Time and Tide...

Wow, is it the middle of August already? So where has that 6 months gone? See, that is what I was talking about when I blogged about resolutions and new beginnings! So here I am resolved to not to neglect my ramblings and to post a little on here each day!
It has been a productive few months. As well as the Darlington Sunday People's Market, which you can find U-Neek at on the first Sunday of each month, I've been attending other fayres and markets in the area. I'll be at a wonderful on tomorrow at the Dolphin Centre tomorrow in Darlington, in aid of Cancer Research UK. I have lots of new designs and a programme of workshops for the coming months.
To top it all, I have finally launched my website. As yet, unconnected to my own domain name, as it's still being tweeked, you can find it here. And any feedback would be welcome!

PIF - Pay it Forward

Back in the beginning of January a wonderful new viral message landed in one of my friend's newfeeds on Facebook. This one I decided to follow up on because it was such a fantastic idea and a really good way to start the year. The message said that the first five people to comment on the post would, at some point in time that calender year, be sent something hand made by the person whose post it was. All the had to do in order to receive their gift was comment, inbox with their address and (the important bit!!) PAY IT FORWARD by posting the message on their wall so 5 people could claim a home-made piece of art or craftwork from them!
So simple and so brilliant. I love the PIF (pay it forward) concept. You do something for someone, or give them something and they do the same for someone else, who does the same for someone else... paying the gift forward, spreading the kindness. I signed up straight away claiming my bit from my friend, and within half and hour I had my 5 takers! So i claimed again from someone else and posted again on my business wall!!
It is such a wonderful idea because we all love to give and receive presents. We all love surprises. It'll be like christmas all year round, waiting for something to arrive that a friend has made me! And from a business point of view, it is priceless. 5 or maybe 10 people this year will get an unannounced, free gift from U-Neek. Sometimes, opportunities come to us in the strangest ways. Most of the time we curse viral email and Facebook posts. Just occassionally they can hold hidden treasure for us!

Britain's Best Market... It's offical!

Well, it's offical now. Darlington Sunday People's Market is the best market in Britain. As voted for by you, the people. Or us.
And there's the thing, and the reason I am always a little suspicious of these polled awards. I mean, our little monthly sunday market is the best market in the whole of Britain???  I know for a fact that there was a very small group of individuals who where up day and night while the poll was open voting repeatedly for our market. A fixed vote? Why would they do that?

This small group of volunteers are the faithful few who care passionately about our town and who run this monthly market. They tirelessly publicise it, spread the word and encourage new and inexperienced traders to join our ranks. They are up at all hours on Facebook and Twitter keeping the idea of DSPM alive and fresh in people's minds, so that it is not just another good idea that dies a death like so many before in this town. The publicity this award generates will do so much good for the market, continuing the work they have already started.
You know what? If it takes having such an amazingly dedicated bunch of volunteers to make an event great, I'd rather be trading at Darlington Sunday People's Market than anywhere else on Earth, cos we really do have the BEST!

To Samantha, Alex and the rest of the team xx
Photo credit - Hugh Mortimer

New Year's Resolutions... Or How to make sure something doesn't get done!

How many of us have done it? Started a nice, bright, shiny new year full of good intentions  that this will be the year that we will finally become fitter, thinner, more productive, more successful, get on top of the paperwork, see friends and family more, learn a language, start a new hobby...only to get to the end of January feeling like a failure! (I was going to write this blog every day!!!) What is it about January 1st that makes us set the seeds to our own destruction?
We all want a new start, a second chance. Remember how good it felt as a child when you were given a new exercise book at school? All those clean white pages with no mistakes... a chance to start again. Each day is that chance to start again. So you cheated on the diet. Didn't go for that run. Skipped the Yoga class. Been over a year since you last phoned your friend. Who cares! This doesn't make you a failure. It makes you human. Tomorrow is a fresh start.
I have binned my list of resolutions for 2013 and replaced it with just one...
I resolve to keep starting again!

Distractions!

Oh my! Has it really been a week since the last time? So much for good intentions! But you see there has been a very valid excuse for my inablity to focus on anything for my than a minute this week. We have a new addition to the household. 5 days ago an 8 week old ball of black fluff in the shape of Django the kitten entered out lives and we will never be the same again! Neither will our resident 12 year old female cat!!!
For 2 days I just sat, entraced! How much energy can something so small have? And then, when I tried to get back to working again, I discovered that little Django is a crafter, too! He sat next to me on the sofa, happily playing with every piece of equipment or scrap of wool, button or bell I put down next to him. I was making up a batch of button hearts for Hoppers in Darlington, and any spare buttons I thread onto a length of wool to keep safe. They are easier to count like that rather than stored in a bag. Now, of course, I find they also make the perfect cat toy like this, too.

I have a lot of ribbon. It gets used for a number of things. A metre long piece is currently tied around a piece of screwed up paper making another favourite kitten toy. But the best DIY kitten adventure centre has come in the form of one of those tubes you get bottles of whiskey in. Highland Park, one of the finest, and from Orkney, comes in a squatter, fatter tube... purrrfect for kittens!

Creativity v. Business

It's great to make some money out of doing something you enjoy, whether it be making stuff, painting, teaching...any kind of creativity. But there is always a downside. Inspiration is buzzing, but the paperwork is building up. You need to do a stock-take, e-mail all your retailers, chase up all those people who haven't paid you yet, and of course, there's the books to keep on top of! This stuff is boring and dull but it is so necessary, and just occasionally, there is inspiration to be had.
Organisation and re-organisation clears the minds, bringing clarity. An ocasional stock-take can throw up all kinds of useful information, such as what sells best in what location at what time of year, and what is not selling. Book-keeping ain't just for the taxman. Looking at your figures can also tell you your good months and bad, and when you need to have lots of stock at the ready. It's well worth spending the time learning how to interpret figures. Apply your creative thinking to them... it's amazing what you can learn about your business and yourself.
And, if you're interested, what I learned today as I started work on both stock-taking and book-keeping is that I don't do either of these tasks anywhere near as often as I should, and I'm way too good and procrastination! LOL

The First Working Day of the Year

Today has the back to school feeling about it. Back to work. OK, so I know I did the market yesterday, but   DSPM always has a feeling of fun about it, a jolly get-together with friends. Customers are an added bonus!! lol Today really is a work day. Stock to record, boxes to make, new designs to play with, clients to meet with, cheques to collect, money to bank and parcels to collect! I can also tell the holidasys are over cos the house phone is ringing. It only rings when no-one real is there... the dreaded cold-callers are back!! Time to go into town and escape them and do some work!!!

Darlington Sunday People's Market

So here we are, back home in the warm after the first sunday market of the year. Darlington Sunday People's Market has been running for 6 months now, on the 1st Sunday of the month, and has become a really high in the calender. The organisers and other stall holders are a great bunch of people and it's a really good atmosphere. It's great to talk to like minded, creative people who are trying to make a living through what they do, and exchange ideas and encourage each other. The first week in January may not be the best time of the year to be standing outside selling your sold, but I've had a great day with some great people and I'll be there again next month, Sunday 3th February. Hope to see you then, in Darlington!