Story stones... the return!

I have been working hard on my story stones recently and those of you who follow my page will see plenty of posts showcasing my new designs.

So why the revamp? Well I pretty much stopped creating my stones when I discovered it was actually illegal to remove pebbles from beaches.  I was aware there were some beaches that you couldn't do it and I avoided those I knew about but apparently it is all beaches in the UK!  Oh my, that really changed things.  I couldn't find any pebbles to buy in the UK that were exactly what I needed and I didn't want to add to the cost even more.  I needed to rethink.

This is an image of my original stones.  I used to draw and colour the illustrations onto media paper and then cut them out, glue them and then cover in varnish!  It was a very long process and only worked successfully on flat surfaces. 

I am very keen on not using materials unnecessarily and looking after the environment and of course upcycling. So I needed a rethink! 

I found some small 4cm square tiles.  Perfect!  not too costly.  So on testing they were great for manufacture but on the drop test.... OOOOPS!  smash!

Back to the drawing board again.  How can I make responsibly sourced story stones??

I had lots of wood left over from a project so thought I would have an experiment!

I created these slithers of wood, perfect size to hold and I love the texture.  Now can I get away with calling them story stones?  I did wonder about changing the word to tiles instead of stones, but you know what?  I love the way story stones sound!

So that's how the revamp started.

Here is a set of my finished tiles stones.  Each is double sided and sealed and varnished in toy grade varnish.

I have also created add on packs.  These contain 6 double sided tiles all in a theme.  So far these include mini beast, on the farm, fantasy, emotions and woodland.  There are lots more on their way tho!!! If you'd like to see the full range do click here 

 

I am also close to releasing these roll a story cubes.  These contain 5 images and one title and will be sold in sets of 6, 4 or singularly.

I also needed to revamp my logo!  So here is my new sparkly logo.  I really wanted to get over the feeling of telling a story. 

If you would like to follow my story stone journey then feel free to join my dedicated facebook page or my webpage.

I have also created a Youtube playlist showcasing all my story stones.  Do pop by and say hi. 

I can also create custom stones so if you have any particular ideas feel free to give me a shout. 

I will be sharing my post over at Handmade Monday if you fancy popping by to find some fab new blogs to read or even to take part.

Jen xx