Saturday was a sad day in our house as it was marked by the closure of my very local craft supply shop – Premier Card Craft.

I was very fortunate to discover this little gem only ten minutes walk from home. Ideal for those last minute makes and urgently needed essentials – usually glue. The shop itself was only small, but it was packed to the rafters with papercrafting supplies at very reasonable prices. Not all of the stock was to my taste – I’m not big on CD crafting and cutesy animals, but it was all good quality and the essentials – glues, glitters and cardstocks etc were fantastic.

Over the eighteen months or so it was open , the stock changed, bringing in more gifts and children’s toys, to cater for the clientele. This detracted somewhat from the core business and from the original target customer (ie me, a papercrafter), however, I understand why it was diversified, to increase sales and to cater for all the enquiries received.

More than the shop though, I shall miss the warm welcome from Irene, who remembered all about the family and what we’d been up to. It was a fabulous place to go for a crafty chat, to discuss card making trends, see what we were working on and how business was going – any craft fairs in the area etc. It was also somewhere I could happily take my daughter as she would always enjoy the walk (or bike ride) and looking at all the toys and stickers (I don’t think I ever left without at least one sheet of stickers or foam pirates!) It was such a warm and friendly place that I shall miss it immensely.

So I am now left with sourcing my crafting supplies further afield. Fortunately we have an amazing supply shop for all arts and crafts in Clarks Crafts in Ramsbottom. This really is an Aladdin’s cave of craft, catering for everything from painting to knitting and from papercraft to jewellery making. It’s quite a big shop too and they also run some craft courses. For all my other crafting needs I shall be back with Create and Craft. Its low prices and seemingly endless range means I can get my glues and Hunkydory collections very conveniently over the web.

What I’ll miss though is the crafting chat. There’s nothing like talking over a new idea, trend or project with a fellow crafter. So I’m now thinking about organising a craft group or coffee morning – well I’ve only got three weeks left in the high pressure world of office work and I’m going to have to fill my time somehow!

Good luck Irene and happy crafting
xx