Right Royal Pop Up

The Pigeon is having another Pop Up shop for 2 weeks starting at the end of April.

The Woolly Brew will be on sale as well as many many more handmade goodies.

Details and updates at Lovely Pigeon.

They have also organised an exhibition around the theme Beards and Tiaras.  Deadline for submission is 30th March.

I had thought about submitting something but time and other projects have got in the way.  The Woolly Brew is providing a little something though...

creative entrepreneurs

I have been collecting lots of business information for The Woolly Brew. 

For example, how to consistently market your business, how to have a successful online shop, how to create 'kick-ass' products and manage your (online) time most effectively. 

These sites have made me stop and read (sign up and download!) and may be of interest to other crafty entrepreneurs:-

Blacksburg Belle
Imaginative Bloom
Smaller Box
Crafting an MBA
Handmadeology


Lots of good, helpful and actionable information... but you still have to ACT on it.... can there be such a thing as too much information... surely not...

new colours for The Woolly Brew Felt Flower kit

a creative odyssey

Epheriell Designs has organised a blog hop.  It is called A Creative Odyssey and spans 4 weeks of December.  2 different blog writers post each day about their creative dreams and goals for 2011.

I've come to it abit late (via 74 Lime Lane) so I'm catching up with previous posts but so far I've 'discovered' some really interesting creative business type blogs like blacksburgbelle and Imaginative Bloom.

Interesting because The Woolly Brew is going online in early 2011 so I need to be like a sponge...

oh... and Merry Christmas!

real world

this is a link to a blog entry by knitwear designer and vintage specialist Susan Crawford on her blog Just Call Me Ruby.

it very eloquently speaks for itself...

Pigeon's Pop Up Christmas Shop

shameless self promotion for my other job....

The Woolly Brew will be on sale at The Pigeon Pop Up Christmas shop.

The shop is in Murray Library, Shore Street, Anstruther and opens on Saturday 27th November and will be open every day from 10am to 6pm  right up until the 24th December.  

It  features more than 40 artists and makers, vintage, homewares, stocking fillers, hand-made Christmas workshops for all ages (and abilities), music and The Woolly Brew!

Knitting - felted shoulder bag

this is what you get in the The Woolly Brew felted shoulder bag kit...

Once knitted up this is what it looks like... unfelted...

This time I knitted a green tweed one (the last one I did was black tweed).

This is what it looks like felted...

 

This is the embellishment pack that came with the kit...

This is the embellished bag...

This is it with a different button, just for a change!

 

I'm having trouble taking photos that give a true colour representation..... the felted one is the best one.

Cambo Christmas Fair - Sunday 14th November

The Woolly Brew will be at Cambo Christmas Fair on Sunday 14th November. 

11am - 4pm

We've put together a felt flower kit to compliment our felted shoulder bag and sundae scarf kits.

Check out more photos here.

I've also knitted another felted shoulder bag which will feature in its own photo spread tomorrow!

we have lift off

We have a stall at the St Monans Art Festival on 18th September.

We are me (ta-da!) and Karen (professional artist and business partner).

We'll have a small display of yarns and needles as well as a yarn tasting.  We hope to show how varied and accesible knitting can be.

To encourage new and experienced knitters we're offering two kits. One to knit, felt and embellish a bag and another for a garter stitch scarf.  We're also having a Start Knitting class in October.

Our goal is to have our own shop but whilst we search for the 'perfect' bricks and mortar we're going to do other stuff - design and sell kits, promote our stitching group and offer classes. 

It has been a lot of work!  But once we get the first 'event' out the way it'll get easier... won't it?


(Not sure how I'll balance this blog and The Woolly Brew site - I'm keen not to duplicate entries.)

all things knitting

Our Stitching group has a table at the Arts & Craft exhibition during the St Monans Art Festival in September.  Karen and I hope to show some yarns, tools, knitted samples and garments donated by fellow knitters.  We're not selling items on the stall, but promoting the craft.

At the moment its mostly knitting related but we may be able to include some crochet once we get a crocheter on board.  My own expertise is still at beginner...

I suppose it is a bit of experiment ahead of our plans to open a yarn shop (if we can ever find suitable premises).  With this in mind I have been making a list of materials and skills that a knitter needs (and can aspire too). 

Our aim is to show that knitting isn't just for older women knitting for babies and charity (a view still widely held).  And that there is a wide range of yarns, patterns and price points that can suit a diverse demographic.  And with a little patience and instruction it is a simple skill to learn.

As part of this (and with an eye on owning our own shop), we're hoping to knit up some samples using yarns in our stash and sample yarns by Louisa Harding and Debbie Bliss, including:-

Luckily we've both got lots of acrylic in our stash to show a more economical price point.

I would like to do some traditional swatches to show garter, stocking stitch, rib,  simple lace etc. And also some mini garments, perhaps a sock or handwarmer or small toy...

AND also some little balls of yarn for some experiments, teaching and 'tasting'.

All from 50g balls...

HOWEVER I'm feeling quite aprehensive!  A bit like when you have a brand new sketchbook and a clean white page in front of you and you don't want to make a 'mistake'! 

I should rip a ball band off and just get knitting... or maybe I need another list...

Fife Contemporary Art & Craft - Artists and Makers Forum

Yesterday I attended a one day forum in Rothes Halls, organised by Fife Contemporary Art & Craft.

The theme for the event was Contemporary Art outwith the gallery context. Something that wasn't immediately relevant for me (as I immediately thought of sculpture in a town centre...) However it proved to be a very informative and inspiring day.

In the morning we had presentations from three groups about their experiences outwith Fife.

Ganghut - a very funny and motivating group who motivate the artist, audience and community
Big Things on the Beach - professional and positive community group
Thomson & Craighead- very clever use of 'data' -content and presentation.

and in the afternoon we heard about experiences within Fife

Keiko Mukaide
Babs McCool
Tim Fitzpatrick

Summary notes:-

• I really enjoyed listening to artists talk about their work, thought processes, difficulties and accomplishments. Most spoke well with little arty farty gobbledygook. Talking with my Professional Artist friends (Karen and Anne) it seems art school training teaches you to continually assess and justify your work which feels a little beyond me...
  
• Recession, lack of conventional gallery space and a drive to fully engage the viewer has led to artists seeking alternative options in displaying, selling and communicating with their audience... Don't narrow your exhibiting outlets and/or viewers
• politics, red tape, more Nos than Yeses. Just do it.

On a more personal level...

• I need to talk to more adults about non child things. I need more debate and challenge. I need to stop lurking!
• I need to stop procrastinating and saying I don't have the time to make art and just do it.
• What is the difference between a fibre artist and a textile artist? <insert punchline here>

Some artists groups present on the day...

Fizzy Milk - bringing contemporary art to young people
Cupar Arts & HeritageProject
Blacksand - Kirkcaldy based group of artist
DAM- Dunfermline Arts and Media Group
Ovenstone Artists

I have a thick wad of paper with the other delegates details. Tomorrow night I'll look through their info...

DaWanda

another handmade marketplace at DaWanda

MISI

another market place for handmade items...

www.misi.co.uk

Folksy

probably late as usual with this! Think this beta version went live in July. Looks interesting, some lovely stuff.

www.folksy.com

Artist Statement

I have updated my profile...

I mostly make pictures using threads and I stitch on fabric or paper. I am inspired by my home village of St Monans, in the East Neuk of Fife. It sits between richly coloured agriculture land and the water of the Firth of Forth, both ever changing. I am attracted by textures and shapes around me and I represent these patterns and there repetition in my work. All my work is hand stitched and is usually of a small size, no bigger than 15cmx15cm. I sometimes use paint to colour the fabric, and I sometimes hand dye my threads. But I’ll use whatever I feel works within a piece. Including paper, beads and found objects. My fabric can be handmade paper, calico, old clothing or handmade felt. My most recent work has been framed behind glass and hung on a wall which has, in some cases, left me dissatisfied. I am attracted by the tactile qualities of the fabric and thread and the inherent warmth of the fabric. I want the audience to have some sense of that too. This has led me to explore non framed options like fabric books. To engage the viewer and allow them to interact with the piece.

Artist Statement

I plan to apply for some commissions/exhibitions in the coming months.

I need to write an artist statement.

oh dear. Help is only a google away.

Molly Gordon
Art Business
Artist Foundation
EBSQ

Exhibition 2008 - Stones

the business list

When I say business I mean sell some stuff and do some self promotion. Although given my years in finance and my natural inclination to over analyse and organise, it may seem like I'm running a multi million pound international arts organisation...

The list...
set up shop on Etsy to sell cards and small handstitched pieces. Is it worth it?
check out artflock. Is it worth it?
read the articles on CraftBoom rather than just bookmarking them!
compile a list of potential exhibitions I can submit pieces too.
just bloody do it!

Moo cards

I did it. And they're lovely!


I mostly used my Take a Stitch Tuesday photos and have approximately 5 of each. Some have come out better than others but I'm very pleased.

Next step... a portfolio of work. Physical and electronic. I need to start taking this art malarky seriously.

so... I'm going to label this post business.

Handmade in Scotland

I have been invited to join a Flickr group celebrating things Handmade in Scotland... a vague description but it includes lots of textiles and embellishments. I need to select some photos to add to the group... there are so many lovely things already there... and they look very professional!

I'm only going to add photos of items I would sell...

I really need to get sorted re the business side of things...