Showing posts with label Handmade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Handmade. Show all posts
New in Handmade June
New in HandMade May
Sammy's Handmade Christmas Tree 2016
Every year My Christmas tree has a theme, yes, I am not sorry, I am one of 'those' people. When we add kids to our family they will get to sort out the tree, but until then it is all mine. This year I was planning to go with a kind of winter forest thing, then I saw our friend Claire (aka Claireabellemakes) was bringing out some limited edition Christmas decorations and I had an even better idea. This year all the decorations on my tree are handmade by independent UK Designer/Makers.
Gifts for Your Stocking All Under £10
Our last gift guide may be the best one yet and all the handmade items on it are under £10. Aside from it making them all a complete bargain, they are all perfect stocking stuffers. They would also make your partner the happiest Secret Santa in the land! I don't know about you but this is one stocking I would LOVE to receive.
I really hope you have enjoyed our guides and that it has helped you with your handmade shopping this year. We would love to see if you have bought any of the gifts on our guides, do let us know by tagging us on social media #livelovemake
Sammy and H xxx
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Man
Gifts for your Best Friend
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Gifts for Little Ones
Today's gift guide is for the littlest family members, You may not have any little ones of your own but there will no doubt be a niece or nephew, goddaughter or godson who would love one or two of the goodies in our round up. Why is it that tiny things are soooooo cute! Seriously we want our own sparkly glitter crowns!!
Sammy and H xx
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Man
Gifts for your Best Friend
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Gifts for your Parents
Your parents will love whatever you buy them because that's what being a parent is all about, but wouldn't it be lovely to get them something they will treasure? Personalising gifts is a great way to take them from great to awesome! A lot of these gifts have that option but get on them fast as personalised options often take slightly longer to be made and delivered and you don't want to miss out on the perfect parent present.
Sammy and H xx
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Man
Gifts for your Best Friend
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Gifts for Your Lady
Ladies, Girlfriends and Wives! Today's list is just for you. This is the post you need to forward to your significant other, to drop a, not so subtle hint that this is what you want for Christmas! Those things that you love, but just wouldn't splash out on for yourself. You are welcome!
Sammy and H
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Man
Gifts for your Best Friend
Gifts For Your Man
Handmade gift guide number two is here and this one is for your Man. 10 amazing items from some of our favourite designer makers. Buying for the boys is notoriously difficult but these designers make it easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy.
Sammy and H xxx
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Best Friend
Gifts For Your Best Friend
Sorry not sorry for getting our gifts lists in order! We have put together 5 amazing gift lists for your nearest and dearest this Christmas and we are kicking off with 'Gifts for your Best Friend' the person that has listened to you all year long and been there for the best and worst of times. Treat them to some yummy handmade goodies this year. Our gift guides this year are 100% handmade from UK companies and independent businesses, so go on, get your shop on, as if you needed any excuse!
Sammy and H
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Man
Check out the rest of this year's guides here:
Gifts for your Little Ones
Gifts for your Pets
Gifts for your Parents
Gifts for your Lady
Gifts for your Man
Makers Month: Why Blogging is Important for your Handmade Business with The New Craft House
The Mollie Makes Handmade Awards 2016
Makers Month: Branding Q&A with HAM
Way back at the beginning of our Makers Month we had a brand Q&A with Kim from Finest Imaginery and now we thought we should share another great perspective on branding with Jo from HAM. So let's hear what insights she can give us to making your brand work for you.
Hello Jo, Could you tell our readers a little about yourself and your business?
Hi! I am the illustrator behind HAM and spend my time capturing moments from the contented life of Rabbit on a range of ceramics, wall art and paper goods. We sell direct online at hammade.com and through our family of stockists around the world.
Where/when did you decide that you wanted your own business?
I started working on HAM in 2010 after making the tough decision to leave the job I loved at the brand consultancy Wolff Olins. A lot of factors got me to this point: I’d always been hungry to start a business having grown up surrounded by people doing their own thing - both my parents and brother run companies. I’d also studied fine art at university and although I was working at a creative agency, I was a strategist and longed to be physically designing and making. The final push was getting ill in my mid 20s, which came a bit out the blue, and stopped me in my tracks for a year. I had to take some time off and whilst I was away I started filling up my sketchbook again and the HAM idea was born. Returning to work was definitely the best thing for me but my outlook on life had changed and I was now very much focused on living for the moment, so I took the plunge, left work and launched HAM in 2011.
Who do you design for?
HAM has quite a broad reach. I always hope to create things that all ages can enjoy. And I try and keep the themes and humour universal so language or culture isn’t a barrier.
Do you think you need a brand identity?
Absolutely! Brand is often mistaken as just a logo or the look of a business but it can do so much more. Think of your brand as an idea, something that defines what makes you special, then use it as a guiding principle or a blueprint for all that you do. Staying true to what you stand for will help keep your offer authentic and consistent and it’s a really powerful tool for helping make decisions about opportunities that come your way.
Does using social media help to build your customers?
Social media has revolutionized the way we do business, cutting out the middleman and enabling us to have a
direct conversation with a ton of potential customers all over the world. It’s a big part of our marketing strategy and best of all it’s free! It is evolving so quickly it’s tricky to keep up. We have a presence on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook and Instagram (my fave) and I’m keen to get to grips with the next wave of apps… Snapchat is next on my list!
Top tips to building your brand.
- Really think about what you stand for as a designer, the idea driving your work and how that makes you different.
- Use brand as brief for all areas of your business: from the development of collections and deciding which events to show at, to planning collaborations and figuring out your tone of voice.
- Get family and friends involved. There are always ups and downs so share concerns with those around you and gauge feedback wherever possible.
- With time and experience your brand will naturally evolve so don’t be worried if the offer or brand idea changes and needs a refresh.
- Invest time in thinking about your customer experience. Use your brand to help make packaging, web content, newsletters and social media really unique.
- Keep striving to think how can I make this better? And don’t forget to celebrate the good times!
Time to share the love, name some of your favourite designers.
There is a gang of us that all started around the same time – we see each other regularly at trade shows and we’ve become pals, something that’s important when you work in such an insular way. It’s been amazing to watch their collections flourish and their following grow. Aside from loving and respecting what they do they are all ace people. Highly recommend checking out…
Tom Pigeon, Tori Murphy, Lisa King London, Chase and Wonder, Not Another Bill, Kangan Arora, Lindsey Lang, Wrap Magazine and Richard Brendon.
Thanks so much Jo for having a chat with us about her brand and that super cute rabbit! Some great new people to stalk (We mean check out) on social media too!
Hope you have found it useful and it may have given you some inspiration into making your brand work for you more!
H & Sammy, xxx
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Five Simple Ways to Support Handmade
One of the most wonderful things, that we never imagined when we started this blog almost five years ago, was the amazing people we would meet and make friends with along the way. It is something we never expected and is the thing that keeps us going after all this time. We find it hard to go a week without discovering a new maker or designer or illustrator crush.
For us though it is not just about buying awesome things, it is about supporting our friends old and new, supporting talented individuals who are putting themselves out there and creating careers for themselves. Supporting our local economy, supporting British design and home grown creatives. We are here to tell you how you can start to do the same.
1. Shop local, it supports the economy. Take a look around your local shops and galleries, you may be surprised at what you can find not far from your door. Check out local fairs and markets, you will often find really amazing quality and service, with people who are a part of your community creating amazing products. By shopping with them you are getting better value for money and most likely helping the environment by reducing your carbon foot print and waste by buying higher quality products.
2. Local is not the only way to make your support known in the handmade community, online marketplaces like Etsy, Folksy, Not on the High Street and shortly Look Lane are a great place to find bespoke gifts and unique products.
3. Instagram has become an amazing showcase for brands of all size, but it is particularly great for finding small boutique brands and connecting with those that run them, I cannot tell you how many products I have bought from designers I have found on Instagram. Following accounts like Renegade and Etsy will introduce you to lots of new makers all over the world. If Instagram isn't your thing, try Facebook or Twitter, most makers will be on at least one of these platforms.
4. When you find makers you like buying their product is not enough! Sharing your finds on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook or even just with your friends will in turn help you find more makers and help them to spread their message further than they can alone. Word of mouth is still a powerful tool, especially in this digital age. If you find something you like shout about it, to everyone you know!
5. We are not all made of money so if buying all your products from designer makers isn't an option but you still want to support the handmade community why not check out what you can do to help. Websites and initiatives like UK Handmade, Small Business Saturday or the Just a card campaign have been instrumental in bringing the issues effecting independent businesses to the fore front of peoples attentions. There may be events or initiatives in your local area that could use volunteers. If you have accounting skills, offer some lower rates for independent traders or if you are in marketing offer to run a workshop. If you don't have a local craft fair near you, organise one! The answer is if you can't give your money, give your time or support.
These are just five ways to support handmade, there are lots more but we think these are a great place to start. If you have some to add please let us know in the comments below.
Handmade fans for life
Sammy and H xxx
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Top Ten Handmade Gifts to Buy
So that should be everything done and dusted gift wise, now you can sit back and enjoy the countdown to Christmas. If you have the perfect handmade gift that we haven't included in our list please link it up in the comments below or on post a pic on Instagram and link us @liveit.loveit.makeit in the comments with who you would gift it to!
Sammy xxx
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Top Ten Handmade Gifts to Make
How amazing are all those DIY's! I may be a little biased towards a few of them in particular, but truly that is your whole Christmas List done and dusted right there! If you don't think you have time to make all these awesome DIY's, head back next week for our guide of handmade gifts to buy - from some of our fave creatives.
Have a lovely weekend
Sammy xxx
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