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Luck vs Hard Work

When chatting to fellow creatives about what they do, the issue of luck is often credited with their success and I have recently found myself doing the same.  I often say things like “I’m so lucky to be able to do what I do and spend my time doing things I enjoy”.

I’m giving a talk in June and as part of the preparation for it I have been giving more thought to the part that lady luck has played in my work life and actually, I don’t really think it’s played a part at all.  Neither do I think it’s played a major part in the success of my creative friends and colleagues.  What’s the real secret?  Hard bloody graft in most cases and a tenacity to keep going and believing in what you do despite all the odds (and often contradictory advice).  OK sometimes it pays to be in the right place at the right time, but actually, without lots of hard work you probably wouldn’t even be there in the first place.

Personally, I have worked really hard to get where I am now and in the last 2 years have never worked so hard in all my life (apart from maybe the final year of my degree!).  I also know that this is the case for many creatives; just have a read of my friend Peter’s experience of trying to earn a living as an illustrator after graduating.

Lifestyle choices and sacrifices have also played their part.  I have sacrificed owning a home, owning a car and going on lots of holidays in order to spend the majority of my time doing what I want and enjoy.  Nor am I  financed by anyone else’s money, I work for every penny I have and that makes it all the sweeter.

Do not get me wrong, none of this is meant in a “woe is me” tone, anyone who whines about the hard work involved in having their own business should call it a day as far as I’m concerned.  It is hard work and it should be, that’s what reaps rewards, not moaning or relying on luck!

If you’re striving to earn a living as a creative; making sacrifices, working hard and not enjoying financial support from someone else, then hats off to you and no more calling yourself lucky.

Competition winners!

The 3 lucky winners of one of my little wooden sewing tools are:

Yvonne Flewin

Sian Tunstall

Zoe Child

Congratulations!!

There will be another competition coming soon……watch this space.

Love your Sewing Machine and get familiar with it!

A little whistlestop tour of some of the main features of most sewing machines and some tips on what some of them actually do!

Get familiar with your machine and get the best out of it…..

Competition – win one of my little wooden sewing tools!

I’m running a competition over on Facebook which closes on Monday 6th May at 7pm.

If you’d like to win one of my little wooden sewing tools there are 3 up for grabs.  All you have to do is leave your name and email address, here’s the link to enter: http://promotion.binkd.com/Direct.aspx?id=8627

Good luck!

Shirt Making

It was my dad’s birthday recently and on a whim, a few days before said birthday I decided to make him a shirt.  Luckily I did have more than the 4 hours those poor contestants on the Great British Sewing Bee were given and this was the result…..

It’s a long time since I’d made a shirt and I’d forgotten how enjoyable they are to make.  You need to be super precise, but that can be very satisfying when it all comes together perfectly!  I didn’t have time to draft the pattern so used Burda pattern 7045.  The fabric is from www.dittofabrics.co.uk

Perhaps a 2-day Shirt Making weekend course might be a good addition to MIY Workshop’s timetable?!

A Skirt-tastic Sunday at MIY Workshop

5 people, 5 different fabrics, 1 A-line skirt pattern and look at what can be produced in a day!

We had tweedy, stretch cotton, a tiny floral print, an elephant print and a comic strip print!  All finished, all fitted and three of these students hadn’t used sewing machines since school.  They were also all first-time zip sewers, all of which were inserted beautifully.

Here’s what they thought of their day:

“Great fun, relaxed and friendly workshop and a fab skirt to take home at the end of it.”

“Thoroughly enjoyed it.  It’s really good to have something to wear at the end of the day!  Will definitely be back for more workshops.”

“Wonderful day.  Lovely to have a finished product!  Never made to feel stupid as I was a beginner.  Wendy is very patient and makes a great cup of tea (!)”

“Really useful workshop – individual attention when needed, really pleased with the result!”

“Very satisfying finishing a skirt for myself and Wendy kept me going with cups of tea!”

Note – I’m a northerner, it’s obligatory to be able to make a good cup of tea!  My grandma got me in training from a very early age.

The next tea fuelled Skirt Making workshop is on Sunday 29th September.  Booking is now open.