Timing is Everything!

Yesterday I had a wander around a Craft Fair made up of stalls from local businesses. There were some beautiful handmade items on display, but hardly any of them were priced. 

This is a pet hate of mine. My Mum always used to say "If you have to ask the price, then you can't afford it" and that has always stuck in my mind. 

I hovered around one stall, while the Stallholder chatted away to some friends, but after a few minutes I got fed up with waiting and so moved on. I was very interested in a couple of items on the stall, but in the end bought nothing, as I couldn't find out what the price was. Maybe if I had arrived a few minutes earlier or later the stallholder would have been free  - who knows!

Do any of you attend craft fairs, and if so do you display prices on your items? I would be interested to hear the reasoning behind not pricing items on display.

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Last week I needed to send an order to my wholesaler as some popular items on the website were running low. With a minimum order value, I was struggling to make my order up to this amount, but I did in the end manage to just get over the specified figure.  

The following morning I received an email acknowledging my order - so far so good. Ten minutes later an email arrived announcing their Christmas Catalogue was now available to order from! If that email had arrive 24 hours earlier my ordering would have been so much easier.  Heyho, as with most things in life - it is all about timing!

So, how do you manage your time? Are you super organised and have a plan for each day or week? With a small business, there are many hats to wear, Sales, Marketing, Accounting, Stock Control, and Dispatch to name a few.  Do you wear a different hat each day or have you become a master at changing hats several times in one day?

Me? I always start the day with a plan but rarely end the day having completed it. But then, isn't that what makes running your own business so exciting - you never know what each day will bring!

I will leave you with my favourite quote about time:

Yesterday's the past, tomorrow is the future, but today is a gift - that's why it is called the present!

Note: The clocks pictured above are examples of what you can make with one of our Clock Making Kits. Click here to view our Clock Making items on the website. www.glitterwitch.co.uk

What is Lorna up to now?

Today, I have a poem for you. I know you all love hearing about the antics of our "staff" and so this poem is about Lorna, the Marketing Dragon.

Lorna has planted some seed beads

She wanted to see how they grow

But after a week there was nothing

And she thought it was all rather slow

She gave them a drink with some Growmore

And waited a little bit longer

But when still there was nothing appearing

She thought maybe they need something stronger

The Spiral Witches were watching

They could see from their shelf very well

They wanted to help their friend Lorna

 So decided to cast a small spell

That night when the Dragons were sleeping

The Witches were creeping around

There was chanting and waving of wands going on

While they tried not to make any sound.

When Lorna awoke the next morning

She couldn't believe her own sight

A beautiful flower was there in her pot

And it seemed to have grown overnight

But Lorna was just a bit puzzled

She went to her Sister and said

That flower is really quite lovely

But the beads that I planted were red!

Poor Lorna, she is still a bit confused by it all. Those Spiral Witches, Pearl & Purl, really are lovely aren't they? - how nice of them to help their friend.

Pearl & Purl the Spiral Witches were recruited for us by Spiral Rose. Click here to visit their Facebook page.

Lorna the Marketing Dragon was recruited for us by Mists of Azura, Handcrafted Dragons. Click here to visit their website.

Well that's all from me for this time, just a note to say we have lots of seed beads on our website click here to have a browse.

A lovely surprise in Antwerp

I have recently spent a few days in Antwerp, where I had a lovely surprise.

In the centre of Antwerp there is a wonderful International Magazine Shop. It stocks hundreds of current magazines from all over the world on all sorts of subjects. I like to have a rummage around it as there are often publications that you don't see in the shops here. So, heading for the craft section, obviously, I had a good look at several knitting magazines, many from America, as well as several in French and Dutch. Deciding not to purchase anything I turned to the Beading section.

Most of the publications in this section are in English, and I picked up one called Bead & Jewellery. This is not a magazine that can often be found locally in Kent and so I have only seen it a few times. Picking it up I flicked through the pages, as you do, and something caught my eye.

There was a 2-page article on the Big Bead Show held in March and one of the exhibitors from the Purley Beadworkers had written about their day. She spoke of how visitors has admired her display of Beaded Bells and then - there it was - "the beads were fitted around polystyrene shapes obtained from www.glitterwitch.co.uk. Wow fancy finding my website mentioned in an English magazine on sale in Antwerp! Of course, I had to buy it!

Talking of polystyrene shapes, I know lots of you are thinking about Christmas Crafting already. So, I have an offer on Polystyrene Rings on the website  - buy 5 in the same size and get another 1 free. Click here to buy

Have a look at our Pinterest Board for some ideas of how to decorate your rings here

A date for your diary
2015 sees the first National Beading Week 25th July - 2nd August

 Click here to have a look at the website and see what will be going on. Glitterwitch will be joining in the fun, with games and competitions on our website and facebook page. More details next time.

So, I shall leave you this time with this thought:
I don't have a problem with beads, I have a problem without beads!