Handmade Monday #9

Well its that time of the week again - courtesy of Wendy at 1st Unique Gifts, there are another batch of great crafters sharing their 'Handmade Monday' blog posts.    Yes, I know I am writing this on Sunday but I decided to get in early for a change...   I have a busy time ahead with some big fairs coming up - including the wonderful venue of Lancing College in a couple of weeks.

Today I have been at a monthly one day fair at Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre in Gillingham, Kent and was pleasantly surprised by the number of people after a particularly disappointing time at the same venue a month ago.  It is such a hit & miss game this!!  Of course, not everyone was buying but it always makes for a happier day when there are people around - any venue feels very big and lonely without the buzz of people.

Our location in the centre is under a glass roof so we definitely had a sympathetic affinity to all those little seedlings and saplings currently sweating their little roots off in greenhouses up and down the land!

I was pleased to find that my new designs were popular today (guess I have more to make this week) and a couple of them have been ordered in different colours for a truly bespoke design

Tea Roses

Maine Coon Cat

One thing I really love about making everything from scratch is that you don't limit your customer's imaginations or force them to settle for something which is 'almost' what they are looking for.

So if you are looking for that special gift either for a friend, loved one or yourself, you can order a design in your own choice of colours at anytime by visiting the online shop at  Ali's Craft Studio    The new designs are still to be added to the site but if you would like anything featured in my blog posts and can't find it currently online, please do not hesitate to contact me directly
The sun was out and with the start of British Summer Time there was a happier feeling all around (despite losing an hours sleep this morning - when the usual stupid o'clock turned into are-you-kidding-me o'clock!!)

Bed is calling now so I'm off to try to recoup that missing hour of beauty sleep from this morning (believe me I need it!!)

Night All!

Handmade Monday

Well, here we are - Monday again!  Wow this week has flown by!! 

This week has been really busy with a large order to work on as well as lots of new stock and designs to get together before my craft fair season really starts with a vengeance next week!

So, this week has been dominated by animals which are always really popular.  A few of my favourites from this week are:

Siamese Cats

Bassett Hound

Horse and Foal

I have another week to get as many new peelable decorations made so I can't see the workload letting up anytime soon.   Not only do I have to finish making these, I also have to photograph, package, measure up and put all these on the website too.  (A crafter's work is never done...)

Make sure that you check out all the other great crafters taking part in Handmade Monday over at 1st Unique Gifts - they are a very talented bunch of people with some truly wonderful work!!

P.S. Have you entered my blog giveaway yet?   Click on the button on the right to see the details....

My First Blog Giveaway!

I would like to start by saying

to all my wonderful followers!

As promised, I have decided to do a giveaway to celebrate reaching 100 followers.   There are lots of blogs out there with many more but for me it is a milestone and for that I am really grateful!

So, I really wanted to celebrate this and share the love....

 

Peelable Window Decoration - Angel with Heart
Sharing the love...

Having never done a giveaway before, I wondered what the best way to go about it is.   With over 430 designs currently on my website, it is too difficult to choose one to give as a prize (way too much scope to get it wrong!) so I decided the best thing is to let you choose what you would like to win (sort of....)

I have realised that not everyone will know what it is I make so here is a quick synopsis...  I create decorations which look like stained glass but they are actually peelable, static clings (also known as suncatchers) which need no glue to attach.  Use on windows, mirrors, tiles or any shiny surface!   They are completely removable and reusable and don't leave any sticky residues behind.    Perfect for temporarily or permanently decorating any area of your home, they can brighten up even the dullest of days. 

So, I would like to send someone one of my handmade peelable stained glass window clings (although don't forget that they don't have to be used on windows - try them on your mirrors!!) the details are as follows:

• Firstly, you'll need to visit my website: Ali's Craft Studio where you will find lots of different categories of handmade peelable window decorations, you just need to have a look through them and decide on your favourite!
• Become a follower of this blog (if you aren't already) then add a comment here to let me know your chosen category and/or design to be in with a chance to win - be as specific as you like!!
• If you have your own blog, add a post about either this giveaway or my window clings in general including a link to my website to gain an extra entry.  (But don't forget to send me the link to your post!)
• There are no limits to the number of additional entries you can have so blog & tweet away!!  (just make sure you contact me with the link for each post and remember they must be published before the deadline)
• The closing date for entry is 31st March 2011 and I will then add everyone's name into a draw and pick a winner at random (using the super high-tech 'picking the name out of the hat' method!)

I hope I've remembered everything but if you notice something I have forgotten or there is any confusion with the above, please let me know, after all this is my first time!!

I wish I could send everyone a thank you gift however practicalities take over (as well as finances!!) but I really hope you all find the time to enter.  I am happy for you to let me know if there are any designs you would like to see in future too!

And as it is also Saint Patrick's Day today, may the luck of the Irish be upon you!!

GOOD LUCK!!

Woo Hoo!!! 100 Followers AND 50 posts!

What a great day - I have reached 100 followers (thank you everyone) and made 50 posts.  Who knew when I started this blog that so many of you would find it interesting enough to give up your own precious time to actually read it!

I am working on a giveaway to celebrate and will be posting details about this shortly - I hope you all enter.  This is just a really short post to say thank you to everyone who is joining me on this journey and for all the wonderful comments.  It is great to know that I'm really not just talking to myself....  (well, not any more than I usually do!)

I am still a long way behind many of the great bloggers out there but I am still going to be celebrating... (so there!!)



Thank you for my gift & Handmade Monday

A while ago, I entered a giveaway on a great blog - 1st Unique Gifts - and was so lucky to win one of Wendy's lovely handpainted plaques which she very kindly personalised for me - Thank you Wendy, I love it!

I am still trying to find the best location for me to place this, not only where I can see it but also where the cats don't think it is a play thing for them!

With my followers nearing 100, I am looking to do a blog giveaway of my own - I just have to sort out the details and I will post this soon (once I reach 100, of course!)

Wendy also has a weekly blog entitled 'Handmade Monday' and as this is week seven, I thought it was about time I joined in...

So, what have I been up to this week???

I really have been building up a whole load of new designs - lots of new dogs, which are always popular, as well as the classic florals and fun ones too.  Unfortunately, most of these are still in 'drying' or 'outline' stage so there aren't photos yet.  However I do have two new designs to share (OK, so these haven't strictly been developed this week but it's my first time so I am cheating a little and merging seven weeks into one!)

Firstly are a couple of classic 'centrepieces' which would be perfect for a door or large window:

I thought I would also show the other two new colour options for the popular 'Butterfly Swag' showcased on here in the 'Rainbow' and 'Pink/Purple' options a few posts ago:



Blue/Green

 

Yellow/Gold

And finally, the latest in the 'Diddy Design' family.  How cute is he????

So, that was my week(s) so far.   I have lots of finishing off and photographing to do before the mammoth task begins to get all the new things on the website too!  Guess I am going to be busy for a while yet....

Do check out all the other great handmade crafters taking part in this week's Handmade Monday on Wendy's blog - 1st Unique Gifts and of course, if you or anyone you know would like a handmade window decoration, do visit my website - Ali's Craft Studio

Standoff at Kitty Corale...

This morning was coooold - heavy frost on the ground and no signs of the end of Winter any time soon (isn't it the official start of Spring at the end of this month??) 

However, due to permanent fur coat wearing, kitty cats do not feel the cold in the same way as I do so were they happy to stay in the super warm house?  Of course not!

"Let me sit in the shade - this fur coat is hot stuff!"

Well, today they had to think twice - a large, brutish-looking black and white cat from the neighbourhood decided that their garden looked kind of cosy!   Cue the standoff at Kitty Corale!  (Photo above shows a cat 'on guard duty')

Is is a bird, is it a plane?
No, its SUPERMUMMY!

The noise that comes out of a cat who feels under threat is quite amazing - something between a dog and a drill!   Misty (female cat) sensibly left her brother to defend their territory and a mega-staring contest began.  Neither looked like backing down so before things got any worse, Supermummy (me) stepped in and sent B&W moggy packing (poor thing - it probably only wanted to be friendly and say Hello!) 

Blinky (male cat) felt very proud of himself as he obviously felt that he was backing me up and was the sole reason that moggy thought twice and has proceeded to strut his stuff all morning up and down the living room (note, he is now quite happy to have the door closed!) up until the point that he felt that the space under the bed was at risk and retreated to 'protect' it. (hmmm!)

I love how animals have such great personalities and I know that I am not alone amongst animal owners that the cats and I have some great conversations!   Apologies to everyone who doesn't own or maybe even like animals - well done for getting this far through what must be a really boring post!!  (Give yourself a biscuit)

As I write this, Hubby is on his way home so that I can return an engraving tool I purchased from Hobbycraft's online shop which worked for around 5 minutes then broke completely.  (Any excuse for a trip to a craft store!) 

I have thinking about creating some engraved versions of my Kanji Keyrings and after a bit of practice (especially with the lettering!) I was just getting the hang of it when the equipment died. 

Now I am not sure whether to replace it or see it as a sign that I should abandon the idea for a while.   I have to admit that I was already struggling to work out how to photograph and display the engraved keyrings as the detail doesn't show up as much as the painted ones as seen here.

Anyway, that was my day - how was yours?

Time is Marching on...

Ha Ha - geddit Marching on!!   Can you believe that it is March already??

I have to admit that I am kind of glad to see the back of February.   I don't do many fairs and shows at this time of year and both the ones I have attended in the last month have not been good as far as sales go.   I do still enjoy being out and about and speaking to customers but it is a very long day when the buyers just aren't there.  Fortunately, online sales have been better and I still get a real thrill and do a happy dance when a new order arrives.  I hope this thrill never goes away!

So, goodbye February and Hello March!   Again, I am not busy on the fairs front this month with just the two booked but am certainly not twiddling my thumbs.   I have been developing some new design and colour ideas including these which are a new twist on three already popular designs:

 

Yep, they all glow in the dark!   They are so much fun and great for kids rooms.  I have been slightly obsessed (or is it sad!?) with taking them into a dark room to get them to light up so I can only imagine how great they will be for the younger members of the family when the lights go out at night.

They glow for approximately one hour and then 'recharge' themselves during the next exposure to light.   All can be found in the new 'Glow in the Dark' shop section at Ali's Craft Studio.  I hope to add to the range in the future so if there is anything you would like to see in the glow in the dark series, please let me know.

I have also had some wonderful feedback regarding the new Butterfly Spray featured in the last post.  I am pleased to say that this is now available online and currently in four different colour options (Rainbow and Pink/Purple shown below).  I can make these in any colour combination required - great to introduce your favourite colours into a room.

So, for all you butterfly lovers out there - these are a lovely addition to your home decor and look equally beautiful on windows and mirrors.

The quieter months at the beginning of the year are ideal for me to build up plenty of stock ready for the Spring.

Not that it feels very spring-like at the moment - it is really cold today, the cats are indoors (and they are wearing fur coats so what hope do I have?)    Perhaps the weather gods have been caught out by how quickly time is zipping by too...  I have been resisting putting the heating on during the day but may have to succumb to the lure of the thermostat today - I just can't get warm today and feel a little silly putting a coat and scarf on in the house!

So, time is flying by and with some big shows looming on the horizon, I must fly too - happy crafting and keep warm folks!!

Halloween, eat your heart out!!

Whoever says that Halloween is the scariest time of the year has never run a craft business!!

The first three months of the year are quiet times for fairs here at chez Ali's Craft Studio which has good points as well as bad ones...

Bad points

• Distinct lack of money coming in!!
• Motivation can be a little less than during the busy times
• Distinct lack of money coming in!!  (have I said that before??)

Good points

• Less stupid o'clock mornings (you already know my feelings about them!!)
• Time to do important stock checking and building up of new designs ready for when the season starts in April
• Time to book up all the fairs for the year and contact my suppliers to stock up with new paints and keyring blanks ready to create lots of new stock...

But wait...   This last point is exactly why I am feeling a little shaky!   In the last few days, I have sent out what feels like half the national debt of a small country in cheques for fairs as far ahead as November and my flexible friend is feeling the need for a lie down after flexing like an Olympic champion to build up my stock of paints.    This is when you really have to have a good system in place to keep track of what payments have been sent out and when they are due to leave the account (many are post-dated, which takes some keeping up with!!)

It is an annual situation for us crafters - lots of money going out during the quietest times before (hopefully) the floodgates turn and we see the fruits of our labours coming home to Mama!

Mind you, buying new paints for me has a great upside - that super exciting time when the big box arrives and I have new colours to play with!    Sounds boring to normal people I know, but no-one has ever called me normal - so there!!

I am not being lazy though and still keeping my hand in with fairs - a couple a month for the first three months then come April, all hell breaks loose....

.... And I LOVE IT!!

Here's a sneak preview of a couple of new designs for 2011 based on the ever-popular themes of butterflies and realistic animals (they are not even on the website yet but will be shortly!)

Butterfly Spray - shown in rainbow colour theme
with other colour themes to come in this design

Red Eye Tree Frog - not everyone's cup of tea but
hey, you would be surprised just how popular frogs are!

Hope you like them!!

Right, I'm off now to hide the cheque book and have a lie down to recover from the exertion of writing out all the cheques which went on their merry little way this morning!

So, Halloween - call yourself scary???  

I think not!!   Trick or Treat anyone???

And We're Off...

Today was the first fair of 2011 for Ali's Craft Studio and I realised pretty quickly I had forgotten a number of facts since the last one in December 2010: 

• Getting up before the sun does is completely pants and should be outlawed!



Good Morning Sunshine

• No matter how difficult sleep has been for the majority of the night (courtesy of my brain trying to remember if I have packed everything), during that short period just before the alarm goes off I could sleep in positions which would outfox even the worlds greatest contortionists
• Loading boxes into a vehicle whilst trying not to wake the lucky neighbours who have not got to set their alarm to stupid o'clock is very difficult
• Whatever time we plan to leave and however much time we allow ourselves to get ready, we will infact leave at least 15 minutes later!
• Early mornings are cold!
• Setting up the stall takes ten times longer than expected
• I will have a sore back and feel completely knackered by the time the show opens
• No matter how many times you set up your stall in exactly the same way, things don't seem to want to fit the next time
• During even the quietest of shows, you can guarantee a lot of visitors to your stall by opening a sandwich and taking a large can't-speak-as-my-mouth-is-so-full bite.
• No matter how many times you click your fingers and/or heels whilst muttering 'There's no place like home' you still have to pack everything away yourself and unpack it again at the other end (come on inventors out there - surely you must be close to creating Star Trek style teleporting devices by now!)
• Early mornings are vile, vicious things that should not be allowed (I may have mentioned this before!)  
• Six o'clock should only appear once in a day at weekends (and I don't mean the early one)
• Cats get the right hump when you wake them up early and leave them alone all day - you will get the cold shoulder for at least five (maybe ten) seconds when you get home - yes, I know it isn't really the hump but seconds are like hours to a cat...

OK, so I am not at my best early in the morning (you may have picked up a hint or two already pointing you in this direction) but I now have a couple of months to get back into practice as from April there will be very few weekend breaks before Christmas and sadly early mornings are the norm during this period.    I am really a night owl at heart but these two don't mix so I will have to get back into doing the reverse to most people who work Monday to Friday - my Friday and Saturday nights will have to be early to bed as, believe me, Saturdays and Sundays (plus Bank Holiday Mondays) are going to be really early to rise.

I did, however, really enjoy getting back into the swing of things back at Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre in Gillingham, Kent - it is a really nice centre with some great shops but not too big that you are exhausted before managing to get to all of them as can sometimes happen in the massive shopping malls which are popping up here there and everywhere.   It was great to see a good mix of old and new customers and we had a good day to start the year off.

If you missed out on a visit today, panic not - we are back at Hempstead again on 27th February.  I have been adding a number of fairs to the Fairs List on the website so you can see more of the shows coming up.  This list isn't complete by any means and more will be added once they are confirmed so keep a lookout for ones in your area.


A visit to the Land Of Zed - much better option than getting up at stupid o'clock!

Needless to say, the night owl is not going to be getting a look-in tonight - my bed is calling me and I will be happy to visiting the Land of Zed very shortly!

Night night all - don't wake me early tomorrow morning (early mornings are just WRONG!!)

P.S. If you like the designs pictured above, you can get them from the website - http://www.studiocrafts.net/!

New Year's Resolutions and Getting Back into the Swing...

OK now, be honest - how many of you are still keeping your New Year's Resolutions???   Traditionally, the majority of people will have broken most if not all of them by now and be back where they started!

Well, this year is different for me.   My New Year's Resolution was not to make any as they are impossible to keep and what do you know, even three weeks into 2011 I am still not keeping all the resolutions I haven't made!  Yay for me!!  (I know, you are so impressed with my steely willpower but don't be intimidated, if you put your mind to it and with a bit of training, you too can stick to all the resolutions you don't make!)


Butterfly Set



The beginning of the year is a quiet time for fairs and shows so it is a perfect opportunity for a major stock check to make sure that I have plenty of the popular designs in stock and that everything is in tip top condition.

I also use this time to source and decide upon new patterns and colour options for existing designs and am always happy to get ideas of what people are looking for - this is one of the great things about craft fairs, you get to speak to customers and the feedback is fantastic regarding what colours/designs people are looking for. 

This time of year isn't completely devoid of shows, however, and Sunday 30th January sees Ali's Craft Studio back at Hempstead Valley Shopping Centre, Gillingham, Kent for the first show of the year and I have already had calls from previous customers planning to come along to see us there.   If you are in the area and haven't been to this centre, it is well worth a visit as it is a lovely place to shop.   We are located outside Marks & Spencers and WH Smith and yes, it is a real test of my aforementioned willpower not to spend, spend, spend!

I have a bunch of booking forms for fairs in 2011 and these are being booked and confirmed ready to be entered into the Fairs List on the website - I will be back at most of the locations from 2010 so look forward to seeing lots of regular customers as well as many new ones.

So good luck with your resolutions, good luck to all the crafting blog buddies I have with your fairs and lets make 2011 a great year!  See you all soon....