The huge silver lining to Jim being made redundant is that all of a sudden I have lots more time to work. Which (as long as I ignore the fact that it also means he doesn't have a job) is making me very happy and is meaning that I'm finally getting around to finishing some projects that have been waiting patiently for attention.
I wanted these quilts to be simple, both in their construction and visually. Partly because I liked the way that they looked, but also because the whole cost/time/price ratio is just such a nightmare that I thought it might be good to have a few designs that meant I wasn't running at such a loss! I don't usually design in such a practical way, which means that like most of us, I don't even begin to cover the costs of my actual time, which is an unfortunate and annoying downside to producing handmade.
But the fact that I've had so many more wholesale orders recently, teamed with signing up for Craft Candy, made me realise that simple is not only not a bad thing but is also a very necessary thing.
So, with that in mind I put these cot quilts together, keeping them simple and yet still practical. They are big enough to be used in a cot or as a stroller blanket and whilst being light weight, because of their wool batting, they are still beautifully warm.
In the interests of simplicity and time management, I decided not to bind them. Which I'm happy with, now that I've let go of my irrational need to finish everything with binding!! It is such an incredibly time consuming act to attach binding (I can not be convinced to machine stitch it), that it instantly means that every quilt I make is in no way cost effective. Finishing the quilt without binding literally saves me over 3 hours work.
I find it interesting when you see a designer start to produce work that is obviously being rethought from a monetary or mass produced point of view. It can often mean that corners are cut or that the little details, that actually define their work, disappear. But hopefully that doesn't have to be the case. I've simplified my Princess and the Pea design over the years in an attempt to make it more viable as a product and actually think that it's allowed me to improve it - I much prefer the way it looks now and yet it actually has more details - the pocket that looks like mattresses and the embroidered pea etc.
The same can be said of my bibs and my totes. Experience and needing to manage my time more effectively has meant that I've needed to work out more effective designs and I think that's paid off both visually and practically. Which of course is the challenge, to maintain integrity whilst increasing productivity. Because as much fun as this is, it's still a business.
