Fair trade fortnight was started to spread the joy and knowledge of fair trade, and why it is important. And you can’t find anything much more joyful than the homeware and accessories produced by the collaboration of Aura Que and Kaffe Fassett. And made fair trade in Vietnam. We were lucky enough to be able to ask them a few questions about their collaboration, and why fair trade is important to them. Read more
Recently I got very excited when I got a box through the post. In the box was a lovely selection from Grasmere Gingerbread. Grasmere gingerbread reminds me of summer holidays as a child. Of a queuing down the street, waiting for your turn to go into a warm, beautifully scented old bakery. What you are met with (as well as the scrumptious scent) are rows of gingerbread. And the smiling faces of the people making and selling it. It is not just tourists who queue for this sweet treat, but locals too and sometimes celebrities. Grasmere gingerbread is unique. It is hard to find the words to describe it, so we asked the lovely people of Grasmere Gingerbread to tell us about it and why it is so special. Read more
Any one who has followed Home of Juniper for a while will have realised we love flowers and plants. In the garden and the home. Not only are they beautiful, they make us feel happy. Following Pod & Pip on Instagram , and their other social media sites, we have enjoyed seeing a stunning and unique mix of flowers and bouquets. So we decided to have a bit of a chat with the Muddy Stiletto Finalists of 2017. Pod & Pip All the stunning images in this blog are from the Pod and Pip website, you can see why we wanted to talk to them. Here is our interview with the lovely Sarah from Pod and Pip: Read more
Marshmallows have just got cooler! These gorgeous, sweet treats have just got a bit of attitude. We spoke to the owner of The Mallow Maid, Sarah, about her innovative flavours, her inspiration and having her Marshmallows showing what they are made of in Vogue and Glamour magazines! Read more
Over the months we have looked at various ways people live there lives. Food Writers, professional bloggers, designers and makers. One of the (many) roles we are missing is Stay-At-Home Mums. They are heroes. It is a seven days a week, 24 hours a day role. It is not something that is always possible, either because of financial restraints or because it doesn’t suit the person. (Just to be clear, we think working mums and people without children are amazing too. But today we are concentrating with Stay-at-Home-Mums). It is a wonderful way to spend your days, but can also be hard.
Home of Juniper spoke to the lovely Jessica from @homeisacottage on why she decided to be a stay at home mum, and the ups-and-downs of being one. Read more
We have added a new stockist to our range and we would love to introduce them! Rebecca produces a lovely range of luxury soaps, all made cold compress and stunningly fragranced. Home of Juniper are very excited to be adding Bliss Botanicals fragrance heart melts, Happiness soap, Love soap and Joy soaps to our range. These beautiful soaps and fragrance hearts are lovely to use and make gorgeous gifts. Each item is carefully handmade using a mix of ingredients. These carefully chosen ingredients includes olive oil, coconut oil, shea butter and pure rose geranium lavender and clary sage essential oils. We spoke to Rebecca about her gorgeous soaps and what led her to start Bliss Botanicals.
Everyone loves getting flowers through the post and we at Home of Juniper are excited by a new company who has added a twist. Instead of cut flowers a carefully picked box of potted plants and flowers arrives at your door each month. Flowers and plants bring beauty and positivity wherever they are. They are, also, acknowledge to have health benefits, taking bad toxins out of the air, and increasing mental health. The lovely thing about The BloomBox Club is that, as well as having beautiful, expertly picked plants arrive at your door at a regular basis (there are different subscriptions); you also become part of a community, with garden and plant knowledge shared with their followers. Which makes this great for expert plant growers, or people new to plant care. We asked, Sarah Lawton, one of the brands directors, to tell us a little more about this wonderful company. Read more
Ceramics are something that often crosses the divide between useful and beautiful. This is definitely true of Lynn’s elegant pieces. All are hand thrown and hand painted in her home studio. These piece’s are all microwave and dishwasher safe. They also look lovely on display, as shown by some of the images we have been sent by happy purchasers. The fact they are handmade means that each piece is unique and special. We spoke to Lynn about how she makes these gorgeous jugs, mugs, and bowls; and where she gets her inspiration from. Here is what she had to say:
Provence to Pondicherry by Tessa Kiros
We at Home of Juniper love food. Food is very important. Food holds memories; memories of a grandmothers cooking, recollections of travels abroad, reminders of meals with friends and family… This is something food writer and chef Tessa Kiros understands. Her recipe books are intertwined with history of the food, the links to herself, her past and the world around her.
In her latest recipe book, Provence to Pondicherry, Tessa takes the reader on a journey from Provence to Guadeloupe, Vietnam, Pondicherry, La Reunion and then to Normandy. Throughout this book, as well as wonderful recipes, Tessa tells the reader about the countries the food is from, and the influence of French food in all these beautiful countries. We were lucky enough to catch up with the ever talented Tessa Kiros to ask her about food, travel and inspirations.
I would like to start with a bit of an introduction to my small business and by saying that La Juniper wasn’t just named because of a love of gin (though, I do love gin!).
La Juniper has arisen from a love of gift giving, homes and craftsmanship (or craftwomanship), and the belief that it could be fun to spread this love a little further…
However, I want La Juniper to be more than just gift giving and home decor; I want it to be a company that gives a little more, and helps the world go round with a bit of positivity. This is why we are supporting designers and small businesses in the UK and ethical businesses from further afield. We are going to concentrate not just on the beauty of the products that we sell…but also the stories and the people behind them.
As well as supporting our producers and designers, we will be supporting charities, starting in January (We are very excited!) Read more