Company News
Website Update
We have updated our website with some bug fixes and improvement on speed. We have done the usual rounds of testing but bugs can still slip by us. ...
Chaos, Sieves And War Zones
Thank you so much for the photos of your beadwork. What a variety of beautiful things you have all been busy making. You also seem to agree with me that life consists of moving things from one place to another. It’s one of those self-evident truths that only occur to us in that split-second between realising that what we are now doing is extremely silly, if not down-right disastrous, and being beyond the point of no return. Mine was rashly tipping 2 big bags of yellow beads into the scales only to realise that one had been 11/00 and the other 15/00. I put them in the ‘think about it later’ box. A little while afterwards someone mentioned that they had read about a bead sorter. A computer search found a nice little tower of different sized sieves and a price well into double figures. I had a little think, how often am I likely to use it, what was most likely to need to be sorted etc. and a browse on the web. I am now the proud owner of a sieve with base and lid which separates 11/00s and 15/00s of any shape excellently and cost me well below double figures. If anyone needs to borrow it they are very welcome. I think a lot of us have been taking this opportunity to sort, tidy and organise. Having done so we should now be saving time looking for things because we know where they are. That’s the theory anyway. ...
Week 13
Well, here I am at the end of week 13. That’s a quarter of the year! Whatever happened to quarter days? They used to be marked by festivals and markets, they were the four dates in each year on which servants were hired, school terms started, and rents were due. When I signed the lease on my first retail shop the rent was payable on quarter days and it was viewed as very odd that I asked to pay it monthly. Now monthly rents are far more the norm. That actually makes me feel very old! They fell on four religious festivals roughly three months apart and close to the two solstices and two equinoxes. The quarter days have been observed at least since the Middle Ages and they ensured that debts and unresolved lawsuits were not allowed to linger on. Accounts had to be settled, a reckoning had to be made and publicly recorded on the quarter days. ...
What's In A Name?
Thank you all for your lovely messages. So encouraging. Without them I wouldn’t be inspired to keep going. To the lady who asked if I minded a reply – a resounding NO! I am only sorry I can reply to so few but I do read each and every one and they do for me what my letters seem to be doing for you. It’s interesting to note the varied spelling of my name on these replies. There are four possible spellings of my name, Vivien (English feminine), Vyvyan (English masculine), Vivienne (French feminine) and Vivian (French masculine) and three of those regularly make appearances! At the change of an ‘e’ to an ‘a’ I am changed from an Englishwoman to a Frenchman! Perhaps that’s why some people call me Viv – they’re not sure exactly what I am! I think that how someone introduces themselves is how they wish to be addressed but there are those who can’t stop themselves from shortening a name, Richard was one. The family who live next door, for example, the boys and their Mum, Kim, call me Vivien but Mark calls me Viv – I try not to wince! ...
The Rambling Of A Mad. Old Cat, Lady
Thank you all so much for your lovely emails and phone calls of support. I can tell you that I have cancelled some orders and deleted a few customers as well. Moral? Don’t get stroppy with me – I might bite! Unfortunately I am not the only one who has had to curtail our exercise walks because of the inconsiderate ones still roaming the streets, so intent on their own exercise that they don’t think about others who may have non-visible medical conditions. Grrr! So many of you have said how much you enjoy my letters that here I am - back by popular demand. Wow! ...
Naughty Tortie Versus The Printer
I find it interesting that a lot of people are counting the days they have been in lock-down and are complaining they are bored. These are people who have no interests or hobbies inside their home and really have no proper understanding of what Public Health England is trying to achieve. These are the ones who think it can never happen to them or it won’t be too bad, they’re young and fit. These are the people that will be spreading the bug and probably getting divorced when this is all over! It’s becoming like some sort of warped Christmas season. They are not “locked down” - they are social distancing. Were it not being called ‘lock-down’ they would be out and about as usual. ...
The Right Tube For The Job
Hi Beady Peeps!Here’s hoping you are all staying as well as I am. Life is settling down into a strange sort of rhythm here and I’m still finding plenty to amuse me – not to keep me amused – that’s an entirely different thing! It occurred to me that you might be interested in how my days go. ...
Spring 2020 News
p { margin-bottom: 0.25cm; line-height: 115%; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; } I know how many of you, like me, are self-isolated for various reasons. I also know that you need the occupational therapy of beading. As long as the delivery networks can keep going we will all be fine and I wish all those involved in the industry good health. I hope their coping strategies work. I also think that the ‘key worker’ category needs to be redefined but that’s enough of that. ...
News January 2020
It seems to me as though every time I tell you that I am just about keeping my head above water and how I am achieving it there is a deluge of orders! I’m NOT complaining. The support and loyalty you are all showing me is absolutely amazing and humbling. Thank you all so much. The increase in orders also means that I can afford a bit of help in the office, especially when a delivery comes in, as it did this week. I have been able to help Clare, my sister, out a bit as well by paying her for a few hours work. I just thought you all needed to know how the ripples beneficially affect other people. People that you don’t even know. ...