Sassy Blogger Meet-up at A Pair and A Spare Studio!

Every so often we love to get together with our team of fabulous bloggers for a catch up and to try out something new. I’m always on the look out for cool new spots for us to try as a Sassy group, and that’s why I couldn’t resist teaming up with the stunning Geneva from A Pair and A Spare (and our former That Girl!) to test out her brand new DIY workshop at her studio in Sai Wan.

Tucked away on Sutherland Street amongst the bustling market streets is the new A Pair and A Spare studio. It’s a little tricky to find, but if you turn down from Queen’s Road West, walk past the park and keep your eyes peeled for ‘Wing Hing Commercial Centre’ you’re sure to find it. Hey, it’s always good to explore HK for those hidden treasures! And let me assure you, you won’t be disappointed when you reach the second floor and enter the spacious and effortlessly cool studio.

Geneva and her team are experts at creating beautiful surroundings (just check out her lust-worthy Instagram feed!) and when Shaneli and I arrived at the studio to help prepare for the workshop, we were amazed at how gorgeous it looked. It was like walking into Pinterest!

Fresh flowers from the Hong Kong Flower Market were beautifully presented in a cute pineapple base, and the pops of pink and orange from the carpet and the cushions brought a fun, summery vibe to the place. I couldn’t wait for our team of bloggers to arrive…

It’s safe to say that our bloggers also felt like they were walking into a Pinterest board! There were so many Instagram-worthy moments that everyone was constantly taking snaps of the surroundings… #addictedtosocialmedia!

The fab bartender, Lok, from Fish and Meat was on hand to create some of their delicious Farmhouse Jam drinks for us as people arrived. The mason jars were filled with blueberry jam, a splash of vodka, lemon juice, prosecco and sprigs of thyme… could you get more sassy?! We all enjoyed one (or two… or three!) of these pink cocktails as we chatted before the actual workshop began, and they certainly inspired us to get more creative! Want to re-create these pretty beverages at home? Check out Geneva’s guide to making this summer cocktail here.

After lots of catching up, we were ready to get crafty! A large black table in the studio had individual stations laid out across it for each person, each with their own materials and handy guidebook.

Geneva took half the table, and Alanna took the other so that our large group was able to follow their instructions more clearly. We were going to be creating a hanging macramé that would hold a glass bowl (see left picture above)… time to perfect those knotting skills!

The knots might have seemed complicated at first, but Geneva and Alanna went over the process clearly and at an easy-to-follow pace… we also had our guides if we needed to double check. The ropes that we were knotting were even colour-coded with bright string to make things easier for us!

The knotting became quite addictive once you got the hang of it, and creating the finished product was (in hindsight anyway!) quite simple with help from Alanna and Geneva. The step-by-step process made it easier to follow and it was fun to feel like you were doing something productive and learning a new skill. We were all very pleased with our finished hanging macramés, and everyone had different ideas for how to use them… think candles, plants, terrariums – one person was even keen to keep a goldfish in hers!

To reward ourselves for all our hard work we enjoyed some scrumptious canapés from the talented chefs at Invisible Kitchen. Each canapé was themed with a ‘pink’ colour – from Salmon with crème fraiche and caviar and Feta with red pepper and thyme croute to Asparagus & Ham. They all tasted delicious!

We particularly enjoyed the Filo Tartlette with spinach, ricotta and pine nuts, and the individual Prawns with avocado and pea with sweet onion and chilli sauce were so fresh and light… the ideal bites for summer.

Topping off our wonderful ‘Pinterest’ afternoon were some yummy ice-lollies from Nice Pops to help us cool down. Their awesome party packs consisted of six different flavours, including Berry Kiwi Balsamic, Mango Sandia Lima con Paprika
, Blackshot Mazagran
, Gosling’s Rum Caramel Burnt Pineapple, Johnny Drum’s Orange Old Fashioned and Sagatiba’s Watermelon Caipirinha.… we loved the refreshing taste of the Watermelon Caipirinha flavour!

Our Sassy guests left with a glorious goody bag full of local Hong Kong treats from some of the coolest businesses about… we love to support that homegrown talent!

Inside was a set of adorable Hong Kong stickers and an amazing letterpress animal calendar from fab stationary company Ditto Ditto.

There was also a pair of cute and colourful felt coasters from new store Pyaar (you’ve GOT to check it out in CWB)… we love this store so much, we even featured their serving boards in What Sassy Wants!

It’s difficult staying hydrated in this hot and humid weather, but Bee’s Nest provided a miniature bottle of their brand new Honey body lotion to keep our skin nice and moisturised! Their new range, Honey Beauty, is enriched with local Hong Kong honey and is packed with nutrients and antioxidants. Keeping us going on the journey home was a packet of Red Pepper Flax Crackers from the awesome Anything But Salads. These organic bites of deliciousness are super healthy and surprisingly filling, the perfect snack for on-the-go girls!

We also snuck a cheeky bottle of Banrock Moscato in the goody bag too… the pink and orange matched the colours of the event, so how could we resist?

All in all, we had an amazing time at our Sassy blogger meet-up! The A Pair and A Spare studio is the perfect space for getting crafty and creative, and we were all very pleased to walk away with our macramé creations – the icing on the cake to our goody bags! We all loved the experience of making something with our own hands and felt a real sense of achievement afterwards. It’s also really useful as all the materials are provided for you by the studio, and I liked the little touches like the guidebook which seriously helped! Geneva, Alanna and Kai are all so friendly and welcoming, and they’re great teachers too. Personally, I can’t wait to go back and I’d love to try out another one of their workshops…

A Pair and A Spare’s new workshops would be ideal for a super cool birthday party, bridal or baby shower, or just for a fun thing to do with your girlfriends. If you’re keen to get in on the action, or you simply want to find out more click here (and stay tuned for upcoming workshop dates!). Getting creative in a beautiful environment with a cocktail in hand and of course, great company – we can’t think of a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon! Thanks to the team at A Pair and A Spare and of course to our fab bloggers who we couldn’t do without!

See here for more info: www.apairandasparediy.com/workshops

Thanks to all our amazing sponsors:

Fish and Meat, Invisible Kitchen, Nice Pops

Ditto Ditto, Pyaar, Bee’s Nest, Anything But Salads, Banrock Station