Happy New Year:)

Thought I would post today to welcome the new year in though I can't believe it's 2012 already! 2011 seem to fly by but was a very good year for the start of my business and can't help but wonder what will happen this year!.I would set some new year resolutions for my business like post more on here but I really don't think it will happen so I'm not going to.I would like though to start dress making using patterns,I was reading a article yesterday about some one who didn't shop for a whole year and only made her clothes and this really inspired, me so hopefully soon I will have pics to post of what I've created.I'm not sure where this year will take me career wise but I would like to have a go at new things too.
Hope everyone has a great year:)

Ford Green Hall Craft Fair

So yesterday I did a craft fair at Ford Green Hall, which is a amazing old building in smallthorne.The fair went well it was only on for 3 hours but was quite busy and the other stall holders were very welcoming,the only issue was I was placed upstairs right in a back room so was harder for some customers to get up and did seem busier down stairs. overall a enjoyable afternoon!!!!

Anyone else experience issues due to stall placement or do you think it's what your selling that counts? Let me know your thoughts!

The highs and lows of craft fairs

Today I thought I would post about the difficulty makers can have at craft fairs, after a disappointing fair I went to at the weekend that resulted in me losing money as I didn't cover stall costs. Craft fairs can be a great way to engage with your customers learn what,who likes about your work but can also be very disheartening which I'm sure many other makers would agree with me. Having done about 5 craft fairs so far this was by far the worst with hardly any customers entering the building even though outside and the surrounding town was packed. I find the most frustrating thing about craft fairs are when customers come up,look over your stall ,work say oh how nice,or your really talented then ponder on to the next stall. With the recession sweeping the nation this is happening even more and understandably people just can't afford craft. Another is when they say they will definitely come back later to buy a piece then either don't come back or do and buy somebody else's work.
But by far I find the biggest issue at these craft fairs is when other stall holders are just selling there items as a hobby so are extremely cheap in pricing something makers cannot compete with,and with which customers are understandably very attracted to leaving you disregarded to the side.
All in all it wasn't completely awful the other stall holders were so nice and I did manage to network and learn about other selling opportunities in the area. Has anyone else had any craft fair disasters??

                                       Photo's from fair,mum made some amazing cupcakes too!!!

                                                

Photo

Testing photos

Experimenting!

I am becoming better at mixing the resin and it actually setting which is always useful, thanks to some miniture scales.So thought I would try some more advanced ideas using silicon and milliput for the master here are some examples below, I am writing this post on my phone so if it looks dodgy thats why :-D

Cheap ways to create great displays

As promised on facebook here are details on how to make a great display to pin your jewellery on.(pic below)
You will need:
A frame (I brought a cheap one from a pound shop is ideal as easy to take apart)
Paint (acrylic or emulsion)
Drawing Pins
Nail polish
Fabric of your choosing



First you will need to open the frame and take the glass front part out,pushing it from the front helps,once taken apart you will need to paint your frame,mine was plastic so I coated it first in masking tape, but it's up to you or you could just leave it as it is.
While drying if you take your chosen fabric and fit it against the back part of the frame,either cut it so it completely fits the board or as I did,leave about 1cm to over hang so when the frame comes together the clips fit together better. Once done measure exactly where you want your pins and how many then paint with nail polish or leave for a more vintage feel. Once the pins are dry,push them through the fabric and board until you have a small gap at the front for you jewellery to fit around. When frames are dried put the back board and frame together,they should fit together and your finished. Enjoy:)