A lovely new range of screen printed fabrics and accessories are currently on their way to the shop…..hopeful arrival date some time in March.  Great looking and strong hold-all bags perfect for using as hand luggage for those mini breaks!  Also co-ordinating wash bags and purses.

New to the shop is this great range of incense from Bangalore, one of our favourite cities in India.  Alongside the famous “Nag Champa” blend, there is “Clarity” with fresh lime, “Serenity” with Indian Rose, “Hope” with Sandalwood & Jasmine, and “Spirited” with Patchouli & Peach.  But the best feature of this product is that 10 p from the sale of each pack goes towards the AW Freedom Fund, the objective of which is to teach English language to low income workers to enhance their career prospects.

Alongside each pack there is a beautiful incense stand hand carved from Indian soapstone giving each its own unique charm.  A further 20p of each sale of these stands will go towards the fund.  What are you waiting for?

More snow is forecast for the week ahead, and temperatures are set to fall to -15 degrees……but don’t worry!  We still have a few of these beautiful woolen blankets left in store with lovely paisley designs, or just plain.  They’re great for throwing over the bed (they measure around 150cm by 220 cm) or really cosey to wrap around you whilst watching TV.  Assorted designs, from £115.

This exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford is on our “to do” list for February.

We have collected a variety of speciality Indian Vintage Tins on our travels – available to purchase now in our Camden store.  They make great feature points for a themed room.

This collection of jewellery has been inspired by the Kalbelias, a nomadic Indian tribe whose main occupation is catching snakes and trading snake venom.   The earrings have been made by the Patwa community continuing the traditional bright colours and mirrors which are a signature of the Kalbelia tribe.  Limited collection available in store now!  See more pictures online here.

Our January Sale continues this weekend with great savings to be made on our collections of vintage silk and cotton cushions.

Carved wooden blocks have been used for centuries in India to print lengths of cloth for making clothes and furnishings.  Earlier this month we visited Sanganer in North West India which has a long established history of block printing.  The communities of “Chhippas” who work here still use the traditional chisels, hammers and bow-drills to carve their blocks.

As we walked through Sanganer we found stacks of seasoned sheesham wood piled up in the 150 or so carving units that line the winding backstreets of the village.  The Chhippas work under the front awning of these units, squatting at small three-legged
tables gently tapping away, carving the blocks.

The coffee girls and boys were working overtime today to win favour in Camden Lock Place (view from the window today) with their “well executed coffee.”  We think there may have been some confusion between Halloween and Guy Fawkes, but they certainly stopped the crowds dead in their steps….

Meanwhile we have been busily listing a new collection of wooden printing blocks for online purchase  – you can now buy these from outside the UK at http://stores.ebay.co.uk/araucarialondonshop

And downstairs below us in the bowels of Camden Lock Market Hall, Clara should win the best witch job for scaring the kids away from her sweet shop.

We are all ready to go for the extra long Camden Lock Halloween Weekend.  Over the last few days Forge Farm in Oxfordshire have brought hundreds of pumpkins into the market and traders have been put hard to work to carve their own displays.  Forge farm will have a stall throughout the weekend selling many varieties and sizes of organic pumpkins throughout the festival.  The London Waterbus will be running special Pumpkin Cruises to London Zoo and Little Venice from Camden Lock where there will be all manner of trick or treats to tempt the taste buds.