Portfolio Visits

Bellybutton, Heaton Moor - 0161 9020200. rachel@bellybuttondesigns.com. Email sent awaiting reply.

Fred Aldous, Manchester - Too busy for in store app, send work as PDF to paul@fredaldous.net.

Oklahma, Manchester - Owner, Nicola Payne in Weds/Thurs. oklahoma.manchester@virgin.net. Email sent awaiting reply.

American Graffiti, Manchester - Owner in Mondays. Contact on 0161 2283677.

Not for ponies, Afflecks Palace - Contact owner closer to date. 07841871591.

Thunder Egg, Manchester - Owner, Mandy - 0161 2350606. thunderegg@tiscali.co.uk. Appointment cancelled. Awaiting confirmation of new one.

Magma, Manchester - 020 72429503. Left details awaiting reply.

Grin, Manchester - Call Owner Mark on Monday on 0151 7099810.

Urban Outfitters, Manchester - 0161 8176640. Contacted visual merchandiser at str207@urbanout.com. Awaiting reply. Usually available Tues/Weds.

Topshop, Selfridges - Visual merchandiser, Call Nicha on Monday on 0161 838 0735. Contact Head Office.xd

Joy, Sheffield - Contact Head office on 02078200575.

Papersalad - Contacted, awaiting reply via email. info@papersalad.co.uk.

Work Experience with SmartInkJet

Steven Martinson founder of SmartInkJet is a friend of mine and wants some business cards designing for his company. He'd heard of my experience working at North Cheshire Studios and asked me if I would design them for him. I'm being paid so it's good to have some work my way through that summer experience. Discussed with him the type of font he would like and the colours, so going to be getting on with it. Will post the outcome when they are complete.

http://www.smart-inkjet.co.uk/

Work Experience at Pure Innovations

I had my last day at Pure Innovations, which is the day centre for adults with learning difficulties. I've enjoyed my time there, in terms of experience it's really boosted my confidence as I was there primarily to encourage dialogue between the service users and to guide creative development. Working in the sessions you had to use your initiative a lot for the sessions to run smoothly and you always had to approach tasks calmly and clearly.

I held about 8 card making sessions in total, 2 were floral sessions where I'd cut out floral shapes previous to the session and they had to assemble them into their own designs on paper that was put on to 5x7 cards or placed directly on the card, this was an induction to colour and shapes in floral form. Another session was working with geometric, where I approached the session the same as the last by doing alot of the preparation myself. We did 2 sessions of this. Alot of the service users are unable to use scissors so preparation was needed for the sessions.

It was quite difficult guiding everyone though for this type of sessions because there were about 8 service user to 2 staff member, me and Abbi, and everyone wanted guidance with applying glue. It could be really frustrating, not with the service users because it's not their fault, just because there weren't enough of us to guide them.

So to overcome this, I thought of another technique of card making. Each service user would have an A4 sheet so mark make with paint with, without the use of paintbrushes. This was a fun experiment in getting the service users to get responses through paint using different utensils.

There were some great results, so to get the designs onto card we cut them into small rectangles and placed them on 5x7 cards. They looked really good and when they were wrapped in cellophane the looked to a professional standard, I plan to sell them at art and craft fairs I might be part of with profits going towards session materials.

We also tried using sticky colourful labels to create patterns, which had really good results on their own or mixed with mark making.


This is an example of the work done in the sessions I held. This work is by Diana, a service user with moderate learning difficulties. We focused on pattern, colour and shape.

In the end I had to leave the centre to focus more on my Uni work, but would go back again after Uni if I felt it would have some relevance in helping me establish my business. I did talk to the senior managers about selling some of the work through my own website once it is set up which they were really interested in.

Overall this has been a positive experience, I have gained confidence, a stronger intuition, a guide into progressing others creative perceptions, contacts, an insight to selling others work, a link with a charity and a stronger focus.

Sam Hobson - Optic Interview

Business Name?
Optic

Business Product?
Casual Clothing, Custom Clothing, Custom printing. Also Rider Management, Event management.

Who is your market?
Extreme sports athletes and fans.

How long has your business been established?
about 12 months

Do you have a website? If so who was the web design company?
We do currently have one under construction,www.opticltd.com. We have done the design and a friend is coding it for us!

Any unexpected expenditures?
Yeah, travel and expenses on events cost quite a lot. printer ink! costs a fortune. Mis-printed jobs and mistakes can be quite costly too.

What percentage gets spent on overheads?
Its difficult to say as i work from home and we haven't done our 1st year end accounts but id say about 25%


Do you sell directly to consumers or business users?
We sell both to trade and directly to consumers. Bulk to trade and stockists is good to generate steady turnover to enable us to get into the VAT threshold. Selling directly to consumers is cool for us at the moment as the profit margin is a lot bigger!

Can you give me a guide on what the profit margins are? ie. selling directly to a consumer and to a business user?
Typically, for example a T-Shirt will cost us £1.20 + vat. Printed they cost us £1.71. We sell those to trade customers for £9 and they Retail at £15 so the margin is 40% to trade.

How have you funded the set up of your business?
I got a job in a pub and worked for ages and didn't go out!

How do you publicise your product?
We Advertise by sponsoring riders and events with the clothing. Mainly our target market is Mostly males between ages 12-25. Kids love cool new clothing and stickers and anything they can get for free so we have tons of stickers to give away. We also use facebook which is super handy for getting at loads of people for free and relatively easily!

Which publicising method attributed your business the most?
Organising events and sponsoring pro riders!

How have Art & Craft Fairs/Trade shows attributed your product?
We haven't done any trade shows, we take stalls to major events to sell from and in november we will have a stand at the Dirtbike Show which is part trade part consumer so im yet to see how that goes!

What do you expect to happen in the next 12 months?
We will launch the website and gain some more structure to the business. More events and more coverage, magazine advertising and we have just set up a race team, we are working with some more industry companies to provide support packages for racers.

In what ways have you used google to advertise your product?
we aint!

How has your business been involved in fundraising?
We have given some free stuff to some charity events as prizes and some signed shirts by one of our pro riders to a charity auction.

Like you I would like to set up my own business but in Stationary, do you have any advice on setting up your own business?
Id say, put 200% into it or it wont get off the ground! get up early and stay up late! Try and use every possible contact you can to give yourself the upper hand on the competition. Try and be individual and different and give people a cast iron reason to buy your product over the others. Also be organised, once the paperwork gets out of hand its a big job to get everything sorted out again and it does nothing for your morale! make sure you stay motivated and try to work with other people if you work at home, its so easy to get lazy and not be productive! Also let people know what you're doing, you will be surprised how keen people will be to help out in any way possible, spreading the word or anything they can do. Also just go for it, there's never a good time these days so just get it done, i gave myself no other options so i had to make money or i had none!

Summary: Optic are a new business, I've found it relevant to speak to them because they are more fresh and going through the early stages to business set up which is what I will be doing next year. They have clear and good business strategies to optimise the best advertising for the company.

Cez Brown - Livid Thorn Interview

Business Name?
Livid Thorn Clothing

Business Product?
Printed clothing and accessories

Who is your market?
Target audience is predominantly both genders ages 15-23

What is your actual market?
Usually people who like alternative music

How long has your business been established?
Around 5 years

Do you have a website? If so who was the web designer?
Yes, natalie wood

Any unexpected expenditures?
Not really, we keep within budgets well and do a lot of research

What percentage gets spent on overheads?
No idea sorry, usually nat's job!

Do you sell directly to consumers or business users?
We have done in the past

Can you give me a guide on what the profit margins are? ie. selling directly to a consumer and to a business user?
Not allowed to say! Though generally what you would expect typically from a business

How have you funded the set up of your business?
We started it with £25 each and built it from there

How do you publicise your product?
Social networking, newsetters

Which publicising method attributed your business the most?
Myspace when they used to promo us on the homepage

How have Art & Craft Fairs/Trade shows attributed your product?
Creates new awareness to people who we would maybe not find online, also gives opportunity to actually see the products

What do you expect to happen in the next 12 months?
A lot has changed this year and we are discussing new lines, but we're so busy we don't know!

In what ways have you used google to advertise your product?
Tried adwords once, also optimise the site for better search results

How has your business been involved in fundraising?
Worked for a whie with peta2

Like you I would like to set up my own business but in Stationary, do you have any key advice on setting up your own business?
A LOT of research and trying to find suppliers. Be very determined and set yourself clear goals to achieve. Dont expect to do really well all at once, it takes a long time. Getting an accountant was one of the best things we ever did as it actually saves you a lot of money in the long run. Keep ALL receipts too!

Summary: I've known of Livid Thorn since there establishment. There market is very similar to mine. Social networking sites have really helped publise their company.

Thunder Egg

Thunder Egg is an outlet I would love to see my cards in. They say they are a Japanese cultured inspired outlet. 10 years ago I would of agreed that I can definitely see the connection there as Japanese fashion culture separated themselves from the rest of the fashion world, these days I think Japanese Culture has imprinted itself in today culture and society takes on their own impressions of it as I personally wouldn't say it was just Japanese inspired.

The card range in there is great, they are funny, quirky, alternative, different. I went in Thunder Egg on Friday, I'd phoned up earlier to find out when the owner would be in, she is also the buyer.
I asked her what she usual looks for in selecting cards for the shop and she just said bold, they definitely are though. Lazy Oaf are by far my favourite designs in there, I recently bought a card from their range for an anniversary gift for my boyfriend (top card) and I can imagine their range sells well. They are really modern and humorous.
The next design range are by Sukie which are in Thunder Egg, just shows you don't have to be traditional to get your cards in shops. Whether they sell well I'm not sure, but there are people out there like myself who collect cards just on their design.


I've booked a Portfolio Visit with Thunder Egg for Dec 10th, at 7.30am! Early rise, but I'm really looking forward to it.

Plimsoll

Plimsoll is a report and analysis company set up to help businesses follow their market. Click on image to enlarge.

Debbie Lord Presentation

Bio:
lorddebbie454@aol.com
Bedding and Home furnishings designer for Pure
Studied a BTEC Surface Design course at Stockport College and a HND Surface Pattern Design course at Cleveland College.

Debbie Lord gave us a structured and broken down advice guide to the industry both studio and freelance based using her own experience.

After studying she did an in house placement at Scopo. While there she rang every design studio in Manchester, she got just 5 company call back which just shows how competitive the industry is, but through this a Manchester Fashion Studio, offered her her first paying job.

Her 2nd job was for Derby House Fabric Debbie Lord gave us a guide to what her yearly salary was, I found this useful as I was unsure what to expect as a yearly salary for Studio based work. Her yearly salary was £8000, 15 years ago, this is roughly £12,000 in today's money.

Her 3rd job was at Tom Lewis Studio designing fabrics, wallpaper and bedding on a £20,000 a year salary. After 4 years working in house at Tom Lewis Studios Debbie Lord decided to work freelance. She explains later the risks involved working freelance but this seemed a smart move for Debbie Lord as she juggled work life with family life, with every risk though there is potential for more money. Setting up freelance Debbie had to pay £2800 for a Epson printer at home, which prints on a range of materials such as fabric and photo paper.

Her 4th job is working freelance for Pure in Macclesfield who specialise in bedding designs.

As a freelance designer at Pure, it is up to Debbie to make contacts with as many people as possible. She uses samples and visualisations to communicate with customers, all visualisations have a colour palette under the design. Designs are produced on NED Graphics.

As a full time freelance designer you are expected to produce about 10 designs a week as a part time freelance designer you are expected to produce 10-15 designs to your meetings every 2-3 weeks.

Work life as a freelance designer consists of producing themeboards, going meetings, visiting trade shows, exhibitions. You are expected to fund everything yourself.


An agency like Pure will take about 40%-50% for each design of yours that sells.

Advice on designing:
> A square repeat for bedding is 64x64cm.
> Crown House sell old archive materials for inspiration for designers. Once bought the copyright is yours.
> Never copy. Copyright will get you in trouble. You can make 6 changes to a motif you use as inspiration to escape copyright issues.
> Detail will make your design sell well.
> Content will make your design sell well, a client might buy just one area of your design if they like enough.
> Colours are important, have a good balance of light and dark shades, 12 colours are usually the most found on a design. The fewer colours the cheaper the design is to produce.

Advice on selling:
> Repeat Pattern sells best.
> Production houses are limited by the screen/print sizes. A large motif would be hard to sell on to Production houses for that reason.
> Keep the customer updated with email/phone calls. Show the design in stages if you're unsure.

Advice on the market:
> Working for a commercial market means you have to always keep your market in mind when designing.
> There are other markets other than 'high end' the working class market exists and it sells well.
> Be aware of the customers budget and the production costs, the two work together.
> Low end production customers will want less colours because it's cheaper to produce, high end customers such as Ralph Lauren wouldn't mind more.

Funding:
> You need a business plan to get a loan.
> Princes Trust gives loans with a low interest rate and grants if you are eligible.
> The Council has Business Links, where you will be able to get info on:

• Grants available
• Direct you to a decent bank that can get you a good loan
• Free courses on time management, book keeping and writing a business plan.

Accounts:
> You only have to sort out your accounts once a year for tax, but you should always keep on top of them for overheads etc.
> Websites online give you a step by step guide on how to work it out.
> Or pay an accountant to work them out for you. Expect a fee of £500-£600 a year.

Inspiration Tips:
> Create mood boards
> Have your own reference library
> Magazines
> Go to shops, look at trends
> Trust your own instincts
> Books
> Buy from vintage ref stores eg, Crown House
> Take a walk
> Visit Museums
> Libraries
> Talk with people
> Take a day trip out

You will be expected to be:
> Hard working
> Able to work in a team
> Independent
> Organised
> Able to collect ideas
> Able to share good practise
> Able to synthesise ideas
> Work to briefs
> Competitive
> Able to keep records
> Motivated

Important Tradeshows:
> Premier Vision - Paris
> Heintex - Germany
> Decosit - Brussels
> Surtex - New York

Summary:
I felt relief that most of what she said you were expected to do I already knew, though I'm sure when set up my own business the amount of work will still be a shock.
Her step by step guide was motivating and it helps to have it all written down because it makes everything feel more manageable. She covered every aspect I could think of so it really reassured me of what's out there.

A summary of where my initial costs will fall at when setting up my own business
> CAD facilities
> A website
> Card Production costs
> Advertising

www.imagekind.com -a community for buying, selling and creating art


Be a good critic and evaluate your own work. Don't settle for a design just because you've spent ages on it, if your instinct tells you it won't sell, produce another one.

Web Designs

Print Screens of Web Designs I think have a niche layout and good design. Will keep adding.

www.moderntoss.com - a range of different products, from card, poster, dvd, t-shirts to badges. Modern Toss consists of adult humour. Easy to navigate through website, graphic approach to design. Web Designer: Unknown

www.hazelbee.co.uk - own card and gift production, web design has modern, grudge cartoon esque inspired website. Easy to browse around. Web designer: unknown

www.suck.uk.com - innovative gift, gadget, accessories for home. Website relatable to product, has a network work, package feel to it. Feels young, market feels more aimed towards male young adults. Difficult to navigate through, but still quite quirky, with humorous, rememberable name. Web designer: Close to Water

www.kissmekwik.co.uk - own card and gift production, web design has a graphic and fun approach. Easy to browse around. Web designer: Plan 9

Artist Research

Cardtastic design lovely and imaginative greeting cards. The company name isn't appealing but there collection is very sweet and contain, a sweet or humorous feel throughout. I'm drawn to the play with puns within this collection while containing an element of simplicity within them.

Beaumonde Publisher

Beaumonde Ltd are a global publishers, they publish the work of established artists Hanna Werning, Natalie Ferstendik, Narelle Craven and Kelly Hyatt. There cards are distrubuted to the popular Northern Quarter of Manchester in such outlets as Thunder Egg and shops within Afflecks Palace, who aim to sell towards the alternative market I am aiming to market my own range too.

Halfmoon Bay Publishers

The company expanded in 2008 when it acquired Robert Opie Trading Ltd, the trading arm of the Opie Collection, an amazing archive of vintage packaging and advertising. I have bought cards from this publisher before. They sell in retail stores in the Northern Quarter of Manchester. Thunder Egg as well stationary outlets in Afflecks Palace are known to sell this range. Price range is £1.50-£2. Their humorous range mixed with vintage imagery really appeals to me. They are also being distributed to the market I am interested in.

Tradeshow Info

Progressive Live
25th -26th May London
Stand - 335
www.progressivegreetingslive.com

Home and Gift Harrogate
18-21st July
Stand Number DP2-47
www.homeandgift.co.uk

Autumn Fair NEC
5th-8th September
Stand - Hall 3 P22-Q23
www.autumnfair.com

Progressive Magazine

***Need to subscribe to***

Progressive Greetings

Progressive Greetings Worldwide is the monthly 'Bible' for the €1 billion greeting card industry that is widely read by everyone involved in both the publishing and retailing of greeting cards.

Published every month with subscribers in 50 countries around the globe, Progressive Greetings contains no 'puff' and is a totally editorially-led publication, packed full of hard hitting news, industry issues and new product developments.

For a list of publishers.

http://www.progressivegreetings.co.uk/

The Henries Awards 2010

What is it? Victorian themed premier awards for the greeting card industry.

Named after Sir Henry Cole (who introduced the first

commercially produced Christmas card over 160 years ago).

The Henries were introduced

by Progressive Greetings Worldwide magazine in 1996 as annual awards to shine the spotlight on greeting card

ranges. The Henries Awards are the ultimate accolades in greeting card publishing, and each year some 15,000 cards

are entered. See finalists.

The criteria for judging were:

- Quality of Design- Quality of print, production and manufacture
- Appropriateness for the market sector at which it is

aimed
- Value for money

Donations can be made towards The Light Fund.

DETAILS OF ENTERING CAN BE FOUND ON THE WEBSITE.

http://www.thehenriesawards.co.uk

Public Survey Tally

This surveyed has been tallied by totally the amount of key words used the public used to describe themselves. The majority of people surveyed where between the ages 14-19. Indie is a music genre and although in the questionnaires it was used to describe a fashion style aswell as a favourite music genre it has been tallied to one category. Comfy was surprisingly a word used often to describe a style. From observing the publics behaviour it was a question people struggled to summerise, often possibly an approach to look modest while others may have been to young to have identified where they felt they fit in with society. The tally varied that the public are majoritly influenced by music and celebrities. These catergories are major influences because people look up to them as they are deemed successful, people use them as safe guards, as something you can't go wrong by inspiring by.

2/3 of the public surveyed were shopping for themselves, in a season when there aren't any public occassions such as christmas or easter coming up this seems understandable.

70% of the public surveyed like alternative music, this has been catergorised by placing the following genres under the alternative music as it hasn't been classified as mainstream yet, these genres are indie, rock, metal, punk, electro, emo, folk, acoustic. While the other genres are classified as popular music.

60% of the public surveyed said they dress alternatively, this has been categorised by placing the following styles under the alternative bracket, they are trash-glam, scene, freestyle, glam-goth, scene.

Definition:	a catch-all term for the newest rock music, which has not been around long enough to acquire a specific name
Example:	Alternative music embodies many sub-genres including: Indie Rock, Alt Folk, Gothic, Brit-Pop, Alt Country, Adult Alternative, Shoegazer, Heavy Metal, Grunge, Post-Punk, New Wave, Post-Rock, and more.

Public Surveys

I went to Manchester on Wednesday and did a public survey to generate a trend report. I visited 4 outlets, Urban Outfitters, Topshop, Paperchase and Afflecks Palace asking a total of 19 people over 15 questionnaires. Some people doubled up. The survey was to compare, contrast and analyse the answers.

2/3 of the public surveyed were shopping for themselves, in a season when there aren't any public occassions such as christmas or easter coming up this seems understandable.

The questionnaires verify that the public are majority influenced by music and celebrities. These categories are major influences because people look up to them as they are deemed successful, people use them as safe guards, as something you can't go wrong by inspiring by.

Indie came up as the most popular genre, being used to describe both music taste and style.

Indie definition:

Adj.

1.

indie - (of pop groups) not affiliated with a major recording company independent - free from external control and constraint; "an independent mind"; "a series of independent judgments"; "fiercely independent individualism"

70% of the public surveyed like alternative music, this has been catergorised by placing the following genres under the alternative music as it hasn't been classified as mainstream yet, these genres are indie, rock, metal, punk, electro, emo, folk, acoustic. While the other genres are classified as popular music.

60% of the public surveyed said they dress alternatively, this has been categorised by placing the following styles under the alternative bracket, they are trash-glam, scene, freestyle, glam-goth, scene.

Definition:	a catch-all term for the newest rock music, which has not been around long enough to acquire a specific name
Example:	Alternative music embodies many sub-genres including: Indie Rock, Alt Folk, Gothic, Brit-Pop, Alt Country, Adult Alternative, Shoegazer, Heavy Metal, Grunge, Post-Punk, New Wave, Post-Rock, and more.

This co-insides with my belief that the alternative market is becoming more popular. It terms of market, I think my cards will have a commercial market to sell into.

Publisher Nineteenseventythree

Nineteenseventythree are a greetings card designers, manufacturer and distributor. On a recent trip to Afflecks

(28/09/10) I counted 10 different nineteenseventythree cards in a display of about 8 other distributors. All their cards had an eye grabbing attraction to them, fresh colours, graphic imagery, humorous designs, ranging from simple one of motifs to complicated patterns. There range really appeals to me and I was also be contacting them as 1 of my portfolio visits.

Natasha Clayton - Rebel Rocks Interview

Rebel Rocks started in July 2010 by Natasha Clayton, she sells handmade jewellery & accessories with some custom orders and gift boxes. She works at home. Natasha currently sells her work through an online shop on Facebook, payments are made via Paypal. This was an emailed interview.

Business Name?
Rebel Rocks (London)

What inspires your product design?Tattoos, Rockabilly, sweets, music.

Where did your business idea come from?
To be honest I came up with the idea because I was so bored with my full time office job, fed up with working for someone else and making them rich! lol, and always being skint! I wanted to make extra money by doing something fun. I still have the boring office job, for now!

Who is your target audience?
Mostly young women around the 18-30 age group. It is a very social age group and I thought that they would be more likely to spend money on fashion jewellery than any other age groupor sex. I have tried not to appeal to one type of person though (eg. just scene kids etc) as figured that would narrow my audience.

What is your actual target audience?
As well as 18-30 year old women, I have also received orders from older people and as well as customised jewellery to fit children, so I am pleased that it is appealing to a wider audience.

Any unexpected expenditures?
Not yet! I pretty much had planned for everything I would need to pay out for, tools, materials, packaging, advertising. No nasty surprises yet! I have purchased my domain names for mywebsite however haven't set the site up yet. I'm currently learning Photoshop then want to go onto Illustrator/Web Design so I'm hoping I can save money by setting it up myself.

Are your profits what you expected?
To be honest I really didn't know what to expect, I hoped to at least break even to start off with, however sales are better than I expected, especially considering how new the business is. I wanted to start selling my items at low prices to start with, so as to attract more customers and make my name known, so although I am making a profit its not huge right now.

Have you received any funding?
Nope. I pay for everything myself.
How do you publise your product?
At the moment I publicise on social networking sites - Facebook and MySpace. These sites are used by such a wide range of people I thought it would be a good place to start advertising. It is also free, so that helps! Also by word of mouth, if people are happy with my product I'm hoping that they will spread the word!
I own my domain names and will be setting up my website in due course.

What do you expect to happen in the next 12 months?
I have no idea what to expect. I have always believed that if you don't expect too much then you will never be disappointed. Of course I'm hoping that my business will become more well known and popular, and make a bigger profit. Within the next 12 months I am hoping tostart designing and printing my own clothing - t-shirts, vests and hoodies for women and women, and t-shirts and vests for babies.

Did/Have you considered an online shop/a retail shop?
When the website is set up customers will be able to buy online. I love the idea of having my own shop. But I don't think that will be happening any time soon!

How have Art & Craft Fairs retributed your product?As my business is so new I have not sold my products at any fairs or markets yet. I am hoping that I will be able to do this next year.

What percentage gets spent on overheads?
I work from home, in my spare time, so no shop or office to pay out for. Pretty much everything I sell at the moment is made my hand so the biggest expenditure at the moment is my time.

Are you an independent seller?
Yes.
Do you sell through commissions/distributors?
No.

What is your price range?
At the moment my cheapest product is £1 and the most expensive is £11.

Crown Earrings £2.50, Cherry Necklace £3.50, Cupcake Necklace £6.00, gift box £1.50

Has your business been involved in fundraising?
Not yet but I would be willing to get involved with this kind of thing once by business is more well known.

How long have you had your own business set up?
I made my first items in June 2010 and set the Facebook and MySpace up in July 2010.

Like you I would like to set up my own business but in Stationary, do you have any advice on setting up your own business?
Make a list of everything you need to get started: materials, tools and equipment, packaging, advertising... and how much it will all cost. Is there anyone that can help you out advertising wise? Do lots of research online to see what other products are out there and try to make yours unique. Also research materials suppliers as there are millions and you can usually find the same items much cheaper if you look around. Think about how much it will cost you to make an item, how much of your time it will take to make it, and what you will sell it for. Go with your own ideas, thats what will make your product 'you'. Good luck! :)

An extract from Rebel Rocks bio on their site -
Inspired by: Kitsch, Tattoos, Graffiti, Junk, Trash, Kids, Punk, Emo, Rock, Kawaii, Pin-up girls, Rockabilly, Cupcakes, Vintage, Disney, Dolly, Hair, Cute, Movies, Art, Sweets, Snowboarding, Motocross, Surfing, Indie, Music, Anime, Scene.

Incognito Publisher

Really keen on this publisher, they are aiming exactly at the niche market I would hope to aim for. I've seen Incognitos designs in Afflecks Palace and in boutiques around the Northern Quarter in Manchester. They are humorous and illustrative, this style appeals to the market drawn to the Northern Quarter. As well as being a publisher for other artists, Incognito sell their own work which is housed in 3 outlets 2 in Manchester and 1 in Slovenia. I'll be making contact with the manchester outlets and contacting these as one of my portfolio visits.

Art Angels Publishers

(l-r) Brie Harrison, Angie Lewin, Andrew Pavitt, Alice Melvin, Frank Kiely, Alice Steveson.

I'm drawn to this publisher, there are artists work that I have looked at before as I've found their work inspiring. They seem like a publishers that is keen to publish current quirky designs, juxtaposition prints, bird, landscape and wildlife motifs. Images look designed in Illustrator. I could see these ranges being sold in WHSmith, commercial middle market.

Andrea Mastrovito Portrait of the artist as a young Batman 2005

This work is quite similar to an artist who I have previously looked at Carlos Amorales - Black Cloud 2007 piece and could be the same for Andreas Kocks - Paperwork piece. They are all black on white so this perceives quite a dramatic look in all their work as well as feeling quite gothic but new.

Andreas Kocks Paperworks 2009

"The contrast between my organic shapes and the orthogonal space is significant. The entire piece is specifically installed as a conscious kind of architecture. I want my work to relate directly to its settings through light and shadows." - Andreas Kocks, Slash 2009.

The symbolic meaning of shadows is something that is quite sinister. I find this influential in relation to the 'symbolic structure' brief.

Carlos Amorales Black Cloud 2007

I saw this as a gothic reflection on my own work. This is a simplistic motif on it's own but when multiplied it becomes dramatic, with the symbolic nature of the insect and the placement indicating they are flying upwards combined with the colour black which represents death, this creates a very powerful and thought provoking piece.

Mark Fox Untitled (we are lost)

Cartoon characters, tree branches, kitchen utensils and vegetables are mixed with random words all formed from the basis of Fox's consciousness with a humorous approach.

I uploaded this to aid me in my drawing, I'm not copying his drawing style this is just here to remind me that a good approach to get imagery from my head to paper is too just pour it out sometimes in a spontaneous way.

Brian Dettmer

Godfather 2006 (above and top)

Influenced by culture film The Godfather, the symbolic black roses could be a reference to the death associated with the mafia.

The New Century 2008

Works with words, language and images sourced from altered books. His work has been compared to a biological dissertation. This is because of the depth of the layering.

Ed Pien Night Gathering 2005

Work ranges from personal images from the myths and stories of his native Taiwan, to political issues this is then synthesised by the visual arts of the West. This summerises to me that his work is about bringing personal issues together with what sells in the current markets, giving his work depth and likability.

Ghosts and Witches are also referred in his work.

I uploaded this piece because it reminded me of the structure of insect wings as well as finding his influences interesting and relatable.

Phoenix Trade advertising

I thought this was a good idea for publicising a product. By introducing a sale as a party and by adding that some profits would go to charity is a good marketing approach.

Phoenix Trade job position

I've uploaded this as it might be a useful contact for anyone reading this.

I've researched Phoenix Trade and decided they weren't the publish house for me. They aren't statement cards which is what I am interested in and don't run along my Dark Nouveau project.

They are a successful business though and have good marketing strategies which I have learnt from, such as including parties with selling the product. I think with the products I am hoping to be selling next year holding parties in ways to sell your product are a great way of doing so. Anne Summers parties are a successful example of this.

They also work along charities. This perceives good working ethnic.

Understanding and paying a bill on Folksy

How do I pay my Folksy bill?

You can see your Folksy fees in Your account > Your Folksy bill. The balance that shows is made up of billed and unbilled fees for listings and 5% commisson on sales.

Whenever you list or sell an item a fee is added to your bill. These fees are 'unbilled' until the end of each month when the total amount owed for that month (if it is over £2) is turned into a bill. Charges under £2 are rolled over to the next month.

While the fees are 'unbilled' you don't need to worry about paying them. When a bill is due you will receive an email from Folksy to let you know. The bill will also show in Your Folksy bill and you can pay by following the steps below. .

What are the charges?

The charges are:

Listing fees £0.20 for each listing. This listing can include a quantity of up to 5 for handmade items, or up to 100 for materials. Whatever the quantity the cost is still 20p. The listing lasts for 180 days (6 months approximately) or until the item is sold out.

Commission fees From 1 May 2010 we charge 5% commission on the list price of each sale (this doesn't include postage).

How do I know what I've been charged for?

If you log in to Folksy, go to Your account and look for the Money heading on the right hand side. This shows your outstanding balance. If you click on Your Folksy bill you will see a list of all your bills for each month. If the status shows as Submitted the bill has been paid. If not it will say Pay Fees. Click on the status for any month and you will see a breakdown of the charges for that month.

How do I pay my bill?

To pay your bill click on Pay Fees. The total amount payable will show with a Pay Using Paypal button beside it. Click this to go to Paypal. Log in to your account as normal and follow the steps until Paypal confirms that the payment has been sent. If the payment is successful you should also receive a conformation email.

Emily Wardman Interview

Emily Wardman's stall is very well presented, her products which are mainly hand printed motifs on a variety of products such bags, kitchen towels and hand stitched decorative replicas of owls, birds and dolls are being hung on string from brown pegs, while the placement of the products doesn't look over crowded and the colours are very fresh. Ideally situated as the second stall in from the front. Emily Wardman is an independent seller but is supported by friends and family who sit with her and knit products for her shop.

Your stall seems to be doing really well today?

Yeah we've had a constant stream of people.

Have you had many sales?

I've not done too bad, but I've not had as many as I'd of liked so far.

How long have you had your own business set up?

It's all relatively new, since I graduated this year from Uni.

Do you have your products on any other outlet?

Yes, I have an online store on folksy.com

Oh right, I've not heard of folksy.com, what is it?

It's the English version of Esty.com, a networking shop outlet. It's really good for showing you how many sales you've made, how many people are following your shops and it also has on the website a 'making' section so you can learn new crafts and a forum, so you can get involved in daily chats and discussions which has been really good for me building contacts.

Do you have to be computer literate to use it?

No it's really easy to use, with a step by step guide on how to set up your own shop with the paying system included. It's really straight forward.

How does the paying system work?

The paying system is Paypal and it runs along side the site. The buyer has a shopping cart and when they come to buy it is through Paypal.

Do you use this business solely as your income now or do you have another job?

Right now it is not possible as the business is new, but I would like it to take off so it is just my sole income.

Like you I would like to set up my own business but in Stationary, do you have any advice on setting up your own business?

My advice would be publisise your product as much as possible, promotions is really good. If you're going to go down the online route it is important to attend as many art & craft fairs as possible because as well as building contacts you are showing your products to the public and generating awareness.

You can find Emily Wardmans shop on www.folksy.com/edify. Looking at her shop I have noticed she has had only 1 sale, which suggests to me the craft fair was probably more successful. Looking at the site you can tell it's a really competitive market of similar products. There seems to be a lot of 'cutesy' designs that include cupcakes, birds and Russian Dolls. On a site of this scale having a similar theme of work through out it you can see why it might be hard for your product to sell when there are too many of the same styles on it.

The forum and 'making' session of the site though would be very useful for building contacts and learning new skills.

With my theme of work I can't see where I would fit in but it might be exciting to see if it develops new trends on the site, it might be what is needed.

Phoenix Trade Interview

Sue Summersgill is holding Phoenix Trade stall at the Vernon Park Art & Crafts Fair. They are situated at the end of the run of stalls as doesn't seem to be holding interest for very long. This could be because its stall is placed near the cafe and as the rain wasn't holding off for very long, people may have be more inclined to take cover for the indoors. The stall has a huge range of cards, but they all look too similar. It also has homemade cupcakes, which you would think would draw attention to the stall but with a cupcake stall being situated just a few stalls down I don't think they were selling too well.

Are you an independent stall holder?

I work as a Trader for Phoenix Trade an independent card publishing house, that sells work from multiple designers.

Do Phoenix Trade sell their work through outlets as well as through independent stalls?

No, Phoenix Trade only sell their cards through direct contact.

How many designers work for Phoenix Trade?

There are roughly 78 designers working for the team.

What are your most popular designs?

At Art & Craft fairs the cards with a more handmade style sell well. In this season (Autumn) our Christmas Card ranges sell well too.

How many designers work are on this stall today?

There are 25 designers work on this stall, ranging from 12-16 cards per collection.

Can anyone submit their work to Phoenix Trade?

Yes as long as they are presented well. We receive samples off designers and they get work through commission.

What is the price range?

£1.20 each or £1 each for 10+ cards.

Has Phoenix Trade ever got involved in fundraising?

Yes we have raised over £500,000 for charities since we have been established (for 14 years) through our exclusive christmas card range, to charities such as Cancer Research and Childrens Hospice UK.

Have you had much interest in your stall today?

Yes we've had a lot of interests and sales have been okay.

Do you have a website?

Yes you can find us on www.phoenix-trading.co.uk

Phoenix Trade are in the Top 10 Publishing Houses in the UK.

Cards are recyclable as they don't use any chlorine chemicals or other adhesives. Although printed on the back of every Phoenix Trade card says "paper from sustainable forest sources" Phoenix Trade say that this isn't entirely true as there isn't a sustainable forest source in either Europe or the States as legalisation is so tight.

Their cards are normally blank inside so that they can suit any occasion.