Showing posts with label brooches. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brooches. Show all posts

Tuesday, 27 March 2012

March 27th, 2012

Today can be summed up in one word - stamps!

Having kept our eyes peeled for weeks today we finally found out the new 2012 stamp prices...oohhh there's some unhappy folks out there!  I suppose 60p for a first class stamp does seem a lot, especially when you ask for a book and it comes in at more than £7.00, but I just think it's such good value!  With fuel prices the way they are can you imagine how much it would cost you to drive your letter from the Scottish Highlands to Cornwall?!  An awful lot more than 60p!!

The one thing I do disagree with is the new scheme for pricing packets.  For those who haven't heard about it, a packet weighing anywhere between 0 and 750g will be one flat price.  It's an absolute winner if you're sending heavier things but for those selling small, light things it's pretty hideous.

It makes me worry about those of us with small, online businesses.  In some cases, especially for those people who make and sell textiles, postage (with packaging) will be at least half the prices of the products.  I have some brooches listed on my Etsy shop which, with the brooch pin on the back, are too big to be Large Letters, so on a £6.50 product you'll be paying £3.00 in P&P - I don't expect to be selling too many of those!!

Who knows, it may work out, but I really don't see this doing anything to boost online sales, for anyone!

Sunday, 4 September 2011

All You Need Is Love!

As well as the bigger pieces I make, I always like to have a good range of little "bits"...I'm sure everyone knows we're not in the best of times financially so I like to have a selection of little somethings for people to treat themselves (or others) to - we might all be skint but we all still deserve a little pressie every now and then!! 

My favourite of my little somethings is my love heart brooches.  There are two types, some entirely felt, and some felt and fabric, in lots of prints and colours so there's something for everyone.  And of course, no product of mine is complete without a button or several! ;-)

I love the felt hearts, I'm such a felt fan anyway and it really lends itself to being cut and manipulated when I stuff the hearts.  Style-wise I'm so pleased with these but if I'm to continue them I must learn to blanket stitch faster!!  They take forever!!!

The other batch are these fabric ones - fabric on the front, felt on the back, and they actually match my fabric clutch bag range (which, unless you've checked my Facebook or website you won't have seen yet!)  These are cut using those zig-zag scissors -  I want to call them pinking shears (spelling?!) but that reminds me of sometheing you'd use in gardening...anyways, that's what I use, and they're very effective but my goodness are they heavy!  I might be able to make the products quicker but I always have to allow for the time lost to hand cramp!!