My First Craft Fair!

It took me a while, but I finally got there!

I was nervous about spending the money on a table only to be disappointed, but it turned out to be a real confidence boost!

I wasn't sure how much stock to take with me, so I decided the more the better and spent most of the week before making like made to use up as many of my supplies as I could to have a full table. 

I was concious of having too much on the table and it would look cluttered, but overall I think I got it about right!

It took longer than I thought to set up the table, I had my mum and sister in tow and we only just managed to get it ready within the hour we had before it opened.

My lesson there: plan the layout in advance and make sure my stuff if ready to put out straight away, we spent a lot of time just deciding where to put things and which items to put on the stands, so my advice to crafters: plan, plan, plan!

I think we did pretty well, this is my first attempt at the table:

Look! I even remembered a mirror, thanks to my nan for bringing it to me last minute ;)

Next time I will try to make the stall look more symmetrical, but overall I think we did pretty well :D

This was the first time that the event had been held at the venue, so I was optimistic going into it, it was a 'Family Fun Day' so there were a lot of children around, and I don't think I capitalised on this enough. They loved the bright colours, but my jewellery is more for Ladies rather than girls.

Lesson two: Know your audience! If I had more products aimed at children, I might have sold a bit more, and if the girls were keen then their relatives might have been too!

I took most of my jewellery making beads, findings and tools with me, following advice that looking busy and showing customers that you actually make your items can help to generate interest. 

This turned out to be great advice, (especially as I had my demanding Nan asking me to make things for her!) right at the very end two ladies wanted the same pink watch, but I only had one. So they asked me to add a watch face to one of my bracelets, so I did and clinched another last minute sale!

Overall I had a really great day, it was tiring but great and I'm really glad I did it! And I'll definitely be doing it again!

Kirsty signing off xxx

Olympic Showcase!

I couldn't help but show off..

I wanted to share my new Olympic Glory collection with you as I'm really proud of it :)

So here goes....

I love buttons, so I made a cute button bracelet, made from red, white and blue buttons, all linked together on a silver plated chain and finished with a heart toggle clasp.

                    

If you are a fan of mine you know that I just love my Spring Flowers range, these were really popular during the Jubilee and so they are back by popular demand!

                   

I also have a matching necklace...

                     

I had some large buttons left over in my stash and tried to be a bit creative with the bits and pieces I have in my craft box, and so this cute necklace was born!

              

I do have more to come but I think that's enough self indulgence for one night :D

Kirsty @ FunkyPinks xxx

   

I need more hours in the day!

Whilst I'm feeling tired I wanted to see if any other crafters out there are feeling the same as me.....

I love making jewellery and selling it online, but I wish I had more time to dedicate to it!

I work full time office hours in London and commute everyday from Birmingham (Long, boring story as to why, I'll save it for another day!) So I don't get home 'til after 7 o'clock in the evening, after eating tea I'll only have a few hours to squeeze in some crafting before I have to go to bed to get up and do it all over again the next day! I do love my job and am hoping to move closer to home fairly soon, but I find it frustrating that I can't spend as much time on my hobby as I want to!

I'd love to get some beading done on the train, but anyone on the Birmingham-Euston train will know that there's not a lot of elbow room!

I also want to spend time with my my gorgeous, loving and supportive boyfriend who is quickly running out of patience as he keeps stepping on beads and findings. My jewellery is a hobby more than a source of income and I couldn't afford to give up my job to make jewellery full time, thought it's nice to have a back up plan!

I spend a lot of time at the weekend creating new things but not as much as I'd like to; I'd love to churn out new things everyday to keep my Etsy shop fresh and my Facebook Page buzzing but it's just not possible with my current work-life balance!

Does anyone else feel the same and how do you deal with it?? Your wisdom is welcome....

Your tired FunkyPinks friend

Kirsty xxxx

P.S Don't forget to visit my Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/FunkyPinks

In The Beginning...

Hmmm, this is all a bit new for me!

My name is Kirsty, I've been making my own jewellery for about half a year now and I've been amazed by the hidden online crafting community I've found! Not just jewellery making but all kinds of handmade goodies that people are so passionate about, I've found it really exciting and quite addictive networking of Facebook and creating a shop on Etsy.

I've thought of blogging before but didn't think I'd have anything interesting to say that anyone else would want to read! Over the past few weeks people have been interested in my Facebook page and pictures, not just to buy my jewellery but asking me advice on how I take photos and make certain things. So I thought... let's give blogging a try!


I want to share jewellery making techniques as I find them and feature tutorials and guides to share my passion! There's so much information out there, I want to pool all the passion and inspiration on my blog as I know there are so many people out there who share my love of crafting! Here's my first one:

Anthro Power Of 3 Tutorial

I am dying to try this! I've got all the bits and bobs just need to sit down and get stuck in!

  http://southernfairydesigns.blogspot.co.uk/2011/01/anthro-power-of-3-knockoff-tutorial.html

I also want to share my experiences with other crafters trying to sell their creations online and help people out, although I will point out that I'm no expert in any sense of the word! I'm a big believer in that the more you share and explore the more success you will have.


That's all for now, I'd better get started..... in the meantime check out my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/FunkyPinks


Kirsty @ FunkyPinks x