddy/mummy etc' to turning their cheeky bottoms into peaches, ladybirds, butterflies, elephants and even more seasonal items such as Bum'pkin, Christmas puddings (or Christm'arse' puds for the very cheeky). Our latest popular design is the beach bum plate that goes perfectly with these summer months. You may be wondering if we've ever had any accidents while getting prints! Yes, plenty so don't worry we're well equipped to deal with it and we take it in our stride. We do draw the line though at adult bum prints though - could you imagine! Comment any puns that would go well with our bum prints or ideas of what we could turn bum prints into that haven't been mentioned as we're always keen to try out new things! Or if you would like to get a keepsake that will provide a talking point and you can bring out when your baby grows up and brings home their first girl or boyfriend home then book in your session!

We've been busy behind the scenes putting together a programme of summer workshops for your little ones. We know how hard it is to keep them busy during the long six weeks that they have off and it's especially difficult when you're limited for things to do because of the current Covid situation. Here at Crafty Monkey our workshops are designed so that the kids get dropped off in the studio and you lovely mums and dads get an hour to yourself to have a well earned coffee in St Neots. Why not make the day of it and head to the park after they've finished to burn off some of that energy they seem to have endless amounts of! Workshops are a great way for your kids to learn something new and exercise their creativity at the same time and come away with something they've made. Any pieces from pottery painting workshops, such as the Monster and Under the Sea Plates will need to be fired and therefore will not be ready on the day and will need picking up at a later date (normally 2-10 days after) once we've sent an email to say it's ready. Workshops such as the Decoupage Love Plaque and Photo Frames however, can be taken home on the day! For tickets and more information please visit www.mycraftymonkey.com/workshops For those of us who are feeling nervous about the current Covid situation, we can also adapt the workshops so they can be done at home. We'll put together everything you need so that your little ones can still have some crafty fun wherever you feel the most safe. It's also a great activity to be done in the garden with a group of children and maybe a picnic afterwards! If this sounds like something you would like to do and would like more information please call (01480 219222) or email the studio at enquiries@mycraftymonkey.com If none of our workshops tickle your pickle and your kids would like to pick something to paint freestyle we also do Take Out Kits which can be ordered through our online shop at www.mycraftymonkey.com/shop #craftymonkey #craftymonkeypotterypainting #craftymonkeycraftstudio #thingstodocambridgeshire #kidscraftworkshops #schoolholidayactivities #potterypaintingworkshops #summerholidayactivities #kidsactivities #kidspotterypainting

To adapt to these uncertain times, open one minute, closed the next, we have been working hard to offer paint at home kits so you can recreate your Crafty Monkey experience from the comfort of your home while getting the same high standard of glazed and fired product. ​ We have deliberated about whether we should offer a click and collect service as our priority is to operate safely and act responsibly during this pandemic. We know a lot of people like to paint their Christmas gifts and tree decorations in November and let's face it 'Lockdown 2' is not as fun as 'Lockdown 1' as the weather can limit our activities to indoors so pottery painting could provide the perfect treat, boredom buster or relaxation we all need. It's also a great activity for the kids of course and to stop them from bouncing off the walls! November is usually our busiest month of the year which usually sees us through the quiet months at the start of the year so in order for us to continue to stay open to serve the community of St. Neots and beyond we do need to make money to pay the bills! We are confident we are operating safely and figured if you tied in picking up your takeaway paint at home kits w hile picking the kids up from school, picking up prescriptions, or grocery shopping then it's part of your essential travel journeys. ​ We have also decided the safest way for us to provide kits is by dispensing paint into individual 1oz pots so they are yours to keep. While this is the safest way for all and it means you get to keep any left over paint for your next project (please note they are speciality glazes so can only be used on our pottery bisque). It does make us sad as the world does not need anymore plastic waste but we have sourced recyclable pots so please make us feel better by putting them in your recycle bin once you've used all the paint in them. Or feel free to return them to us with or without paint left in them and we will quarantine them before reusing. We have also decided to not include paintbrushes as part of the kits as figured most people will already have paintbrushes they can use. If you haven't then we have sourced brushes you can add to your basket and use again and again and again! At the moment we are concentrating on sorting out the pottery click and collect but hope to add foam clay, decoupage and build a bear offerings in time so watch this space! At the moment we've only managed to add limited lines of pottery to our website so if there's something you want that you can't see then drop us a line as you'll be surprised what we have!

Today is National Make a Gift Day and coincidentally it also happens to be one of our busiest days of the year! We’ve had a very busy Christmas period as those of you who have been in over the last few months will know! As usual, baubles have been our best sellers with hundreds of hand printed festive beauties having passed through our hard working kiln in the last four weeks alone. But we’ve also seen some other wonderful creations, including mince pie plates, Santa mugs and snow man tea pots. The loveliest thing for us is knowing that around 90% of the painted pottery leaving our studio is on its way to surprise a lucky recipient as a Christmas gift! There are many lucky mums and dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends out there that are about to become owners of super cute baubles where tiny foot prints have been turned into reindeer or plates featuring a Christmas tree made from little hand prints. If you’re stuck for something special for a loved one- then there’s still time to make something at Crafty Monkey and have it ready in time for Christmas day. Booking is essential at this time of year, so don’t forget to call us on 01480219222 to reserve yourself a table. #craftymonkey #MakeaGiftDay #painting #plate #presents #activities #personalised #gift #keepsake #cambridgeshire #craftymonkey #PersonalisedGifts #ChristmasGifts #handmadepresent #stneots #handmade #family #pottery #unique #PotteryPainting

Here’s how we made our funky Lambretta plate! STEP 1 Begin by choosing the base colour for your plate. We chose white because we wanted to give our plate a stripy background so used it as a nice light colour for our first application of paint. STEP 2 Using a sponge, cover the plate in three coats of underglaze. You’ll need to work quite quickly as you don’t want the paint to dry out completely just yet. STEP 3 If you’re making a stripy plate like we did, tear up some strips of paper and dunk them in cold water. If you wanted nice neat stripes then you can cut them beautifully, but we liked the idea of having a slightly rougher effect. STEP 4 Lay the strips onto the plate to form stripes. STEP 5 Using your second choice of colour, dab the underglaze over the plate, again do three coats. You could also brush the paint on, depending on whether you want a mottled or a block colour effect. STEP 6 Carefully pull the strips of paper away. STEP 7 Time to watch paint dry! Ensure your base coats are completely dry before you attempt the next stage. STEP 8 Take your chosen silkscreen (in our case, a Lambretta) and lay it onto the plate, fixing it into place lightly with low tack masking tape. STEP 9 Before using a silkscreen, you need to thicken the underglaze up. You can buy professional thickening agents, but we mixed in cornflour which is just as effective. It needs to be the consistency of toothpaste. STEP 10 Apply your underglaze by dabbing it on with your finger. You can also use small dabbing sponges for this if your prefer. Different colours can be applied to different areas of the silkscreen if you prefer. STEP 11 Carefully lift the silkscreen to reveal your design underneath. STEP 12 Your plate is now looking fab and is ready to be glazed and fired in the kiln! #craftymonkey #ideas #silk #art #painting #bisque #fire #keepsake #glaze #PersonalisedGifts #Techniques #underglaze #screen #DIY #stneots #howto #silkscreen #pottery #unique #craft #lambretta #vespa

A comment that I hear from time to time is ‘You’re nice and quiet in here so you can relax’. It’s a lovely thought and I would love nothing more than to sit at the desk and stare at the side of the church opposite all day (or I could watch some paint dry very easily as I have the resources at my fingertips). The truth is that we’re always busy here at Crafty Monkey. This time of year, believe it or not, is officially Christmas! Towards the end of September, we have many mums booked in to get their babies’ hand and footprints onto baubles (we love their organisation!) and mums’ group bookings become especially popular. By the end of October, we book our customers in back to back so that we can keep up with demand. We can eat lunch and have a wee in January- until then, we become super-human! So, what goes on behind the scenes? Lots. The most obvious thing is the production line. More than half of our customers will ask us to decorate their pieces for them. This means that every day, I have piles of stuff that need some love. Last year, I painted close to a million (give or take) antlers and red noses on footprint reindeers and I have written ‘Happy Christmas’ more times than Santa’s Elves have. Our kiln is on most days during this period. Loading and unloading is something of a mammoth task and can take a couple of hours each way. It’s a top loading machine, meaning that we use heavy shelves and posts and it’s a bit of a balancing act…not for the faint hearted to say the least! We then need to gather people’s orders together and organise them for collection. This is more difficult than it sounds as we have so much stuff constantly rolling in and it can get very hectic. We also struggle for space during Christmas as we are heaving with pottery and can’t fit it all into our usually ample window display space. Other than that, we are packaging things up to post, dealing with the creation of imprints/outprints, painting commission pieces, receiving mail to be dealt with, ordering stock and battling with huge pallets when it gets delivered, keeping the shelves plentiful, answering the phone as it rings off the hook and attempting some form of tidiness in the studio. And the most time consuming and arduous task of all? Filling the little paint bottles up on the tables. If somebody could invent self-replenishing paint bottles, I’d be all over it! That’s a brief synopsis of what goes on behind the scenes…there’s actually a lot more happening but I’d be here all day if I listed it all! So that’s us until December 22nd. The rest of the year is similar but we’re slightly more time rich and we get to eat lunch. If you’d like to pop in and bring us a mince pie, we’d be most grateful. And if you wouldn’t mind liquidising it and feeding it to us intravenously, that’d be great… #ideas #art #giftideas #process #studio #PersonalisedGifts #kiln #handprints #seasonal #Christmas #imprints #outprints #Baubles #PotteryPainting

How are the summer holidays going for you so far? Personally, we’ve been having a great time! It’s been a busy one so far and our diary is looking a lot like the fun isn’t going to die down anytime soon. We’ve seen many familiar faces over the past few weeks and some of our local younger visitors have been coming to see us on a weekly basis! We must be doing something right! However, this year, we’ve seen a big increase in children from far and wide as they’ve been brought along by aunts, uncles, grandparents and family friends as part of their visit to St Neots. From Norwich to New Zealand, we’ve made lots of new little friends! Some of these children look forward to collecting their painted pottery next time they see their loved ones, but many of them have been making things that they can take away on the same day. Our Build a Bear range is ideal for little travellers as they can make a little companion to pop into their suitcases and snuggle up with at night times…they can even have their own changes of clothes if desired! Alternatively, our squishy, shiny putty – Foam Clay is another mobile option as the pieces will touch dry quite quickly meaning that the children can create until their hearts’ content and and take their items with them to admire forevermore. If you’d like to bring a visitor along to create a memory, give us a call on 01480219222…and remember, pottery painting isn’t just for kids! Grown-ups love it too! #ideas #children #FoamClay #summerholidays #BuildaBear #travel #daysoutinStNeots #grandchildren #nieces #fun #nephews #family #PotteryPainting

It’s probably a little known date in the calendar, but yes, today is indeed Superman Day! The general idea behind Superman Day is based around having a bit of fun and paying tribute to one of our best known superheros. So whether you fancy popping on your cape and lycra tights or taking measures to save the planet from evil, get your friends together and celebrate the life and times of the well loved fictional character (but please do not jump off buildings in an attempt to fly- chances are, you won’t be able to) At Crafty Monkey, we are fortunate enough to have had a visit from the great man himself as he dropped by to try his hand at a spot of pottery painting. So, what did he choose to paint? Was it a bird? Was it a plane? Not exactly, he chose a gnome..we can only assume that Superman is partial to a spot of gardening when he’s not busy being a hero!

We’ve all seen the endless blogs, articles and videos on ‘make-overs’, but we’re used to seeing lackluster hair transformed into luscious locks and pale pallors brightened to supermodel standards. But did you know that at Crafty Monkey, we’re the master of make-overs? This poor old mug was feeling properly dowdy and under-dressed. Our idea was to turn it into a unicorn mug. I think you can see for yourself how happy the mug was with the results! Usually, the client expects somebody to do their make-overs for them…not at Crafty Monkey! If you come here, we encourage you to do your own make-overs! One of our customers carefully applied this owl’s make up and now look at him! ‘I want to look like a princess riding a unicorn’, she said. ‘No problem’, we replied. She was merely a shadow of a thing- now look at her transformation! If you’d like to visit us at Crafty Monkey and learn how to perform make-overs yourself, we’ll show you how, it’s easy! Call us on 01480219222 to book…see you soon! #ideas #art #hobbies #Makeover #PersonalisedGifts #handpainted #PotteryPainting

Either by phone or in person, we’re used to being asked a range of questions by customers or passers by. Some aren’t sure that they’ve got what it takes to come in and create and others don’t know what we do in here at all! Below are a range of questions and answers to help you figure out what it’s all about! I’ve got no artistic talent, can I come and paint? Yes of course! We will guide you through and be on hand to assist you. You don’t need artistic talent as we have plenty of pieces (such as ornaments) that simply need the colour adding to them and it’s really easy! My child is only a year old, is she too young to paint? As long as your child can sit up and hold a brush- she can paint! It doesn’t matter what the end result is- it’s their very own artwork and you can cherish it forever! If your child is a small baby, come in and make something with their hand and footprints on! We also do other keepsakes to capture your child’s prints, such as Silverprint jewellery and imprints and outprints. What other activities are available at Crafty Monkey? There’s plenty of fun to be had here! You can build your own bear, have fun with Foam Clay or create with decoupage.  We also run workshops from time to time (keep an eye on our facebook page for details). Adults evenings are on Thursday, by appointment. Do you have a price list? We don’t. This is because we have hundreds of different pieces of pottery and they are all priced individually. We often have new ranges of stock too. Everything has its own price and our studio fee is just £4, so it’s easy to come and browse and work out how much you’ll be spending. As a guide price, our average sized mugs start from £11. Do I need to book an appointment to come in? We always prefer it if you book. From October to December, booking is essential as it’s incredibly busy. The same goes for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and school holidays. If you’re coming as a group, always ring and check that we have space for you. How long will it take for my pottery to be ready for collection? Your pottery will be ready a week after the day you finish it. If you’re in a rush to get it back, we may be able to get it ready within three days for an extra fee of £3. Can I do something to take away the same day? Yes, you can do foam clay, build a bear or decoupage and take your creations home the same day! It’s also possible to paint ornaments in acrylic paint (not recommended for young children). I need a special gift for somebody- can I get a commission piece made? Yes, give us a call or come and see us and show us your ideas so that we can give you a quote. Alternatively, you can order a gift from our website where you’ll find a range of designs to choose from. Is my baby too young to have handprints done? No. We know that some studios have age restrictions, but we don’t! Our youngest customer was three days old…if you can beat that, we’d be happy to accommodate! My baby won’t open his hand, does that mean I can’t have a print? No, we have ways and means! Do you sell refreshments? Yes we have hot and cold drinks and a range of small snacks. Do you have baby changing facilities? Yes, our bathroom is equipped with a changing station and mat. Can I have a party at Crafty Monkey? Yes, we’re party experts! We have a range of party packages for all eventualities- from kiddie’s birthdays to team building outings. Contact us or check our website for more info. I am astonished that you managed to get my baby’s handprint. Are you magic? Yes. Do you sell knitting needles/gold plated buttons/fishing equipment/wallpaper? No. Do other babies make this much noise? Yes. We are immune to it, don’t worry! #ideas #art #babies #childrensactivities #footprints #creativity #animals #handprints #party #fun #family #PotteryPainting

Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’ll be aware of the current concerns about the amount of plastic that the UK currently produces and wastes every year. The plastic bag charge has been in place for almost a year now and has had some considerable bearing upon usage and wastage. The government are now currently addressing the issues surrounding the remaining production and disposal of other plastics. 275,000 tonnes of plastic are used each year in the UK. That is around 15 million bottles per day which are classed as ‘single use’ and then thrown away. Between eight and twelve million tons of global plastic waste ends up in the ocean and this is obviously a huge threat to our ocean wildlife. While a long-term solution is being debated by the government, what can we do to do our bit? Well, obviously, plastic bottles and coffee cups are a fairly big deal in terms of our disposable receptacles. This affects all of us and we can all make small changes to help out. We can help you to do your bit for the environment at Crafty Monkey as we have a range of mugs and cups for you to choose from. Come along and paint one, collect it a week later and ‘voila’, you have yourself a ‘forever mug’ and can feel a bit chuffed with yourself! Call us on 01480219222 to book yourself an appointment and take a small step towards ditching the plastic and saving our seas! While we’re on the subject of being more environmentally friendly, another way is to use planet friendly utility companies for your electricity and gas and don’t think that it will cost you more.  There’s a new company out there called ‘Pure Planet’ – they bring you fresh, clean energy for less than the price of power that pollutes. All their electricity is renewable, created by water, wind and sunshine and their gas is carbon offset. You win. The planet wins.  What’s more if you sign up to them through this link then you will get a £25 Amazon Voucher! Worth seeing if you can save yourself some money while gaining some great Eco Warrior points! #oceanlife #art #forevermug #savetheplanet #green #plastic #personal #environment #life

The quote doesn’t quite work as well as the original, I know that, but like music, art is a great creative stimulant and you may just find that a pottery painting session with your other half is an ideal Valentine’s activity! If painting as a couple isn’t up your street, how about making a lovely treasure with your baby’s hand and footprints? We’re absolutely certain that every mummy and daddy would love a piece like this as their special Valentine’s Day gift. If you’d like to put your heart and soul into personalising some pottery for somebody you love, drop by the studio and we’ll show you how! #ideas #art #hearts #PersonalisedGifts #romantic #love #handpainted #couplesactivities #valentines #PotteryPainting

It seems that everybody’s on the move at the moment. Chances are that you know somebody who has recently moved or is about to move. But what do you get your loved ones for a house warming gift? Many people are already set up and simply moving from one home to another and have everything they need already. There are only so many sets of decorative glasses that you can fit in the cupboard! That’s why we’re lucky enough to see a whole plethora of ‘New Home’ based creations at Crafty Monkey! The lovely thing about DIY gifts is that you can create fantastic bespoke pieces to give your family and friends something that’s above and beyond what they’d usually expect to receive. Many people like to paint plates and personalise their own ‘New Home’ design, which is great to pop on the wall for all to admire. However if you’re looking for a simpler gift, then we have plenty of bits and pieces that can be simply embellished by your own hand. From oil burners, soap dispensers, vases and pots in all shapes and sizes; we’ve got all the cute adornments for every mantelpiece and beyond! We also paint commission orders, so if you don’t wish to do it yourself- pop along and chat to us and we’ll do the work for you. Happy House Warming! #ideas #housewarming #giftideas #DIYgift #decorative #creative #Ceramins #newhome #personal #fun #Moving #unique #PotteryPainting

Everyone deserves to open a Christmas stocking from Santa- whether they’re 3 or 73; it’s a bit of fun as a Christmas morning starter. But it’s often difficult for Santa to find gifts to pad it out! That’s where Crafty Monkey can help out! We have all sorts of trinkets and bits here that can be painted up to make the perfect present. Know a keen gardener? Our little male and female gnomes are insanely cute and will fill a portion of a stocking nicely- they can even be personalised as some of them are holding a little name plaque! Any animal lovers in the family? We have a right menagerie of cute creatures from meerkats to mice! Are there any practical people in need of a thoughtful gift? We have all sorts of stuff that have uses beyond ornamental. Cups, door knobs, spoon rest, gravy boats to name but a few. So if Santa would like to come and see us (we realise he’s very busy but he’ll enjoy himself!), make sure you ring up and book an appointment as Christmas is incredibly busy and we’d hate not to have space for him! Call us on 01480219222 to book in or drop by to have a browse and book in. See you soon! #ideas #giftideas #plates #presents #trinkets #different #ChristmasActivities #creative #stockings #personal #friends #fun #Christmas #Baubles

Christmas is upon us once again and our studio is swaying under the bulk of baubles once again. Each year, we think we’ve ordered enough baubles in to see us through the festive period but each year sees an increase in their popularity and we end up placing emergency orders for supplies! Last year this happened twice- the first time being at the start of October as we’d exhausted our stock of a couple of hundred! As ever, our specialty hand print robins and trees and footprint Rudolphs remained the most popular design for our baubles and the demand rose for our famous ‘mistletoes’ plates and we produced several every day. Amid the bauble and plate chaos- many other festive pieces found their way into our kiln, including standing snowmen, dancing reindeer and funky tree ornaments. If you’re thinking of coming along and creating Christmas bits, get in as soon as possible! Call us on 01480219222! #ideas #children #babies #giftideas #presents #footprints #bauble #creative #animals #personalgifts #ChristmasGifts #handprints #fun #special #family #unique #PotteryPainting

It’s a well-known thing that women are the more organised of the sexes, right? I’m sure we’ve all heard the joke about the nativity… What would have happened if it had been three wise women instead of three wise men who visited Jesus? They would have asked directions, arrived on time, helped deliver the baby, cleaned the stable, made a casserole and brought practical gifts. Perhaps that’s why, at Crafty Monkey we are inundated with bookings from groups of mums who are getting their Christmas gifts organised en masse. These wise ladies know that if they book in with us as a group of six or more, they not only save on the studio fee, but they get to get a catch up with the other mums and sort all their Christmas gifts out in one fell swoop! And we love having groups of mums and babies in as the studio fills up with laughter and love and makes us feel ultra-Christmassy!!! If you want to get those little hand and footprints turned into robins and reindeers for the grandparents’ Christmas plates- or make a mark on some extra special baubles to treasure forever- round up your ladies and call us to get booked in! And despite our little joke- dads are also welcome… Check out our website for ideas of what you can make. #children #babies #giftideas #footprints #personalgifts #ChristmasGifts #mumsamptots #handprints #grandparents #Christmas #special #unique #Baubles #PotteryPainting #mums

Have you ever come across a little fussy eater? It may be your own child or a friend or family member’s little one- but we all know the type! They are stubborn to the hilt and will often ‘not like’ food that they’ve never tried, simply because they don’t like the look of it! Luckily, here at Crafty Monkey, we have the perfect solution to those dinner time blues- why not make them a funny face plate to add a little excitement to their difficult meal times? The idea is that you paint facial features in whichever way you like, to make a face on the plate. The child can then embellish the features as they wish with their dinner. They can make hair from spaghetti, eyebrows from broccoli and even make the face spotty with peas! Endless fun at the dinner table! We can’t guarantee that the risk of food ending up on the floor, the walls and on top of your head will be totally eliminated- but it’s certainly worth a try! #ideas #children #plate #parents #creativity #ceramics #creative #home #food #fun #eating #family #PotteryPainting

It goes without saying that we see a lot of little artists here in Crafty Monkey. As soon as a child is able to hold a paintbrush, they are able to make their own pottery creations and that’s what many of them do. Sometimes they are painting things for their own bedrooms, other times they are making gifts for grandparents or other relatives and it’s wonderful watching them put their heart and soul into their work (or sometimes slapping a few strokes of one colour on and then wondering off) and then admiring their work. They are always delighted when they collect their pieces a week later and they see the transformation as their item is all shiny and bright! With this in mind, we’d like to extend our favourite piece of advice to you as parents…please let them create with as little assistance as possible! There have been many occasions where we have watched as mum or dad will paint over their white bits or tidy up parts that they think look untidy. It’s so refreshing for us when the children are allowed to create whatever they wish and really put their own personal mark on it; especially when making gifts. Think about it for a moment- when granny receives her plate which will be proudly displayed in the kitchen- does she want to see a work of art that her thirty year old daughter has painstakingly tidied up and painted over to perfection or would she prefer to own the pink and purple musings of her three year old granddaughter which she’s filled with her own character? If you think that you will be tempted to interfere with your child’s creations- there’s a couple of ways you can deal with this. You can either paint a separate piece each (if you think they will get bored easily, get them a small pocket money piece to start with) or you can share one larger piece and let the child have their own designated section. We hope to see you soon with your little budding artist in tow! #art #children #guides #parents #gift #creativity #happy #fun #PotteryPainting

Well, chief monkey finally said ‘I do’ a few weeks ago and it was a day to remember with no stone left unturned! The sun was out and didn’t we know it! It was the hottest day of the year so far at that point and us, as guests in all our finery and heels were clammy before the bride even reached the church. We waited excitedly in the church for the bride to arrive, using our ‘Wedding passports’ as fans. The wedding had a ‘travel’ theme that ran throughout and our passports were the introduction to the day’s events. The ceremony was wonderful and Chrissy looked a million dollars. Needless to say, I didn’t as on top of being a bit sticky, I blubbed as soon as she walked down the aisle. A perfect day for a fantastic celebration but not a good day for make-up preservation! A slight show stealer during the ceremony was Coco, Chrissy and Danny’s dog, who, as ring bearer, was looking very glamourous in her little bridesmaid dress! Following the ceremony and photographs, we made our way to The Priory Centre where we waited by the river for the bride and groom to arrive in style…by speedboat! Our beautiful Raffan Rivers provided the entertainment with her guitar and hauntingly beautiful voice- romance was most definitely in the air! At our tables, labelled as countries- we found that each of us had been treated to a very special wedding favour. A little box decorated as a map and labelled with homemade clay luggage tags, contained a cute little chocolate with a miniature beach picture! Given the weather, it seemed quite apt! We were soon to learn that many of the finishing touches of the day had been lovingly hand- made by the blushing bride and those lovely little touches made the whole day extra special for the guests. The wedding breakfast wasn’t your traditional run of the mill meal. Sticking to the theme of the day, we were treated to a number of dishes from around the globe, from Thai to Italian; and an array of wonderful desserts that were so tempting, we were compelled to eat them, despite being stuffed from the main part of the banquet! The top table had some very special drinking receptacles as Chrissy had painstakingly hand-painted some amazing goblets and wine glasses, especially for the people who had played an important part in the day. The cake topper had also been hand-painted and featured a cute little bride and groom all ready to jet set around the globe! As the guests enjoyed the evening’s entertainment, we were given the opportunity to get involved with some mementoes of the special day. In the foyer, amid a huge pile of sweeties, there was a huge signature plate for all the guests to sign (you guessed it- Chrissy had painted it herself!). Another fantastic feature was the ‘Message in a Bottle’ which was a large bottle, decoupaged in map paper by Chrissy. Guests were invited to write advice for the bride and groom and pop it inside the bottle for them to cherish forever. With all the special touches that decorated the day, it truly was a day to remember. And after all the hard work that Chrissy put into her travel themed wedding, she really did deserve to climb aboard a plane with her new husband and fly off into the Maldives sunset! Congratulations, Mr & Mrs Bennett! Chrissy’s cousin, Lesley, a photographer and guest at the wedding, captured some wonderful images if you’d like to take a peek. You can view them here https://lesleythomasphotography.pixieset.com/ Click on Chrissy and Danny’s album and use the password Bennett. #celebration #specialday #travel #love #handmade #wedding #special #theme #pottery

We’re all fans of creatures great and small here at Crafty monkey (except mosquitoes- nobody wants to pet a mozzie). Many of our customers are like minded and our range of animal pottery is very popular. From the crazy cat lady (a self-awarded title, so she won’t be offended) to the little girl that has exhausted our entire horsey range- we have something for every animal lover. Often people will come along looking for gifts for their friends; we can usually accommodate their requests for various creatures to paint up ready to sit on the shelf with the rest of their collection. The lovely thing about our animal ornaments is that they can either be painted or decorated with foam clay, which is a lovely squishy material for younger customers to really have fun with! We especially love the animal creations of the kids because they break the rules and make us smile every time. Currently, I’m looking at a display of animals ready to be picked up by their owners. These include a purple koala and a green horse with pink hair…and why not! Another animal related offering that Crafty Monkey is famous for are our parties. We have a huge range of party animals for the children to choose from and our Build a Bear parties are a big winner every time! Come and have a look around the studio and see what animal antics you can get involved with-  whether it’s paining a horse for your neigh-bour, having a hoot with an owl or monkeying around with, erm, a monkey; we’ll be pleased to see you! #ideas #art #FoamClay #animals #happy #Parties #fun #family #PotteryPainting

Being a grown up isn’t easy. Along with having to do day to day ‘adulting’, there’s a whole bunch of life events that get thrown your way that can really knock you in the worst way possible. We deal with a lot, from every day stresses and pressures to heartache and grief on many levels. Sometimes it’s difficult to get escape from the whirlwind within your own brain. That’s when you need a distraction. It can be difficult to motivate yourself, especially if you’re feeling a bit low or ultra-stressed. But a spot of artsy stuff can do wonders for the soul. We have many adult visitors who will come along alone or sometimes in pairs or groups, just to escape from the outside world and get stuck into a spot of art therapy. The lovely thing is that the majority of them are not experts at painting and for many people, it’s their first time. Sometimes just zoning out is just what they need to do. They know that we’re always on hand to give advice and make their experience as pleasurable as possible so that they get to relax and forget about everything else for a few hours. It’s worth noting that along with being open Monday to Sunday in the day, we also put on Adults Evenings and often run workshops at these aimed at beginners. You can even bring wine with you if you fancy a tipple while you create! Come and have a go to find out what we’re all about and how a spot of pottery painting can work for you and your inner peace. And just remember- you’re doing great, after all, your success rate of getting through bad days is 100% so far! #art #therapy #personal #escape #easy #innerpeace #life #arttherapy #relaxing #beginners #PotteryPainting

Well, we’re somewhere in between spring and summer, but somebody really ought to try telling the weather that! Most of us have still got the heating on in the evenings and the factor 30 hasn’t yet been pulled out of the cabinet. It’s entirely possible that the wonderful outdoorsy inspired pieces that have been painted recently are reflective of the fact that our customers are desperate to enjoy the delights of our green and pleasant land once again. Some wonderful pieces of artwork have been produced at Crafty Monkey, including beautiful sunsets, rolling fields and little feathered friends on branches. For those that don’t want to create their own scene- we have plenty of tiles and coasters that are already painted with an outline (so it’s a bit like colouring in with paint!) so people can create floral masterpieces or sunny beach scenes without having to craft their own outlines! While there’s plenty to bring the outdoors in- we also offer the reverse! We have plant pots, gnomes and birdhouses. All crying out to be embellished with lashings of love and set out into the wild! If it’s still cold and windy when you read this- why not come along and visit us and we’ll do our best to bring a little sunshine into your life! #ideas #art #painting #summer #sun #creativity #recreational #gnomes #home #ceramic #ceramicpainting #happy #plantpots #fun #birdhouse #sunset #PotteryPainting

Socks for Father’s Day…Again? Everyone who’s ever had a brother, dad, grandad, boyfriend or husband will know the difficulties we face when trying to find a perfect gift for a man. Unlike ladies, who are generally happy with all sorts of items that look or smell nice; our male counterparts tend not to appreciate the same vast array of pretty bits and pieces. So how do you go about attempting to conjure up an idea which reaches beyond something more original than socks for the tenth year running? Fear not as this is where Crafty Monkey dons its superhero mask and cape and swoops in to save the day!  Not only do we have the good grace to stock some ‘manly’ bits of pottery such as beer tankards, king sized mugs and footballs cups- we have a whole bunch of plain pottery which is crying out to be personalised especially for daddy! Over the last few years, we’ve helped all manner of little ones and mums create a gift for daddy. You’d be surprised what you can do with a hand and footprint! If dad has a favourite hobby/sport/food- we can pretty much incorporate your little one’s print into some relevant work of art on a plate, plaque or whatever takes your fancy. You may have already seen our ‘Daddy’s Little Cookie Monster’ plate which proved very popular last Father’s Day! Pop in or give us a ring for a chat and we’ll help you create the perfect gift for a daddy that deserves it! #ideas #art #FathersDaygift #giftideas #FathersDay #mugs #footprints #creativity #personal #PersonalisedGift #handprints #special #family #photoframe #PotteryPainting

It’s not a well-known national celebration, but we think it’s one that’s worth embracing because at Crafty Monkey, we’re friends of the Gingerbread Man! Yes, today is National Gingerbread Decorating Day and we’re up for participating with our offerings of hanging Gingerbread decorations and cute Gingerbread plates! These particular items are so very popular amongst our painters that they don’t get shoved into a dusty cupboard at the end of December- we love to celebrate the cheeky little chappies all year round! If you fancy trying your hand at painting a Gingerbread plate for your festive table or a mini version for your Christmas Tree, then come along and we’ll show you how! Remember that booking is essential during the Christmas period as our studio is permanently full of festive painters making gifts and keepsakes in time for Christmas. See you soon! #craftymonkey #painting #plates #decorating #activities #gift #keepsake #nationalday #man #ornament #celebration #ceramic #friends #festive #fun #chrildren #adult #tree #Christmas #handmade #gingerbread

Well today is the start of advent, how will you start counting down the days? We can’t believe that December is actually here. We have been talking about Christmas since September when the Christmas stock arrived and now we are panicking that there really aren’t many days left. Arghhhhh Have you done all your Christmas shopping yet? Fret not if you haven’t even started. Crafty Monkey is open Monday to Friday from 10am until 5pm and Saturday 9.30am-5.30pm where you can come and purchase a gift voucher, make a bear, buy bear outfits, make silver print jewellery or paint pottery. There really is something for everyone. hand and foot print and you can take a leaflet home to pass to Dad or the Grandparents who can give us a call to order your special jewellery piece. Easy peasy for them and you get a perfect present too! We are open on a Thursday evening until 9pm (by appointment) for adults only to come and paint in a relaxing atmostphere. We have mellow and calm tunes on the stereo and there are no kiddies so you can come along, chill out and get away from the hustle and bustle of the Christmas craziness and paint something either for you or as a present. Our Christmas range isn’t just for kids you know, after all you do need a nice dish for your peanuts don’t you! We sell hot drinks to keep you warm from the winter chill or you could always bring a tipple with you and your pals for a little Christmas get together. Perfect we say! See you soon! #craftymonkey #crafty #art #painting #paint #silverprint #presents #bear #footprints #activities #personalised #BuildaBear #paintapot #keepsake #ceramics #cambridgeshire #creative #giftvoucher #thingstodo #stneots #Christmas #jewellery #pottery #unique #Baubles #KeepsakesGifts #handprints

And speaking of inhabitants of chilly climes, it can’t go unmentioned that the fantastic film, ‘Frozen’ is still very much an ongoing theme in Crafty Monkey. Plenty of children have tried their hand at painting their favourite ‘Frozen’ characters onto mugs and plates and we have done several commissions, including an Elsa plate as special gifts for children. Some of our younger customers have even turned up wearing their beautiful Anna and Elsa frocks (don’t worry- they wore aprons!) Book your table at Crafty Monkey to try your hand at painting some chilly treats as soon as possible…we don’t want you to be left out in the cold… #craftymonkey #chilly #painting #plate #moneyboxes #FoamClay #mugs #favourite #elsa #anna #BuildaBear #gift #activites #ornament #penguin #cold #frozen #fun #thingstodo #stneots #creating #decorate #handmade #bowl #pottery

Today is ‘Bring Your Teddy Bear to Work and School Day’! We love this idea, after all- who doesn’t love to have their most reliable friend by their side during the day? Many of you will have already adopted a bear from Crafty Monkey after making your own at a party or just for fun- but if not, pop over to put some love into creating your own little friend to take away with you. What many children love best about their Build a Bear friends is that they can dress them up in adorable little outfits from our massive range! Transform your hippo into a cheerleader or get your turtle into his cowboy gear and get out and about so they can strutt their stuff in their new togs! Why not drop by and see all our animals for yourself? They’re all desperate for new homes and somebody to cuddle up to…which one will be lucky enough to be adopted by you? #craftymonkey #school #children #bears #dressup #friend #activities #BuildaBear #turtle #dog #animals #lions #work #adopt #hippo #love #teddy #fun #zebra #adult #handmade #cat #shoes #cowboy #cheerleader

Ah me hearties, at Crafty Monkey we love the theme of Pirates and Princesses so when we found out that 19th September is talk like a pirate day, our timbers were certainly shivered! We always have in stock a range of pirate pottery pieces to paint, which range from skulls to parrots to actual pirates, arrrrr matey, or you could pick a mug or a plate and paint a pirate theme onto it! We can always arrange for a pirate and princess themed party. Or if build a bear is your thing then you could treat your build a bear to a pirate outfits! Also coincidentally,  I will be hosting a Birthday party soon which will be pirate themed so pin the eye patch on the pirate, walk the plank, pass the booty among other piratey games with the winners being able to take a dip in the treasure chest.  In order to get into the spirit I will certainly be brushing up my pirate accent (currently my pirate accent is somewhere in the middle of a farmers accent and an Irish accent!) and I’ve found a great little pirate talk translator tool which I will be making the most of! So why not release the inner pirate in you and what better excuse than on talk like a pirate day aye! For more information on talk like a pirate day visit their website. #craftymonkey #birthday #painting #gold #parrot #treasure #hand #cambridgeshire #ornament #plank #acent #mug #yoho #Parties #arr #pirateparties #matety #thingstodo #stneots #theme #patch #bowl #pirate #made #pottery #TalkLikeaPirateDay #ornaments

You may or may not know (probably not!) that today is International Dot Day. You’ll probably be thinking that there’s not much that you can do to acknowledge such a peculiar celebration, but you’d be wrong because at Crafty Monkey, we’re dotty every day! Popping dots on pottery makes for an excellent way to embellish your piece and can be a wonderful finishing touch to personalised hand and foot prints. Or it’s possible to decorate your entire piece with dots to form patterns and pictures (also known as Pointillism). Getting dotty on pottery couldn’t be easier! All you need to do is find a paintbrush with a nice round end (as in, the opposite end to the brush part!), dip the end in pottery paint and press it onto the pottery surface. Voila! Quick, easy and super effective! Why not pop along to give it a try? #craftymonkey #painting #dots #internationaldotsday #personalised #gift #keepsake #cambridgeshire #uniquegifts #dotty #stneots #handmade #pottery #craft #PotteryPainting

Owls for some reason always remind me of Autumn time, as well of course of being wise old things, so are relevant this time of year as new school years have just started and we are heading into Autumn. At Crafty Monkey we have a large range of owl related pottery. There really are some lovely pieces in the way of ornaments, plant pot holders and cookie jars. If you haven’t seen them you’ll have to pop in as they are very popular and we know you will fall in love with them as much as we did. Before and after our owl pottery has been painted and fired. #craftymonkey #wise #pot #gift #keepsake #cambridgeshire #twittwoo #creative #feathers #candleholder #ornament #holder #PersonalisedGifts #cookiejar #owl #tealight #plantpot #ceramicpainting #painted #handmadepresent #love #stneots #fired #pottery #candle #PotteryPainting