Have you vined yet?

Vine is a new app from the makers of Twitter. It's a mobile service that allows you to capture and share looped videos. It's free to use and so simple! A really fun way of being creative. Currently, it is only available for iPhone (iOS 5.0 or above) but I'm sure an android version will be made available soon. 

WARNING!! You will get hooked! Not only does making the 6 second videos quickly become addictive but watching what other people create is just as engrossing. It's very inspiring and awesome what folks can come up with.

        The app is very easy to use. When it first came out it crashed quite a lot but this seems to be all sorted now. To make a video is very easy. You simply point your camera at what you want to film and touch the screen. Because Vine only records when you are holding your finger down, capturing stop motion videos becomes effortless.
         Only having 6 seconds of recording time forces you to be more creative with your filming and it's amazing what you can achieve. It certainly can make it more of a challenge. Vine does also record sound (there is no way of switching it off) so if you have music playing in the background and you are doing stop motion you get a jagged sound effect of what ever is playing. Again, if your clever about it, you can use this to your advantage.

So, how can you use Vine to promote your business/blog?

There are a number of ways you can use vine. So far, I've used it to. . .

• Show new collections from designers (this is the new S/S 13 collection from designosaurYEAH. This app is perfect for recording catwalk shows) . . . 

• Show off new purchases/stock (I bought these rings recently in a jewellery haul at New Look) . . .

• Be silly and creative! It is amazing what you can make in 6 seconds (this is a fun montage of my little girl, Molly. She loves dressing up!) . . .

• Show off new creations. I made this Valentines heart for a recent DIY post. I thought it would be fun to show it off with a little stop motion.

How to embed your vine videos into a blog post?

It is fairly easy to embed your videos into a post. There are two ways of doing it. You can either download VineGifR. This is only available for Mac and unfortunately I was unable to use this as my operating system is too old. 

If you are having the same problem, the other way to embed your videos is to use Vineit.co . The first thing you need to do is always make sure you share your videos to twitter.

1. Go to Vineit.co
2. Drag the blue 'Vineit' button to your bookmark bar.
3. When you come across a vine video on twitter, click on the 'Vineit' button and hover over the video. An embed code will appear.
4. Copy and paste embed code into your blog post. 
5. Adjust the sizes to 480px. I find this size fits perfectly on my screen (you don't have to do this though).

Et Voila! You have your vine videos in your blog. They should look how mine are currently posted.

Vine videos I love from other vine members

Drawing a rubber egg by Pinot

There's a message in my alphabet soup by Khoa

Honey, we really should consider moving to a safer neighborhood... by Kiel James Patrick

If you would like to follow me, you can find me under  Hooting Miss Owl.  I would love to hear what you think of this wonderful new app, and if you're already Vine-ing, any other tips you may have to use it to it's full potential would be mahoosively appreciated! Message me your Vine name and I'll follow you back! I can't wait to see what you come up with :)

Big love!

AKA Hooting Miss Owl

TOP FOUR VIDEOS TAKEN BY JENNIE DAVIES AND ARE SUBJECT TO COPYRIGHT.

LAST THREE VIDEOS WERE SOURCED FROM VINE MEMBERS; KJP, KHOA & PINOT

PLEASE ASK FOR PERMISSION BEFORE USING

Plastic Fantastic at Porta

Porta is a fabulous little shop that can be found in the North Laine's of Brighton. It's a cool little boutique selling quirky jewellery and handbags. I popped in there the other night to attend a blogger/press evening they had organised called 'Plastic Fantastic'. Plastic Fantastic introduced us to 4 fabulous Brighton based jewellery designers (Maggie Angus, designosaurYEAH, Sugar Jones and Katze Shop) who showcased their Spring / Summer collection. All available to buy at Porta.

All four designers were there to answer our many questions, which was really lovely as you got to see how passionate they all are about making jewellery. This is what I thought of their collections....

Maggie Angus

Maggie Angus was founded by the lovely Anna Evans in 2010. The name pays homage to her Scottish Grandmother who was an avid jewellery junky and fashion lover. 

The collection is fun with one half popping with colour and the other half embracing this season's trend of monochrome! It is nice to see that you can accessorise this trend with a ring or a necklace and not just with an item of clothing.

Sugar Jones

Founded in 2011, all of Sugar Jone's wonderful jewellery is put together in Carla's little studio in Brighton. Carla is very proud of being British and you can see this coming through in her new collection. The space hopper and the kite are very nostalgic. My fave would have to be the cat necklace though. Apparently when you wear it the little fish jiggles about making it look like the cat is actually playing with it. Adorable!

Carla also offers a bespoke service. If you would like something in a different colour or for example you would like the ant necklace to be turned into a belt, Carla will do it for you! Now that is service!

Katze Shop

This collection is quite wonderful and unusual from designer, Rosa Pietsch. Her designs are very distinctive and easily recognisable as being one of hers. You can tell Rosa is inspired by the art deco era especially with the bold black lines set in the cream background, with flecks of gold and silver leaf coming through.

I especially love the new addition of collar clips and I think I might have to go back and purchase the light-bulb designs. 

DesignosaurYEAH

DesignosaurYEAH's new collection is certainly cheerful and fantastic. Founded a year ago by Jacques Keogh and Karli Dendy. This wonderful duo work fabulously together producing a collection that is not too boyish or not too girly. New designs include colourful pop heart necklaces inspired by the artist Lichtenstein and there are even Royal Pavilion necklaces, perfect for any Brighton-ian! I am in love with the rings. They are fun and are made to be layered!

Everyone was very spoilt at this special event and we all walked away with goody bags, each containing a little something from each designer. This is what I got in mine...

So, if you like what you see go and check out these wonderful designers and this amazing little shop. They have so much talent to give and I can't wait to see what is in-store for the future!

Big love!

AKA Hooting Miss Owl

All images taken by Jennie Davies and are subject to copyright

Please ask for permission before using!