Wishing you all
a very joyous, holy
and most blessed Easter!
Search Results for: weaving
Interview with Posie Patchwork!
I have to admit I have an ulterior motive for presenting this interview. I get to pick the brain and receive some great advice from a successful and long admired crafty mumpreneur. I know how many other budding designers, crafters, sewers and artists there are out there who can benefit from and be inspired my Mums following their dreams to make a living out of their passions.
First up we have the talented Jennie from Posie Patchwork, enjoy the read…..
* What prompted you to start your business?
I was a new young mother in 1999, fresh out of Uni, with a husband away at war, so I started sewing more
seriously to stop myself from feeling lonely & I like having a project to work on. I started selling to family, friends, word of mouth, then went full time after having twins in 2001 & started a website. When my 4th child started preschool in 2007, I started a wholesale label too & attended markets on a more regular basis.
* What do you feel are the keys to a successful business?
Finding a strong niche which you have a passion for, know your demographic, be original, fresh & add your own twist on new designs. You have to know your style & be confident in your skills.
*What’s next for your business?
Well as Army life has it, we’re moving in December to Brisbane, the 4th different state & territory I’ve started my business over in. It’s amazing how well supported you are locally & with good markets. I’m actually cutting back, as we venture into high school & more deployments coming up. 4 children have a lot of homework & sport for one parent to manage. I’d like to continue to do quarterly high end markets, perhaps start a small retail shop front, reduce & refine my range.
* What advice can you give other crafty women wanting to start their own
business?
I highly recommend you have a clear & concise answer for when anyone asks “what do you do”. If you um & ah you don’t sound serious, professional or convinced yourself!! Be strong, say something like “I own a design studio where I produce handmade products made from an amazing range of fabrics from around the world” which really means you have a craft room at home, work around the children & order fabrics on the internet.
* Many people say “do what you love and the rest will fall into place”. Do
you think this is true?
Depends if you want to be able to say you are in business or want to make money!! Handmade craft business is long hours, coming up with new styles & constantly trying to stay ahead of the growing competition. I still love what I do after a decade in this profession, but I was patient, let it grow slowly, work around the children from babies to primary school & managed to get involved with some great PR opportunities – magazines, markets, stores & customers who spread the word. My priority is my family, thus why I’m cutting back as they become teenagers & our family dynamic changes.
Thank you to Jenny for being my first interview victim!
If you would like your business or profile to be featured here, please contact me.
And the grumpy Mum award goes to….
Image from here
ME!!
The little one kept me up half the night (teething), the house is a chaotic mess and I’m not the only one who’s moody. Ah, well – it can only get better from here right?
Another custom order completed
I really enjoy the challenge of a custom order. Matching requested colours, combining my style with the customer’s style.
This one is for a little girl with big blue eyes. The cute fabric for her dress is from Retro Mummy.
I have to tell you about the hair. The customer requested a “deep honey” colour which was somewhat challenging to find. At The Craft Circle I found this handspun wool that has the most gorgeous
warm, earthy tones of brown and gold. It suits the doll’s warm skin most beautifully.
Alright, enough gushing about dolls!
On the home front I’ve had 2 sick children this week so not a lot of fun. I’m looking forward to next week doing Easter crafts and preparation. Easter is such a special time, I love the closing of Lent, the beautiful Masses of Holy Week and the joyous celebration of Our Lord’s resurrection.
Have a great weekend!
Teddy bears!
I’ve been loving bears for some time now, I even made one last year. Unfortunately it wasn’t the most positive experience. I was too scared to buy expensive mohair in case I mucked it up so I got a synthetic, half of which I believe I ended up inhaling. Lots of sneezing, not nice!
Although my bear turned out pretty cute his joints are very wobbly and if you look close you can see how shonky he is.
So… I’ve just purchased a bear kit for the first time (real mohair!!) from Beary Cheap and I’ll hope for more success this time.
In the meantime, here are some real cuties from Flickr.
By The Craggy More – love that little outfit!
From Bumpkin Bears
And this rugged up cutie from Trobertabq.
Wish me luck – I think I’ll need it!
The Craft Circle
I heard about The Craft Circle from another doll maker recently and was naturally very keen to check it out. The shop is run by Juliette and is situated in Kingsville. She has all sorts of natural materials (the fleece selection is to die for!) for doll making, felting and knitting as well as hand made items. She is a really lovely person to talk to and I was very impressed when she pulled out a mat and basket full of hand made toys for my daughter to play with while I browsed all the lovelies. If you’re in the western suburbs of Melbourne it’s well worth a visit, Juliette is happy to order in anything she doesn’t have in stock.
Lil’ Max!
Girls can’t have all the fun all the time! A little companion for Mim or a play doll for a boy.
I got some lovely red chenille and made overalls for him, then handstitched the wool felt detail.
He has a pair of flannelette play pants too.
And a good mop of hair. He’ll be in my Etsy shop tomorrow, today I feel too lazy!
It’s great to see Lil’ Mims gaining popularity with custom orders coming in. I’m keeping quite busy with little faces and outfits these days!
Crafty Mamas get together
There were only a few of us but we had a great day. We met at Nat’s quaint and lovely home where she has an upstairs room devoted to sewing (yes, we were jealous!)
Above you can see Nat and Claire hard at work on their dolls.
Zofia and I marvelled at Nat’s beautiful sewing machine- computerized and so quiet and smooth.
Nat took to doll making like a duck to water.
Claire made a doll for her eagerly awaiting daughter.
We all determined it was a lot of fun and something to definitely do again.
Many thanks to Paul for his enthusiastic help with the children, he did a brilliant job.
Funny things happen while you’re away…
The garden was fairly dry when we left but apparently Melbourne had a lot of rain and we’ve come back to a jungle – like backyard complete with giant zucchinis. The one at the front weighed in at 2.9 kilograms!! Unfortunately they’re not really edible at this size (I’ve tried!)
I’m working on a few things at the moment. Actually, I just want to plonk myself in front of the sewing machine after my week away, but there is so much else that needs my attention! I’m hoping to finish off a new doll this week, start on a custom order and organise myself for the Crafty Mamas get together on Friday where I’ll be teaching doll making for the first time (gulp).
Better get back to it…..
Sigh. We’re back.
I must admit, I’m not all that thrilled to be home.
I could have stayed. For good.
That’s me half way up a sand dune, full of energy, breathing that gorgeous fresh air blowing right off the ocean.
What a stunningly beautiful place.
Going away from home has added fuel to the fire. We feel suffocated in the suburbs, we don’t want to bring our children up here. We’re racking our brains as to how we can afford to get back to the country. We need open space, fresh air and clean land. We’ll get there somehow, God willing.