As I write this much of my beloved Carlisle is under water. It's a strange experience and an odd mix of emotions; gratitude and relief that we are not flooded, sympathy for all those who are, sadness for all the damage and disruption. I'm finding it hard to concentrate, I keep checking the news and looking at the pictures and generally feeling a bit useless.
I can't go into work today (usually I would be running Prism Arts Studio group) because of the floods so I've found myself with some unexpected time on my hands. Usually this would be a good thing but it's not helping with the moping so I thought it best to give myself a specific task, such as writing a blog post! If you are able to and would like to donate money to help those affected by the floods you can donate to Cumbria Community Foundation through Just Giving.
 |
| My stall at Wreay |
At one time I did a lot of craft fairs but recently there have been so many other things to do that this side of things has fallen by the wayside. However, in the last weekend of November I had a stall at Wreay village hall for their Christmas Craft Fair. Despite fairly terrible weather (although nothing like as bad as this weekend) we had a good turnout and it was a friendly and well organised event, well supported by the community.
 |
| Melted plastic earrings |
 |
| Owls! |
 |
| My stall |
Doing this craft fair helped clarify a few things for me. Firstly, I really enjoy making things. one of the reasons I haven't done many fairs is that I haven't had time to make new things to sell. When I heard about this particular fair it sounded like it would be a good thing to do and I had quite a while to get stuff ready. In the run up to the fair I really enjoyed making some new things, playing with fabrics and coming up with new ideas.
 |
| Lino prints |
 |
| Blackbird lino print on a notebook |
 |
| Lino print made into a card |
Which leads nicely onto thing two, I don't want to do lots of craft fairs! Although I enjoyed the weekend and it was a good opportunity to hear what people thought of my stuff I don't want to spend my time selling, there are too many other things I want to do more.
 |
| Owls ready to be sewn up |
 |
| Owl key-rings |
 |
| Owl hot-water bottle cover |
However, I did really enjoy making things for the fair so I think what I would like to do in the New Year is re-open my Folksy shop and try and sell some bits and pieces on-line. There were lots of very talented artists and crafts people at the fair and this really inspired me to get making. So, it's off to the studio I go!
 |
| Brooches |
 |
| Decorations |
 |
| Buttons |
