Website is taking off!

Our website http://www.bolsitabags.co.uk/ is starting to become very busy. Please bear with us as we are struggling to replace stock at the pace it is being sold - though a good problem to have!

As each bag is (lovingly) handmade in the shop in York, there is occasionally a waiting list for some popular items, particularly the tweed shoppers which are comfortingly autumnal! Our tweed fabrics are sourced from various places. Unfortunately, our stock of vintage Harris Tweed has all gone- but we will search for more.

If you are a fan of the Made in Britain brand, these products will be just the ticket. Bolsita supports numerous tiny businesses in Yorkshire by selling handmade scarves, hats, brooches and bags. And with Christmas just around the corner.....!

If you are intending to order from the website, don't leave it too late and do bear in mind Christmas posting times later in December.

Cheers!

and a sample from the website...

One of my favorites at the moment. Reminds me that lovely autumn is coming and air is cooler!

Introducing Anne, my mentor

Anne has kindly started to mentor me as I grow Bolsita - how exciting!

My first question to her was how to raise the profile of the website generally beyond the local area. She came back to me with 20 things to start doing! My first job is to decide which national publications would suit the Bolsita products and shop.... what magazines do the most enthusiastic Bolsita customer read....hmmm, this may take some time.

If anyone has any suggestions, please do get in touch via www.bolsitabags.co.uk I await your brilliant ideas!

Cambridge Folk Festival 09

Cambridge Folk Festival was a fantastic few days - and the trading was as brisk as it was last year, which is good news all round. Despite the challenging weather people were happy to browse and shop between ace live music.

Our next festival is Greenbelt at the end of August, which is more of a challenge as we're hoping to keep the shop open at the same time.

And looking ahead, Bolsita has been accepted into St. Nicholas Fayre in November in York. This is a huge event with many hundreds of visitors coming into the city each day. Better get sewing....!

The website is now starting to gather pace and sales are coming in fast. www.bolsitabags.co.uk visit us if you haven't already!

Sharon

Monkeys!

If you are following the audio diary of the trials and tribulations of Bolsita on Radio York, you will know that things aren't always easy in the retail business. I cling on to the hope that people love handcrafted items, especially something as useful as bags.

But to really capture people's interest, we now have a lovely family of sock monkeys in residence in the shop. If you walk past you will see them frolicking in the window, being cheeky. These are handmade sock monkeys and have proved a real hit. So much so, I am trying to persuade them to go on the website to find homes further afield.

Anyway, enough of the anthropomorphic gobbledegook..... you'll have to see them for yourselves. I'll post a picture!

Website is launched - hoorah!

The Bolsita website www.bolsitabags.co.uk, is now up and running and it all works beautifully, having processed a few purchases already!

Take a look and do feed back any helpful comments you might have.

BBC Radio North Yorkshire are continuing my audio diary this week. I've been in a slightly pensive mood this month; I'm beginning to understand the retail world more thoroughly - having learnt a few hard lessons along the way......

But more positively, the shop is buzzing with customers on a daily basis and the ever popular leather satchels are flying off the shelves.

But back to the sewing machine in preparation for the Summer Fayre in York's Parliament St. (9th-12th July)

See you there!

Shortlisted for an award.....!!

Woo Hoo.... Bolsita has been shortlisted for the Yorkshire Post Environment Awards, in the category of Environmentally Friendly Product. Even if I don't actually win, I'm very excited to be a finalist....

Easter blues

Easter is over and we're blue (a bit). It has been a roller coaster weekend with the event in York City Centre and a couple of days off (yippee!). The Easter weekend turned out to be better than expected, saleswise. Thanks to all those who came and said hello and to the customers who visited both the shop and the stall (dedication).

Back at the shop today to spend a couple of hours tidying up! All is in order now though, and new bags are on the way. We are dreaming up new styles which will hit the shop shortly.

We've found some fab new satchels in very thick but soft leather - can't wait for them to arrive. In the meantime, sew, sew, sew!

The website is almost, almost finished. Apparently it is down to me to fill the site with lovely bags, so my week is going to be spent photographing and uploading.... not so bad with a glass of wine on the go!

The picture is of one of the bags made by the Karen Hilltribes in Thailand, mentioned in the previous post. A bargain at £19.99!

BIG news!

Though unrelated to Bolsita (apologies for that) I am delighted to announce that our duo TWO is supporting Fairport Convention in May in York (The Duchess). This is a massive gig for us and we are beside ourselves with glee! I remember listening to Leige and Lief (have I spelt that correctly??) at the age of 15 and learning to play all the songs before I even thought of writing my own music. So it is a momentous thing to now be sharing a stage with Fairport.... not Southport Convention as mother insists on calling them!!!

www.twomusic.co.uk for more info about the music.

Story behind ......

This week has been a roller coaster of emotions. I've finished the latest instalment of the audio diary I am doing for BBC Radio York on the fortunes of Bolsita. This week it features the brilliant Prosperity Coach Cordelia, who is helping me set goals for Bolsita. That's very exciting.

I'll give you a sneak preview of the next one. This week a lady came into the shop to tell me about a charity she runs helping the Karen Hilltribes of Thailand. When she showed me the things they make I fell in love! The most beautiful hand woven scarves and bags - all naturally dyed - are now hanging in the shop! But the story behind the charity is moving. Her son went to spend some time working with the Karen Hilltribes, and certainly it impacted on his life and the lives of the people he helped. Tragically, he was killed in a car accident and his mother subsequently set up the charity to continue the work he started. The fact that the products have this kind of story behind them just adds to their beauty and worth.

I found myself thinking about the connections between me behind the sewing machine in Micklegate, York and the person who wove the scarf I am wearing in the hills of Thailand. It's the most fundamental and creative thing that humans have been doing for thousands of years - making something beautiful and offering it for people to buy.

You can find out more about the Karen Hilltribes Trust at www.karenhilltribes.org.uk or pop into the shop and have a look at the lovely products.

Sharon xx

New season, new bags!

Well, it's been ages since I posted. I feel guilty, but it's all in a good cause! The shop in Micklegate had a fab Christmas and we're looking forward to going into Easter with a healthy supply. One thing is for sure, the goat leather satchels are a hit once again!