So I’m back on the ferry, heading over to Hampton Court Palace for Kirstie Allsopp’s The Handmade Fair. So much has happened since I was travelling over last year.

One of the biggest differences for me is that this year I am travelling over to England with stock boxes full of bags made from my own unique print, Meadow. In September last year, the public’s reaction to my bags at The Handmade Fair was the final spur to encourage me to be brave and get my own print, unique to me.
I took delivery of the first rolls of Meadow fabric in its gorgeous green, turquoise and red colours in November. And thanks to you lovely people, this fabric has outsold all other fabrics I use ever since.

Encouraged still further, I have now developed two additional colour ways of Meadow fabric, so now I have The Meadow Collection. I have the original Green Meadow, and now it is joined by Blue Meadow and Grey Meadow.

To say I am pleased by the reaction from people who have seen these new fabrics is an understatement.  I can’t wait to see what the lovely people who attend The Handmade Fair will think. I wonder if they will realise how their enthusiasm last year has led me to this point, where I will be stocking the shelves of my stand (E127 in case you’re visiting the Fair) with three different versions of my own fabric design.

And of course, this feels like just the beginning. With this new found confidence, I’m wanting to develop new fabric designs too. This is just the beginning of developing unique Sallyann’s Handmade Bags fabrics.
I hope that I’ll see plenty of you at The Handmade Fair from 15-17 September, but I’ll be back in Ireland from 20 September, and back at Chapel Lane Market in Ennis on 23 & 30 September.