In this interview I talk to Holly, who was inspired to create craft kits that are good quality keepsakes that children treasure and don’t result in lots of clearing up for the parents: a win win situation! Bee and Pea’s Craft Kits is such a fabulous name for such a fabulous venture, and we all know that there is nothing more exciting then getting some letterbox post. Holly also talks her love for Somerset and the school run farmyard friends that are just part of daily life here.

Hi Holly! Tell us about Bee and Pea, who are they and tell us about you! Hi Sarah! So Bee & Pea’s Craft Kits is my new business adventure which I started during the first lockdown back in the summer. Bee and Pea are actually my two daughters Bethany five, and Penny, three. We often refer to them as B and P and so I played with this idea when coming up with a business name. We sell a range of Children’s Letterbox Craft Kits which each include everything needed for little crafters to get creative.

How did the idea for Bee and Pea crafts come about?  Like most children my two girls love crafts. We craft most days and during lockdown I was always on the look out for new projects and kits I could buy them to feed their creativity. There are lots of great craft kits out there but I often found they were just not quite what I was hoping for and so took the plunge to start creating my own.

Which is the most popular kit and which is your personal favourite?  So far the most popular has been our Wooden Christmas Bunting Kit. I’ve actually sold out on several occasions. My favourite are the Dinosaur kits, there are four different Dinosaurs to chose from an these are also B & P’s favourite too.

When did you move to Somerset and what is special about living here?  We moved to Somerset during the summer of 2016 from Bournemouth when B was only 18 months old. My husband is in the military and we got drafted here which suited us fine as we love living in the countryside. I love how much history there is here and also all the brilliant dog walking spots for us to tire out both our dog Foxy and the girls.  I absolutely loved growing up in Bournemouth and living by the sea. It’s actually something I really miss and try to take my two girls to the beach as often as I can. However I don’t think we would ever move back, I love the slower pace of life we have here in Somerset and all the open space. Our school run consists of seeing cows, horses, pigs and sheep! The girls just wouldn’t get that back where I lived in Bournemouth and I think they would really miss seeing tractors pretty much every day.

What is your favourite place to visit in Somerset?  Ham Hill is fab, I love that you can take a different route each time you go so you never get bored of the same walk. It also helps that there is a fab pub there too.

Have you linked up with other local businesses? Tell us about that. I love connecting with other local small businesses and the support there is out there in Somerset in particular is amazing. The Emporium in particular have been holding some great pop up virtual markets which has been great for business and also great to do some Christmas shopping of my own too.

What is the most time consuming part of your business?  Definitely taking pictures of new products and then adding them as a new listing to my Etsy Shop. I don’t enjoy the technology side of my business nearly as much as I enjoy putting orders together for customers.

Your craft kits sometimes tie into celebrations like Christmas and Halloween, what is your favourite time of year?  Oh my girls always ask me what my favourite time of year is and it’s definitely Christmas time when it comes to celebrations; but spring is a very close second.

What do you think brings a little magic and sparkle to childhood?  Imagination, the freedom to use their imagination and then the encouragement to bring that to life. My eldest daughter Bethany always has weird and wonderful ideas of things she wants to make or create. I love seeing the light in her eyes when we help her bring them to life, it’s so special and important to always dream big and never be told something is not possible!

Thanks for the chat Holly! Tell us how we can keep in touch on social media and where we can find your Etsy shop. Thank you Sarah it’s been lovely to chat to you and thank you so much for taking the time to do this. I have a Facebook page where you can keep up to date with all new craft kits and also any offers we have on https://www.facebook.com/BeeAndPeasCraftKits/ And my Etsy Shop where you can view all of our different kits and purchase www.etsy.co.uk/shop/beeandpeascraftkits