The Loch Ness Marathon isn’t until October, so in theory I have plenty of time to train.  After completing week 1 of my training and feeling a bit achy I am wondering what on earth I’ve let myself in for – wish me luck!

To make it a little easier on your wallet, we’re also giving you 10% off everything ordered until midnight February 14th.  Just enter the code VALENTINE10 at the checkout.  www.emmiejay.co.uk

This week the Prince of Wales has launched The Wool Project, a campaign to promote the wool industry specifically focused on the UK, Australia and New Zealand.  Wool used to be a staple in most people’s wardrobes, but having had its ups and downs over the years it’s now considered either expensive, itchy or difficult to look after by many consumers.  We’re so used to finding man-made alternatives in our shops many of us don’t even own any wool items these days!

It does seem a shame – it can be beautiful, is extremely hard wearing and is a material we can produce in the UK.  It may be a more expensive product, but then it’s also going to last.  You shouldn’t compare buying a quality item that will last years with the throw-away fast fashion found on most high-streets, yet we all do it and often opt for the cheap option that lasts even less time than the bag it came in.

There are some great British designers working with wool, producing really exciting pieces that are fashionable, very wearable and beautifully made, Izzy Lane and Makepiece being the obvious examples.

Let’s hope this campaign helps give wool a higher profile, encouraging more designers, retailers and consumers to get involved.  It would be great to see more material produced, processed and made into the finished article all in the UK.

Best part of the day though was the buying!  Placed a jewellery order and picked up a few gorgeous clutch bags and purses made from vintage silk scarves to try out. Look out for these stunners online soon…

This is apparently due to a property referred to as bamboo kun, which is a naturally occurring anti-microbial.  This is what stops your bamboo socks from getting smelly as the odour-producing bacteria don’t get a look in.  The best thing is this doesn’t get washed straight out, unlike chemically added fresheners, further research has shown that these anti-fungal and anti-bacterial qualities last after many launderings.

All that from a pair of socks – marvellous!

Hoping this will be a useful way to broaden my network, and keep my Tweeting customers up to date with all my news.  Happy Tweeting!

First order has already been received!  I’m just in time for Christmas shopping, so hopefully lots more to come soon.  I feel so excited about sharing my baby with the wider world, and full of ideas for expanding the range and promoting the website next year.  There’s so much to do and never enough hours in the day, but it’s just brilliant to be spending time working on something that I love so much.

I hope you’ll like the site and the products as much as I do.  Whatever you think, I’d love to hear hear it.  Either leave me a comment here, or contact me via www.emmiejay.co.uk .

The tax man has a bad image, but it’s not deserved - he’s a very nice man.

I approached the whole day as a learning experience, happy just to come away having covered my costs and learnt a few things ready for next time.  I achieved all that and more, heading home having had a fun day and with reasonable sales for a first time out.  Other stall-holders were friendly and helpful, and the turn out was better than I’d been expecting.

Now I just need to re-stock a few items, work on some display ideas taken away from Saturday and get ready for next time.  I’ve got four more events before Christmas, two public sales and two shopping parties – last week that felt quite scary, now I can’t wait!

Not a great picture, but here's a snap of the stall

I still didn’t have time to meet everybody, but having splashed out a fiver on the show directory I have all the contact details to follow those I missed up over the coming weeks.

For those I did get to meet it was a lovely opportunity to discuss my fledgeling outfit with people in the business.  Looking at items up close is essential in order to assess quality, and I found I was instantly drawn to some brands as being a perfect fit for EmmieJay.  Unfortunately, cash-flow doesn’t allow me to run wild and buy everything I liked, but I will certainly be placing a few orders, and feel I have made contacts that I’ll be able to pick up with in the future as my business grows.

Anyone starting out in an industry new to them should definitely get themselves along to a relevant trade fair.  It may seem a bit intimidanting from the outside but it’s a brilliant source of information and contacts.  I found everybody friendly even though I wasn’t in a position to place orders that day, and it’s incredibly motivating to be submerged in the world you want to be in.

Pure seemed to cover a broad range of brands and is certainly worth going to pick up on emerging trends and see what everybody is doing.  It’s run twice a year to tie in to the coming forward order seasons and I’m already looking forward to seeing more ethical brands at the next show.

It’s also a great excuse for a weekend away in London, which is always good fun even when it’s raining.