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Autumn Wool
My creative journey begins.

I researched into Etsy (an online shop for handmade goods) today; what kind of crafts are popular, what kind of price sells, how easy it is to set-up your own shop and maintain it etc. I feel encouraged by what I found and more confident that I can make my own shop successful. I feel really excited about the prospect of having my own business, be it very small, although I know I have lots to learn. However I relish the challenge!

Lots of ideas of what to make are running through my head just now; knitted toys, scarves, hats, cards, fudge, truffles, brooches but I think I need to keep calm and be realistic, start by making things I already know. I have also thought about where to resource my materials. I want to try to be as environmentally friendly as possible and so recycling is really important for me. Therefore I have been thinking about searching charity shops, car boot sales, local markets and freecycle (an online directory of items that people are giving away for free). I also got started looking for some more craft books to add to my collection by searching on Bookmooch and Ebay. Bookmooch is a brilliant site that lets you list books you are willing to give away for free and in exchange you earn points that you can use to order other people's books. I have ordered two: "Christmas Bazaar-110 Easy Projects" by McCall's and "Knit (Contemporary Craft)" by Janine Flew. I'm looking forward to them appearing through the letter box! I concentrated on knitting patterns patterns while on Ebay and in particular books by Jean Greenhowe. Watch this space to discover whether I win anything!

I'd really like this blog to be an opportunity for interaction; sharing ideas, advice, inspirations and thoughts, so please leave a comment or contact me by email. I would really appreciate any advice you have on blogging, marketing and popular crafts and also any feedback on the design of my blog.