I feel as if I am getting left behind.
OK, so I am OLD but it is becoming more and more difficult to keep up.
SO…I have been here for over 13 years and I love it.
When I joined I was running my art as a business but since joining I have become a pensioner and a widow, so life can be tough at times.
Two years ago I agreed with HMRC to stop doing self assessment forms as I am not earning enough to be a business.
However, Folksy is my life line and it is what keeps me going every day. I love it here.
Every day, I see more and more technical threads on here and mostly I have no idea what they are talking about…canva ? analytics?. different programmes, Pinterest business accounts, etc… I have only just bought a smart phone and not sure how to use it…
Every sale that I have brings a smile and happiness into my life and helps towards another bill payment. I was a stay at home Mum, crafting all my life and being self employed , also I got caught in a pension trap and my pension when I reached 60 was just £1.08 a week…yes really !! I am lucky that I have a very small pension from my husband’s employment but not nearly as much as the amount that a lot of pensioners live on…but fractionally above the limit that means I am not entitled to any benefits.
Us oldies are getting swept under the carpet and forgotten about due to all this technology. I am lucky that I sell well on here …probably because I am well under priced for my work …but I love what I do. and have no intention of giving up while I am still able to paint and hold a brush… (I do get berated quite often because of my low prices but without the sales my days would be empty.) Are there any other oldies struggling to keep up?.. But I DO LOVE Folksy and am really grateful for the lifeline it gives me…back to my painting now…
Oh Brenda @teabreaks you do what you do beautifully and have no need for the bells and whistles ‘keep it simple stupid’ is my mantra when I inevitably start to complicate things just keep painting we love your work 
Brenda You are Not left behind. You are doing what you love, painting and card crafting and that is all that matters. You are selling the way you want to sell and you are happy with that.
Always Enjoy what you do, whatever you do. Be like Brenda 
Your pension situation though is so unfair.
My own state pension is not good as my first now ex-husband was my accountant and opted me out when I had my first daughter and I stayed opted out for 15 years as I was self employed … and my self employed massive NI contributions (I paid the maximum which was far in excess of the stamp which I was opted out of) gave me zero state pension points. I was so short it was not financially worth it to make the payments up when I realised what my ‘accountant’ had done to me.
Fortunately I have a better husband now and I claim my state pension from his.
I often feel the same Brenda. I use my computer to keep my shop updated etc. and wouldn’t have a clue if I had to use my phone to do it.
I retired 2 years early for health reasons and have just started receiving my state pension last month. My shop is mainly a hobby for me so I don’t worry about the techy things I don’t understand! I just carry on in my own little way.
Just carry on the way you are as it obviously works for you.
Aww Brenda your love of what you do shows in your work. Don’t be feeling left behind, you have a really successful way of working, so don’t stop doing things your own way. I also find technology overwhelming and I just muddle and plod my way around it. Keep creating, painting, enjoying and don’t fret, your cards and paintings bring colour and joy to lots of customers 
J x
Thank you all…brought a tear and a smile to my wrinkled old face…lol…
Keep doing what you’re doing Brenda, you’ve had more sales than most members, doesn’t have to be fortune, as l9ng as it helps pay the bills, but most importantly, it keeps you sane, gives you purpose in life, and keep bringing that smile to your face 
Keep well
Steve
I hear you (and I’m only 40!). I dropped social media and my smartphone a couple of years ago, and things seem to have changed a lot just in that time. In my case it’s different, I’ve become a bit of a luddite and don’t want to go back to using any of it. But, I know that attitude isn’t helping me to set up an online business - talk about cognitive dissonance!!
I don’t know, but maybe card selling doesn’t need you to keep up with social media? Whenever I need cards I just search for them, I’ve never bought cards after seeing them on social media or Pinterest etc. It sounds like what you’re doing works well for you!
Brenda Lee is a technophobe he struggles with a printer. We have a new iMac and all I can hear is ‘Caroline’. The computer is the same as the last 4, just a lot faster. He prefers vinyl on a turntable, index cards hand written. Technology is not for everyone you continue doing what you are doing, hugs xx
Hi Brenda
I know what you mean. I am hopeless with the technical side and some members talk double dutch for me and I haven’t a clue what they are talking about!
I struggled doing the social media as everyone said it was the only way to make sales. With perseverance I did manage it, but it’s very basic stuff. I have no idea how many sales I have made through social media and haven’t a clue how to find out. If I need anything I always look on Folksy first and I do spend money supporting other sellers. I have purchased your paintings in the past and had them professionally framed for our lounge. I really enjoy looking at them, even years after purchasing them. I do still keep looking in your shop, but running out of wall space to buy anymore, so it will have to be cards.
One possible nod. I needed a Ruby Wedding anniversary card quickly a few weeks ago and no-one on Folksy had one available to buy! Hubby couldn’t even find one in our Tesco store or our large local post office shop. I know 40 years is a long time these days to still be married and I put it down to no card manufacturer having enough demand to warrant making them. I have been married for 47 years next week! So sorry to hear your best mate has passed. I know you see your granddaughter a lot and she does your postage runs for you.
I also feel left out, but I enjoy doing what I do when I can due to being physically disabled and now house bound. Keep enjoying what you do and don’t worry about the high tech which is now far beyond us oldies.
Take care
Regards
Gail
Hi Brenda. There are so many threads on here now that I read and think “I don’t even know what that means”. I have no idea about statistics or algorithms or renaming photos or whatever and but I’m doing alright without them without them so figure I don’t need them. I feel like you about Folksy being a lifeline, I know I would have gone nuts during the pandemic without it.
But what I like about Folksy is that we are able to be here in our own way and don’t have to be too techy. And we have such a wonderful community who know that were are not all techno genius. I don’t even use a smart phone (I choose not to 
) . I don’t what to be swept away in a techno world!
I love seeing your cards everyday Brenda, keep doing what you enjoy xxx
Hey Brenda - you are Mama Bear of the forums! You just carry on the way you are and don’t you dare stop!
If you do need any techie advice in simple, basic terms (as that’s all I know…lol!), give me a shout and I’ll be happy to help out x
thank you Gill @DemelzaDesigns …I have always admired your absolutely fantastic knitting…it is a class above most of what I see.
It is my daughter who does my posting for me as she still lives with me. It is more difficult when she is on holiday from work as the postbox is a LONG steep HILL walk which I struggle with. Re Ruby wedding cards, You are correct, if you make specific cards , they stay in the shop forever, so not always a viable option… I gave up my car because of the expense and just as well because to park anywhere now, you need an APP…no chance of that. There was a lady recently on tv saying that although she had a car, she now had to get the bus to town because she didn’t have a smart phone or APP and so couldn’t park there…crazy xx
thank you @plumporridge and all of you that have answered…what a lovely place Folksy is…thank you @folksycontent xx
I also feel left behind Brenda. I was ready to open my shop again on Folksy, but I thought with the necessity to join in social media I couldn’t be bothered.
Your art is lovely and if you can make enough to pay a bill without engaging too much in social media I would keep doing that, I can understand that the making is more important, which I also feel.
I send my good wishes to you.
I too find social media a different world with a different language, that I struggle to fit into. I try and post on Facebook, but the other sites are beyond me!
PS I do have a Ruby wedding card in my shop, @DemelzaDesigns , but dont think I’d listed it when you were urgently looking.
The world’s going mad. I have a mobile phone but I only switch it on to do my telephone banking for those special one time only numbers to gain access to my account, never mind knowing how to use an app just to park a car!!!. That’s how bad I am at high tech(lol).
I think your cards and artwork are lovely, and they remind me very much of my mum’s artwork, she loved painting flowers.
I think I’d like to see cards that depict flowers that pertain to birthdays, and some blurb about why that particular flower is linked to that particular birth month.
Hi Brenda, I know just how you feel with all of the social media stuff! It drives me round the bend sometimes !! I think most of us just want to enjoy ourselves creating and making because it’s what we love, so don’t ever stop!
Oh @teabreaks Brenda I felt every word you spoke, just continue to do what you love, your work is beautiful, it brings a smile to your face and to that of others and that’s all that matters.
I’m 60 this year, when I left work 10 years ago one of my roles in the office was to look after the computers, if there was a problem I solved it, now I don’t have a clue half the time. I’ve lost touch with it all and half of it is now alien to me.
I would rather sew than do anything on a computer and get stressed when I spend more than half an hour doing anything online as I see it as a waste of time which could be better spent creating something
I still don’t really understand my mobile phone, it was bought for emergencies and for taking photos when I’m away, I hate answering it when it rings as I usually swipe and cut people off . As for all the technical stuff…my head is filled with way too much bear fluff to take it all in…you’re not on your own x