#CraftBlogClub Secret Santa....

It’s that time of year again and we are SO excited here at Craft Blog Club! This year marks our fifth Secret Santa, can you believe it?! I think it’s safe to say it’s our favourite #craftblogclub challenge of the year.

Here is how to join in:

• If you want to take part please email us at craftblogclub@gmail.com.  Please include your name, twitter name, email address and postal address. Email us by 8pm on Tuesday 7th November 2017. 
• We will then email everyone back by Thursday 9th November with the name and address of the person you are making a gift for.
• You then make that person a Christmas gift, this can be anything you like and made from any craft. It would be lovely for everyone to receive their gift in time for Christmas, therefore we have set a deadline for posting the gift by Wednesday 20th December 2017, which the last day for posting 1st class mail within the UK. 
• Make sure you include a note revealing who you are.  Who you make for won’t necessarily be the person that makes for you.
• Please only sign up if you can make and send a gift by the deadline. As crafters we all know how much time and love goes into making something handmade so let’s make sure no one misses out.
• Anyone can take part, don't worry if you have never joined our chats or taken part in a challenge before, we'd love for you to be involved.

The real excitement then begins as we all receive a special handmade Christmas gift from our Secret Santa! We ask that you write a blog post about the wonderful gift you receive and about the gift you made. We suggest you do this after Christmas (so not to spoil any surprises) and by Tuesday 9th January 2018, which will be our first #craftblogclub of 2018. It will make for a great first chat of the year to discuss our makes and gifts.

I hope you are as excited about this challenge as we are. We love seeing all the amazing gifts you lovely lot make for one another.

Want to know more about the #CraftBlogClub? find all the details here.

Blogtacular 2017....

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Last month I attended Blogtacular for the first time and it was amazing!  So before I tell you all about the weekend, what is Blogtacular? 

"Blogtacular is the place for people whose hearts beat with creativity to come together to meet, share and inspire."

It's not just for bloggers, it's for small businesses/entrepreneurs that have an online presence.

The past few years I read everyone's posts about Blogtacular and wishing I had been there but I was put off by the price.  The more I read about it and how people go year after year I decided to take the plunge and invest in myself and I am so glad I did. It is worth every single penny and this is why....

My tribe 
This was the ethos of the event, the creative community. The goody bag says it all....

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

It was great being with creative people who get you and understand when you say you're a blogger, no explanation needed! 

Meeting lots of like minded people was definitely a highlight for me.  I got to meet people who I admire and follow on social media as well as catch up with friends I already know and make new ones.

There were lots of opportunities to socialise on the day of the conference but they also had fringe events on the Friday which were a great way to get to know people.  There were simultaneous photowalks and a videowalk across London. I went on the photowalk in East London around Shoreditch, there'll be another blog post with all my photos from this but in the meantime you can check out the hashtag #Blogtacularphotowalkeast on Instagram.

On Friday night there was a get together at West Elm which if you have not been is an amazing shop selling unique furniture and home decor.  This was a time to chat, mingle and drink unicorn smoothies! I actually didn't get to try the smoothie as there was a huge queue for them so I stuck to the cider that was on offer, that's more my thing anyway.

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

There were opportunities to discuss various topics in groups.
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Unicorn smoothie!
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

It was an early 8:30am start on the day of the conference but we were welcomed with pastries and decent coffee, this was a good sign that it was going to be a good day! 

There were three sessions of workshops with a choice of four for each one but I didn't miss out, all of the sessions were filmed so we can access them at a later date. What a relief as it was hard to choose but before the workshops we were welcomed with a keynote by Natalie Lue....

Natalie Lue ~ @baggagereclaim / @natlue
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Natalie delivered lots of positive messages and shared her pearls of wisdom....

"Creativity can't be controlled. Be open, let it go!"

"Take Action - Nothing is Perfect"

"Your Plan is not THE Plan"

A moment of clarity and reassurance came when Natalie started talking about how nothing is linear. "By doing A then B and C does not mean X,Y and Z will happen". This is so true, it can be so frustrating when you do all the right things and the outcome you planned for doesn't happen!  It's just the way it is sometimes and it happens to everyone at some point.

Natalie's address has made me really look at what I want from my business not what I think I should be doing.  I need to believe more in what I do. 

What impressed me about all the speakers was they inspired and shared their knowledge without a sales pitch or talking about themselves. The sessions were jam packed with useful information.

Workshops

My first session was creative writing, can you tell?!

Greta Solomon ~ @greta_solomon / @Greta.Solomon
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Greta shared brilliant techniques to use and we had an opportunity to practice them in the session.  This was helpful for any type of writing and will help me find my style as well as help with product descriptions.

Next up for me was storytelling through Instagram...

Katy English ~ @MissKatyEnglish / @misskatyenglish
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

This has made me take a step back and look at my overall brand and how I communicate with you all across social media. It turns out I don't need to put everything on Instagram!  By sticking to 2 or 3 themes not only is my feed consistent but it's easier to manage. Everything else can go on stories which I have been using a lot more since.

The other workshop I chose to attend was on self doubt....

Sas Petherick ~ @saspetherick
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

“Self doubt has absolutely nothing to do with your capability”.

OMG! This workshop was designed for me! I am frequently consumed by self doubt which can lead to anxiety.  Sas's thoughts on self doubt were so insightful and the exercises she took us through really helped me understand what my fears and self doubt mean. 

The group was great as everyone was sharing their stories and fears (even I had a go on the microphone!). It turns out I'm not alone in the self doubt camp.  I'm thinking of doing a post dedicated to this, what do you think?

Closing Keynote was by Emma Gannon.....

Emma Gannon ~ @emmagannon / @emmagannonuk
Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Emma talked about the current climate and how blogging is not just about the blog anymore. It’s about creating a platform, and using that platform for other things. 

We are a generation of more than one skill, Emma is a Blogger / Podcaster / Author, I'm a Designer / Maker / Blogger / Small Business owner, what are you?

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Attention to detail

I loved the attention to detail, the amount of hard work and thought that was put in to make sure it was a quality, enjoyable event.  Even in the run up to the event the emails, Twitter chats and blog posts made me feel less nervous as a newbie and I knew what to expect.  

The venue was decorated by the talented B of Pop Pop Papier.  She filled the space with colourful balloons and streamers that were Intasgram-tastic! It even gave me the opportunity to finally update my profile picture. 

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

The food was amazing! Lets just take a minute to appreciate these amazing chocolate puddings we had at lunch....

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

Image (c) Amber-Rose Photography / Blogtacular

I would never make a food blogger because I eat everything before taking any photos so you'll have to trust me on this, the food was amazing and there was plenty of it for breakfast, lunch and breaks.

We were even provided notebooks (this will make it easier to find my notes to refer back to in the future instead of trying to work out which notebook they are in!). My notebook was designed by Katie Moody and Cakes with Faces designed the other one, her website is worth checking out especially this t-shirt which I now own.

As we left we got a goody bag, the print was designed by Judy Andrews ad look at the goodies we got inside....

Goodies by Hello Memo, Craftiosity, Crafty Fox Market & Shopping with Soul, Twin Pines, Baking Time Club, Cult Vision and A Spoonful of Sugar Co alongside a Blogtacular planning notepad.

There was also a beautiful biscuit by Honeywell Bakes, and chocolate by Chococo,but they got eaten on the train on the way home, I told you I'd make a terrible food blogger!

I think this was the right event at the right time for me. I want to grow creatively as well as grow my business but I haven't felt confident to take the exciting but unknown path. The overall experience made me realise that I've given myself too many parameters to live and work by, but screw that!  It's time to go forth and chase those dreams.

Hopefully you are still with me, it's a lengthy post but I couldn't leave anything out!  
I can't wait for Blogtacular 2018, will I see you there?

This post contains photos by Amber-Rose Photography who were the professional photographers of the event and Blogtacular who have kindly allowed attendees to use them. I have credited the images that are not mine.

#CraftBlogClub Challenge ~ crafty resolutions....

It's time for our first #CraftBlogClub challenge of 2017!

The challenge is.... "Crafty Resolutions".

Following the popularity of this challenge in previous years, we thought it would be perfect to start 2017 challenging you to learn a new craft or technique.

Whatever craft you want to learn this challenge is hopefully the motivation to get you started.  Alternatively, you may have received a new craft tool/machine for Christmas that you still need to take out the box, it's time to get it out and give it a go!

As it is a new craft/technique and the thought of having to complete a project may be terrifying. Don't worry, the whole point of the challenge is to have fun learning a new skill and if you don't have a completed project we still want to see your work in progress.

If you don't have time to learn a new craft or don't have one in mind, why not go back to something you haven't done in a while? Dust off those sewing machines / crochet hooks / knitting needles / paint brushes etc and get crafting.

Anyone can join in the challenge, don't worry If you've never joined a #CraftBlogClub chat before, everyone is welcome!

The Rules....

• Challenge;
• Learn a new craft, or,
• Try a new technique within a craft you already enjoy, or,
• Pick up a craft you haven't done in a long time.

• We will be revealing our makes in our Twitter chat on 14th March 2017 and If you have a blog also present your lovely project in a blog post by this date.
• Please mention #CraftBlogClub in your blog post and link back to this page.
• Let us know how you’re doing throughout the challenge on Twitter. Don't forget to use our #CraftBlogClub hashtag.

I hope you will join in and I can't wait to see what everyone makes!!...

Psst.... If you don't know what #CraftBlogClub is and you like the sound of this challenge, we'd love you to join in and you can find out more here.

2017 Goals....

It's that time of year to plan and think about what you want to achieve in the year ahead. I'm taking my experiences and lessons from 2016 to make 2017 a great year for me and my business, so this is what I have planned....

This blog

• I'll go back to posting weekly with more tutorials in 2017.
• Write everyday. This will help keep on top of all the posts I want to write but also improve my writing, practice makes perfect! I worry this may not be realistic but I'm planning to fit in 15 minutes every day whilst having my morning coffee.
• Start my #100fizzijaynepatterns challenge inspired by #100dayofpatternsCBC. I will be designing and creating my own patterns.  It's not a 100 day challenge, I don't want to put myself under that sort of pressure but through the course of 2017 I will create 100 patterns using various techniques. I'm really excited about starting this and seeing how I develop creatively.

My business 

• Start teaching craft workshops. I want to share my passion and knowledge to help others have a creative lifestyle. I'm in the early stages of planning and sourcing locations in my local area at the moment but hope to start these in Spring.
• Regularly list products into my Folksy shop, at least 10 per month.
• Launch new products and designs. 
• Following the success of selling through No3 Royston I want to find another stockist in 2017.

To help me plan and to actually achieve these goals I am following the 100 Day Goal and using the Your Best Year 2017: Productivity Workbook and Creative Business Planner

Personal

I need to have a better work/life balance, so I will take time off when I need it, I just need to work on not feeling guilty and be able to switch fizzi~jayne off once in a while! 

I want to....

• Read more. I have a pile of fiction as well as business development books I want to read.
• I started to practice calligraphy last year and this year I want to try out brush lettering.
• Sketch more. I want to make time to just doodle and improve my drawing skills.
• Learn German. I did a year of German at school and was actually quite good at it but due to timetable clashes I chose to continue in French and Art. I always wanted to go back to it and I've been recommended the App Duolingo which I'm finding really easy to fit into my day. I feel a trip to Germany needs to be planned for this year!
• If nothing else, I need to start believing in myself more and not put any limits on what I can achieve.

Overall I want a healthy, happy and creative 2017. 

Disclaimer: The Amazon links in this post are affiliated.