Wednesday 30 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...being organised!

Ok...we thought that we'd be super organised this year and have all of the last posting dates before Christmas to hand for all of our lovely customers who don't live nearby, so here goes...

In the UK...the last day for first class and recorded delivery items is 20th December and 22nd December for Special Delivery.

For international deliveries...the last day for Australia/ Asia/ Africa airmail is 5th December
Eastern Europe/ USA/ Canada 9th December
Western Europe 12th December.

So plenty of time for us to get a parcel off to anywhere in the world really! As always, if there is something you would like we are happy to send photos and price details by email - just let us know!

Tuesday 29 November 2011

ragamuffin loves... our skye party!

Here's Donna from our Skye shop, all ready to party on Saturday! The girls were so busy they had no time to take pictures of the party in full swing, but a jolly good time was had by all! Thanks to all our customers that braved extreme weather conditions to get there! Don't forget we're open every day 'til Christmas, even Sundays!

Sunday 27 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...checks 'n' checks

We thought you'd like to see this outfit we just threw together, at first we thought it was madness to wear such a lot of contrasting checks, but we've decided it's really rather lovely, especially in such yummy subtle greens and greys. We ragamuffin girls love to make our displays look great, it's a slightly-more grown-up game of dress-up, and our customers really appreciate our help when putting outfits together. Think this one would be great for a ceilidh, 'tis the season! Our Skye shop was looking particularly gorgeous for their Christmas shopping event, photos to follow tomorrow.

Thursday 24 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...mittens vs gloves!

So, over on Facebook, we're conducting a survey; mittens vs gloves, the face-off! We at ragamuffin love mittens, so cuddly, so practical; you can wear them inside and out, and do things at the same time! Gloves are good for kids, but only kids can really get away with that string that goes through your sleeves to prevent you from losing your gloves every time you take them off to do something useful, so we opt for mittens every time!... We actually only have one pair of gloves in the whole shop. Indeed, they are a classy pair of gloves, but look at the competition!!! Cast your vote, and we especially want to hear from those of you in the Glove Appreciation Society!

Tuesday 22 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...christmas wish-list for gardeners!

Dear Santa, don't forget our green-fingered friends!
Mugs by McLaggan (£7.50); Watering can by Originals (£6.95); Plants in pouches by Canova (£5.93); Seed bombs by Kabloom (£10 for 4); Stone bird by Archipelago (10.95); Birdbath by Fallen Fruits (£9.50); Garden sign and vintage look cards from East of India (from £4.99).

Monday 21 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...christmas wish list for kids!

Dear Santa, we'd like all kinds of cute and silly toys please for the wee'uns, honest, they're not for us...
Soft toys from a selection of Jellycat (from £9.95), wooden chickens by Manik (from £13.95)

Sunday 20 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...christmas wish-list for him!


Dear Santa, please bring cosy pressies to our menfolk, for winter hug-ability!
Jumper by Harley (£91.50); Scarf by Italca (£22.50); Shirt by Gleneske (£35); Hat by Pachamama (£13.50); Socks ditto (9.95); Gauntlets by Gilbert Wilson (27.50), Hat by Hanna (£32.50); Doorstop by Dora (24.50). Awww, look at him with his best friend!

Saturday 19 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...christmas wish-list for her


Dear Santa, please bring us girls treats both pretty AND cosy!
Cardigan with silk flower trim by Out of Xile (£117.50); Checked scarf by Shirley Pinder (£48.50); Bobble hat by Janette Murray (£27.50); Red corsage by Ragamuffin (£9.50); White corsage by Tumar (£9.50); Mitts by Breege Walsh (£32.50); Jewellery from a selection (from £12.50).

Friday 18 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...to party!

It's that time of year again...Santa will soon be stuffing our stockings and we are all wandering round the shops without a clue what to buy! Fear not...ragamuffin on Skye are having their Christmas shopping event on Saturday 26th November and we have gift ideas for all! Join us to shop for gorgeous clothes, cosy woollies and great pressies and enjoy a mince pie and mulled wine! We love a mulled wine here - no other taste is quite so Christmassy! Here is the recipe we'll be following, courtesy of Jamie Oliver!

• 2 clementines
• peel of 1 lemon
• peel of 1 lime
• 250g caster sugar
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 fresh bay leaves
• 1 whole nutmeg
• 1 whole vanilla pod, halved
• 2 star anise
• 2 bottles of Chianti, or other Italian red wine

Bung it all into a slow cooker, heat it up and then set to low - it will stay warm and lovely all day, perfect for when unexpected visitors pop in! (photo copyright David Loftus)

Thursday 17 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...crafty nights in


We're so excited that our favourite knitwear-sporting Danish detective is back on our screens this Saturday in The Killing, that we're chomping at the knitting needles ready to get going... Knitting with subtitles, a risky operation, but one we can't wait to attempt!

The girls on Skye have been crafting away of late with space-dyed Welsh Colinette yarn, and have produced these gorgeous neck cowls, which unbutton to make a cosy collar, for those of us just too lazy to wear a scarf! Team Edinburgh have been on corsage duty, and have rustled up these pretty flowers made of the same yarn.
Let us know what you're looking forward to crafting to this autumn's drama, don't be shy now, we love your comments!

Wednesday 16 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...the 21st century!


We're so excited to be embracing our blog again, we feel like we're finally entering the 21st century in earnest! In that vein, we've jumped in with both feet, and yesterday we sold our very first e-voucher! Perfect for you folks scattered around the globe, or even in the wilds of Scotland, we email out a print-out gift voucher for the chosen amount, and at the click of a button you can enclose it in the card of your choice. We know, we know, not exactly brain surgery, what took us so long!
Email us at ragamuffin@madasafish.com if you're interested! And if you truly are people with the future in your sights, "like" us on facebook, you can see we're clever enough to have put a facebook button on the right! PhewEE!

Tuesday 15 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...socks!

Cosy up this winter, for the nights are fair drawing in, and all we ragamuffin girls want to do when we get home is pull off our boots and flop around in some cosy socks! These cute handmade socks are from knitwear company Pachamama, who, to warm further the cockles of your heart, donate 10% of all their profits to childrens' charity in Nepal, where much of their knitwear is made. We have a great selection of colours and patterns in store, alongside our stock of cheery hats, beanies, headbands and wristwarmers.
The perfect Christmas gift to treat your loved ones, and perfect for lazing around in the holidays; We love socks; they're soo much more schleppy than shlippers!

Monday 14 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...layering!

One of our key looks here at ragamuffin is layering, and one of our most f.a.q's is "how do you do that without looking like a big marshmallow?!" Well, fear not! You'll be delighted to know it's pretty straightforward. Keep light, long and lean garments underneath, and add shorter, chunkier layers on top creating height. Never shy of going for it, we say there's even space on the top for a cosy coat or a long cardi still keeping everything in perfect proportion. If you're worried about creating too much bulk, you can employ the clever use of a belt over the lower layers.

We're keen on a nice mid-layer tunic or shorter length dress, which you can pinch from your summer wardrobe and warm up with leggings and boots, a neat trouser, or even a flirty underskirt, then compliment with a cheeky knit or jacket and some bright and cosy accessories. Why leap into dull colours as soon as the sky turns grey? Play with gorgeous contrasting colours and textures and you're well on your way to effortless layering.

Here at ragamuffin we LOVE this look, so if you have a special piece in your wardrobe and you'd like some layering advice from our staff, just pop in and we're happy to help you layer to suit your style and body shape, but in the meantime, our advice is: have fun and give it a go!!

Sunday 13 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...press attention!

We are delighted to have made it onto the cover of The North Magazine's latest issue! If you are in the Highlands and Islands, it is a great lifestyle magazine showcasing all that the north has to offer (including us of course!). Featuring fashion, health and beauty on a budget, property for sale in the Highlands as well as wild life, music and book reviews, this issue also focuses on Orkney, including an article on the islands connection to Frankenstein...spooky! Pick up a copy around Inverness-shire or read it online: www.north-magazine.com

Saturday 12 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...tea!

We are partial to a good cup of tea here, whether it's green, red bush or of the good old builders variety and thought it woud be lovely to have special mugs to drink it from so we got the lovely people at MAKE to design a special ragamuffin mug and they are in store now! They are beautifully made, classic black and white ceramic and hold a good buckets worth of tea...yippee! Best of all they are only £12.50 -one customer in Edinburgh bought one for her husband to remind him of her favourite shop! We like her thinking...

Friday 11 November 2011

ragamuffin loves...fairisle!

We love a bit of Fairisle here at ragamuffin, especially now that it is getting chillier and the nights are drawing in! We have some beautiful pieces in stock at the moment. From Shetland Designer, we have gorgeous berets like the one pictured as well as fingerless mitts - these are real heirloom pieces that never date. We have beautiful fairisle mens sweaters from Jamiesons of Shetland and also from Harley of Peterhead - very cuddly! For the trendy amongst you, we have these fabulous fairisle gauntlets in clashing colours, from Gilbert Wilson. Knitted in a soft lambswool and gently felted, they are ridiculously cosy! For those wanting to relive the 80's in style we have magnificent fairisle legwarmers - again authentic, Shetland made - and some cool fairisle style headbands by Pachamama. Fairtrade and handknitted they even donate 10% of all profits to a children’s charity in Nepal where much of the knitwear is produced. We've got a warm glow just thinking of all these lovely woollies!
      

Thursday 10 November 2011

Ragamuffin loves...blogging again!




Hello all! It's been far too long since we last posted - time just runs away and we are always so busy but promise to make more time for blogging from now on! The images here are from our latest photoshoot, which we did on a lovely bright autumnal day and feature clothes from our new collections which are in store now! The photographer was Paul Marr, hair by Roy Rogers at Saks Glasgow and styled by Nicola & Emily from the Edinburgh shop. We are rather pleased with them! We have so many lovely things in the shop just now, lots of cosy knits from The Quernstone, Sophies Wild Woollens and Kearse and Boys - including their new "Wonder" coat that we can't seem to keep in! It's pictured here in picalilli and comes in lots of other colours too! We are also delighted to have jackets from our own label, Angels Don't Trudge, back in stock. Numbers are extremely limited as we are using beautiful Scottish tweed from our fabric archive which is no longer available. The one in the top picture is a Lottie jacket and retails for £295, perfect for the chilly autumn days we are having!