My Weekend at Folksy Summer School

If you didn't already know from my hyper-tweeting last week, I went to Folksy Summer School all weekend!

I had a brilliant time, surrounded by people who are just like me! The event was very relaxed and bohemian, with lots of events all happening at the same time so you could wander around and take things slowly, or schedule in events to get the most of your time there.

I took a mixed approach, ambling in and out of the classroom tent to listen to the speakers I felt would be relevant, and taking in the craft demonstrations as well, with a one-to-one with Patricia van den Akker of The Design Trust (the woman is brilliant, seriously brilliant) and an inspiring, product photography class with Lyndsey James too. 

The location was Ecclesall Woods in Sheffield; another big motivation behind my buying tickets, as us Northerners often feel such events are lost to London. I was impressed that Folksy decided to hold this event in their hometown. As Folksy owner James Boardwell casually put it, "well we often walk our dog here, so you know... it just made sense." I felt the woodland environment really contributed to the relaxed holiday feel. A conference centre in the middle of a city would have felt much more 'corporate training weekend'. 

Despite the venue feeling quite intimate, the weekend was jam-packed with quality events. The speakers were lined up at a heady pace over the two days - around twenty-four in total - and including Emma Jones of Enterprise Nation, Tilly Walnes of Tilly and the Buttons and The Great British Sewing Bee fame, Claire Bates of Landbaby, Polly Dugdale of Handmade Horizons and Chloe Haywood of Hatastic.

I filled an entire notebook with their advice and ideas and food for thought, and have some pretty testing business homework to do this week! 

There were craft demonstrations in screenprinting (Sue Westergaard, below, was a marvel), bookbinding, letterpress, sewing and crochet. The Amazings were demonstrating knitting, wet felting and mosaics. The photography classes were happening in a wonky wooden hut called Hector's House, and in amongst it all was yummy coffee, tea and fruit in constant supply, delicious sandwiches for sale (I'm sick of sandwiches so I don't say that lightly. Best sarnie ever, folks), and a tuck shop run by local shop Cocoa. 

Highlights of my weekend included: 

• Having lots of 'yes, that's me!' moments in the classroom and scribbling tonnes of notes - that full notebook alone is worth the cost of attending this weekend. Quality advice covering every aspect of my business is bargainous training indeed. 
• Eating lunch in the sunshine, looking up, seeing the editor of Mollie Makes, the owner of Folksy, The Amazings and Doug Richard of Dragons' Den and School for Startups chatting away to attendees around me and thinking, 'heh! Mad world!' I loved that the speakers mixed in with everyone, no one made a big deal of it, one-to-ones were conducted perched on tree stumps, and all the speakers attended one another's talks so they too could learn.
• A serene feeling of utter belonging to and passion for the world of handmade and craft. The sure knowledge, when surrounded by so much enthusiasm for this world, that I too have found my rightful place, and all the hard work is so worth it. 
• Photography 'aha' moments. Winter photography for this blog is an issue for half my year!
• Meeting new friends, and knowing immediately we'll get on because of our love of craft and community. Sharing a taxi from the train station with someone I met on Twitter. 
• Coming away from the weekend with an action plan, enthusiasm and inspiration. I wish I could bottle the stuff.

As well as the major achievements of choosing such a suitable venue, pulling in big name speakers and combining them with lesser-known speakers with lots to say and inspiring stories to tell, and making sure the flow of the event worked, I noted lots of details throughout the weekend which all added up to make Folksy Summer School special. Things like the constant supply of refreshments with a trusting 'help yourself' attitude, volunteers who genuinely never stopped smiling and handing out sweets (yes yes, food impresses me!), emails before the event with every detail about what to expect during the weekend and how to get the most out of it, a relaxed, non-supervisory attitude on the part of the organisers so we felt at home, and free ice lollies in the intervals! 

As well as the images I snapped as I took in the experience, you'll find a tonne of pictures will emerge over the next few days via Folksy's Tumblr page, as well as #FolksySS and #folksyschool.

I'm back off to the day job this morning, but you can be sure I'll be typing up my notes in my lunchbreak.

Guest Post: Four Little Walls Talks Doll's Houses and Starting Her Dream Business

Today I'd like to introduce you to my final guest, Kat, a fellow enthusiast for all things miniature. Kat has taken her passion one step further and done what many of us dream of - turn it into a business - and she has been kind enough to share her story below. Welcome, Kat!

Hello,

I was thrilled to be asked to guest post for Miss Beatrix this week, a visit is always a pleasure, albeit a virtual one!

Before I waffle on too much let’s get better acquainted.

My name’s Kat, nice to meet you! I run online doll’s house boutique and blog, Four Little Walls.
I live in Kent, though my heart belongs to Brighton, and spend most days up to my elbows in doll’s house related mess!

Four Little Walls came to be in January 2012. I had left a job in publishing that Christmas with a view to …well I didn’t actually know what I wanted to do right at that moment, but I knew it was going to have to be big, and in 1:12 scale!

Doll’s houses and miniatures have always been my first love. I love to make furniture and accessories, both for the shop and for myself but its lovely to splurge on some special pieces every now and again too!
At 14 I landed my dream job, though I didn’t realise it at the time, in a specialist doll’s house shop in my hometown, and THAT my friends is where things got serious!

This place was filled from floor to ceiling with everything and anything the miniature-loving heart could wish for. From pocket money-friendly trinkets, DIY essentials to eye-wateringly expensive but undeniably beautiful, artisan made pieces, it was all there. Of course my wages went immediately back into the shop. I already had a little Georgian house my dad built for me but my head was soon turned by ‘The Blenheim’ from The Squirrel collection, another Georgian style house, with four floors, dog legged stair cases and working sash windows. I remained at the shop until it closed down in 2003, I was heartbroken!

Following seven years of sporadic attention I decided to show the doll’s houses some love and began blogging my mini misadventures whilst job hunting. The interiors tend to have a more modern feel at the moment and I set myself the ’52 week challenge’, posting a mini tutorial or idea every Friday for the whole year. I’m pleased to say I succeeded but there were a few moments where I wondered if I’d bitten off more than I could chew with a weekly project like that!

It was a few months into the year when I decided to take the plunge and have a go at running the business. The blog had gained some lovely loyal readers who were incredibly encouraging so I contacted the Prince's Trust and was lucky enough to find myself part of their enterprise scheme.

It’s been, and continues to be, tough trying to get the business off the ground, (doll’s houses are really not ‘essential’ items are they?!) but I am literally doing my dream job so I can’t complain!

I love every part of the job (okay, maybe not accounts!) but my favourite bits have to be planning new rooms and themes and of course choosing stock!
It’s also great to hear from customers as to how they’re using their miniatures; I just had my first order from Australia which was very exciting! The little bits and pieces were destined for a 1940’s style house, exciting to think of Four Little Walls stock being so many miles away!

If you fancy having a nosey at what I’ve been up to or a little look around the houses pop over and say hello. A big thank you to Anna for having me post today, it’s been a pleasure!

Kat x

Thank you so much for sharing your story, Kat. I wish I was your Australian customer, building my dream 1940's doll's house! Despite it being really tough out there I love reading about people making their passion into an income, and you've certainly inspired me.

Inspiration from Mellor Ware: A Talk By a Creative Business

Yesterday I galvanised myself in the SPF50 (I know no other factor) and journeyed into Sheffield to attend a talk by Lianne Mellor, illustrator and owner of china and homewares company, Mellor Ware on the subject of 'Taking an Idea', where she explained how she grew her skills in illustration into a creative business.

Lianne's charming British wildlife illustrations are based on the idea that when us humans aren't looking, the cheeky animals come out to play. They currently feature on tea china such as teacups, teapots, sugar bowls, plates, milk jugs and cake stands, as she loves the fact that afternoon tea means quality time in great company, and a return to more traditional values and a slower pace of life. Recently she has added tea towels and oven gloves to the range, and all of her products are made in the UK.





Having recently celebrated its second birthday, Mellor Ware has gone from strength to strength. Lianne began selling her wares at art fairs, and has since got her range into Liberty, as well as Mary Portas' Mary shops in House of Fraser stores up and down the country. I stopped by Sheffield's Millennium Galleries to admire the Mellor Ware range completed just for them with the theme 'Under the Sea', too!

Here are some of Lianne's top tips to bear in mind if you're thinking of starting a creative - or any - business:

• Don't try to do everything. Concentrate on what you're really good at and don't saturate your company with too many products and services to begin with. Lianne really worked at developing her china range, only adding her textile items once she had created a name for herself.

• Be true to yourself, and make sure you're passionate about what you do - you can't possibly expect success otherwise.

• If there's something you're not so good at, whether it be accounts or photography, make use of someone else's talents - it'll free up your time to do what you do best.

• Have a plan, and make use of lists. Break down daunting tasks into smaller ones. This method will also help you to overcome your fears around progressing within your business and failure.

• Don't allow yourself to become isolated - it can happen easily when you work for yourself. Make sure you have a support network.

• Don't become reticent. It's a good idea to constantly review all the elements of your business to make sure they're working efficiently and that you're doing the best you can.

• The harder you work, the luckier you get.

Check out Mellor Ware's website and Etsy shop. If you're near Sheffield they are also holding Jubilee Workshops on Saturday 2nd and Monday 4th June where you can learn to decorate bone china with transfers and on-glaze transfer methods in your own design. The sessions include afternoon tea! Email Hello@MellorWare.co.uk or call 0114 221 0581 to find out more.

Hope this has helped to fill your Friday with inspiration. I'm certainly looking at the squirrels playing in my garden in a whole new light!

All photographs featured in this post are the property of Lianne Mellor at Mellor Ware.