In Memory...

In March this year a very tragic event took place within the family of a very close friend of mine. The 13 year old son, the youngest of two, collapsed and died. The event shook my home town and as with others I could not comprehend or expel the all consuming thoughts of what the family could be going through. All I kept saying to myself was 'how can I help' but I felt so helpless, being a mum myself I could not even begin to imagine the pain and confusion of suddenly losing a child especially, when you haven't said your goodbyes! Then it came to me, I had been researching moulding kits and testing the possibilities and quality of print reproduction, maybe I could contact the funeral director to see if it would be possible to take the print of the deceased?? And to my joy it was possible, so I contacted the family to see if they would like to capture his fingerprint. Thankfully I have been able to make beautiful keepsakes and treasure something so unique to him and meaningful to them.

This triggered the thought processes behind creating an 'In Memory' category within Distinctive Impressions.

Moulding Kits

As I mentioned previously, I have come across the need to start using moulding kits to send out to customers to capture fingerprints from afar. When I am out and about I love combining the compounds and capturing the different textures I come across but putting the responsibility of mixing the compounds together and taking impressions of the fingerprints on my customers is a totally different ball game. The use of moulding kits to take fingerprint impressions actually goes against my grain as I am unable to achieve near perfect impressions unlike those taken directly into the clay. Hence it is more of a challenge to provide my customers with the high quality products on which I pride myself and the standard of the print reproduction is completely out of my hands. Saying all of that, I have managed to utilise the moulding kits, to what I believe to be, the maximum of their potential....

A Heart in the Pavement

I am always looking out for new textures, designs and inspritation and whilst in Lytham St. Anne's, Lancashire last weekend I came across this heart constructed in pebbles set into the pavement, amazingly it has been there since 1895! The heart is a signature shape for Distinctive Impressions and I felt the need to photograph it and blog it for all to see.....

Down to Business

As a business in the world of arts & crafts two of the major things I have had to sort out are insurance and a bank account. Public liability is so important when you work with the general public and attending craft fairs, the last thing I need is to have any come back that could effectively shut me down! Although it is a quite scary thought at what you expect to be a huge financial outlay initially.

So after lots of research and quote collecting I decided upon Ian Wallace Craft Insurance . They were so quick to quote, really friendly staff and the policy covered everything I needed at the best price.

The Abbey National give me free business banking for life which is perfect for a small business starting out and touch wood, to date, they have been brilliant to work with and the on-line banking element is so hassle free. I must admit I only accept cash and cheques at the moment so when my business has grown enough to accept debit/credit cards I will need to delve further into the research and opportunities.

As I mentioned before word of mouth has been the best sales and marketing tool for me to date. Thankfully all of my customers have been really happy with everything I have made. I have also started to get enquiries through Internet searches which is a brilliant feeling....I am being searched for on Google!!! Internet searches for my business have forced me to looking at how my business can go national....the dreaded moulding kits!!!

Catch Up!!!

Well it has been such a long time since I have made an entry on here...I am ashamed that it has been just over 7 months!!! and my only excuse is that I just don't seem to find quality time to sit and write but that appears to be a consequence of running my own business alongside being a full time mum. From today I will discipline myself and make the time just wait and see.....

The last 7 months have been a huge learning curve, extremely mad , loads of fun and soooo exciting. At the beginning of March I attended a wedding fair in Salisbury which was my first show in the face of the public with my whole range of products. It wasn't necessary the best day for sales volume but it was a fantastic opportunity for exposure in Salisbury alongside confirmation that the wedding market is where I want and need to be involved in. It also gave me the perfect opportunity to look at the mechanics of my display. As you can see from the photo below, on first impressions my products appear to be adequately displayed however, I wasn't happy with how it looked...it just wasn't right and you will see in blog entries over the next few weeks that I have made some changes for the better.

Two of my closest friends popped into see me and placed a huge order for weddings gifts to present on their special day, I felt so privileged to be asked to do...thank you guys.

On reflection, I have actually received quite a bit of business across Hampshire and Wiltshire through attending the show so it proved to be a fantastic marketing opportunity.