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Posted on 03/11/202030/05/2023 by Re-Energize You — Leave a comment

Coffee and Catch Up – Interview with Dottie 3.11.2020

I had the very good fortune to be the first interviewee as part of the “Meet the Makers” IGTV series, where Dottie gets to catch up with her sellers over coffee, or in my case a herb tea, and chat about our personal journeys and how the path led us to be selling on The British Craft House.

This is the full version so you’ll need to grab a coffee as its a 20minute chat but we cover why I’m passionate about painting pretty, powerfully positive energy stones for wellbeing and where I would like to develop next year with ‘favourite vista’ prints from original artwork…oh and a bit of a James Bond name drop too!

I do hope that you enjoy! Oh and if you are interested in my books here is the link to my website carolinetrowbridge.com where you can choose which format you’d like, hardcover, paperback or kindle…Don’t forget to message me directly for the Hardcover offer 2 signed by author copies for £16. caroline@carolinetrowbridge.com

Hope you enjoy!

Caroline xo

Posted on 07/10/202030/05/2023 by BeckyCoggins — Leave a comment

Do you still send Christmas cards?!

As thoughts turn towards the festive season and I start adding Christmas items to my British Craft House shop, I had a question for you – do you still send Christmas cards?!

As a card maker, I don’t really have an excuse not to! And if you have read any of my previous blogs you’ll know I’m a big fan of sending cards just because! But over recent years I’ve had more and more conversations with people who have moved away from sending Christmas cards, whether it’s because it’s too time consuming at an already extra busy time of year, they prefer the ease and efficiency of sending an email to stay in touch or because they are trying to be more green.

So, if you’re sitting on the fence this year debating whether to make the effort, let me tell you why I think you should consider keeping the Christmas card tradition alive! Christmas cards are a great way to stay connected, and this year that’s probably going to be needed even more than ever. And it’s not just about reaching out to close friends and family – we all have friends and acquaintances who we wished we had more time to stay in touch with, and Christmas serves as the perfect opportunity to touch base with people and let them know you are thinking of them and what you have been up to over the last year. Admit it, who doesn’t look forward to that one family Christmas card every year that comes with a full on annual letter for you to have a good old nose at what certain friends have been up to?!

Everyone knows how busy the festive season can (usually!) be. In ‘normal’ times, it’s pretty impossible to attend every holiday party, dinner and festive drinks as you find your social calendar inundated with ‘pre-Christmas catch ups’ so for those you can’t fit in, sending a card is a great way to send best wishes for the holiday season without running yourself into the ground! In fact, the first Christmas card commissioned in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole came about because of this (you can read more about this here) and featured three generations of the Cole family raising a toast with the central
messages of the festive season being celebration and charity.

Studies have proven that receiving a card can spark an emotional connection and generate positive feelings, increase self-esteem and help to stave off feelings of loneliness and isolation. As the year draws to a close and it seems unlikely that we will get to celebrate Christmas as usual this year, it seems an even more important time than ever to think about sending a card. And lucky for you, you are spoilt for choice with a massive range of cards available for all tastes! If you are looking for something handmade I have a selection of mini Christmas cards available, or take a browse through the wide selection from my fellow card makers on The British Craft House here. Charity cards are a great option if you want to use the opportunity to donate to your favourite charity at the same time as sending some happy mail or if you want to send cards whilst keeping the planet in mind, check out somewhere like the Thoughtful Human and their range of plantable cards! There are also some great ideas on how to recycle and up cycle your own Christmas cards once the holiday festivities are over here.

So there you go, hopefully some incentives to have you reaching for the pen and stamps this festive season – let me know below if you still send Christmas cards and I’ll leave you with this fun Christmas card fact: do you know why robins appear so frequently on Christmas cards? Because during the mid-1800’s, Royal Mail post men were nick named “robin redbreasts” because of the red waistcoats they wore as part of their uniforms, so robins began appearing on cards as symbols of the men who delivered them!

Posted on 16/09/202030/05/2023 by BeckyCoggins — Leave a comment

Thinking of You Week

Established in 2014, every year the Greeting Card Association runs Thinking of You Week, usually around mid September. Its aim is to “harness the emotional power of cards” and to “create a wave of love, caring and happiness around the world” which is something I think all of us can get on board with! It encourages people to send cards to different people throughout the week, for no other reason than to let someone know you are thinking about them.

If you follow me on social media or have checked out my online shop, you’ll know this is something I am a big believer in and try to encourage people to stay connected through sending some good old fashioned snail mail – I even have a range of cards perfect for sending just because!

As I mentioned in my last blog post, there are many great reasons to still send greeting cards – it’s the perfect way to let someone know you care, is an easy way to make someone smile and according to the GCA, “science has shown that receiving a handwritten card creates a lovely warm positive boost!” So there are plenty of reasons to get involved and it’s the perfect excuse to keep in touch with loved ones.

There are usually various events taking place throughout the week in schools and local shops, and many of the big card retailers also get on board to show their support – find out more ways you can get involved here, including using the Thinking of You Week toolkit to help spread the word.

But the easiest way by far to get involved is to just send a card! And to help you do that I have plenty of just because cards available in my British Craft House shop,so go on, why not #sendacarddeliverasmile?!

Posted on 09/06/202030/05/2023 by BeckyCoggins — Leave a comment

Five reasons to send greeting cards!

One of the reasons I started making my own cards a few years ago was that I love the idea of sending something handmade through the mail, and hopefully making the person on the receiving end smile when it arrives. It’s a great way to stay connected with people and recent events have highlighted this even more than ever. Read on to hear more on why I think sending greeting cards is still so important!

1. Stay in touch and keep connected

This may sound pretty obvious, but in the modern world when everyone is so busy, popping a birthday or anniversary card in the post is a great way to stay in touch with friends and family, especially if you don’t get to see each other very often. These days we have a tendency to rely heavily on technology and whilst an email or text is great, you can’t beat some good old fashioned snail mail landing on the door mat, and a handwritten note is much more personable than reading something off a screen. We can all appreciate how nice it is when you open your mail to find more than just bills and junk mail!

2. Let someone know you are thinking about them and make them smile

Receiving a card really can mean a lot to some people. Not only does it show you care, but it shows you have made that little extra effort to take a few minutes out of your day to spend the time picking out something you know the recipient will really like. You can get cards for all occasions and some of the best ones are those that you send ‘just because’. It’s a great way to let someone know you are thinking about them, or if someone is going through a challenging time and you’re not quite sure what to say, a card can say it for you. Thinking of You Week, run by The Greeting Card Association is taking place this year from 21-27 September, and it’s a great opportunity to get involved in sending some #happymail!

3. They make great memories and keepsakes

How many of you have a box hidden away somewhere full of old cards or postcards from friends and family, reminding you of special occasions?! I know I certainly do, and cards are a great way of reminding you of important moments. In fact when you think about it, for most of life’s big milestones, it’s the trusty old greeting card that we turn to, to mark the occasion! Some cards are even perfect for framing and keeping out on display all year round!

4. Buying a card is an easy way to support a small business

If you are shopping on The British Craft House, you are probably already a fan of shopping small or supporting handmade businesses, but buying a greeting card is a great way of showing your support to small, independent retailers. Not only card retailers but often museums, gift shops and art galleries have cards for sale – if you are able to, it’s a small purchase without having to spend a lot and it means the world to the seller!

5. It keeps tradition alive

Not only is sending a card a great opportunity to flex those handwriting skills, but it also helps keep the long standing tradition of sending greeting cards alive! The act of sending cards dates all the way back to the ancient Chinese who used to exchange messages of goodwill to celebrate New Year, but they really started coming into their own in the 1840-50’s….but I’ll save that for a whole other blog post…..!

Posted on 18/03/202030/05/2023 by BeckyCoggins — Leave a comment

How is Crofts Crafts going green?

For many small businesses, finding ways to be eco-friendly and more sustainable has definitely become more of a priority over recent years. Not only do we want to make sure we’re being considerate to our environment, but we realise it has become even more important to our customers too, who are becoming increasingly conscious of the environmental footprint of the products they purchase. However, it can be hard for small businesses to find solutions that can be financially viable when working on such a small scale, so in honour of Global Recycling Day, I thought I’d share some tips on some of the steps I’ve taken so far in trying to make Crofts Crafts more eco-friendly!

As a card maker who traditionally used cello bags to package my cards before posting out, I was super happy when I came across the Naked Cards campaign, which encourages online card sellers to “ditch the plastic cellos in favour of either ‘naked’ or paper packaging”. It may sound daunting at first as you worry about your products getting damaged in the post, but think about it – how often does that happen when you send a card yourself just in an envelope in the post? So it should really be fine packaged up without a cello on the way to its new home?! Naked Cards has a great list of benefits and FAQ’s you can check out for more info. The fabulous Emily at Skull and Cross Buns has also created a stamp that you can use on the back of your cards or packaging to help explain why your card has arrived naked!

I try to use materials that are either recycled or recyclable, both in my cards and in my packaging. Hands up, it isn’t always possible to make a completely eco card but I try to do what I can! I use recycled and recyclable card stock for the cards, and many of my embellishments are either made from card that can also be recycled, or some could even be taken off and reused for other crafting projects! My packaging is an area I’ve really worked hard on to try and make more environmentally friendly and I’ve found an array of small packaging companies that offer some great products for
this:

Eco-Craft for their selection of recycled and recyclable envelope mailers, labels, paper packing tape, natural and biodegradable twine and tissue paper that is 100% recycled, acid free, recyclable, biodegradable & compostable….phew!
Kite, Tiny Box Company and Lil Packaging also all offer eco-friendly
packaging alternatives worth checking out.
Washi tape is also a great addition to packaging – it’s made out of natural fibres like hemp and bamboo, so is a highly renewable resource, biodegradable and can be recycled – and let’s face it, it looks really pretty!

I also try to reduce waste wherever I can. My box of card scraps is ever growing, I encourage people to keep hold of their cards as some of them are ideal for framing and I’ve recently started making confetti bags with stamped out card that isn’t needed (and I found some great glassine bags for packaging these!). There is still more I hope to do and it’s an ongoing learning curve. Naked cards at craft fairs and for stockists where items get continually handled are still one I need to figure out – just having display cards out and using plastic free card clasps, are all options to consider.

It can take a while to figure things out, but I think it’s just about trying to do what you can and finding the best products and materials that work for you and your business – every little bit really does make a difference. I’d love to hear any other tips and ideas you might have so please do comment below!