Sept 08
There are lots of business books available about crafting as a career. This is by no means the best or most comprehensive. If you have already taken the plunge, it is probably relatively useless to you. However, if you are at the stage where you KNOW you love to craft and you THINK you might be able to make it work as a business, this is potentially the book that will convince you to take that plunge. It is personal, it is affirmative, and it is full of reassurance about all the little niggly things that only a fellow (non-business-headed) crafter would realise you might be worried about. It will convince you that it will all be okay, after all. It is a very good basic guide, in the sense that it tells you all the things you need to think about, and find out more about. But that's where its limits are: you will need to buy another book to unravel the finer details.
Although this is not the best craft business or small business book available, I do still firmly believe that (if you buy it at the right time in your decision-making process) it is a worthwhile purchase. It is also presented in an aesthetically pleasing way, so if you are the kind of crafter who is scared by the 'serious face' of business books, it will ease you in gently! Another nice feature is the personal accounts written by different professional crafters, covering different aspects of the crafts business or starting out. Everyone has different experiences and reactions to different experiences in life, so reading a personal account by someone whose feelings or opinions seem close to your own may be another helpful deciding factor for you.
* Waterstones Newsletter *
Nov 08
This is a particularly helpful reference book as it focuses on self-employment in the specific arena of arts and crafts. The author is a mixed-media artist who has documented her own experience and that of successful colleagues who have taken the plunge from hobbyists to provessional crafters earning a realistic living from their skills. This is a frank and honest guide that explores the steps to building and maintaining a business including overcoming initial fears, organising space and time, making contacts and evaluating opportunities. There are some great tips on building an image and promoting a craft including a guide to photographing work and ideas for getting free (or low cost) publicity. In additions to selling handcrafted items the book includes chapters on teaching and writing as a logical step to boosting an income, plus suggestions on licensing artwork. The book concludes with some practical tips for the day-to-day side of running a business.
* SEWING WORLD *
