Splendid!

Splendid! I have decided that 'Splendid' is my word of the month. I wanted a positive, jolly word and I think splendid is it! It’s also quite nice to say, try it! It reminds me of that scene in Miranda when she confesses to loving the word ‘plunge’ as it’s nice to say. (If you haven’t watched the series then you must!)

Speaking of watching series, did anyone watch Modern Love on Amazon Prime? It’s the best series I’ve watched in a while as it gave me the warm and fuzzies and it’s the perfect series to watch during the love crazed month of February.

I have been frantically making Valentine's Day cards at Miss Shelly HQ. I’m proud to say all my Valentine’s Day cards are hand made- they are printed, creased and hand decorated by me.

In January I cracked my Insta story cherry and started talking to the camera. In one of my videos I talked about the amount of work that goes into one of my cards. My best seller this year is my Koala Love card. It retails at £3.95 which may sound like a lot but I don’t actually make that amount and here is why......

Firstly there is the postage cost, the cards are sent as a large letter because of their pompom ears so I lose a pound straight away. I also get charged a large commission on the sites I sell on. I use quality card, a professional printer and inks are expensive. I crease, fold and package them myself and then there is the admin with each order and trips to the post office, it’s a labour of love! So when you buy from a small business (and thank you to everyone who does) you’re buying something special, something which has been handcrafted and not a mass produced card which you can buy on your high street for a pound.

My voyage into Insta stories this month came after listening to the fabulous Sam Burgess podcasts. She talks all about me being my brand. It’s my business and people want to see the face behind Miss Shelly Designs (do you?!). Speaking to the camera isn't something I find easy but I decided to go with my positive (splendid!) can-do attitude this year and gave it a go! I must say, I find it far easier than taking a photo of myself. I often talk to the camera in my running gear without make up on and I’d never take a photo of myself like that and post on instagram, maybe it’s because stories are only there for 24 hours whereas a photo is up there all the time -weird huh?

So if you are reading this and run your own small business then give Insta stories a go! You should also listen to Sam Burgess Small and Mighty podcasts as they’re splendid - see what I did there?