I was lucky enough to attend the
workingmums.co.uk live event yesterday at the Lowry Hotel in Manchester. Organised to help mums find information on flexible working and starting a business, the event featured some excellent seminars.
'Working for yourself - practical steps and options' featured three guest speakers: Iain McIlwee, from
PCG, who explained some of the benefits of working as a freelancer; Paul Southworth from
The Direct Selling Association, who aimed to explode the myth that direct selling was little more than a means of earning pin money; and Rachel Ray, founder of
Bright & Beautiful, who provided an excellent introduction into the world of franchising.
The afternoon's sessions kicked off with 'Setting up your own business - Social Marketing & PR'. Possibly my favourite seminar of the day, Naomi Timperley, who launched
Baby Loves Disco in the UK, and
Social Media Boom, gave a fascinating introduction into the world of social networking, helping to unravel some of the mysteries of Twitter and Facebook.
Finally, speakers Bernie Cox of the
Women's Organisation and Neil Lewis of MediaMoDo provided some practical information on the subject of Business Planning.
All in all, an interesting and informative event, which I'd recommend to any mums thinking of setting up their own business.
Back from summer holidays, feeling refreshed and raring to go, having been inspired by a fabulous week checking out the delights of the Kent coast – my first ever visit. Weather wasn’t brilliant, so spent much of the time sitting in cosy cafes with steamed-up windows, sipping lattes and people-watching, in between investigating all the fabulous boutiques, selling wonderful handmade goodies. Special mention must go to the boutiques along Harbour Street in Whitstable, including Frank (where I saw the wonderful work of Abigail Brown in the flesh!) and She Sells, and also the Margate Old Town, including Blackbird. Also fond memories of lunches in the Belgian cafe in Ramsgate, wonderful seafood at Wee Willie Winkles on the sea front at Whitstable; exploring the beautiful city of Canterbury; and snug evenings sat in our rented cottage in Fordwich – loving the exposed brick detail and original floorboards.
August has arrived, and with it, the school holidays, stretching out like a never-ending road before me. There's nothing like the challenge of trying to keep a six year old entertained for five weeks, when you have little money, no transport and the weather is awful. Started off with the best of intentions this morning by walking to the swimming pool (in the pouring rain), setting off early in the hope that the pool would be quiet (it wasn't), but after about an hour of trying to get my daughter to swim rather than just splash about noisily, I'd had enough, and it was time to trudge back in the rain again. I was so hacked off that I had to treat myself to a Cadbury's Dairy Milk from the vending machine (why do leisure centres always have such unhealthy food?). But I figured I'd burnt most of those calories off during my swim anyway. At least I managed to get my latest journal finished, covered in this fabulous fabric depicting dainty ladies' shoes and handbags, complete with charm feature.
Spent a wonderful day on Friday in Chorlton perusing the aisles of Leon's Fabric Superstore, like a kid in a sweetshop. The weather was also fabulous - unlike today, which has seen a constant downpour of rain. After spending about an hour in this wonderful Aladdin's Cave of a shop, it dawned on me that I was going to have to make a purchase, but the choice of fabric was just breathtaking. Eventually settled on two beautiful lengths of fabric, which have provided inspiration for my next bookbinding projects. Watch this space!
