Archives for Shop Review category
Posted on Aug 17, 2008 under Shop Review |
Today (Saturday 16th August 2008) we visited a craft shop that we haven’t been to before, it’s called
Calico Crafts Ltd, Unit 12 Northfield Road Business Park, Soham, Cambridgeshire CB7 5UF
TELEPHONE: 01353 624100
The building is in an industrial estate and the shop itself is a warehouse filled with all kinds of craft products.
The warehouse has been made into little doorless rooms which are filled with crafting products, each room is a different craft company such as Hot off the Press, K & Co, Craftime and Kanban to name a but few. There is an extensive range of wood backed rubber stamps and some Kars clear unmounted stamps that are very reasonably priced.
Calico also have demonstrations by some of the Craft world’s biggest names, this week it was Amanda Bateman and next week it is Joanna Sheen, you need to book a place if you would like to see her.
As you go into the building there is a place where non-crafters can sit and watch the TV, plus there are toilets and the staff will make you tea and coffee. I found the staff very friendly and helpful, they were very willing to demonstrate any of the items for sale in the shop, one lady was buying a Cuttlebug and was given an extensive demonstration of what it could do before she made her purchase
I was very impressed with the shop and will be going back again in the future.
Posted on Nov 29, 2007 under Shop Review |
Rochester is a strange mix of a town, part tourist trap (mainly playing on the Charles Dickens connection), part community. The High Street reflects this mix, but lies heavily on the tourist side, with a plethora of gift shops, a tourist information centre, pubs, cafes and restaurants.
There are three Francis Iles shops in Rochester: an Arts Materials shop, a Gift Shop and the CraftWorks shop. The craft shop is located at:
73 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1LX
Francis Iles craft shop is just south of the entrance to the castle.
I didn’t find the web site to be very user-friendly. The shop itself is quite mixed up, selling a wide range of crafts. Most of the well known cutting systems are available here. They also sell parchment craft products, beads, embroidery and cross-stitch kits.
Like many craft shops currently, they also stock a large range of Do-Crafts products and have a wide selection of crafting magazines and books. Craft demonstrations are available most Saturdays.
If you’re near Rochester, then I’d recommend a visit. The High Road is usually restricted for traffic at the weekends, but there are many car parks available within a short distance.
I enjoy going to Francis Iles, as no matter what I’m looking for, I can almost always find it here.
Posted on Nov 26, 2007 under Shop Review |
Colemans have a number of outlets, based mainly in the Northhampton area. The Colemans that I visited is basically a wholesaler, but the warehouse is open to the public once a month, on the last Saturday. It is best to visit the web site before visiting in person.
The warehouse is situated in an industrial estate to the north of Rushden.
The warehouse itself is a large open space, filled with all kinds of crafting products, from Sakura gel pens to Cricut cutting dies. A wide range of papers, card and decoupage papers are available. Many dies for the various cutting machines, both manual and electrical, are always in stock. Lots of rubber stamps, magazines, peel-offs and rub-ons are also available.
On the open days, there are always guest crafters promoting their wares. The last time I visited, Joanna Sheen was there. As she is one of my favourite crafters, I was very pleased, as you can imagine! She was demonstrating some of her new CDs, and I purchased two more to add to my growing collection.
Facilities are available for the non-crafters (hubbies and kids?): there is a toilet, as well as a small room with a TV and a selection of toys, so there can be no complaints while the serious shopping is done. Colemans also provide free squash, tea and coffee. There are usually plenty of staff on hand to help with customer enquiries, and I found the staff very friendly and helpful.
The open days can get very busy and crowded, and one of the downsides to this is that queues can build up at the three tills available. So much so that the queuing time can be as long as 30 minutes at times!
Despite having a large car park, these days are very popular, and parking can be very crowded, so I’d suggest getting there early if possible. I really enjoy these open days, even though it’s a good hour and half drive for us to get there, and I’m looking forward to the next one!
Posted on Nov 22, 2007 under Shop Review |
Capture the Magic (CTM) is a craft warehouse that is open to the public for retail sales three days a week (Thurs-Sat) at the time of writing. The premises consists of over 2400 square feet of space, filled with scrapbooking and card making supplies, and is located at:
Unit 23 Northfield Road Business Park, Soham, Cambs CB7 5UF
CTM are located just off the A142 Soham bypass, behind Scampers Pet Store.
CTM are easily spotted at craft shows, as they usually have a large vending machine which dispenses balls filled with craft goodies, much like the kiddies machines found at motorway service stations.
There is a good range here, which includes products from Sizzix and Ellison, in the Big Shot and Tag A Long ranges. There is a large selection of 12×12 papers and many of the Doodlebug products are also available from stock. In addition, there is an extensive range of diecut and embossing products from Cuttlebug. Storage solutions are available by All My Memories and Art Bin.
The majority of the stock is geared toward scrapbooking rather than card-making.
Like many stores these days, a range of workshops are held, for which pre-booking (available via their web site) is essential.
A kit is available on a monthly subscription plan, suitable for scrapbookers and card makers alike. Gift vouchers are also available.
In summary, a mecca for local scrapbookers!
Posted on Nov 08, 2007 under Shop Review |
Graham and Tracey run Oyster Stamps, based in Rochester in Kent, and are two of the nicest people on the UK crafting scene today. The company began life in Whitstable – hence the name – but are now located at:
UNIT 11, Rochester Airport Ind Estate, Laker Road, Rochester, Kent, ME1 3QX.
Oyster Stamps is located behind Rochester airport, just off J3 of the M2.
Graham and Tracey frequently visit trade shows in the USA, and invariably return with stock of the latest goodies. They carry a good selection of scrapbooking materials, as well as their own range of rubber stamps ‘More than Words’ – many of which are exclusives designed in-house, and the latest gadgets such as the Cuttle Bug and Cricut range of manual and electronic die cutters.
Always friendly and helpful, a visit to either the warehouse or their stall at the many shows they attend will be well rewarded.
