My SkyBlueRed Adventure: a tale of selling crafts + eating cake

Hellos.

For the second year in a row, throughout September, I'll be joining in with Shimelle Laine's Learn Something New Every Day project and in the first prompt Shimelle suggested we ease ourselves in gently and begin documenting the new month by answering the question: "What do you define as your last big adventure?" and for once I didn't need to ponder, pause or think about my response ...

Because it only happened the day before!

And this it what it looked like ...

9.30am, Friday 31st August. My Dining Room. Pre-Big Adventure:

 At this point I was feeling a little nervous, but not nervous enough to forget to take a photo before I left the house.

I'm a scrapbooker.

It's what we do.

Then, half an hour later, I was there.

10:00am, SkyBlueRed Studio, Guisborough [N.Yorks], The Big Adventure begins ...

SkyBlueRed Studio is a recently opened gallery, shop and tearoom where I'm renting out some space in which to sell my paper packs, creativity kits, collages and cards for [at least] the next 4 months.

And, as it's the first time I've tried to sell my wares offline ... it really does feel like an adventure!

Here's some of my kits, awaiting price labels in their lovely bright workshop:

 And here's where they'll be going on display, in the shop area:

While I'm hiring out a particular size of retail space, it doesn't mean my products will be all kept together in one spot, rather they're going to be spread out and scattered amongst all of the other lovely handmade items by local artists and makers:

Do I sound excited? That'll be because I am!

I've always believed that my packs are the kind of thing that, once people get them in their hands, their real-life, fleshy, touchy-feely hands, their crafty-makey-stash-collecty hands ... then they'll find them almost irresistible ... and now I guess I'll find out whether I was right about that!

Right now, now that it's done and dusted and the packs are on the shelves, it feels so straightforward. So simple. So do-able.

Yet, doing this, taking the leap, putting my self and my products 'out there' has taken a lot of debating, plucking-up courage and back and forth arguing with myself about what to do and whether I dare do it!

Then I did.

So, if there's a "maybe I could try that" voice in your head somewhere ... whispering even with the tiniest of voices ... and you're shushing it up because you think it's all too scary and that people like you don't do that kind of thing ... then please let my little adventure prove you wrong.

In the nicest possible way!

And just let the voice talk to you some more. For as long as it takes. Then see what adventure it takes you off on.

So, with all the businessy bits out of the way, with my products handed over and my meeting with one of the gallery's directors complete, I ended the beginning of the adventure by doing three familiar things ... to restore some sanity normality ...

•  1: I bought something! A ceramic heart shaped brooch to be precise.

But not purely from an urge to have something so lovely in my grubby hands, but also because it felt like an appropriately karmic gesture. I'm a big believer that 'What goes around, comes around' and 'you get what you give' ... so it felt right to buy something from a place where I'd like to sell something.

And then ...

• 2: I had a cup of tea [because that's the British solution to most of life's dramas]

and ...

• 3: I ate cake! And it was very nice, very large, orange & lemon butter cream cake at that!

Both from the SkyBlueRed tearoom, all served on wonderfully mixed vintage crockery:

I'm pretty sure that all the best adventures end with cake. Wouldn't you say?

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So, let me leave you by politely [if not subtly!] suggesting that:

• if you're ever in the vicinity;
• or if you ever find yourself in the wider Teesside or North Yorkshire area in general ...
• and you can spare a mini-detour ...

... then maybe you - and your real-life touchy-feely stash-collecty hands - would care to drop into SkyBlueRed and just try [but not very hard] to resist my packs ... and their cakes!

Julie x

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You can find out more about SkyBlueRed Studio via their website and keep up-to-date via their Facebook page.

p.s: in case your hands are simply too far away to reach ... then fear not ... it's business as usual in my online shop.