January to February - round up!

february started off with a * bang * ... spring fair!! and with much of January dedicated to the show preparations there really wasn't much time for anything else. final samples to get made up, props to buy and paint, suitcases to pack, invites to send out...oh you know how it is.

setting up for spring fair was pretty straight forward (i like it when there are no surprises or complications...makes things far more appealing!). i had some bloody fantastic neighbours and the whole of the Design Lab group were an all-round great bunch of people to be stuck with for 5 days ;)

i made some good contacts from spring fair and set up meetings with a few companies to discuss potential projects. some rather exciting ones at that! so keep following and you might hear more about them all in the next few months...

my full review can be read here

i've been fortunate enough to attend yet more fantastic workshops from the New Creative Market scheme these past few weeks. both rather scary (one on tax and one on finances!) but both very informative and have given me lots to think about. in a weird way i'm actually looking forward to settling down and getting my spreadsheets sorted!

you may remember a couple of months back i announced that i was working alongside laura olivia to produce collections for our supermarket chains. what started off as a couple of designs ended up at over a dozen! there were some fantastic projects that i got to work on, a great variety of styles and themes...and to see them in production would be simply fantastic!

and of course let's not forget the big news...i quit my job!! i only have one more week at my day job and then i have 3 months focusing solely on building my portfolio (and sorting those spreadsheets!) ...i absolutely cannot wait!

the secret is out...

i do apologise for teasing you with my news and then disappearing whilst setting up for my second trade show at Spring Fair...but I'm here now to tell you all about it...

i quit my job!

yes i did. after 7 years of working admin i decided enough was enough and had to take a step to up my design game. i managed to drop down to 4 days a week last year but I simply need more time to spend on design, portfolio, promo, manufacturing, commissions...oh the list goes on and on and on!

not only that, but i am also moving flat. i absolutely love Teddington and will be very sad to leave but it's got to be done (it's rather expensive around this area so my manufacturing budget is less than i would like!). so i am moving back home for a couple of months to spend time really focusing on a few projects and getting my portfolio built up. 

so that's it, i have about 3 weeks left and the i'm off. woohoo!!! [queue George Michael's 'Freedom' as my soundtrack]

but what afterwards? well, i will be venturing across the city to the SE of London to play studio days with Liz of Elle Jane Designs (i'm trying to persuade her to get an actual studio space with me one day but she's not having it. not yet anyway.) 

so yeah, exciting times ahead!

off the back of Spring Fair (which was a very different show to Top Drawer, not least in size) i am definitely working more towards the commissioned/licensed work and collaborations. i had a few meetings with various companies and have some exciting projects lined up...but again i'm only able to tease you on that front right now...sorry! i'll tell you more soon, i promise!