Introducing the Dessert Roll

Most of you will be familiar with the Jelly Roll – the collection of 40 x 2.5” wide strips that Moda bring out with all their collections.  There are many books with wonderful designs that can be created with these Jelly Rolls.

However, there is also the Dessert Roll.  This is the same concept, but the strips are 5” wide and there are just 20 pieces of fabric.  Both the Jelly Roll and Dessert Roll have 2.5 metres of fabric in them so can make a sizeable quilt.  The benefit of having larger strips of fabric is that it allows greater versatility and is especially good for fabrics with larger prints.

The Dessert Roll is not available for all collections and rarely available in the UK.  JuBerry recognized the versatility of this new pre-cut and we now create our own dessert rolls for all our Moda collections that come in.

There is also a great book by Pam and Nicky Lintott – Dessert Rolls which has some brilliant patterns in and can be purchased from our website.  This is a picture of one of the quilts featured – Hen Party.

To see our complete range of Dessert Rolls please visit our website.

A New Fabric Studio - Part 1

Well it's been a while since my last blog for which I apologise however we have been really busy.  If you remember I did mention that we were thinking of opening a new fabric studio in Newbury.  Well, that has happened!  Whilst the past year has been a complete foray into a completely different area, the past few months have been different once again - exciting, interesting, educational and, most importantly, fun.

Once we found the unit that we thought would be ideal and negotiations had started to secure the lease, we started looking at fabric to buy.  Our ambition from the outset was to ensure that we had enough fabric to ensure the unit was well stocked and exciting so we arranged to meet with a few wholesalers - both Julie and I had a good idea of which suppliers we wanted fabric from.  Whilst we knew there was a vast amount of material  we had absolutely no idea of what was instore for us.  

Our first task was to visit a couple of local warehouses to see the collections available.  Quite frankly we should have known then what a huge job we had ahead of us!  The first warehouse was quite gentle as we were shown the collections but urged not to choose then so we could go away and think about it - what great advice that was!  

The second warehouse was a bit different and we could wonder around and choose what we wanted - we bought a mere 6 bolts, the first of nearly 1000 we have now - oh how we have changed!

Our next phase involved inviting reps to come and visit.  Picture the scene - a dining room table with Julie sitting oneside and myself at the other, the rep at the end of the table between is.  The first rep came in with a suitcase which he opened on the floor between himself and me.  In the case he had a mixture of cards with collections on and fabric samples - one sample of about 10 different patterns in a collection can roll up into a sausage shape measuring about 9 in * 4 in.  Have you idea how many of these samples a suitcase can take?  I didn't, and I had the advantage of seeing the suitcase and continuous outpouring of samples. Well, it was like Mary Poppins' carpet bag, but without the Hat Stand.  

Sample after sample was pulled out with detailed descriptions for each one.  I was pulling faces at Julie who was trying not to laugh.  But we are a serious business (cough) and had to be polite and make decisions.  Our policy was to have two piles - a maybe and a 'over my dead body' pile, and then return to the maybes and select the specific pieces of cloth we wanted.

Well this was OK for the first half an hour, but the first suitcase lasted over an hour and then the chap went to the car to bring in two more - he was eventually there for 4 hours!

When the next rep turned up with his suitcase, we were prepared – we had wine chilling in the fridge and asked how many cases he had. 

You may be wondering how we chose the fabric…  Well, Julie and I have fairly different tastes and people who know me well enough will know that my expression normally gives away what I am thinking – Julie eventually learnt not to look at me and made her own decisions!  Seriously we did agree on most choices but respect one another enough which has created a wide range of brilliant fabrics that we have had some great comments about.

What lessons did we learn through this initial stage of our new business?  Ask how many suitcases the reps have!  Be a bit more strict on how long they stay – an hour is good.  Consider where we'll store everything - more of that in the next exciting instalment!  In the meantime, please have a look at our website to see the vast choice that we now have.  www.juberry.co.uk

Beach Bags and Christmas Stockings

 The last few weeks have been really strange as we have been working on both Christmas items and Beach bags!  We have noticed in our research that some people offer kits or patterns of items to make-up using quilting methods (the kits consist of most of the fabrics pre-cut to complete the item).  As a beginner myself I thought this was an ideal way to get started and have purchased a couple myself, however we think there is a huge gap in the market as many shops don't seem to carry huge ranges.

This all ties in with out latest venture which is selling fabrics online and (soon-to-be) from a studio/warehouse.  As we want to be more than just a place selling fabrics we are going to offer kits as well, not only from us, but from other designers, in addition we want to show off what can be done with some of the most beautiful fabric we have seen and had the pleasure of purchasing.

So, what came first - the fabric or the pattern?  In the case of the Christmas stocking - the fabric came first.  We felt that showing the panels for the Xmas stocking did not do it justice - which makes sense as it gives people a chance to add their own flair to it.  So Julie made one up, adding her own individuality.  The material is from the Makower Novelty 2013 range (www.makoweruk.com).

Julie has outlined all the key pieces with a metalic thread, which really brings out the pattern, and then quilted the rest in a squirly design.

In addition, Julie added her own touch by including a fold-over bit at the top which can be personalised for a child's (or adult's - though this stocking wouldn't be big enough for my presents :-) ) name.

Being a bit in reverse, Julie then concentrated on designing and making beach bags.  In this case the design came first and Julie used material from her existing collection.  However she has now made kits in these fabrics and other designs that we chose from the selection of materials that we are building up.

We hope you like both of these exciting products that Julie has created.  Please take a look at www.juberry.co.uk for more details......

Introducing the iPad Smart Cover

When we originally started our business we made covers (protective sleeves) for the iPad because we hated the boring ones available in the shops.

However whilst these were able to hold the iPad along with the Apple Smart cover and offer a great deal of protection, we felt that that a Smart cover which added additional protection on the front as well as the back would be a perfect addition to our range, giving customers much more choice.  Having discovered the 'secret' of the automatic turning the iPad off and on, Julie ordered some magnet strips with the idea of sewing them into the front cover. We then found out that actually they may not work with all types of iPad so Julie spent many a day in our nearest John Lewis store trying the magnets with different versions of each tablet, much to the amusement and puzzlement of fellow shoppers and staff :-) .....  So now we have an extensive stock of magnets and a list of which works with each tablet.  Julie has now designed a cover that is both useful and stylish, a move away from the monochrome, boring covers available in most shops - it has a quilted padded outer cover and a plastic insert which allows the cover to stand upright in landscape or portrait mode when the strap is fastened behind.

Obviously these covers have to be fully tested so I am using this one and absolutely love it.  There is another one in this fabric as well as some entirely different ones.  Please check out our Website or Etsy Shop for more information.

Feedback

After the disappointing day at the Craft Fair we have picked ourselves up and booked some more outings - we've even applied for two Xmas ones.

We are starting to get a steady stream of sales and everyone who buys gives us excellent feedback which is really heartening

Beautifully made, it fits my Kindle perfectly. I absolutely LOVE it ! It is a very good quality cover and so pretty :) Delivery was very fast and wrapping excellent. Highly recommendable

 

I also discovered the Coupon Code functionality for Etsy which is really useful when selling to local people so we can easily remove the cost for postage.  I'm also offering loyalty discount to people who buy additional items.  I see Facebook has a function to promote offers, but it's a pay-for service unfortunately.

Yesterday was studio day when the lounge was turned upside down, and still hasn't recovered <sigh>... nobody told me we would have so much stuff that takes up so much room ..... I'll start uploading today, but here's a taster of our new iPad Smart cover.  I love this material and this is actually the one that I am using now.

 

 

Our first outings as a business

We have had a busy couple of weeks.  Firstly we visited our first Trade Show at the NEC last week.  It was fascinating seeing all the different types of supplies for crafts - Julie was like a child in a sweet shop!  Unfortunately most of the stands were only interested in doing business with retail shops.  We did manage to buy some wadding material at good prices though.

There was also a very good seminar all about successful blogging from Perri Lewis which was very helpful - can you see the difference ? :-)

Following on from that, yesterday was our first Craft Fair.  We were really excited and spent a lot of time preparing for it.  Julie made a fantastic quilted sign to put on the front of the table.

We were worried that we didn't have enough stock but the dress rehearsal on Saturday showed that we had more than enough and even filled two tables on the day.

Unfortunately the Craft Fair was a little disappointing and we didn't sell anything, though did take an order for 2 cushions.  In addition there was a lot of interest in the Kindle covers and our new range of Smart covers for the iPad.  There were very few visitors (it was a very cold day and, to be honest, I wouldn't have ventured out unless I had to...) and hardly anyone was making any sales which was somewhat comforting (for us anyway).  Thanks very much to our friends who popped by to support us!  We were lucky enough to be sat behind a cake stall which cheered us up, but did nothing for our waistlines!

We're trying to not be too despondent so onwards and upwards....  and have decided to add yet more products to appeal to a wider range of people - so watch this space!

For further details of our products see our website

JuBerry Designs Latest News

Since January we have been designing creating many new products in addition to the protective sleeves for iPads and other tablets, such as the Jewellery roll which has been cleverly designed to hold and protect jewellery in individual small pockets, a larger zipped one that extends 2 thirds of the open case and a padded tube for rings.

  

Lilac Swirl Jewellery Roll

We have also designed a booktype cover for the Kindle and other e-readers.  It has a quilted cover and plastic inserts to help protect the Kindle.  In addition the strap the fastens the cover, can be repositioned to allow the Kindle to stand upright.

Pink Rose Kindle Booktype Cover

We have been delighted with the response to our items on the website JuBerry Designs and have now created an Etsy shop as well which is an online marketplace set up for homemade crafts.  In addition we have had several requests for custom orders, which has kept Julie busy.

It's hard work keeping our online presence updated.  But please visit our site regularly to see our latest products. Alternatively, why don't you visit our Facebook page.

Production is in full swing for our first public show at Hungerford Town Hall on 24th February where the full range of JuBerry products will be on display.  We are really excited about meeting people and getting feedback on our range.

We decided to offer something different and this idea has proved to be very popular. Our clients can even provide their own material and we produce whichever item they want. A great way to use up those offcuts (or an excuse to spend an afternoon in the fabric shop) and create a truly unique design.