FMP images

These collages are a mix of found paper and fabric, all hand produced and representing personal issues . I have used my own drawings and produced all the work by hand . I feel that this collection is about me but could be developed to include many more representations of people , places and issues the possibilities are endless. I would be happy to produce commissioned work for other people. For example if you feel you have the qualities of a lion and you have issues with your job.... example as a police officer I will interpret the two and trap it in a frame .

FMP images

The rabbit is the creature that reappears again and again in my work so is very significant ( when i researched its meaning the rabbit can signify anything from insanity and innocence to promiscuity and fertility ! ) I have used animals who represent people from my life and illustrated issues that have trapped me by placing them in frames , The winged cloth dog is my attempt to represent escape and freedom ( from a glassless frame and a cage !). I also left some of the large rabbit design fabric hanging out of the frame to indicated it is not entirely contained.I used black and white because of its simplicity and bold appearance . I have had fun and produced work that is very personal to me , My focus was no about how commercially viable the designs would be , I wanted to make a personal statement.

cost pricing and selling

Financial restraints have definitely impacted on my final major project , I did not have the funds to purchase expensive materials and so recycling was the best option, I used a couple picture frames that i already had and purchased the rest at a cost of £60, fabric I used was £2 and £4.50 per meter, the crockery was from ikea's seconds and cost £1 per item, it then cost £15 to have my art work transferred onto a printable sheet for ceramics. I spent around £50 on card and paper and used my children's old clothes for the fabric collages . It cost £30 for trimmings , buttons , threads , glue , tape etc. having researched the craft market i have found that items sell for prices of any where between £4 right up to £460 , you can charge for your time, the materials and the hand crafted bespoke element , your over heads , shipping cost , at the end of the day your work is worth what people are willing to pay for it, I paid I found some interesting websites with lots of information on them !

http://www.ohboydenterprises.com/HowToPriceHandmadeGoods.html

http://www.makeforbusiness.com/directory.php?directory=Pricing

http://ukhandmade.co.uk/content/business-pricing-your-handmade-goods

http://ukhandmade.ning.com/forum/topics/how-do-you-work-out-the-price

For my degree show i have some funds available from the last installment of the student loan, through my contact with Claire Worthington I have found a lady who is going to make me some black and white cup cakes for the show 6 cakes will cost £12 , she has found me a company who can transfer my art onto icing to make toppers for the cakes and the price is 85 p per item.

I want to get some high quality black and white fabrics to make more textile items for the show .The craft council and some other craft organisations have some funding opportunities available

http://www.craftanddesignmonth.net/proposal.pdf

http://www.startacraftbusiness.co.uk/small-business-grants-funding.html

http://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/craft-directory/opportunities/list/?type_guid%5B%5D=16

http://www.aah.org.uk/post/491

Apart from Etsy and Folksy , I see my own website as a way of making sales , I have also been approached by a couple of retailers via twitter and have a meeting with a shop owner in early August to discuss business options.

FMP images

These images are ideas for products that could carry my design, I feel that the simple pattern repeat works on some items such as the curtain and the door draught excluder but the cushions would be more interesting and dynamic if different stitch techniques were employed. I feel that for the exhibition in June I would like to produce cushions using , patchwork, pleating and applique in order to make the collection more interesting. The tea cosy I feel is a successful design , I have used recycled fabric to make the clothes for the characters and appliqued them onto the quilted fabric, the scent bags are made from fabrics from my children's old clothes. Again with the t-shirts the addition of embellishments and different stitch techniques will add interest, although when making garments for young children and babies it is important to make sure health and safety guidelines are followed and all new materials are used and also all additions need to be machine washable .

Claire Worthington FMP porfolio visit. Part 2

I met up with Claire again on Friday 22nd April and we set up my webdomain it cost £6. 43 for two years and is means that the website name is now mine (www.catherinesummersdesign.co.uk) Summers is my maiden name and I am going to use is for my business. Having googled the name Catherine Summers we did not find any other business trading under the same name which is good news. The website is not live yet as I need to get photographs of my portfolio of work to add to it and Claire is in the process of creating the different pages and collating all the information. She has asked me to write a short bio and think about what I want the website to do ie sell from it or create interest in my work, it needs to be clear what the role each of the pages of my site is for ie, to sign up for a news letter or to purchase an item etc etc. She explained that things can be changed and upgraded as are appropriate but advised to keep it simple initially and make it really easy for viewers to follow, We have also set up an email account for business which will be available via the website. Thanks Claire I look forward to our next meeting and the next stage of this exciting journey !

Social Media Campaign

Having had several meetings with Claire Worthington about the development of a website she also advised me to launch a 'social media campaign' using twitter, facebook and linkedin which are all online social networking sites. I created a twitter account on 4th March and was delighted to find I soon had several 'followers' from the art and design industry including a shop owner whom I am now in contact with regarding selling my work. I also found links to possible funding opportunities and local facilities such as a studio which offers silk screen printing services. I its a brilliant way to network and find people who will help and support you in your work. Claire said she had been at a lecture given by a woman who's business is to advise people about how to exploit online social media sites who had recommended that business people should tweet 6 times a day and the content of the tweets should be 20% information 20% entertaining 40% interaction and 20% business, in order to retain interest and be successful.

I have also joined linked in which is much more business focused and once I have finalised my portfolio and have quality photographs of my work ( my friend who is a professional photographer has offered to take shots of the uni show and all my work ) I plan to create a facebook page to help promote my work and link to my website.

portfolio visit to Nicky Rodgers

I visited Nicky on the 15th April, she has a design background and makes soft furnishings but her full time position is an area sales rep for a french company called Casamance fine fabrics and wallpapers. Nicky is very much working in the commercial field so her input is based on the best way to market my work for the most number of sales. I showed her my work so far and explained that the project had developed from fabric dolls into more commercial textile items and also framed art .Nicky felt that my drawings were strong and in order to produce a commercial collection the items needed to be a range of products for a specific area for example all kitchen items that people would want to collect, ie tea pot, crockery,tea cosy, table cloth, tea towel etc she felt this would hold the work together and make the collection more coherant. Nicky said it was a very competitive industry but her company did purchase art work from artists which they then modified and used in their designs so this would be a posibility for some one like me. She explained that her company had a large team of designers who all had different roles with in the production process. Nicky liked my framed art work and suggested that I looked at producing a range of proffessions as a theme , police officer , teacher, fire fighter etc.

It was great to talk to someone from a business point of view and her advice re marketing stratergies was really helpful, thanks so much Nicky!

www.casamance.com