At the end of every month I have a review of the previous month and plan the activities for the next. The end of March review coincided with the end of the financial year, and gave me the opportunity to review the whole of last year and make plans for the next 12 months, but no opportunity to write April’s blog, lol, so here we are at the beginning of May!
Last year was really encouraging – activity in most areas was up on the previous year – and I was able to identify two areas which I’ll concentrate on going forward. These are Curtains/Blinds and Workshops/Lessons, and luckily they are things I love to do anyway!
Curtains and blinds
What I love about ‘Window Dressings’ (going all posh for a moment) is that I can be involved throughout the complete process.
I prefer to measure up in situ, as this gives me the opportunity to check out the type of fixing etc, and have a good chat with the customer about the fabrics and linings. I (or they) can then order the right amounts of the agreed fabrics and get cracking on the construction.
This stage can lead to some interesting situations. For example, I had a commission for curtains for a mill conversion apartment, where the curtain length was over 4 metres. As I work from home where none of the rooms allow for this dimension of fabric, I hired the local village hall, put some of their tables together, and managed to lay up and cut the fabrics without too much difficulty! Fortunately, the hall is only at the bottom of the road, so I didn’t have to lug the rolls of fabric far. Where there’s a will there’s a way, I always say. Normally, of course, it’s far less exciting and I can do it all at home.
The make-up also appeals to my passion for accuracy, making sure the dimensions are spot on (I don’t suppose anyone likes a pair of curtains where they are two different lengths!), and in fact, I’ve had a couple of testimonials where the finished products compare favourably with, for example, John Lewis and Laura Ashley, which really makes it all worthwhile.
Usually, because most customers are within a reasonable distance for the personal measuring service, I can drop the finished items off if necessary.
So, I can be involved from measuring to delivery (not that I like to be in control – just ask my family!)
Workshops and Lessons
When I was a girl, my Mum took the trouble to teach me to sew and crochet, and my subsequent career in textiles built on the sewing skills so that, when the time came, I felt able to start my own business. I continued with crochet as a hobby, adding more complex stitch patterns as I went.
I’m so grateful to Mum for setting me on this course, and I am really passionate about passing on what I’ve learned, if only so that the skills don’t die out.
In the last Blog I talked about my love affair with Patchwork, and I’ve found that the cutting, sewing and accuracy aspects of this lend themselves perfectly to teaching general sewing skills. On this basis, I run a regular Patchwork Club at Crafty Betty in Newark, where we have a lovely 3 hours of tea, chatting – and oh yes, sewing tuition!
I run a similar 2 hour session at Kimberley Craft in Edwinstowe.
I’ve always favoured crochet over knitting because, to my mind, crochet grows much faster. Not that I’m ever impatient (ask my family again!) Having said that, it can still take ages to construct, for example, a king-size blanket, but the sense of satisfaction once it’s done is enormous (like the blanket!). I want others to share in this experience, and to that end I run a regular Crochet Club at Kimberley Craft in Edwinstowe, where we have a friendly couple of hours learning, developing and honing the skills, learning new stitches regularly, and generally having a fun time.
I also give personal tuition in both Sewing and Crochet, where we direct the newly-learned techniques into whatever project the pupils fancy - I had an 11 year old pupil recently, whose Mum wanted me to teach her to sew on buttons, amongst other things, and she made a lovely pencil case, with loads of decorative buttons on the front.
So, whether it’s through group or one-to-one tuition, I feel privileged in being able to pass on what I’ve learned, just like Mum did all those years ago.
That‘s all I have time for today - have a lovely May, and I’ll catch up with you next month, hopefully.
