The Christmas hype has been and gone, Easter sales are just about over so what are your plans for your business during the quieter months?
(Preferably positive plans please as we’ve had a lot of negativity on here lately but if you really want to moan and that makes you feel better… that’s also fine )
Now I’ve finished my Easter selection, the next theme I will be working towards are Thank You or teacher gifts (although I did read a thread online the other day from teachers where they admitted they do not need any more mugs/ personlised gifts but a handwritten note from the child and parent were the most cherished items!)
I am also going to be taking maybe a couple of weeks to experiment and play a bit with some new techniques. Behind the scenes, I will be hopefully stockingup on Christmas items too.
I have some more computer based design techniques that I need to learn, so that will be taking up quite a bit of time.
I’m thinking of stocking up on my staples that are running low and I may dip my toe into Tik Tok - eeek!
Are any of you doing any markets/ fairs over the Summer? (I don’t have amazing success with fairs outside of the Christmas period)
Now seems like a great time to zhuzh up my photography area…nothing too grand, just a bit of space I’ve clawed back from my sewing chaos!!! I’m hoping this will breathe some new life into my creativity and kickstart a spring/summer refresh of my shop. Easter isn’t really a thing for my products but summer definitely is.
I’m not sure I am heading for quieter months - next month is the start of the market season for us with one 3-day market a month and Alan will be continuing to do his 1-day art market in Tavistock, while I will have 1 day teaching every month. So hopefully lots of lovely busyness restocking and keeping up with my students. My early year quiet-time project of sorting my photos hasn’t quite happened as planned so that will be ongoing. Looking forward to it all
I’m looking forward to thinking up some new products for the craft drop event - right now I’m having a massive sort-out of the Cupboard of Doom in my studio and have discovered (to nobody’s surprise) that I have loads of spoons I’ve never used, so now is the time to decide what to do with them. I suspect there may be more lurking out in the shed, but I’m not starting on tidying that until the weather gets a bit drier! I always have lots of good intentions about using quiet time for promotion and for finding new outlets… I have found one new B&M outlet, or at least they found me, so I have fingers crossed that may lead to more orders in the future… meanwhile it’s just nice to have longer hours of daylight!
My quieter month start has unusually not happened yet, not in my other shop anyway. Have posted every day for the last couple of weeks.
It has been much quieter on here for months.
My plans are to make something most days i am at home but to spend quite a lot of time not at home on prolongued holidays. We call it doing it whiile we can.
Need to take that approach especially when you husband is 80 and has to date had Bowel cancer (2005), Double Heart Bypass + myxcoma removed (2019), Gall Bladder removed (2023).
In the new year he was diagnosed with Pulmonary Fibrosis. Actually that diagnosis is a relief as for months I have been suspecting far more sinister reasons for his ill health.
(That does explain any rattiness coming from me for several months, I was worried sick !).
in his case he has the ‘best sort’. It’s not his body going wrong but 100% secondary to a UTI antibiotic which he had been taking daily since 2020 as a preventative. I am mentioning it here as it is a drug which is recommended by Nice for GPs to prescribe as the one to take as preventative against UTI but they don’t appear to have informed the GPs. Certainly mine was totally shocked to hear that it is a very likely cause of Pulmonary Fibrosis in the elderly. Nitrofurantoin
That is the name so I am spreading the word where I can to warn that if you or your relatives are on it as a daily antibiotic make sure to get your breathing checked / lungs xrayed regularily.
So as I said we will be holidaying and Bob will be much more breathless than he used to be but we will do it while we can
PS Cyprus in two weeks… can’t wait
I’ve been struggling with anxiety issues for a few months so I’ve been grateful for some quiet time to just chill and do other things to relax. However, I want to try and make use of the next couple of months, which are normally quiet, to try out a couple of new bags I want to do, and to stock my shop back up ready for the Christmas period. I normally have about 80-100 items in my shop by October and I currently only have 55 so need to get sewing! I also want to dust off my knitting machine and use up some of many cones of yarn, I haven’t made any knitwear for my shop for a couple of years.
I’m due a major operation to cervical spine in July which might put me out of action for a while so I need to try and build some stock before then. I have more ideas for letterbox gifts so a bit of quiet time would mean I could concentrate on new things without panicking that I need more bears and I’m a little OCD with organising cupboards and love decluttering so a bit of extra time would possibly be spent reorganising.
Enjoy your holiday to Cyprus @JOYSofGLASS, we try to book as many holidays and short breaks as possible, only in the Uk but like to get away while we can. My next one is a week in Whitby for the Goth weekend end of April.
Have you been to the very nearby RSPB Bempton Cliffs – heaving with Puffins last year… magic. Sadly it was seriously cold that day so couldn’t hang about for long but still magic
Best of luck with your Op and hope you are soon mobile again xx
If I didn’t live so far from Cornwall I would be at your classes with an ‘L’ plate on! Presuming that your teaching is for basketry that is! It is something that I find fascinating but have never tried.
Thank you for reminding me. I am booked for an enamelling session the week after i get back from Cyprus… Really quite excited by it… Xmas present from my two lovely daughters.
We go twice a year for the Goth festival, we have been to Bempton cliffs a few years ago though, I havnt been when there have been so many puffins. We love the moors and surrounding areas and it’s only 2 hours from us. Pleased you enjoyed your first visit Joy.
When it’s quiet, really quiet like now. I’ve been creating stuff for me. I’ve made a few tops and am currently working on a pair of joggers. If the weather was better, I’d be gardening. Now I no longer do dog walking, apart from my 2 that is.
My bracelets used to do well, not so now, so I’m looking for something else that may attract some interest .
My downtime will be mostly spent up the allotment, I tend to go very quiet everywhere through late spring and summer, but being on the lotty does give me lots of time for sketching and plotting, I’ve been thinking about some Christmas ideas too!
I did think about getting to grips with Canva, photography and SM such as Pinterest but my brain says nooo go sit in the veg patch instead. @JOYSofGLASS sounds like you and Bob have been through the wringer! As for Nitrofurantoin I’m not one bit surprised, I’ve been prescribed it twice and both times it’s almost put me in A&E, thankfully they’ve added it to my medical notes now not to prescribe as ‘adverse reaction’
Similar to @ccbandatp , my quieter months of January and February are done and a busy spring and summer beckon. I have quite a few shows and fairs booked up and many options for others.
I do like your plan of just one 3 day fair a month, Anne and Alan, a very low stress approach and, @PaintedHorseArt sitting in the allotment instead of trying (and failing) to learn seo, google analytics, pinterest etc. etc. etc. is just perfect!
Having said that, I now have an Easter weekend off, with my lined up event cancelled due to a soggy bottomed car park… the rain has just been relentless!
Ditto here with the rain but no event planned this weekend. Our first is 11-13 April in Kingsbridge with a group of friends who came together during Covid to organise our own events under the name South West Artisans. We now do 7 a year - 4 in Kingsbridge and 3 in Kingsand. Alan does a regular 1-day Art Market in Tavistock but I only do three-day events now - most of those with SWA - a couple later in the year in Tavistock. Feet up for the weekend then Mick
Yes indeed, feet up! But can I hear the workshop quietly calling?
SWA sounds a fantastic idea, it makes so much sense in many ways.
My season kicked off earlier this month with a couple of days in a Chester shopping centre, which went very well. Next weekend is outdoors at Bodrhyddan Hall, near Rhyl for a military re-enactment event, then 21st a one day craft fair at Dudmaston Hall, nr Bridgnorth and 26,27,28 an artisan market in Telford shopping centre.
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so that will be ongoing. Looking forward to it all 
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and,