We're off the starting block!!

I attended the St Johns School Fayre on Saturday and made £20.00! It's been added to my just giving page (www.justgiving.com/Katrina-Fox) and means we are 2% into our journey to a £1000. I forgot to take some pictures of the event but it was a lovely sunny day and there were lots of nice people out and about admiring my creations. It was a lovely atmosphere and it has been such a long time since I went to school fayre, I had forgotten how much fun they are! A big thank you to Patric and Natalie for helping me out managing the stall.

£1000 seems like such a long way off but I've got some really exciting things planned for this summer, including a Folksy launch and a Afternoon Tea Party. The Folksy launch was originally planned for 17th July but due to a surprise holiday to Kolymbia, (leaving tomorrow) I have pushed it back to the first weekend in August. Remember all purchases over the launch weekend will receive a free soap.
Bye for now, Katrina x

Good News...

...for all those who live in the Worksop area I will be attended St John's School Fair on Saturday 3rd July 2010. It runs from 12pm until 4pm and so far it sounds like it's going to be lots of fun, there will be stalls, face painting and a hog roast. More details will be posted as soon as I get them but if your around why not pop in and say hello.
More good news for all those further a field is that the launch of my Folksy shop is sheduled for Saturday 17th July 2010. All purchases over the Saturday and Sunday will be eligible for a FREE handmade soap. Pictures of some of the items that will be available will be posted here by the end of June.
I apologise for how long it's taking, things have been a bit hectic but my University course is quiet over the summer and the support group I am in the process of starting up is well on it's way so there is plenty of time for me to get crafting!
Thank you all for your amazing support, you have all made this dream of mine seem so much more achieveable.See you soon!

Time for an update......

Hello everyone,
This is a quick update to let all my followers and supporters know what's happening and to fill you all in on my new plans on how i'm going to raise the money.
My original plan was to make everything throughout the year then have a big sales event at the end of the year.I think aiming to raise £1000 in one day is too much of an ask and so I have devised a new plan for raising the money that will incorporate lots of different ways.They are listed below;

• Home parties- I've had success with home parties in the past and they are a great way of reaching lots of different people.If you live in the Worksop/Bassetlaw area and would like a party please get in touch at grandreinventions@live.co.uk I will be offering them throughout the year but Christmas would be a great fundraising time.
• Events such as craft fairs, school fairs etc.- Another good way of reaching out to more people and getting more people involved.
• Folksy- I have decided to set up a Folksy shop to enable more people to purchase my products. You will be available to purchase from grandreinventions Folksy store July/August time.I will let you know when it opens.
• You can donate money to grandreinventions fundraiser at my official fundraising page at Justgiving.com www.justgiving.com/Katrina-Fox

  All these fundraising events will be very challenging for me but I have a wonderful support system, fabulous friends, a brilliant boyfriend, a wonderful mum and a whole host of new supporters.

All monies rasied throughout this fundraiser will be paid into my Justgiving page at the end of every month.That way we can all see on the lovely 'percentage wheel' how far we've come and how far we've got left to go.

Finally, I would just like to say a big thank you to all the people who have donated items for me to revamp.The fabulous companies that have donated are listed in the panel opposite, they are small companies that make beautiful handmade products so why not click and take a peek!

Keep up to date with grandreinventions by becoming a follower of this blog.I will be unveiling the first collection of products soon.......

Easy Peasy Pencil Pot!

The previous post concentrated on my story and how I came to be doing this fundraiser. This post focuses on the 'good stuff'- the craftiness! This is a small very easy tutorial for.......A pencil pot! I'm still at the collecting stage so it's just a taster of much bigger things to come.

Things you will need:

An old tin

Double sided tape

Sticky tape

Scissors

Your choice of background paper-I chose ordinary brown kraft paper

Decorative 'bits'- I used Raffia and Jute for a natural look.

1. The first thing I did was cut my background paper so that it wrapped neatly around the bottom of my tin. The paper was about 1cm above the top of the tin- it is important to leave this as it gives a neat edge when folded in.
   
2. I then attached pieces of double sided tape around the bottom of the tin and stuck the background paper as tight to the bottom rim of the tin as possible.
   
3. Keep wrapping and sticking until your tin is completely covered with background paper.
4. The next part is to neatly fold the excess paper over the rim and inside the tin. Stick it down with some sticky tape. You could attach paper or fabric to the inside of the tin if you want a 'posher' look but as mine is just going to hold pencils I left it bare.
5. Now is the fun part-decorate as you wish! I have just put a length of jute twine and a length of raffia around the middle of my new pencil pot and tied in a bow.

That's it, you now have a lovely new recycled pencil pot!

What do you think?

Thank you for reading this and looking at Grand Reinventions blog. Grand Reinventions is a project aimed at raising £1000 for the National Autistic Society by turning 'old rubbish' into desirable new products. If you enjoyed this post why not sign up and follow my fundraising journey! Katrina x

Hello everyone, and now for a little introduction...

My name is Katrina Fox, i'm 22 years old and I was diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome in December 2008. Aspergers Syndrome is part of the Autistic Spectrum and affects three key areas:

• Social Communication
• Social Interaction
• Social Imagination

I spent alot my childhood in and out of therapy trying to figure out what was wrong with me and spent hours of my time and a countless amount energy trying to 'get better'. When I was diagnosed I felt a huge amount of relief-finally I knew what was wrong with me. Unfortunately this sense of relief was short lived, I then decended into a despressive cycle, thinking, why me? why can't I snap out of this? I so desperately wanted to 'be normal' and do things the 'normal way' accepting that I have Aspergers Syndrome means accepting that I will always struggle socially. I'm not being defeatist and saying my life is over, I know that I can still achieve things in life and be happy, just not in the way I expected to.Accepting that the life I thought I would have when I 'got better' is no longer a possibililty breaks my heart everyday.Thinking about Aspergers in a positive light is very difficult for me at the moment which is why I have decided to take on this fundraising project. I hope that this project will teach me to value myself and my talents whilst also raising awareness of Aspergers Syndrome and Autism.I hope the money I raise will go towards helping people with Autism Spectrum Disorders acheive a better quality of life and improved support.

So, this is the Grand Reinventions Craft Challenge.

I spend alot of time in the house and it gets very boring. I've always had a creative streak so to fill my time I started crafting.People with Aspergers tend to get obsessed with things and I would have to say crafting is a big obsession of mine! I also like to challenge myself. I've been in education all my life and have GCSEs, A levels, an Advanced Counselling Certificate and I'm currently studying for an Arts Degree.

I like to take on alot and push myself, helps me to feel like I'm part of the world.So this challenge is my next task. I aim to raise £1000 for the National Autistic Society by turning people's junk and unwanted items into beautiful items people would love to own. I have given myself from April 2010 to April 2011 and when this timescale is complete I will be hosting an exciting event where the creations will be displayed and sold for the National Autistic Society.

Thank you for taking the time to read through my blog and I hope you choose to follow and become a much needed supporter.Thanks again,

Katrina x