Merry Inky Christmas

Print Class Part 2

My print class has finished for the year and I feel a bit sad that it's over... luckily it's starting again in the new year and we will be learning new things... yay!
Being a bit rubbish and totally snowed under with work I only made it to about half the classes this term but I did finally manage to get a handle on repeat lino cuts... not contented to "do something simple to try it out first" as the teacher advised I decided that I really wanted to do a circular pattern. One lino cut which when turned thru 90 degrees would form a circle.
This involved rather more swearing in the registering process than my class mates were comfortable with, the teacher was impressed with my ambition, which I took to mean that I was running before I had learned to walk but then I have never really been one for half measures!
I decided to try a wren on a nest and I am really quite pleased with the result, the print quality isn't amazing but we have been promised a go with the presses next year which should improve that... and I shall be trying it out myself at home with some oil based ink as soon as the festive season is out of the way.
I also made one in blue and brown which is going to be my mum's Christmas gift... it's a shame I couldn't go to all the classes as I now have so many ideas that I think my brain may explode! They will have to wait for the new year tho a the festive shopping rush is in full swing and my inky fingers are being kept very busy wrapping orders!
x
Mel

Last Posting Dates for Christmas 2010

Crikey O'Rielly people! I can't quite believe it myself but it's almost upon us... the last posting dates to guarantee your parcels arrive for Christmas from my lovely shop are as follows:

Sat 4 Dec 2010 South & Central America, Caribbean, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Far East (including Japan), Australia and New Zealand

Thursday 9 Dec 2010 Eastern Europe, USA and Canada

Mon 13 Dec 2010 Western Europe

Monday 20th Dec United Kingdom

As always the sooner you get your order in the better... International buyers remember I am based on the rainy east coast of Britain and that items can occasionally get trapped and held hostage by customs so order now to be sure! UK buyers... we love our Great British Post Office but remember they aren't always as good as we'd hope!As an added incentive I am running an coupon code in my shop for all my lovely blog friends just enter the code:

CHRISTMASPUDDING

At checkout for a very tasty 10% discount on all your orders... offer is running right up until Christmas eve so you have lots of time to get those stocking filler sorted or even just treat yourself because I know you have all been very very good this year!

An Inky Update... Busy Busy Busy!

Inkmeup has been having a hectic couple of weeks so this blog post is a little overdue I am afraid. Last week Inkmeup's very own Doris lavender bag was luck enough to be featured in an Etsy Finds Email... so began a scrabble to best take advantage of the feature with frantic sewing of Doris' galore!
The Doris-a-thon resulted in 12 Doris's all clucking their ways to new homes and several other creatures finding a new home too!My sewing machine has gone into overdrive and as well as a whole Gaggle of Doris lots more Kitties have been made, some with festive red bows I time for the holidays season and while I was scouting around the flat for a place to store stock I cam e across a box full of zip and just had to make some pouches! Available in Doris, Kitty and Wren!


Also my Robin Illustrations and tree decorations hit the shop too... selling 3 before I even had a chance to list them... I really like the Red Breasted Robin, larger decoration but the cheeky robin makes me smile! Robins are also available as notebooks, prints and lavender bags and of course my lino cuts which I am so proud of! There will be Robin cards soon too!
So I am already changing up the gears for a great festive season, I half terrified and half excited... I know this year is going to be huge, not bad for a shop I opened just to pay for my gocco printer!

Lino Printing Fun

I have recently been spending my Tuesday evenings at a little print class at the local sixth form college run by a very talented artist friend of mine.I have already got some print qualifications but always thought that to make prints you needed a press... my friend convinced me I didn't and encouraged me to come along to learn how... I have always loved the process of lino prints, it's so different from gocco, and I love the style of print that comes out of it.
I had a great time learning and it's been inspiring and invigorating to try something different for a change. It's also been wonderful to meet other printers and see how they work. Next term we are going in to greater detail on how to make repeat patterns and hopefully will be printing out own wrapping papers for christmas.In the mean time I shall soon be introducing a couple of my lino prints to Inkmeup... my classic wren design has been give a new twist and of course in the run up to Christmas I am finding myself increasingly Robin focused!
I can't wait for the next lesson... but I really need to do my homework first!

Inkmeup... 1 Year On

I just celebrated my 1 year anniversary in this shop on etsy so traditionally the 1 year mark is a time for me to reflect on the past year, my achievements, my failures and my future plans.
When I first opened Inkmeup I had been selling on etsy for around 3 years already in various guises, Feltmeup Designs being the most successful of them, I had decided to open another shop basically to justify the fact that I have spent a rather large sum of money on a Gocco printer... my only aim was to make back the money I had spent on it and maybe a little extra for supplies so I could keep playing with my new toy... Boy was I in for a shock!
I opened the store in October... just in time for Christmas I thought... and I was right, in the run up to Christmas I hit 100 sales, let's bear in mind I took over a whole year in Feltmeup to get that many. What was I doing right? Beats me really... if I knew I'd probably be a better businesswoman!My whole approach to Inkmeup has been without plan or reason and more or less I just made what I felt like making at the time. Back around July time I bought myself a Gocco stamp so I could print on fabric... I actually love it more than just the normal prints, the ink has a different consistency and gives a gorgeous quality of line on fabric... I have so many Ideas and I haven't even tried half of them!It was around this time that I decided I should stop treating Inkmeup as a hobby and start thinking of it as a business since it was bringing in as much business as Feltmeup so I started the blog and Inkmeup fan page on facebook... I am staunchly resisting having an Inkmeup twitter account, mostly cos I know I wouldn't use it and find the idea of having to build up a new twitter following a bit daunting.I hit 200 sales over the weekend... and I have to admit I am a bit baffled by the success even now. We haven't had any failures as such, the only one being the teatowels I bought to print which I haven't sold a single one of, I think there is just too much competition out there for teatowels... but any I have left at Christmas will make fab presents so I'm not too worried.
I'm pretty sure the future holds good things for Inkmeup too... I have so many ideas, most of which involve quitting my day job, but what I don't have is unlimited time that's the biggest frustration, my Inky days tend to be limited to 1 or 2 a month so I tend to be just frantically printing and then staggering my listing... I don't really have time to develop ideas and take them any further then making pretty prints.

I really hope that between my businesses I can quit my day job soon, my plan for next year is to actually have a plan, quit my day job and set targets... my day job which should only take up 20 hours a week saps all my energy... I you really need energy to be creative!
Here's hoping that this time next year I can write a blog post about my life as a full time crafter! Until that day I just leave you with a link to my Sale section so you can grab a bargain and help me reach my goal!
x
Mel

UK Silly Sale... let the silliness begin...

Tonight at 7pm (GMT that's 7pm in the UK folks) all silliness will break free in the first coordinated UK Silly sale, 24 hours of silly prices, reductions and promoting each other like crazy.

Uk sellers have banded together to bring you a whole world of silliness by reducing their goodies, offering free shipping, standing on their heads, juggling monkeys... no wait ... I'm getting carried away again!

Just go to etsy and type in UK SILLY SALE to find all the bargains on sale and begin your Christmas shopping maybe! This is the best time to pick up a bargain so get on board! I will be offering half price on selected tweets and silly prices on selected prints at Inkmeup but remember it doesn't kick off in earnest till tonight!