As the year draws to a close, we'd like to thank all our customers for their loyalty again this year. For those of you who visited our studio, attended our workshops and placed orders on our webstore, we thank you all. We're looking forward to hosting more events here in Sussex, so stay tuned for updates via our Instagram page @Flint_lewes. In the meantime, we wish you a merry Christmas, one and all. With love, Heidi and Julia xxx
Being married to a man with a travel company means I'm lucky enough to hitch a ride on many of his work trips and no matter where we end up, I'm always on the look out for local treasures. An empty suitcase is an absolute no negotiable MUST on my journeys as I invariably come home laden with rocks and stones (which I can never resist collecting) as well as all the glorious bits and bobs I find. One of my greatest pleasures is sharing these hauls with my customers who seem to share my love of the locally made, the tactile, the unusual and exotic things I seem to find.
Our latest trip was to the Samburu in Kenya, which stunned me with it's crystalline landscape of shimmering mica pinks and silvers and it's shrubby trees. The heat was intense and the sun baked landscape was parched due to the late rains. Luckily it did rain whilst we were there, in short violent bursts but turn your head for a second, look back and watch in wonder as the thirsty trees and bushes seemed to revive in all their fleshy greens almost in front of your eyes. Elephants were a plenty and were happy in the rain, as we travelled down to the waterholes to watch the creatures gather, darkened skin gleaming with wet mud.
Lamu on the coast is a short hop from the mainland and a beautiful way to end a trip on safari. The local community heavily depends on tourism and has had a rocky time recently and I was overwhelmed by the welcome we received. Losing myself in the sandy alleyways and twisted backstreets felt like going back in time, in fact you get the sense it's been the same for centuries. I met so many wonderful, friendly locals, all inquisitive, so proud of their town and many makers of exquiste treasures, from fabrics, to baskets and beads. All made it home with me and, hopefully, home to you. Happy browsing xxx
Our best selling candle range is now ready to order! We have a selection of five fragrances to choose from - a beautiful, softly spiced Moroccan Rose; a gentle herbaceous floral called Wildflower; Nag Champa (my favourite), reminiscent of resinous incense; Orange and Nutmeg, the perfect winter fragrance and ideal to burn at Christmas time and an unusual but compelling fragrance blend, Orange, Geranium, Lavender and Ylang Ylang that cleverly balances fresh, citrussy notes with softer and sweeter ylang ylang and lavender.
The weather feels distinctly Autumnal today and it marks the first day I've worn a jumper since the summer, so the timing felt perfect when Chloe Liddel, the creative behind the Misty Cashmere label, drove up to the gate earlier with a new collection of cashmere under her arm.
These are supersoft jumpers in lovely, rich tones from jewel like brights to more muted shades and are perfect for everyday. Made in Outer Mongolia, from cashmere, merino and yak, these are easy pieces to wear forever.
Taking advantage of the dry weather we set to work this weekend, harvesting our annual crops of flowers in readiness for the Autumn season. We have a few workshops coming up later in the year and we're preparing our studio for the busy months ahead.
We are so excited about the Limonium this summer. Like all our flowers, we've grown these from seed in our little cutting garden and they've done so well. The colours range from a soft, sandy pink, through to a deeper more rose-pink, but we also have a very vibrant yellow which just sings when put together with more neutral seed heads and foliage.
The delicate flowers have an almost paper like quality to them and provided they're not left in direct sun, they should retain their beautiful colour for years.
It's hard to choose a favourite but I do especially adore this sandy pink.. I have stolen a small bunch for my hallway at home and it looks incredibly pretty against my limewashed wall.
Over the coming days, we'll be uploading these and more to our Preserved Flowers webpage but if you'd like more info or would like to place an order now, please just drop us an email.
They'll be available to purchase in bunches, just enough to create a beautiful display. And don't forget, if you're a fellow retailer or florist and would like to sell them in your shop, we are soon offering them to trade customers. Again, just send me an email to learn more - sales@flintcollection.com
Our paper flowers seem to have garnered fans from all over the world and we're always fascinated to see how they're are put to use. We were absolutely delighted to receive a commission for some flowers to adorn a summer hat for a very special occasion.
Julia really went to town and created these wonderful, blowsy peonies in shades of coral pink and peach, tied together with a bespoke silk ribbon that we dyed from onion skins.
We experimented with size and shape using an old battered straw hat of mine. Not quite good enough for Ascot but perfectly acceptable for gardening duties...I might just order some!
This summer's 2022 issue of Wildflower Magazine, hot off the press, features a lovely interview with us, written by Kathryn Conway. Together with images by photographer Natasa Leoni, it's lovely to see our story told and published in this wonderful magazine. If you're intruigued and would like to buy a copy, click here.
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