Craft a creative business book event

Last Friday was one of those Friday night events you look forward to for ages...there was excitement in the queue waiting for the doors to open. I was worried I wouldn't be able to attend because I had put my back out, but I just had to go! My boyfriend drove me up there as I could barely walk and he and my brother in law went for a pint while me and my sister got ready to spend some quality Friday night time together.

No, we were not at a pub or a club or the theatre or a restaurant. We were at Exeter Sewing Machine Shop for the launch of Fiona Pullen's (of the sewing directory) book Craft a Creative Business. It reminded me of the first time I went to a midnight Harry Potter launch, amused by the atmosphere being similar to going to see a famous band.

As we entered the shop, we were greeted by the lovely team at the shop and given a goody bag. You know when you go to a conference and get given some liveried bag of papers and a pen or something and you are kind of excited because that ,might be the best bit of the conference? It was a bit like that but so much better! The goody bags really were astounding! The shop has just started stocking Kaffe Fassett fabrics (drool!- you can see some of the prints on my post the next quilt) and they gave us each a fat quarter! At £4 a piece, that would have made an amazing gift alone, but the bags were packed full of goodies - needle threaders, thread scissors (mine have gone missing somehow so that was handy!) a tape measure, a book, catalogues a selection of some new fabrics coming out from Art Gallery Fabrics in the New Year. Amazing!

The contents of one amazing goody bag!

Art Gallery Fabrics coming out in the new year

 Rosie is putting together sewing kits for her two stepsons (aged 6&7) who both love sewing, so some of the bits will be used for that. The staff were really kind and let us have a couple of spare ones (ok technically our partners came in to pick us up and they let them have goody bags....for us!)

Fiona was lovely and we had a good chat with her. A buffet and wine was laid on in the top classroom, and I managed to haul myself up the stairs somehow. We also had 10% off on the night so I bought a couple of bits of fabric. I thought I was quite reserved!

The book is really useful for me as I start up my business, and I intend to read it all the way through, but at the moment I have been flicking through and reading the bits that jump out at me. There is advice and info on every element of running a creative business- from taxes to blogging, to photography tips to finding your USP. While the book is attractive and brightly coloured, it is not just full of pretty space-filler pictures like some are, but bursting with great writing and advice.

You can find the book for sale on amazon here but I would recommend supporting your local independent sewing or book shop if they have it in stock. Exeter Sewing Machine Company have copies in stock and as a bonus you can pick up some gorgeous Kaffe Fasset Fabrics while you are there!