Twitter Updates

    follow me on Twitter

    Tuesday, October 12, 2010

    UK Face & Body Art Convention 2010

    Hello!

    It's been a while and I appologise for my lack of posting. The Summer months are always are busiest and it gets a little crazy in the office here at Cats Whiskers!

    Now we've almost recovered, I'll do my best to post about the fun we had during teh Summer months and get back to posting regularly about our current adventures.

    This past weekend was the UK Face & Body Art Convention in Birmingham. I went up to paint for the Snazaroo team on the Saturday and had a fantastic time. Back in June I did a body painting shoot for them to create an advertsiting image and this design, painted on the stunningly beautiful Rowena Perry and photographed by Simon Webb at Blueskies photography, was used for the programme and on a sketch book & tin full of goodies given to every delegate at the convention. :o)

    More soon.
    Cheers,
    Helen

    Cats Whiskers Face Painting
    www.catswhiskers.biz

    Wednesday, June 9, 2010

    Revised Terms & Conditions of Cats Whiskers services

    Please find below our revised Terms & Conditions which are effective immediately:

    Terms and Conditions for the hiring of Cats Whiskers services:

    1. CONFIRMING BOOKING: Returning the signed green Booking Confirmation Form along with a deposit will confirm your booking date and time. A stamped addressed envelope is enclosed for this purpose.
    The deposit amount for this booking is £xx which is 30% of the booking fee or £25, whichever is the larger value.
    If not received by xx/xx/2010, Cats Whiskers reserve the right to offer this date and time to other enquirers. / This booking is verbally agreed and returning the signed green Booking Confirmation Form will confirm it.

    2. CANCELLATION / RESCHEDULING: If you need to cancel this event please inform the office immediately.
    If you are cancelling the event within 48 hours of the start time you must speak directly with the Duty Manager on 07906 759610.
    Deposits are non-refundable, however at the discretion of Cats Whiskers it may be transferred to a rescheduled date if that date is within three months of the original booking and we have staff available.
    If a booking is cancelled within seven days of the booking date, 60% of the total booking fee will immediately become payable and an invoice will be issued. This increases to the full booking fee if the booking is cancelled within 48 hours of the booking start time.

    3. PAYMENT: The balance of £50 is due in cash or by cheque on arrival at the event. / The balance of £50 is due within 30 days of the event. BACS details will be available on our invoice. All cheques should be made payable to “Helen Eyre”.

    4. OUTSTANDING PAYMENTS: Cats Whiskers will rigorously pursue any late or outstanding payments and use all legal options at our disposal. This may include charging interest on late payments and claiming compensation for debt recovery costs as defined by the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

    5. STAFFING: Please note that we cannot promise a specific artist(s). We will select the best artist available that is suitable for your needs and inform you of their name prior to the event. Whilst we will endeavour to paint every child at your event an artist’s average speed allows for between 10 - 12 faces per hour. Please do not ask us to disappoint any children due to lack of artists or time booked.

    In the event that your allocated artist is unwell or incapacitated on the day of your booking, we will endeavour to find a replacement member of staff. However if this is not possible you will be advised as soon as is practicable and your deposit will be refunded in full.

    6. FORCE MAJEURE: Cats Whiskers will not be liable for failure to perform our obligations if such failure is as a result of Acts of God (including fire, flood, earthquake, storm, hurricane, extreme weather conditions or other natural disaster), war, invasion, act of foreign enemies, hostilities (regardless of whether war is declared), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, military or usurped power or confiscation, terrorist activities, nationalisation, government sanction, blockage, embargo, labor dispute, strike, lockout or interruption or failure of electricity or telephone service.

    7. CODE OF PRACTISE / IMPORTANT INFORMATION: The Cats Whiskers Face Painting Code of Practise is attached to the reverse of this document. Please make sure you are familiar with its contents as it forms part of our contractual agreement with you. Also enclosed is an ‘Important Information’ document which will detail safety information and removal instructions for the products that we will be using at your event. Please take the time to read this information.

    8. SUITABILITY OF VENUE / SHELTER & USE OF GAZEBO: Our staff require a safe, well lit and sheltered dry position from which they can operate. By signing the booking confirmation you are agreeing to provide this for them. We reserve the right, at no financial penalty to ourselves, for our staff members to remove themselves from a situation where they feel that they or those enjoying the services that we offer are unsafe.
    At outdoor events where shelter is not already provided we may be able to supply our own branded gazebo. This is a substantial piece of equipment and consequently if only one person is booked we would request that the organisers provide an assistant to help our member of staff put up and take down the Gazebo safely.

    9. LONE WORKING / BREAKS: Staff are entitled to comfort breaks during their working hours. Where staff are working for more than four hours they are entitled to at least a thirty minute rest break. Where two or more staff are booked, staff will manage breaks so that there is an uninterrupted service to your clients.
    Where only one member of staff has been booked we request that they are never left alone with the children and that another adult is always present. During break times for lone workers the event organisers must ensure that the working environment and kit of our staff remains safe and secure.

    10. SMOKING POLICY: The Smokefree (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations apply to all of our staff and consequently we respectfully remind our clients that all venues our staff are working in, including private homes, must remain smoke free for the duration of our work there.

    11. DATA PROTECTION POLICY: Your information will only be used for Cats Whisker’s Face Painting’s administrative purposes. We may send occasional information regarding our services and a bi-annual newsletter. If you do not wish to be sent any information other than that pertaining to a booking, please advise our office staff.

    Wednesday, June 2, 2010

    Mark Reid Face & Body Art Course - Exeter

    Mark Reid (http://www.markreidart.com/) is coming to the South West!! Sharon and I took his course a few years ago and he is a very talented face and body painting artist and teacher - so if you want to learn from the best, book on quickly!!

    Dates and info:

    • Exeter, Devon - 23rd & 24th June
    - Jenny Marquis jennywrentms@hotmail.co.uk 01872 222941

    • Knutsford, Cheshire - 26th & 27th June
    - Chris Bailey baileyc@hotmail.co.uk 01565 722081

    • Hemel Hempstead, Herts - 28th & 29th June
    - Juliet Eve Juliet.eve@ntlworld.com 01442 400786

    Please get in touch with the local contact in the first instance.

    2-day courses at each venue,
    • First day Face Painting. As well as covering the basic skills improving techniques, Mark will introduce some ideas for new masks, new girl designs and, I’m sure, his classic fanciful, feline faces!
    • Second day Body Painting. Mark will be teaching all the basics: Finding the right model and photographer, composition, how to plan a design and make it work with the body, pasties, g-strings, hair, nails, etc. Students will paint a body along side Mark and when finished, he will cover the posing and photography part of it.
    • Have a look at the inspiring pictures painted by Mark in my album, this will give you an idea of what he will bringing to each class!

    Costs:
    • 2 day course will be £225 and if you only want to book one day, then £125.

    Booking:
    • Places are limited and Mark’s courses fill up fast, so please contact either Juliet, Jenny or Chris a.s.a.p.
    • Then complete the booking form (download from www.facadeacademy.co.uk ), and send it with a deposit of £50 per day to secure your place to:
    Façade Academy, 5 Livingstone Walk, Hemel Hempstead, HP2 6AH
    • Any queries, please ring Juliet on 01442 400786
    • If you would like to arrange local accommodation, contact us for ideas.

    Also - if doing the Body Painting day, you will need a model! You are welcome to work on one model between two painters if you wish.

    Thursday, May 27, 2010

    Body Art at Hobbs Fashion Show 19th June


    Cats Whiskers will be creating some of our stunning body painted clothing on two models for the Hobbs Fashion Show in Bristol at the Colston Hall on Saturday 19th June. This is billed as the largest independant Fashion / Dance & Music event in Europe and the show starts at 8:30pm. The event is organised by Doug Hobbs of Hobbs Hairdressing and all profits go to Meningitis UK.

    For more details take a look at www.hobbs-style.co.uk ad for tickets contact the Box Office at the Colston Hall: www.colstonhall.org or 0117 922 3686.
    See you there.
    Helen

    Thursday, May 20, 2010

    Face Painting for Combat Stress at Hagley Hall - 4th July

    Hagley Hall in Worcestershire is celebrating it's 250th anniversary this year and as part of that celebration they are hosting an event for all the family on 4th July.

    The event coincides with two other large celebrations in the global calendar. American Independence Day will be celebrated with a Mustang and Spitfire air display whilst the Men's Finals at Wimbledon will be available for all to watch with your strawberries and cream on big screens!

    The primary purpose of the whole event however, is to raise money for, and focus attention on, the very worthwhile cause of Combat Stress (http://www.combatstress.org.uk/).

    There will be plenty of other activities on hand to keep the whole family entertained - including a team from Cats Whiskers offering face painting!

    This is a ticket only event and tickets are available from Hagley Hall by telephone to the Events Office - (01562) 887290 or via the internet (http://www.hagleyhall.com/whats-on/combat-stress/).

    We look forward to seeing you there!

    Best wishes

    Helen


    Wednesday, May 19, 2010

    Banksy artwork stolen

    Ever fancied buying a Banksy original piece of art?

    Well, obviously the price tag was a bit much for these two who chose to smash a gallery window and leg it with two pieces of his work worth £16,000!

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8691261.stm

    How rude!! ;o)

    Helen
    www.catswhiskers.biz

    Who invented Velcro?

    In a search today to find some Velcro dots for our sign packs, I came across this supplier in Yorkshire. Not only were they the most cost effective solution to my problem - but I was really interested to read about the history of Velcro. Sometimes you get so used to using a product that you forget to ask how it came into existence.

    Anyway, if you fancy a short read to learn some interesting trivia the link to the article about who invented Velcro is here - http://www.scfsupplies.co.uk/who-invented-velcro-c97.html

    Enjoy!

    Best wishes
    Helen
    www.catswhiskers.biz