Being sat at a desk 8 hours a day staring at little letters appearing on a screen in front of me is contributing to my slow, dull mummification so, I have hatched reckless escape plans in the dead of night which have, so far, come to nothing.
One of these plans was to start my own business called 'Crafty Beggar Creations'. I wanted to make my own paper from which I could make greetings cards, diaries and scrapbooks. Everything I produced would be found or recycled and made into something new and beautiful.
As with most ideas that go nowhere, I spent most of my time agonising over the name. I was quite set on it being something to do with the Wombles to start with, but they’re a protected name-species. Then the name ‘Crafty Beggar’ came to me in a ‘eureka’ moment. I was delighted with my punning genius until I found my thought-twin on the internet. It was too late. I had already named my child so I settled for adding the word ‘Creations’ on the end so I could secure my own domain name for a website.
The hours I spent consumed in this naming process seem a little wasted now given that I’ve done precisely nothing with it. The idea went up like a firework with a burst of light and sound cutting through the daily mediocrity of life and then faded to nothing in the night sky.
The stumbling block came when I tried to run before I could walk. What any 'normal' person would do is build up a stock of cards and other items to sell and start by flogging small numbers to local retailers, whilst beginning to sell items online with the view to developing a website. Not me. I hate waiting. I prefer to skip to the end. I wanted to give up my job and my flat and rent a unit at a local print-works which was being renovated to become a centre of artisan businesses. These units were advertised as combined working and living spaces so I thought I could cut down on my outgoings by living and running my new business in the same place. This all seemed quite feasible to me with my budget calculations and forecasts until I went to see the space. It was absolutely freezing….and dark….and damp. The units which were supposed to be suitable to live in had stairs leading up to a wooden platform which was almost big enough to put a single mattress on….welcome to the living quarters.
That was the end. The bubble popped. Paper production slowed down after that and has since ground to a halt. I still do handmade cards for friends and family but the website lies dormant.
Did Crafty Beggar Creations change my life?
Although my actual situation has not changed as a result of 'Crafty Beggar Creations', I think it did help me with a mental shift into conceiving of more possibilities for myself. I never even thought about setting up a business before so I think the whole process, although mostly hypothetical, did widen my horizons.
Rating: 3/10
Comments: I’m mostly just disappointed in myself when I think about 'Crafty Beggar' because it really shows up my lack of commitment to anything that doesn’t come easy to me. I think of myself as being quite a determined person and that whole ‘episode’ is like a blot on my self-perception, forcing me to face the truth – I’m a bit lazy really.
Development Opportunities: I still have the website and all the equipment to make paper so I could continue to make cards as a hobby and even get a stall at a Christmas market and try and flog a few. I just need a few more hours in the day.
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