16 August 2010
Jaysus I was going to use a funeral picture and decided that would be waaaaaaay too OTT but tis with misty eyes that I tell you that myself and Ali have decided to stop the blog. We’ll still be blogging but you’ll see our ‘words of wisdom’ on our own blogs. If you hadn’t guessed [...]
11 June 2010
Friday afternoon again, and if you’re in the mood for a shirking session, I have just the online delight to share with you. Last year I raved to you all to Samorost, now from the same Amanita Design stable comes their latest masterpiece: Machinarium. It’s a simply stunningly rendered point and click adventure game in [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
10 June 2010
Last week I got an email from a virtual contact of mine. Someone who lives in my village but (to my shame) all our previous communication has been online via various business forums. I rang her for a chat and she suggested that I tried out a local breakfast meeting as her guest. Now, although [...]
Posted in Networking1 Comment
07 June 2010
In the previous posts in this series we have looked at starting out with an initial idea, researching your idea and analyzing your competitors. Now it’s time to think about putting all that hard work together in the form of an action plan. I read a lot of debate online about whether you should write [...]
Posted in Planning0 Comments
03 June 2010
I’ve blogged previously about the usefulness of trade shows and how to get the best out of your visit. It’s not easy to decide which you’ll opt for, but new start ups should take the time out to attend all they can and make a note of their usefulness for the future when you may [...]
Posted in Networking, Planning0 Comments
24 May 2010
I love these quirky fossils of the future, according to their creator, KB Sculptures, this is how our ancestors will remember us! This one is a mouse fossil (the computer kind) and it’s set with lots of ” fossils” in a lump of rock. A great talking point for your office desk and the perfect [...]
Posted in Discovering1 Comment
19 May 2010
This week my Macbook has become painfully slow. In fact, it would be easier if I got out and pushed. To combat this unexpected turn of events, I did what I usually do and googled my problem. I was presented with a gazillion different things to do from modifying firefox (and add-ons) to cleaning up [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
17 May 2010
Even geeks can grow office plants! This planter from the Science Museum puts NASA’s proven technology to good use, helping even the most green-challenged gardener grow plants. The planter defines soil-less gardening, and provides an ideal growing environment for herbs, flowers and fruit. All you need to do is seed it, feed it and leave [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
14 May 2010
If paperweights make you swoon then feast your eyes on this simply gorgeous paperweight from UK designer, Panic Tuesday. “Vintage Time” is a resin paper weight with watch parts, beads, a vintage button and a fabric rose, plus natural inclusions. The width of the domed paper weight is about 3 inches and the base is [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
11 May 2010
I’m a sucker for notebooks despite having a macbook nailed to my knees. They’re great for jotting down notes and inspiration – and if they have a cool cover, more so the better. I’m loving these vintage library notebooks from Present and Correct. They measure 4.25″ x 5.75″ and have a handprinted wrap around cover. [...]
Posted in Living, Organising0 Comments
10 May 2010
Regular readers will know of my eternal quest (encouraged by Nat) to develop ultra-organisational abilities. As a geek, I’m also a sucker for anything online and techy. Often, I get as far as a road test before giving up, but one online tool I am still using every day, months after signing up, is project [...]
Posted in Discovering, Organising2 Comments
05 May 2010
Firstly, this post is not a free pass for sneaky tactics! But nor should you miss this step out from your planning because it feels a bit, well, grubby… If you’re going into buisness then you need to understand your competition. You need to know what their strengths are and you need to be laser [...]
Posted in Starting0 Comments
22 April 2010
We were tagged by Antonia over at Family Friendly Working, to say seven things you didn’t know about us, so here goes! Ali’s 7 Things… 1. I love handbags with a passion. You will know I’ve made it when I sport a Chanel black 2.55 as my arm candy. 2. The last time I sang [...]
Posted in Discovering4 Comments
19 April 2010
We’re really pleased Self Employed Mum is hosting this month’s business mum’s carnival. We’ve got a whole stack of posts ready for you for your delight and delectation. As usual, if you like what you read, then don’t forget to add a comment to the blog! First up is Helen Lindop over at Business plus [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
13 April 2010
In my last post I decide to use the example of starting up an online business connected with children’s parties to illustrate the “First Steps… In Online Retail” series. This post looks in more detail at imho one of the most important business building blocks – market research. My definition of market research probably won’t [...]
Posted in Starting2 Comments
10 April 2010
In the first of an occasional series, I’ll be sharing some of things I’ve learnt since becoming an online entrepreneur and answering the big question I see asked on forums and online noticeboards… “I want to start an online business “selling stuff” – but I don’t know where to start!” Firstly, you need to decide [...]
14 March 2010
We hope that you manage to have a few hours off today to relax and enjoy Mother’s Day. If you’ve got a few minutes spare then you might like to take a look at the latest Mummo Mag, edited by the fabulous Jo Rheam of Mummo to help spread the word about the Million Mums [...]
Posted in Inspiring2 Comments
02 March 2010
Is this the ultimate in office relaxation? The USB Aromatherapy Oil Burner delights your nose and clears your mind with just one drop. Simply add one drop of the included aromatherapy oil onto the little X on the USB stick (see above). Step two, pop the stick into a USB drive (horizontal drives preferred to [...]
Posted in Discovering1 Comment
01 March 2010
Are you one of those peeps who spend a lot of time looking for colors to use online? Do you ever look at a site and think – “ooh! that looks lovely? I wonder what those colors are?” Then let me introduce to one of my favorite online tools, Colorzilla. ColorZilla is a plug-in extension [...]
Posted in Organising0 Comments
05 February 2010
I’ve just about had it up to here with Microsoft Office (if you’re not able to remote view I’m holding my hand up to my forehead). I got a new laptop about two months ago and since then I’ve been struggling. I followed the instructions and installed my previous software on my new machine but [...]
Posted in Discovering0 Comments
Farewell! We’re Moving
Hoovering Up Bizz Freebies!
Shirker’s Secrets: Machinarium
Up With the Larks! My First Breakfast Network Meeting
First Steps… In Online Retail – Writing Your Action Plan
Six of the Best UK Trade Shows
Office Candy: 21st Century Fossils
Trying Out: Macaroni
Office Candy: Power Plant from the Science Museum
Office Candy: Vintage Time Paperweight from Panic Tuesday
helen@ Business Plus Baby: Gutted! But very glad you'll carry on blogging abo...
GlosseAugmemo: Good evening
[url=http://military.aeonhost.co.cc/...
Poster: Wow that is an very interesting blog entry . I li...
sleenitly: Hello everybody, I saw this forum recently and I t...
Joel Owen: Email marketing is quite effective in lead generat...
© 2010 Self Employed Mum. Powered by Wordpress.
