THE TEMPERATURE'S RISING

Hello everyone

Do you think summer might be just around the corner?  We still seem to be having very mixed weather and the forecast for the end of this week says the temperature will be low, but I am very hopeful.  Everything in the garden is growing well, including the weeds which never seem to suffer from high or low temperatures, cold, frost or anything else Mother nature throws at us.

A dilemma.  My time at the Jacob 's Well Country Market was unsuccessful again, despite being slap, bang in the middle of the hall.  So many people there tell me they can attend for weeks without selling anything, but can I continue do this?  I know I have only taken part for three weeks, but having sold only one candle during that time the motivation to turn up is beginning to dim.  It is not a case of 'I could be somewhere else selling my work' but it really is 'can I spare this time of not doing anything?'  The sellers are a great group of people, very friendly and so helpful and I have been given lots of good advice and great ideas to work on, but does that justify losing 3.5 hours (the market is open for 1.5 hours but we are asked to help set up and close down) every Friday?

Initially I had thought I could use the market as a way of promoting my work - having been told sales are low, profit little, etc.  However, despite a lot of interest in my candles, this has only turned into one sale.  Last Friday I was opposite a lady who makes the most stunning stained glass items: swallows in flight, dog's faces as well as framed pictures - she didn't sell anything on Friday and said she rarely does.  I think one of the reasons why I feel so frustrated about this market is that card-makers do very well.  Despite there being three sellers there, they all sell, every week!  A couple of sellers told me that out of term-time more buyers attend the market, and as it is half-term next week I will leave my decision about whether to continue or not
until then.  I don't like to abandon this, it feels like I am letting the organisers and other sellers down as well as possibly missing out on potential sales, but I have to be realistic, I want to sell and make some profits.

It has been the usual busy week here: making, workshop promoting, planning and preparing for meetings and  as the weather has been very generous this week, gardening.  Celebrated a friend's birthday on Saturday and celebrated it again with other friends on Sunday - a nice way to spend the weekend.

No photographs of work this week as most of the time has been spent on not producing, but planning.  However, I must recommend a visit to the bloggers taking part in this week's Handmade Monday linky party as I know they will have lots of photographs of gorgeous work they have made during the past week.

I have booked a spot on a Willow Hearts making course this Thursday evening at the Farnham Maltings.  Looking forward to it as hope it may be something else I can add to my range and I will let you know how it goes and hopefully may have photographs of what I make.

I received a copy of Homemade with love at the beginning of last week.  It looks a great magazine and has lots of lovely things to make.  On my list (supplies already purchased so no excuses) of things to make this week are the fabric covered flowerpots.  Apart from being lovely for me to use in my work room., they will make lovely gifts too and who knows could be something else to add to my range.

Have a good week everyone, I am back next weekend, Milly is here on Wednesday and if you would like to be a guest blogger, please drop me an email on christmaspiecrafts@virginmedia.com.  I love having guest blog posts, lots of lovely interesting reading.

Jill

RUNNING TO KEEP UP

Hi everyone

A late Sunday evening post - time seems to be rushing by so quickly at the moment.  Too much to do, and as always I have plenty of excuses not to do it all.  The beginning of this week made me feel summer had arrived, today makes me feel that it has finished!

My Jacob's Well Country Market trip on Friday did not produce any sales - disappointing, but I wasn't the only one who didn't sell anything.  Being tucked away in the corner didn't help and I have been promised a more prominent spot at next week's market.  The lady on the stand next to me sold cards to the value of £20 to one customer - I was very pleased for her but, as you can imagine, being a card-maker who cannot sell cards at this event, this combined with my lack of sales made for a rather disappointing event.  Still, I won't give up just yet, no sales means no costs apart from petrol (the hall is very close to where I live so travel expenses are quite low), so can I really complain?  One visitor to my stand said to me: 'why do they ruin crockery like that by putting a candle in them'.  They?  Uhm, perhaps this may be one reason why I had no sales this week, am I spoiling the 'crockery'?

However, on the brighter side the plans for the joint workshop Lauren and I are running on 11 June are moving on very well.  We have a venue booked (Normandy Therapy Garden), we have started a blog to promote the event and we have three online adverts running - more to be arranged this week as well as local advertising.

I had a card order to complete this week for a fellow student on my pottery course.  The brief was 'natural, no glitter and likes homoepathy'.  This was a hard challenge, but I am glad to say she was very pleased with the card - as always apologies for the poor quality picture, but here is one view of it:

I printed the photographs and text on to gold-coloured paper and I was really pleased with the effect it created.  It gave an out-of-focus, smokey finish to the photographs.  I was so pleased with it that I re-printed  some of the digi-stamps downloaded from Wendy's links onto the gold paper and here are the results of one of them (not finished, but well on the way):

Something weird happened on my computer and printer, when I printed the quilt digi-stamp it went all black-and-white on me, so I have decided to colour that one myself - here are a few bits of 'colouring in'.  Great fun:

My progress work-wise for the last two weeks has been fairly slow - Richard has been on leave and it is hard to work around someone who is 'on holiday'.  Sadly back to work for him tomorrow but it does mean I should be able to catch up on everything.

I will be back next week - hopefully having caught up with everything: blogging, an interview, Wendy's digi-stamp feedback, etc, etc.  Milly will be back on Wednesday with her 'Life of Pie' tails and I am off now to check out the other bloggers taking part in this week's Handmade Monday.

Have a good week everyone

Jill

TO MARKET, TO MARKET TO BUY........ A CANDLE

Hello everyone

Hasn't the weather been gorgeous recently?  Very hard working inside at the moment - I can make cards outside, so that is not a problem but making candles is a little tricky and that is what I need to work on now. moment.

I attended my first country market in Jacob's Well on Friday.  It was an interesting experience.  When the doors opened at 10.00 am it was rather like the first day of the sales - well not really, but similar.  Customers made a bee-line for the stalls selling cakes and savouries, followed by the meat stall, then eggs and lastly plants.  Those of us selling crafts had a few visitors, but apparently this was how the market is most weeks.  I sold one candle - to be honest I wasn't too disappointed.  No table rental and free coffee and biscuits makes it a not too disappointing event.  In addition to it being my first event, customers were not expecting candles to be on sale (because of anticipated sellers (who didn't turn up) I was 'in the corner'), so I am hopeful that things will improve in the future with some advertising and word-of-mouth promotion.

Stall-holders do not take payment for their goods; on entry into the market customers are issued with a list and for each purchase the stall holder adds their details.  Payment for everything is made at a central point (rather like a supermarket) and during the first market of each month, cheques are issued to the stall holders for their sales during the previous month.  If sales are high, I would find this difficult because of needing to purchase supplies to make more stock - however, it is rather like being an employee as in paid at the end of the month.  I look at it as another outlet for my work and the feedback was good - lots of people said they 'will make lovely Christmas presents', so fingers crossed.

My fellow stall-holders were great, very friendly and helpful.  Two offered to source cups and saucers for  my candles, told me of good places locally to buy them as well.  The event is well organised and everyone pitches in to set up and clear away.

It is generally acknowledged that (as with all events) the market needs more customers.  Despite prices being very reasonable, even low for many perishable items, the footfall has decreased over the last year and promotion of the market is vital to help its growth.

This week (or rather it is last week now) has been hectic.  Not a lot of making, but a lot of other creating.  On Monday I went to West Dean with Linda (the cake-maker).  We went for some forward planning time in gorgeous surroundings, also to check out the shop as on a previous visit Linda had been amazed to see a cup and saucer candle set on sale for £24.95!  We have lots of plans, ideas and proposals for the Christmas sale season.  It does seem very odd planning (and making) for Christmas when I am desperate for summer to arrive, but as we know in the craft world you have to be at least one season ahead.

On Tuesday I met up with the lovely Twitter Gals (Lesley, Dawn and Michele) for lunch at the Harrow in Compton.  We were able to sit outside - so nice to have lots of lovely sunshine and good company.  Dawn is going to be a Stampin' Up demonstrator and this leads me nicely to my next 'bit' of news.

At the end of the week I met up with Lauren who I worked with at my inaugural card-making workshop.  Lauren is a Stampin' Up Expert and we spent Friday afternoon planning our next joint workshop.  The date is 11 June 2013, and the theme is likely to be cards for males (always hard to find really good ones in the shops or the right material to make them).  We have agreed date, content, costs, and I am off to check out two potential venues on Tuesday and then it will be advertise, advertise and advertise.  We have lots of ideas and plans for future workshops, so watch this space and if you know anyone in our area (Guildford, Farnham, Ash) who may be interested in attending our workshop, please ask them to get in touch with either of us.

It's time to get back to digging and planting, but before I go I want to thank Wendy of Handmade Harbour for her lovely digi-stamps, which I am trialling and using to create cards. I will post the results next week.  I have an order for  a new baby card and am using one of the designs for this.  One of my fellow pottery students gave me an order for a card this week - the recipient likes natural things, so I have a lot of work to do to come up with ideas that may suit.  Don't forget to visit my guest blogger's post - all about tools and equipment for the craft market.  Many thanks for taking part Alison.  Finally, a 'must do' is a visit to the Handmade Monday bloggers - always lots of great reads.

Have a great week everyone.  Milly will be here on Wednesday (she is rather busy at the moment as she is being interviewed by the gorgeous Rumpydog) and I will be back next weekend.

Jill

FROST, HAIL, RAIN, SUN - NO SNOW PLEASE

Hello everyone

Hailstorms yesterday that made the ground look like it was covered in snow and thick frost this morning - I think spring is here, but don't quote me on that.

A big thank you to everyone who commented on my blog last weekend - I had hoped to, as much as possible, respond to the comments that are left, but the days whiz by and here I am again back at Sunday.  It reminds me of school: 'I must try harder' and I will.

A few weeks ago, a friend and I went to an indoor country market in Cranleigh to check out a potential sales outlet.  Following our visit, I did some research into this type of market and discovered, as per their website:

'The Country Markets organisation has roots going back to 1919.......  There are currently over 350 Country Markets throughout, England, Wales and the Channel Islands.  Each market belongs to one of 65 Country Market Societies, which have a legal responsibility for ensuring that their markets are run in accordance with statutory requirements.

I found a country market venue in Pirbright, which is close to me, but unfortunately it is held on Thursday mornings and takes place at the same time as my pottery course.  I located another one in Jacob's Well, appx 6 miles from me, and contacted the market manager and arranged to meet with him on Friday so that he could assess my work.  I had been told that there was no space for more cards as they already had 3 card sellers - is card-making the most popular craft?  Does it have equal shares with jewellery-making?  I decided to take my scented candles and fabric makes.  However, I did take some of my cards along, just in case.

The result is that from next Friday I will be at the Jacob's Well Country Market selling my candles and my fabric goodies.  I won't be able to do it every Friday, but that is not a problem, I just need to let the manager know when I will not be available.  The people I  met were very friendly and helpful and despite the fact that I threw a mug of coffee all over the table I had my work on, I was made to feel very welcome.  The fees are 5p to join the organisation - a one-off cost (a bargain) and I will have to purchase an invoice book and a handbook and 12% of my takings are deducted by the centre's committee to cover expenses.  I think 12% is fine and means I will probably make more money than attending a craft fair every week.

I know it may not be everyone's idea of a selling platform, but I am looking at it with three hats on: the opportunity to work with people who have a genuine love of handmade work who want to encourage the public's interest in it, an outlet to sell my work and a regular opportunity to promote it.  I will let you know next Sunday how my first event works out.

My stock of 'cuppa candles' is low, so I visited the charity shops in Godalming yesterday morning.  How lucky am I!  I bought a complete, undamaged Wedgewood tea set for £8.99 and a beautiful red/gold coffee can set for £6.99.  I am not producing the antique- cup-and-saucer candle range which is very popular a the moment - I want to do something different so I am going for what might be called every day cups and saucers, but just that little bit different.   I have a busy week this week, so will be fitting in candle-making in between everything else.

Candle making is calling, so time to hand you over to the other crafters taking part in this week's Handmade Monday.  I have had a quick look at Wendy's post on Friday and I am definitely going to ask if I can join in her digi-stamp testing.

Have a good week everyone.  I will be back next Sunday and Milly will be here on Wednesday with her kitten tails.  Plus, I very nearly forgot, I have a lovely guest blogger here on Friday, so don't forget to drop in on my blog.  If you would like to be a guest blogger, please do get in touch on christmaspiecrafts@virginmedia.com as it would be lovely to get this up and running again.

Jill