Quality will out?

In my years of crafting (and my year and a bit of crocheting and knitting!) I can attest that there is nothing like working with a beautiful yarn or fabric.  My mum is a wonderful hand quilter who always uses good quality fabric - I have two beautiful quilts which she has made me and one is nearly 25 years old and the other I had just after moving into my house which was nearly a decade ago!  

I find it hard then to work with cheaper fabrics and went a little bonkers buying some wonderful hand-spun and dyed wool from Celia Gwynn recently at a craft fair in Sussex when visiting Mum (of course, Mum wants me to make a shawl for her out of it but I am desperate for once to keep it and actually make something for myself!!)  I will have to add in a picture later to show off this delicious wool, but at the moment it is safely nested away in my stash and will come out hopefully this summer for me to decide what to do with it!

Although not the best quality picture this lovely cotton yarn, Katia Degrade is a subtle and occasionally startling mix of blue, turquoise and cream.  I had lots of fun making this lavender sachet from it.

When it comes to making clothes or accessories that will lay next to the skin, I think it is a shame not to use the best quality wool or cotton, rather than acrylic, especially when it comes to items for babies. These baby booties made for my newest little cousin were made from Sublime Yarns Baby Cashmere Merino Silk and are as soft as you can imagine little Charlotte's feet are!

When I was in Cardiff Bay last September - OK hold on a minute - I have something to admit.  I am a geek.  Officially.  I was visiting the Doctor Who Exhibition and happened upon the Makers Guild in Wales at Craft in the Bay.  Seeing the wonderful work of the craftspeople there got me thinking about setting up my own little craft business.

The quality of the materials used made me decide to use the best quality fabrics, cottons and yarns that I could afford.  The decision to do this was vindicated by what I read in the fabulous book - Your Craft Business: A Step-by-Step Guide by Kevin Partner.  This told me everything I needed to know about pricing and materials and he explained how to always go for quality and not undersell your products. As long as you have a good idea how much it cost you to make it, the price should then reflect its value. If you start off too cheaply then people will not recognise the quality of your products.

This seems to be borne out by one of Etsy's three main principles listed on their homepage around being a marketplace for people with a passion for beautifully crafted items.  Online craft purchasing is on a steady incline and people expect quality and seem to be happy to pay for it.  I haven't yet dabbled my toe in the online market, but may do in the future, especially it if is the right market for me...

Some craft fairs have a mixture of mass-produced and crafted goods - I haven't yet done one of these but may be soon doing one in Bath.  I'm not sure how it will go but hopefully my stall will be able to hold its own against the mass-produced items.  I have seen a few stalls at craft fairs with people making beautiful designs but using cheap goods, maybe it is snobbery on my part (after all acrylic does wash well!) but I think if they have designed and spent time making something, it seems a shame to not make it the best that you possibly can.  

So for now, albeit my stash is growing at an alarming rate, I am always ready to add some striking new yarns to my collection.  These two have my attention at the moment - and surprise surprise they are both quality yarns...  Firstly (above) Rowan Lima yarn which can be bought (amongst other places) at Deramores and Debbie Bliss Angel Prints (below) which you can find at several shops including Wool Warehouse

Happy crafting!

Lou x

Crafts as therapy?

As quite a spiritual person with a long-term health condition, I have found more and more that my new-found love of knitting and crochet has not only reduced my stress levels, but also is very meditative.  I have always enjoyed crafts and spent many happy years before I left home sitting alongside my Mum making things, or completing some complicated cross-stitch design whilst she was hand-quilting a throw or baby blanket.

After the terrible rain and floods the UK has suffered this Winter, we couldn't fail to be joyful on seeing the beautiful bright fabric and hilarious addition of a felt carrot to these bags made by my Mum for my latest craft fair!

As a Nurse, I'm very interested in research and this article by the British Journal of Occupational Therapy caught my attention - reading the results and conclusion (even without having to read the whole article) it is clear that knitting in particular has stress-busting and relaxing benefits as well as being good for your brain - must be all that counting!

In fact, I find crochet even more tranquil than knitting - there is something very uplifting about selecting a pattern or a yarn and then making something lovely from it.  Add to this the repetitive motion of creating a row of double or treble crochets and it is positively captivating!  As the daughter of an Accountant, of course I love to count as well, and making a long chain to start a cushion such as this one to brighten up my home was very engrossing and yet also calming and comforting. 

Time and again we hear of the therapeutic benefits of crafts - I volunteer with an Alzheimers charity locally and the ladies are never happier (as am I!) than when we sit down to do a craft activity.  I have also joined some classes at my local haberdashery store which promotes friendship and solidarity in learning a new skill and trying it out.

This article by Crochet Concupiscence discusses the use of colour and its affect on mood.  The author talks very openly about her battle with her mental health and how crochet brought her back from the deepest depths of depression.

I also think the level of creativity needed to make something - whether it is your own idea or you are taking a pattern and adapting it - is very good for your brain as well as your self-esteem!  I came up with the idea of this heart from finding some old scraps Mum had given me and overlaying the lavender coloured tulle with the green fabric it became simply beautiful.  Add to that the gorgeous and relaxing scent of lavender and it was a win-win situation!

Finally there is much anecdotal evidence to say that people with long-term or chronic conditions profit from crafts not only from a self-esteem or mental health point of view, but also from the repetitive motion of knitting or crochet - this article by the Craft Yarn Council has some really interesting points of view from a wide range of people on the positive and often diversionary benefits of crafting.

So what are we waiting for!?  Happy crafting!

Lou x

Bath Artisan Market

Time has been so short and the Bath Artisan Market is on tomorrow, so apologies for the lack of posting!!

Here are a few of the things I will be rocking up with tomorrow...

Origami Needlecases

Scottie dogs (yap yap!) - Fully house trained!

Cedar bags for protecting your woollens...

Spring bunny bags with added carrot for Vitamin A!

Kitty cat bags - soon to have added fish, supposed to be good for you, after all!

A range of beautiful oriental style bags made in gorgeous Kaffe Fassett fabrics...

So, apologies for the short post but hopefully news to come about how I got on. If you're near Bath come see us tomorrow! 

Happy crafting!

Lou x

To copyright or not to copyright - that is the question...

Having got to the stage where I have begun to adapt crochet and knitting patterns to suit my own needs, my thoughts have naturally turned to thinking about publishing my own patterns.

On sites such as Ravelry there are thousands of patterns available for you to make and adapt for your own personal use.  The issue comes when you are looking to sell your finished products.  There are a whole world of technical and legal issues that arise from this and it's hard to know where to start!

Many crafters will publish their legal standpoint on using their patterns, whether or not you purchased it or downloaded it for free.  But what happens if there is no clear notification?  Do we make assumptions or contact the crafter to ask for their terms?

Some generous souls such as Nevada Mama and her wonderful doughnut pincushion and Josephine Wu and her gorgeous baby owls have clear policies that you can use and sell the finished products as long as credit is given and the pattern itself is not sold.

Having been a keen crafter for years I can completely understand the request not to make profit from someone else's hard work in designing a pattern.  I'm sure nobody wants to go to a Craft Fair and find their products gracing everyone's stalls, but perhaps is it question of degrees?

When considering what I would do, if and when I manage to make my own patterns and either sell or give them away, the first thing I will consider is making my copyright terms clear.  Some often quoted terms include:-

• no selling or reproducing of the pattern itself
• no mass production of goods (or perhaps setting a production limit)
• can be made for personal or gift use but not for profit
• can be sold profitably for charitable uses

But what happens in making a profit from something in a book or magazine?  This site from Creative Income gives some advice - contact the publisher if there is no definitive notification.  One way around this is to buy a magazine like Craftseller where not only are the projects there for you to make a profit from, they even give you a guide to how much to sell them for!

It's a very sticky topic without an easy answer - I don't think my patterns would make someone millions (otherwise I would retire right now!) but I would be interested to hear any opinions and stories about copyright...

Happy crafting.

Lou x

Spring into action!

After a busy week or so with floods and family members having accidents I need a few quiet days at home, especially after a manic week at work...

Finally knuckling down to sorting out my stash and getting subscriptions sorted to several craft, I then got a bit over-excited at the thought of some new projects.  Hence a virtual 'shopping trip' to Wool Warehouse for their gorgeous range of Drop Paris Cotton.  I think I now own enough of this fabulous yarn to open my own shop!

My ideas for this are around Spring - although sadly there is no sign of this yet for us (especially in the South-West of England where I live!) - so I have bought myself the most delicious looking combination of ice-cream colours and soft greys, neutrals and a little pop of colour here and there with some yellow and green.  I am planning some bunting and perhaps some Easter animals with this fabulous yarn.

Having spent the weekend with my amazing Mum, who is so talented and creative with her sewing and patchwork, then a second brainwave came upon me and I hastened to a new favourite online shop, Deramores, to buy some King Cole Magnum Lightweight Chunky.  

This yarn is slightly against my usual rules - I tend to work mainly with natural fibres and this is rather anathema to me at 75% acrylic.  However I have decided that when using for cushion covers, is is practical and easily cleaned and it still has a good wool content.  

Being out and about shopping with Mum this weekend has confirmed to me that animals, birds and the natural world is still a very big focus at the moment, so I will be coming up with more ideas shortly to make the most of this.

Most excitingly, I have booked a place at the Bath Artisan Market in March - I went to check it out in February and it is crammed with wonderful stalls, selling everything from organic handmade soaps and needle-felting kits to delicious chocolate flavoured with violets and roses.

So lots to do, little time and my cat Ella nagging me constantly for either food, cuddles or games.  How will I fit it all in!?

Happy crafting

Lou x   

Top 10 Online Resources for Beginner Crafters

As a relative beginner in knitting and crochet, I've been perusing many online craft resources and thought I'd put together a Top 10 of those that I have found most useful...  Please note most of these sites are UK-based (although not all!)

1. Ravelry - although this is is no particular order I keep coming back to Ravelry as my number one - for the knitter and crotcheter (beginner or otherwise) it has plenty of smart features.  As well as the usual free patterns, it has a brilliant advanced search which allows you to select a project by type, yarn, age, even by type of construction (for me this is great when avoiding knitting in the round at first!).

It also has huge databases of yarns, and can even suggest types of project suitable for that yarn you bought on a whim and have never known what to do with!  There are also forums and groups you can join and link with other knitters/crocheters around the globe.

But my favourite parts as an inveterate list-maker are the projects, stash and queue facilities - keeping a track on your current projects, your ever-growing stash of wonderful fibres and also those projects that you would like to give a try, if only you had the time/talent/patience!

2. Stitch Craft Create - this is a great site with plenty of ideas to keep you going.  Stitch Craft Create has wonderful patterns, inspirational ideas and covers other crafts such as sewing, cake decorating and felting.  There are a fair few free ideas - as a beginner I was very inspired by the free resources that came with registration which I have happily downloaded ready to try out.  Like Ravelry they also have a shop including beautiful fabric by Kaffe Fassett, the ubiquitous Tilda and my personal favourite, Tanya Whelan - see this beautiful paisley fabric on my Pinterest site...

3. Craftsy - there are many quality patterns and projects on Craftsy but also video classes which you can download and learn interactively - it's a little bit Open University!  The thing I love about Craftsy most are the unusual and quirky patterns - check out this knitted acorn - how cute is that?  

4. Folksy - as a Brit alternative to Etsy, Folksy seems to be incredibly popular, particularly with those crafters wanting to buy supplies rather than a finished item.  Slightly cheaper, and perhaps less likely for you to get lost than in the enormity of Etsy, I have been lusting after this print by Sandra Igbodo...

5. Pinterest - this is a recent discovery for me - although I had heard of it I couldn't quite understand the need to 'pin' everything I saw.  Now I have tried it, needless to say, it's pervasive and has permeated every waking moment of my life...  Come and have a look at my Pinterest site - I've only been on it for a month or so and have already nearly 60 pins to my name.  Imagine what would happen if I actually had some free time, I'd never leave the house!

6. Craftsforum.co.uk - although the layout is stuck in the dark ages, Craftsforum.co.uk is full of helpful crafters who are very willing to share their experience and advice with us newbies.  I've found many things answered here when I've been wandering from site to site.  So now it's my go-to place for anything needing a speedy response or feedback from others.

7. Etsy - seems a bit of a no-brainer to avoid Etsy - they quality and vast array of stunning crafts can be very overwhelming, but also motivating and inspiring - check out this gorgeous Siamese cat (as well as the beautiful felted cat cave by kivikis - if my cat Ella had my password she would be ordering several of these to adorn her boudoir.  And who can blame her?

8. Flickr - this one is a difficult choice for me, although I'm not bad at taking photographs, David Bailey has nothing to worry about.  I'm learning bit by bit how to photograph my products to best effect and for this I can attest to the creative encouragement of Flickr (this is my Flickr site).  As you can see I have a long way to go!  

9. Twitter - I must admit I railed against using Twitter for a long time (as I did with CDs, look where that got me!) and have only just really taken up with it.  Now I can see the usefulness and appeal of it, but I still struggle with the whole # hashtag daftness.  I keep seeing this Youtube video of Justin Timberlake and have to stop myself going #crazy. 

Twitter does seem to bring interesting and random folks together and already I have 24 followers (yes I know, how can I calm my excitement!) so if you would like to follow me please feel free...

10. Not on the High Street - so I come to NOTHS as I like to call it (OK, so I'm a lazy typist!) - again a UK based craft and gift emporium - I have bought many lovely items here and their Christmas brochure was to die for.  I find it beautifully laid out and presented and a joy to search and dream in.  This lampshade from Rosie's Vintage Lampshades ticks all my boxes at once.

I'm sure there are many sites I have missed out, I would be interested to hear your opinions...

Happy crafting!

Lou x

The benefits of crafting with others

I have been lucky enough to find a friendly fellow crafter at my first (test) event, sadly I can't link to her website / blog yet as she doesn't yet have one.  But Emma makes lovely rustic/country looking hearts and bunting out of natural textures such as raffia and hessian.

We both attended a Christmas Fair in my home town, which was not particularly craft-orientated, but we admired each other's stalls.  We swapped numbers, bound together by the fact that we both had the same business card design from Vistaprint.  We obviously both have similar and very good taste!

Since then we've done our first Craft Fair together, which is great to have a buddy to watch your stall whilst you peruse the others or take a break.  We have put some time aside for joint crafting sessions which have been great fun and very inspirational for both of us and shared hints and tips of what we have found useful.  Her two dogs and five cats also wanted to be a part of it, at one point I had three animals jockeying for position on my lap, whilst trying to knit, of all things, a pet snuggler!

At home my lovely Ella is a constant companion to my crafting, she has relatively no interest in my sewing, but as soon as the wool or crochet cotton comes out she makes an appearance, usually taking up residence somewhere she is definitely not meant to be!

My Mum has always been an inspiration to me in crafting - we have always enjoyed doing courses together, and making things together for Craft Fairs when I was younger and still living at home.  Now I've decided to start doing Craft Fairs again, she has been happy to share ideas and get together when we can to craft like mad.  Sadly she lives nearly 3 hours away so I don't get to see her as much as I would like!

I always find I'm more productive and less distracted when working alongside someone else, as well as the benefits of their knowledge and perspective on what I'm doing.  A little appreciation when you're doing well and constructive comments when not so well, go a long way.

Do you like working alongside someone else or prefer to work in isolation?  Do you seek feedback as you are going along or at the end?  I would be interested to hear any comments...

Happy crafting!

Lou x