Hyacinths, Susie Ho, Sally Smart and the W.I.

This is what I would wear normally. Jumper, jeans and some kind of footwear. Outfit finished. The end.

H&M Cotton Jumper, New Look Jeans, Primark Sandals

But yesterday was a little out of the norm. Yesterday I was doing the W.I. (Womens Institute) Village fair. I was getting stuck in with the Jam & Jerusalem girls. I was kindly invited to do the fair and I do have a fiscal target to meet this year so I got my act together and set up my stall. Hence the addition of neck candy to the outfit. I find that when things are set on a table, they can seem a bit static and people need that little extra visual help to see how a jewellery piece works. 

I was debating between the beachcomber necklace ......

Susie Ho Beachcomber Necklace

..... and the tumbled moonstone lariat.

Susie Ho Tumbled Moonstone Lariat

The beachcomber is my personal favourite but I went with the lariat because when the lariat is flat on a table - it looks like nothing and it's not till you wear it, do people notice it. People need to see things on to see how pieces work.

My white cotton jumper was half price (£6.50) in a recent H&M flash sale but has gone back to £12.99 now. It's a little long in the body but works well tucked in to jeans and loosened up a little. Good for all you tall girls out there and is a good light weight for the summer. This is a size 8 and it's roomy - you need to size down in this one but it does depend on the fit you are going for. And the sandals are last year's Primarni and the predecessors to my Krimbles. They are comfortable - three hours on my feet and no swear words.

I actually had a really enjoyable day. The sun was shining and the people I met were lovely. Especially Sally the florist who I met last year at the same do who gave me a bunch of narcissi at the end of day to send me on my way. She gets a special mention as I got another bunch this year as well :o)

This is Sally's stall. She always does well but how can she fail with a display like this? 

Sally Smart Flowers

Very Country Living Magazine, don't you think?

I had a look on Sally's Facebook page and she runs flower workshops! I think this would make for a fun day with a couple of like minded friends. I did a one day workshop at Jane Packer's in Marylebone about 10 years ago. I was terrified sat amongst all the rather intense Japanese florists who had flown over especially to take the course but she (Jane) said I seemed a natural (my head swelled to the size of the bouquet I was putting together that day which was pretty big). 

And of course I didn't manage to take any good clear ones of my stall but here's a couple of pictures of the hyacinths I bought and a shot of the best seller of the day.

My best seller at this particular fair,

I never set out to do fairs when I first started - they can be hard work and I am not a natural sales person. But I have to say, you get excellent first hand feedback and you get to meet some lovely like minded people. I also found I had some repeat customers. Last year, I had a lady who really liked the jewellery but didn't have enough cash on her so she borrowed what she could from her friends there to buy a necklace. When her other half turned up, she got him to drive her to the cashpoint in the next village and came back to buy some earrings too. She was back this year and yes she purchased again - like she said "well I didn't buy a bracelet last year did I?". That's the kind of thing which makes my day :o)

But now I really must crack on with my own little web shop .... it's slowly getting there. Technophobe snails are faster admittedly. Besides, I hate it when I get set a challenge - I will meet that target!

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Last note :

• Any enquiries about any of the pieces seen today - drop me an email (see - I'm trying).

• Any good advice you want to leave me about setting up businesses but not via a comment, drop me an email - I don't bite and I would welcome any help. 

• This post is not a sponsored post for Sally. I just like her and thought I'd show you some nice flowers.

• It's not a sponsored post if it's for your own stuff, is it :o?