Mrs Brimble’s Jingle and Mingle

I’ll be honest, my favourite kind of events to go to these days are – without a doubt – the stationery, planners and craft events.   They are amazing.  It’s a room (or several rooms) full of likeminded people who all just want to talk stationery or get crafty.  Everyone you meet is so generous and kind.  People swap their unused products with each other.  They share their washi or sticker collection.  I’ve met a lot of amazing people from these events.  The minute the event finishes, I already start looking forward to the next one.  Yesterday, I went to an event just like this – Jingle and Mingle.  It was a small casual style event, which makes it really relaxing and really good fun.

The Jingle and Mingle event found around 40 people making their way over to a small town in Cambridgeshire.  There, we walked in to a lovely little venue with tables full of crafty bits and stalls full of beautiful products to sell.  Jingle and Mingle was organised by Mrs Brimbles (Anna).  She’s organised several events in the same area.  I had the pleasure of meeting her at an event she did last year.  And since, have been to three of her events.  Mrs Brimbles organises the annual Cambridge Planner con.

I Jingled and I Mingled

This event was a lot more casual than the plannercon, which was really nice.  There was a short introduction to Christmas craft workshop, with a kit to get you started.  Anna brought along some of her tools to try out.  What I really liked is that everyone seemed to do something different.  People made inserts for Traveller’s notebook or to use on their own.  Someone else made lovely bits to add into her scrapbook.  I saw a journal with lots of different papers in it.  Some people just shopped a lot and caught up with friends!

I decided to start on a little Christmas planner or journal that I wanted.  It was absolutely great fun – and honestly, I did not take many photos because I was too busy chatting and crafting away.  The event was held in the afternoon.  Although it was four hours of crafting and chatting, it really did not feel like enough!  Time flew by!

There were several great stalls featuring lovely products from a range of stores.  I forgot to take a picture of the lovely stall set ups – because I got too distracted, let’s be honest.  But it was great to see a selection of Etsy stores selling different products.  One focused on stickers and planner accessories whilst another next to it focused on the planners itself.  Another had a whole bunch of charms whilst another had handmade books.  Honestly, there’s just too many products to explain them all in depth – and since I stupidly forgot pictures, the best I can offer right now is a list of names.

What shops were there?

• Mrs Brimbles – This store has a whole variety of products.  From stickers to planner charms, from washi tape to sticky notes.  I love pretty much everything from here, it’s a shop I’ve spoken about before and highly recommended.
• Jenny Lane Creations – I actually came across this store for the first time yesterday.  They have a lovely range of handmade products up for sale.  There’s a lot of cute paperclips, charms or bookmarks but I’m a fan of the shaker dashboards!
• Scurry and Peck – Sighhh, this store is just beautiful.  Everything Stephanie creates is so lovely.  You can see how much love and care has gone into creating each product.  Her journals are lovely and really affordable.  Scurry and Peck doesn’t have an online store but you can follow her on social media to find out what events she will be at or how to purchase a product.
• Stitch n Weave – At the moment, this store is on a short break so you won’t be able to see the products.  However, they usually stock a lot of wonderful products.  Her fabric traveler’s notebooks are great – it was really hard to resist them.  I wanted one pretty badly, even though I really did not need another one.  I did notice some super cute bookmarks though, which I had to get and other great knitted or crocheted products – such as a wool coffee cup holder!
• Filo Fabulouss – This is a great store if you’re looking for bits and bobs for your planner.  She sells everything from stickers to bookmarks, dashboards to die cuts!

How to find out about upcoming events:

I often get asked how I heard about event.  Each one is different, so it’s a bit hard to give a general overview.  However, these events that are organised by Mrs Brimbles tend to be advertised in specific places.  For starters, she sells the tickets to the events on her website and through her shop.  So you can sign up to receiving emails or newsletters from her.  Additionally, she puts up the information in her Facebook group.  I recommend checking out her group if you like her products and want to meet other crafty people.  It’s a great place to share ideas or just see how other people use her products.  The group is not exclusive to her customers.  If you enjoy reading her blog or watching her YouTube videos then you might enjoy the group too!

What I love is that Anna always creates a group for the attendees of the event.  These groups exist even after the event.  So you can stay in touch with the people you met through them!  You can even continue to share things you’ve learnt or think others might enjoy.  Currently, the group is full of people’s Christmas journals and how they want to memory plan.  It’s so inspiring to see!  I can’t link to the group as it’s a private group for attendees only.  However, I did want to mention it as I think it’s a great advantage to getting a ticket to one of her events.  As I mentioned, she organises a Cambridge Planner meet every year – around April – so follow her Facebook group to find out more about that.

The best part?

The best part about Jingle and  Mingle was that it gave me the chance to catch up with some amazing ladies I haven’t seen in a while.  The festivity and fun continues even after the event.  I’ve met some new people to keep in touch with and reconnect with people I already love to bits.  We all got to chat whilst shopping and crafting – two things we love to do!  It inspired me to get crafty and keep crafting.  Once I got home, I ended up crafting again and continued to add things into the journal.  It’s nowhere near completion but I made a good start at it yesterday, thanks to this event.  Once it’s set up – or perhaps after I’ve finished using it – I’ll share some pictures over on my Instagram.  Alternatively, if you would like to see it in a blog post, let me know!

Honestly?  I just can’t wait for the next event now and to see everyone again soon!