bumblebee

A Lantern for light...

2011-03-28T21:38:00.000+01:00

These gorgeous zinc lanterns are coming back into Bumblebee in a few days. I have a small village at home....couldn't help myself!

A latte cup for you...

2011-03-28T21:34:00.003+01:00

Our new Greengate collection has arrived...

2011-03-28T21:33:00.000+01:00

Our lovely new Avoca range is instore now...

2010-08-12T15:53:00.002+01:00

We have been busy bees changing our lovely stock around at Bumblebee and we have had a few new deliveries. One of which is my favourite at the moment...Avoca. Have a wee look if you please.

A bag of light for a summer night...

2010-06-10T19:17:00.006+01:00

Also new online is our fab bag of light. A bag containing four white paper bags, tealights and some wire. Hang them up in the garden while dining alfresco or you can place them on the table with glass tea light holders inside the bags. I've got mine!

Raumgestalt...

2010-06-10T19:09:00.002+01:00

I have just put our quirky company Raumgestalt online, a few cool items from Germany. The company takes on different designers who design and manufacture the coolest things. Most of my friends have the flower nail notice, which is so handy for little notes and it looks great too. Take a look if you like...

One more image

2010-03-04T14:14:00.002Z

Well, that wasn't so bad, i seemed to manage two images below, so here is the final one i thought was really cool of the Playshapes...

AAARRRGGHHHH!!!

2010-03-04T14:00:00.005Z

I have been trying to put a second image on our website for our new Playshapes which arrived the other day. They are now on the website, they are so cool, hours of fun for all the family, probably more the adults after a couple of wines!! However, I cannot seem to get the other images on the site. My lovely friend Claire, also my website designer and very clever person....isn't available. So, I thought i would try my luck with my blog and see if I can get some images on here.....let's see....watch this space.

Avoca's beautiful throws...

2010-02-11T17:33:00.002Z

Avoca...

2010-02-11T16:46:00.002Z

My lovely friend Lou Lou bought me a beautiful scarf from Avoca, an Irish company who have a mill and make gorgeous throws, clothes, scarves and the most amazing socks....of which I ordered huge quantities! I saw the company at one of my recent buying trips for Bumblebee, I couldn't believe my luck. I bought all their stoneware mugs, jugs, plates, butter dishes...I could go on and on. Their scarves are so amazing, so had to order all those too. I am really excited about it all coming in. Oh, I also ordered stunning lambswool throws!

Back at last...

2010-02-11T16:28:00.002Z

Hello, Hello at last, I'm back. I know I have not blogged for ages, I have a lot of making up to do. With valentine's this weekend we are all hearted out at Bumblebee. We have lovely knitted hearts in by Mo Mo knits. They are all machine knitted by a lovely lass called Maureen from up north, she has the best accent. Here is a wee picture of her beautiful hearts we have in store.

Cindy Ashbridge Jewellery in store...

2009-06-24T10:39:00.003+01:00

Our gorgeous designer jewellery by Cindy Ashbridge has arrived at bumblebee. Beautiful oxidized silver rings, flower, heart and crystal pendants, silver hoop earrings with hearts and flowers, it is all so pretty and contemporary at the same time. If you are popping in to see us please come and have a peak.

Stieg Larsson...

2009-04-29T11:24:00.005+01:00

A lovely customer of mine told me about this author from Sweden, unfortunately he died before his books were published. So far two out of three have been published in English and they are absolutely fantastic, unputdownable!! (Is that a word?) The second one even more than the first, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but both amazing. If you like a great thriller, have a read...

Jewellery by Gabriella Casemore...

2009-04-29T11:15:00.001+01:00

Here are a couple of pieces by Gabriella Casemore jewellery

The British Craft Fair...

2009-04-29T11:02:00.003+01:00

A few weeks ago I went down to the fab British Craft Fair, it was amazing with such talented one off makers and designers. It was so hard to choose as the standard of work was so high, but I managed of course, the girl loves shopping! I mostly ordered gorgeous jewellery for Bumblebee and a few ceramics as I cannot resist. Paul is making a wonderful new jewellery case for the shop so I can put in all my new pieces when they arrive. Here are a few pieces from Reckless Necklace...

Cool tea towels...

2009-03-27T13:20:00.002Z

Check out our lovely new tea towels, I love all the different designs.

Gorgeous linen smock apron...

2009-03-27T13:16:00.002Z

This is a pic of our new gorgeous smock linen apron. They have just arrived at Bumblebee and we are going to have them online soon. They also do a children's apron which is so cute.

Chopping boards...

2009-03-08T11:19:00.002Z

This is our index chopping boards by Joseph Joseph, another great design and taking up minimal space. They have been very popular in Bumblebee. We are going to have them online soon...

Joseph Joseph...

2009-03-08T11:06:00.003Z

We now have Joseph Joseph looking fab and colourful on our shelves in Bumblebee. They have fantastic award winning kitchen accessories. I love the Nest of bowls. They are bright, take up little space on your kitchen worktop and include a sieve, collander and measuring cups.

Mummy mug...

2009-03-01T10:09:00.002Z

This is going to be on my wish list for Mothetrs Day, I think it is so sweet, it would be even better filled with fresh brewed coffee!! Hint, hint Finn and Ollie...

Lucy Art...

2009-03-01T10:07:00.003Z

The cute pirate bowl by Lucy Art...

Lucy Art

2009-03-01T10:00:00.002Z

Our delivery of Susie Watson Ceramics arrived and I love it as much as I did when I first saw it. It is all made in Sri Lanka and fair trade, creating work for lots of families.
Lucy Art designs and makes cards and she has adapted some of her work for the ceramics and a range has been made using her designs, it's my favourite and a great gift for children (and adult children).

Black and Blum

2009-02-26T16:18:00.003Z

While in Paris I came across the contemporary design company Black and Blum, their range is fab and very quirky. The Loop candelabra is one of my favourite pieces. We sold out in Bumblebee so I ordered extra next time round for our online shop. They look amazing sitting singly, but you can also loop a few together for a bigger centre piece. Take a look...

Valentine's.....dinner for three...

2009-02-17T21:04:00.002Z

Valentine's day was great, I was busy working in Bumblebee all day and it was fab fun. Paul bought the ingredients and went to town making a wonderful dinner. We didn't really want Sashka to join us...three's a crowd, but hey ho, what can you do. She was looking at us with those pleading eyes so eventually we said ok, have a seat. She had a couple of glugs of our wine and she was looking okay and so she asked for some more. She is only nine years old, we thought she was taking advantage but since it was Valentine's, a special treat. Anyway here she is all sparky and bright eyed...

A few too many.....

2009-02-17T20:59:00.002Z

Well, what can I say, we warned her not too have another glug out the bottle and she didn't listen, it was so rude of her she fell asleep at the table...

Grass, Grass and more Grass....

2009-01-30T14:58:00.002Z

Hi...just a little note to let you know the Grass vases are back in stock, we have all the sizes, large, medium and small. The large will be going online very soon but meanwhile if you would like this size i can take orders by phone.
They have been so popular worldwide and have been unavailable for about six months. The guys from Normann at Maison et Objet in Paris were telling us how the actual translation for the vase was 'Ditch'. As it was inspired by grass growing at the verge of a roadside, you can imagine it was not such a good name for a vase in english and that's how the name "Grass" came about. At Bumblebee we think it is very cool.

The beautiful scenery... in Norway

2009-01-13T13:51:00.003Z

It was such an amazing day with the sun shining, reflecting shadows in the snow. This is a photo of a fiord covered in snow, it was so pretty.

Norway

2009-01-13T13:43:00.003Z

I finally loaded the photos of our Norway trip at New year to my computer. The scenery was amazing. It was so cold some days, -17, we had to put so many clothes on. Here is Ollie all wrapped up in sheepskin, asleep on a sledge when we went for a walk.

Grass...

2009-01-06T22:10:00.002Z

Our beautiful earthy vases 'Grass' from Normann Copenhagen were featured in Scotland on Sunday and we have sold out already. We have all three sizes on order and are expecting them in again at the end of the month. If you are hoping to get your hands on one of these gorgeous works of art, email me and I will be happy to keep one aside for you.

A huge thank you from Bumblebee...

2009-01-06T19:40:00.004Z

I am back after a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Bumblebee closed on Christmas eve for two weeks so we could all have a well deserved rest. I have to say we had a great Christmas season in my wee shop. I want to say a huge thank you to all my lovely customers who come back again and again to buy gifts for Christmas and more. I must thank my fantastic colleagues April and Sylvia who worked so hard during the festive season and always. The atmosphere in the shop was fab, we were a very merry little bunch......maybe something to do with the wine the customers were bringing in and of course April's humour.
I have a little picture of a couple of things I couldn't resist.....

Swedish tea light holders...

2008-12-02T15:52:00.000Z

Here are a couple of our tea light holders we have in store and very soon they will be on bumblebeeshop.co.uk. We have a whole range coming soon.

bumblebeeshop.co.uk is alive and kicking...

2008-12-02T14:34:00.000Z

YYYIIIPPPEEEE.....our website is up and running, I am so excited. We still have a few products to add this week and quite a few more brands to add that i have in my shop.....one step at a time. I would like to say a huge thank you to my great friend Claire from WEBTRAIL who designed our bumblebee shop and not forgetting her partner Colin who did all the secure technical stuff and more. For those of you who have visited our Glasgow shop, you will see that Claire has put across the vibe and atmosphere to our website, you will know what I mean, I am not quite sure how to describe it. I am so delighted with it, thank you, thank you, thankyou!!! It's ok, Claire, I am not relaxing, I know I have lots of homework to do!!! Here is a little photo of our gorgeous Di Palomo bath and body range.

The Christmas pixies are back in town...

2008-11-19T20:37:00.000Z

At last, our beautiful little pixies are back at Bumblebee. We sold out last Christmas and had to wait until this year's festive season came upon us for their return. As you all must know their secret by now, although they look like they are made only of pure cotton, they have a sweet little christmas heart pounding.

our little wine breathers...

2008-11-19T20:29:00.000Z

Our adorable little ceramic wine breathers are back instore and they are also going to be available at bumblebeeshop.co.uk. They are all handcrafted, each one is a sculpture and a piece of art in itself.

double trouble...

2008-10-09T19:24:00.000+01:00

Here are Finn & Ollie in their matching PJ's. I thought they looked sooo cute I had to show you.

The girls went buying in Aberdeenshire......

2008-09-29T18:11:00.000+01:00

While the boys were playing on their motorcycles, my lovely friend kerrin took me to see a wonderful potter who just happened to live in the next village. Kerrin knew i would love her work, which i so did! Well the outcome was I placed an order for Bumblebee, kirsty, the potter has so many amazing pieces that i just went crazy buying. It will all be in store the first week in October and then I will gradually add some pieces to our online shop bumblebeeshop.co.uk. We are opening very soon and I am so looking forward to it and so excited. All our stock has started arriving, so not long now. Here is a little sample of Kirsty's work. Pop into Bumblebee to see the full range......I can't wait!!

Our recent family trip to Aberdeenshire...

2008-09-29T18:00:00.000+01:00

We all set off on a little trip to Aberdeenshire to see our friends. Well, here is a photo of what the boys were doing and I mean the adult boys..........

bright & cheerful Greengate

2008-08-07T13:44:00.000+01:00

I love this beautiful cheerful collection. The pink, green and blue tins have greengate tea in them, I think they would make a perfect gift. Greengate worked with one of the world's most prestigious tea producers to help find blends to conjure up the Greengate spirit in a cup.
They have lovely new latte cups in the autumn collection, spots and florals to perk us up with a latte on a cold day!

Greengate autumn, winter....

2008-08-07T13:21:00.000+01:00

I have just placed my order for the new greengate collection and I am so excited. They have lots of new designs, one of my favourite styles being Gustavian Vintage. I have posted a few photos but take a look at their website, greengate.dk....you will be inspired.

2008-04-26T20:28:00.000+01:00

TALL men in the snow...

2008-04-26T20:20:00.000+01:00

Hi there

I am finally back. Sorry for the long gap from my blog! I have been rather busy, snowboarding, since i was last posting, typing all my descriptions for my online shop at bumblebee, keeping the kids entertained while Paul was off fitting a beautiful bespoke kitchen in Cornwall, love to go there! Anyways......while in the beautiful village of Val d'Isere in France, it was all happening on Saturday night with the amazing street entertainment. Paul caught the tall guys on camera.

drumming Sunday......

2008-03-16T16:19:00.000Z

It was a noisy, sunny Sunday. Paul, Finn and Ollie had a wee drumming session that lasted a while. I think it ended with Ollie chucking the drum around the floor and being so proud of himself.

2008-03-15T19:57:00.000Z

This is our bedroom in the new part of our home. We made the old kitchen into our on-suite bathroom, it is such a treat to have this. The room is very tranquil with the light tones of the sycamore furniture and the swedish white wall and ceiling colour. I chose teal for the wall behind the bed as i just love that colour and it makes me happy.

LOVE hearts

2008-03-10T21:52:00.000Z

some of my hearts and little bits and bobs

some of my favourite things

2008-03-10T21:32:00.000Z

I love all my little things that i have collected from travels and also from my shop. I have them scattered around the house on tables, floors, walls, any surfaces I find a space usually works.

Elm stairs

2008-03-10T21:15:00.000Z

This staircase used to be a full spiral but it changed shape a little during the build.

dining on wood

2008-03-10T20:12:00.000Z

This is our dining table that Paul made. He had this wood for a very long time, years and years. It is camphor laurel. When he was doing all the hand sanding he said the smell was so strong of camphor. It has a few natural holes in it and Finn loves putting things through them. He sees different animals and shapes in the wood every day, breakfast is great fun.

aga....

2008-03-10T07:35:00.000Z

I love my aga, i am still learning how to use it, i think it takes a while, well it is taking me a while. It is a whole different way of cooking with 80% of the cooking done in the ovens and only 20% on the hot plates. it's great when our friends and family arrive they go straight to it for a wee warm up.

the heart of the home....

2008-03-10T07:23:00.000Z

Here is my kitchen. i love this part of my home as it is so open and Finn & Ollie have space to run around like crazy, (or crawl).

our house guests.....still around since christmas

2008-03-09T22:31:00.000Z

These guys sitting on my bench have been living with us since christmas, it's a busy wee home. I was reading a little card which was attached to them when they arrived. The pixy family comes from a itty-bitty tiny country far away in the north. from there pixies have wandered to most other parts of the world, yet only the fewest know the little pixie well. The little pixie is shy and would much rather have us believe that he is made only from pure cotton from top to toe. But we do know that deep inside of him a sweet little christmas heart is pounding.

our bumblebee cottage at long last......

2008-03-09T21:57:00.000Z

Finally, as promised, a few photos of our cottage. It was a funny old day with rain, sun, hailstones, blue skies and then deep grey skies with mega downpours, so i didn't manage to catch the sunshine all day for the photos, but i gave it a go......

Esteban....

2008-03-08T07:59:00.000Z

Our new stocks for Bumblebee are starting to arrive. Esteban, a fantastic french home frangrance and bath range has just arrived. There are four new scents, which are amazing and the packaging is really tasteful. They have also launched scented reeds, I have opened one up for the shop and the smell when you walk in is great.

sun & sea....yippee

2008-03-01T23:18:00.000Z

Don't get too excited, this is not Scotland today! This is my favourite beach in the whole wide world, so far anyway. This photo was taken at sunset when all the locals and the travelling punters play the drums to the sun going down. Most of the folk on the beach are usually jumping around and drinking sangria!! (or something a little stronger). I forgot to mention, it is at Benirras in Ibiza.

rain rain and more rain and some wind too....

2008-02-29T17:06:00.000Z

Well, what can I say, what a hellish day. I am snuggled up in my wee shop looking outside at the horrendous weather, which is really crap, then I thought i'll add some of my nice things I sell to my bumblebee blog to cheer me up. Here are some of the scandinavian home collections i will be selling online. Got to go and pick up the kids but i will be back soon.

our bumblebee cottage

2008-02-25T19:32:00.000Z

This is my shop, Bumblebee@paul hodgkiss design. We renovated the whole place about 10 years ago and just last year we built a double storey extension on the back to add space to our home. The shop is at ground level and the rest is living space. once I get around to taking photos of the extension i will share them with you.

2008-02-24T12:32:00.000Z

bumblebee online....

2008-02-24T12:01:00.000Z

We are going online with bumblebee soon and I am so excited. We have some fantastic products to launch with. I was recently in Paris buying and I sourced five new companies, three of which are from Denmark. the Danes are taking over....thankfully this time not arriving in tall ships...or is it long ships? Anyway you know who I mean, big guys, big horns, big beards.

Back to the point, one company is called Normann Copenhagen and they have some famous Danish designers on board. Ole Jensen has designed a range of espresso cups, tea cups, jugs and a teapot in white porcelain. It is absolutely fabulous.....watch this space.

I have a children's range arriving which is all made from really colourful felt. It is manufactured by a women's cooperative in Nepal and is all fair trade. My talented husband Paul, has also designed a range of accessories in homegrown Scottish hardwoods which include, candle holders, key racks, chopping boards, beautiful Elm wood hearts with little silver inlays, so keep a look out.