Viking Arty Party – An Afternoon of Crafting and Learning New Things!

As a blogger, I get to go to lots of interesting events and try lots of new things, I feel so lucky to make the most of all the opportunities, which come my way. My favourite events are always the ones where I get to do something fun or be creative. A few weeks ago I was invited to an afternoon of crafts and art activities with Viking, the stationary supplier. The event was held in a lovely venue in London and was such a fun relaxing afternoon, I wish I could do it all again!

We were treated to lots of lovely cakes and drinks and got to try a selection of different craft activities. They had brought three lovely crafting experts to teach us different crafts, none of which I had really tried properly before.

First up was block printing with Tea and Crafting. We were provided with everything we needed to create a printed magazine file. This was a really simple and easy activity, which I would love to do again and again, with lots of different designs.

We had to design and cut out our own stamp to print with and everyone came up with some really fab designs. I decided to do a simple flower and print my design with orange paint.

It took a little while to get the hang of getting the right amount of paint for best results, but it was a really fun activity and it was great to chat with all the other bloggers while we worked on our masterpieces.

This is definitely an activity I’d like to try at home with the kids, and I’d also like to give it a go with fabric paints to design a mid-century style print to turn into a dress.

I was really happy with how my finished piece came out. I have given it to Jessica for her bedroom, to organise some of her things.

Everyone else’s designs looked amazing too, especially the flamingo print!

Next we tried calligraphy, I’ve not done this since I was at school, so I was pretty much a complete beginner. This class was hosted by L’aise, who provide calligraphy workshops all over London.

This is definitely one of the most relaxing crafts I’ve ever tried. For the whole 45 minute session, we were all completely engrossed. It will definitely take lots of practise to get the hang of it, but I’m willing to persevere.

We got to take home our quills and ink, as well as some practise paper, so I’m going to keep practising until I’ve perfected it.

I’d love to be good enough to write my name like this!

Lastly we had a go at Mindful Origami with MindFOLDness. I’ve tried origami a few times, and it’s always something I’ve wanted to get good at.

I’m a big fan of colouring for mindfulness and as a form of relaxation and meditation. Mindful origami runs along the same lines and can be a great way to escape the world and have some quiet time to think and create.

I loved the demonstration and really enjoyed having a go at making my own origami stalk. I’ll definitely persevere and try to have some quiet time to fold and reflect in the future.

We talked about thinking about a person you care about while folding and then passing the finished piece on to them. I think this is such a nice idea and I’d like to make some mindful origami for the kids and my friends and family.

I really enjoyed the whole event and I’m looking forward to using some of the Viking bits from my goodie bag. Including some great pens from Sharpie and mugs to decorate with them.

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