Two good reads

Well here we are almost in Autumn and although I will be sad to see the children go back to school it also will mark a new phase in my creative life. I need to make some changes to function better at work in my shed and in the office inside where I pack all my orders. The chaos will end. My husband will probably die of shock. He will eat his oft quoted " I love what you've done with the place!" words.

In the last couple of weeks I have bought three books related to business - two of them craft specific and one Personal MBA book recommended by my Twitter friend Jane Lindsey designer owner of Snapdragon who I am very grateful to as she also sent me a book to get me thinking positively. Thanks Jane x I haven't yet begun the MBA book as there are only so many books you can actually read at one time  - aren't there?

On saturday we went to Pleasurewood Hills in Suffolk where Tony and I felt a good part of the day feeling queasy but in quiet moments where we were able to dispatch both children on the  "Snake in the Grass" I pulled out this book: "Craft Inc." by Meg Mateo Ilasco

I find its perfect for the way my life is as I can dip in and read nuggets that get me thinking or resonate with me, the same is true of the second book actually... but its larger!

Both are similar in treatment in that there are interviews with makers and this gets you thinking about where you fit in. I personally found it very comforting to read about one maker whose aim is simply to sell 100 dollars worth of her craft a day and she was very happy with that and this enables her to live the life she wants. This isn't her  - but just a snippet of one of the very interesting interviews from the Craft Inc. book

and this is one from The Handmade Marketplace by Kari Chapin

There is a lot of interesting discussion about blogging from key bloggers too - I would thoroughly recommend both books to those about to embark on crafting for business or for those who want to be re-fired and inspired. Importantly - both these books are by American authors and deal with USA law as far as the tax /business sides are concerned; but all other topics are universal. I wonder if anyone has written something similar for the UK market?

Please recommend books in the comments section that you have found useful too - I'd love that and anyone having a quick look here would be grateful I am sure!  Thank you - Gabs x