getting up to speed!

Hellloooo! So turns out having two blogs means I actually write less?! so lets get up to speed,

I have been BUSY! Iv not stopped, I have stitched my own finger to a cushion, ended up with 3 'Peppa Pig' plasters on my hand due to lack of concentration AND managed to make 15 t-shirts, 6 cushions, several xmas decorations and started a baby quilt all in 10 days. I'm shattered, I never ever want to sew again (ok maybe just today) but its all worth it, I now have a folksy shop, http://folksy.com/shops/MeMy, I chose Folksy as it is British and more importantly Etsy wouldn't let me have Me & My or any combo of that as my shop name as it was taken (boo!!!) so its their loss, I plan to add 2 new t-shirts to the shop each week, starting it 2 fox tees, then maybe 2 reindeer ones, test the water and see what happens, I also whipped up stock for a local shop in St Albans called rain drops on roses, you can find out more about that on my other blog, www.itsmeandmy.blogspot.com

and now I'm getting ready for boogaloo Craft Fair again, where oh where did October go??

 

 

Mouse decoration can be found on my folksy page, t-shirts are on request and are £12.50, same for cushions and they are £15 per cushion. you can also check out new designs, news and gossip on my facebook page Me&My

whats going on here then??

Wow,
So its been 6 days since I last wrote a blog post, where does the time go? one minute I'm relaxing after an uneventful craft fair pondering what to do next, 3 days later I'm up to my eyes in orders and running around London trying to source a particular shade of cotton! this is the crazy world of self employment! well I'm not complaining, I would work every hour I have for myself rather then work for anyone else, and I'm lucky enough to do a job I love, so no, I'm not complaining.

Updates on where you can Shop for Me&My-
I'm now on Folksy @MeMy 
In now stocked in Raindrops on Roses In St Albans
and of cause you can always buy direct from my facebook page - facebook.com/JustSinead
and I'm always happy for commissions!
hope your all enjoying your weekend, I'm off to applique 20 t-shirts!

 

 

the truth about me and craft fairs

Me and craft fairs are not getting on, I'm always in two minds to even do them as they are such hard work, and my products are not exactly pocket money stuff. So yesterday I packed my bags, left my house at some un godly hour and made my way to North London, I don't drive, so this involved 2 buses and a train, dragging a suitcase and two bags along. Now I really like the craft fair I attended, I like the people and the organisers, but I don't like the lack of sales. now I could take it on the chin, and say OK that was a slow day, but this is the 3rd craft fair in a row where I have made a loss or just about broken even, and I now have to ask myself, what is the point? I get great comments and feed back, I give out loads of business cards and lots of promises from people that they will DEFINITELY buy something from me....well they don't, and I spend five hours sitting. smiling and trying to stay positive, I watch people pick up every single item of stock I have and then put it down and walk away, that's fine, not everyone is going to buy something, but when at least 50% of the people at craft fairs happen to be other traders, then your not going to sell anything at all because traders will look and think they can do the same thing as you themselves. So I need to look at what I can do now, maybe concentrate on be stocked in baby shops, yes that might be a start,but today I'm going to sit down, pack away my sewing stuff and not look at it for a while.

hmm....

Hello! So it turns out I now have two blogs...how did that happen?this time last year I didn't even know what a blog was! Still not entirely sure I do now, but now that my hobby has turned in to a proper business  I felt I should have a blog dedicated just to that, my new blog is...itsmeandmy.blogspot.com  BUT I will still post on here too! So whats been happening? Well as usual I have left everything to the last minute, I have a craft fair on Saturday, and only just started making stock a few days ago!Oh sure I thought about making it last week, even the week before, but I started making a quilt instead,reading other peoples blogs, watching TV and generally procrastinating enough to prevent me from actually doing any real work! So deadline day is here, and Iv spent this week sewing EVERY single spare hour I have had!I have a partner who has some kind of bug, this is a man who never ever gets sick, so I cant really expect him to  help out with the cooking, cleaning and toddler entertaining as he can just about crawl out of bed for a shower right now....oh well, being your own boss comes with its own problems the upside is that I have been to 'work' all week in PJ's..awesome! ALSO something that really bothers me, why oh why does spell check on a BLOG not recognise the work BLOG!!?? anyways, you can find me here this weekend, if our local please pop along!

These two little critters will be for sale there!Along with a few t-shirts, toys and other decorations....

Just checking in....

 

 

I should be sewing....I should be cutting up fabric and drawing designs, but instead I'm wrapping my head round things like VAT, Tax, Limited companies, creating a folksy shop, working on launching a website with a brother that happens to live 1000's of miles away on Shanghai!keeping on top of the ever present chores, remembering to feed, clothe and talk to my son.....I have a lot to do!everything is a learning curve, and Iv worked and sacrificed to get my business off the ground, to its time to power on, now...where did I put my pinking shears!

 

 

From now till Christmas.....

So, it look like I wont be seeing much day light between now and Christmas, I'm suddenly very very very busy! (I'm not complaining) but true to form I am yet again chasing deadline rather then kicking back and relaxing safe in the knowledge I'm ahead! My son starting nursery was meant to be an opportunity for me to have some office hours, where I could dive in to a pile of fabric for a few hours and be productive, instead I have watched many episodes of 'Teen Mom' on MTV (something I have never even watched before) and clock watched until I have to pick him up, not only am I now looking at a fabric explosion in my craft corner, BUT I am also fully booked up until Christmas with Craft fairs AND stocking for retailers, not to mention my stupidly ambitious idea of trying to pitch at a baby trade show next spring....I am a one woman sweat shop.So If I suvive the next few weeks....

You can catch me selling my hard made wares at the following events.....

SATURDAYS
OCT 6th
NOV 3rd
DEC 1st
 https://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/pages/Vintage-Tea-Party-and-Gift-Fair-first-Saturday-of-every-month/188067171224344

 

 

 

 

SUNDAYS
OCT 28th
(possibley more to follow)
https://www.facebook.com/TheAbbeyMarket


AND you can BUY my stock from October onwards at in ST ALBANS at.....

https://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/RaindropsOnRosesStAlbans

Sunny September

 

Good Morning Blog world! There has been a flurry of fabric activity this morning, with all this lovely lot being dropped through the letter box! It may be sunny and warm outside but I'm designing, cutting and stitching for Xmas! I love this time of year, the Autumnal colours, crisp air and a lot of crafting! I have so much stock to make, its all very exciting, but daunting at the same time, I just home come Christmas I have the use of my hands still.

 

The top fabrics are destined to be made into Ellie toys, The middle fabrics are all for Kids Tees and the bottom lot are just for me, I'm working on a quilt for my bed in girlie colours, I live in a house where I'm totally outnumbered by boys, so I'm holding on to my right to have pretty things in the house.

 

 

 

changes.....

Hi there,

So there has been a few changes in the world of Just Sinead, first and foremost I have been super busy designing my Winter range and also stream lining the products I want to sell, the direction I want to take my business and how I can fit it all around my 'proper job' of full time parent! phew! So.... firstly the name, 'Just Sinead'. when I first decided to plunge into the world of craft fairs I totally over looked the fact that I would need a name! it was only when I was asked what I was called that I realised I wasn't really going to sell anything buy shrugging and saying 'oh its just some stuff I knocked up in my spare time' so I literally ran every name I liked into my computer to see if it already existed and yep turns out pretty much everything I liked was already out there somewhere doing business! damn them! So Just Sinead was born out of desperation and too much coffee... but now I'm more confident, I know where I want to take my 'Brand' I have to look at what will work long term, so once I have my website up and running the new trading name (which I have already let slip on facebook, will be unveiled) There also fantastic news on the horizon, in the shape of expanding where you can buy my products, having settled on focusing on children's apparel and decor for kids rooms I am able to set in motion being STOCKED in several retailers! its all hush hush right now...but there will be news soon on the wheres and whens....I'm beyond excited. I already have one amazing baby in the shape of my son, but this tiny business, that has kept me sane through the craziness of parenthood, unemployment, moving and generally having to be a grown up is blossoming into something I'm  excited to be creating...now all I need is an assistant who would work for biscuits and cuppas!

S xx