reetsweet welcomes nellie and clara to yorkshire this october!

On Oct 1st and 2nd we take over the Leeds Corn Exchange once again, for a two day extravanganza of cool craft...nellie and clara will be appearing for the first time and we wanted to introduce you...

nellie and clara were the childhood pet names of two sisters - and everything sold by nellie and clara handmade by just one person - Helen, the eponymous nellie. Helen is fresh from 'escaping' her after ten years in London for a new life in rural West Yorkshire - so this isn't just her first reetsweet but also nellie and clara's first Yorkshire venture!

''My mum made most of our clothes when we were small and I learnt sewing from her at a really young age. I’ve always loved it and bought a sewing machine of my own as soon as I moved away from home (it’s still going strong more than ten years later!). I’ve also never been able to walk past a charity shop without popping in and have spent many, many happy hours rummaging round vintage fairs and car boot sales.

“nellie & clara combines my love of making with passion for sourcing vintage and pre-loved pieces – from the quirky china plates I make into cake stands, to the beautiful vintage Laura Ashley fabrics that are dotted round my patchwork quilts.

“What nellie & clara is best known for though is beautiful handmade, personalised bunting. This came about when most of my friends got pregnant within a year of each other – there were a lot of babies to find presents for! I sourced some gorgeous, durable cotton fabrics and created bunting with the baby’s name appliquéd on.

“I was absolutely floored by my friends’ reaction – I’ve always been ludicrously meticulous and get a lot of pleasure from ensuring everything I make is perfect, and it turned out that I’d inadvertently created something far better quality than that available in the shops. Friends of friends started putting in orders and the bunting is now a staple of nellie & clara! Visitors to reetsweet Leeds will be able to see some samples for themselves and choose from 24 fantastic fabrics for their very own personalised bunting.”