A Day in the Life of Anna Butler
To brighten up this gloomy Monday, I’ve got another fantastic ‘Day in the Life of’ feature, this time written by Custom Made’s Anna Butler. Thank you Anna! If you would like to appear in ‘A Day in the Life of . . . .’, please email me (Jenny) at info@indiequarter.com and I will send you some information.
Getting Up
I’m one of those really annoying people who can get up really really early and be awake instantly! Custom Made is based in my home though so it’s easy to roll into my workshop at any time. I usually try to get up at about 8 but if I have a lot of work on it wouldn’t be an uncommon sight to see me sat in my bean bag embroidering at 6 in the morning! Anthony, my boyfriend thinks I’m mad!
Starting Work
As I said before I work from home so actually getting started in the morning is pretty easy most of the time, unless I have been out the night before! I don’t have that annoying slow journey to work that we all love so much in England so that’s good. I do have to feed the cat before I start work in the morning though or he pesters me all day! I always do the same stuff to start my working day. Switch on the computer, open Itunes, check my emails. I have to start the day with music, it’s a must! PinkBeltRage podcasts- I highly recommend them!
Working Day
Contrary to popular belief I do actually work all day!! My friend Doug lives four doors down from me and he works from home too. Our friends think that we sit and drink tea and eat cakes all day. That’s sooooo not the case! We do occasionally do that on a Friday afternoon but that’s about it. He helps with my website, he’s ’Tech Support’ so the usual interaction with him is, “A page of my website has gone funny, can you sort it out?”
So apart from not sitting drinking tea all day with Doug I have a mix of stuff I do from making stock, sorting out the website, updating the Custom Made blog, sending out orders, designing new stuff, speaking to suppliers, speaking to customers, sorting out accounts etc. etc. My favourite job is designing new stuff. There is nothing better than sitting down at my work bench with piles of buttons, ribbon, fabric etc. and designing new things. Although sometimes if the ideas aren’t flowing it’s the worst job in the world!!! You can sit all day with a pile of buttons, ribbon and fabric and nothing happens. This is another popular misconception where design in concerned, you can’t just pull new ideas out of your butt, they have to flow, and that takes time!!
Lunch
For lunch I always do the same thing, make a quick sandwich. If I’m out and about I will just grab something on the run. Not very interesting I know!
Finishing Work
Basically Custom Made is just me, and every item is hand made by me so I am always super busy. When you work from home it’s sometimes really hard to stop work. Anthony gets home from work at about 5.30pm so unless I stop work at that time for a little while, he is in my workshop pestering me (a bit like the cat in the morning really!) If I have loads of work on I will nip back into the workshop at about 7pm for a few hours. Anthony is really good though, he will say, “You need to get out of that workshop now.” Otherwise I would be in there permanently! On the other hand, if I want to take a day off, or finish early I just do. I don’t have to ask anyone!
Things I like least about being an Indie Designer
I sometimes miss having the weekend off. I usually work on a Saturday and I do Sunday Up Market on Brick Lane in London on Sunday. So that’s a bit of a downside. I also hate doing my accounts. My brain was not made for numbers – that’s a fact!
Also sometimes it’s frustrating if things go wrong, like a fabric doesn’t arrive on time or something doesn’t quite go to plan. There is no-one else in the company to moan to! My friends and family are very supportive though.
Things I like best about being an Indie designer
I absolutely love being an indie designer! The creative freedom it has given me is amazing. Like a new lease of life! Before I did Custom Made I worked as a menswear designer for one of our high street stores, I was soooo bored and frustrated in my job. Custom Made is such a switch with regards to products and the way I work. Don’t get me wrong though, I learnt a lot, working for a very fussy company gives you very thick skin and teaches you that if something doesn’t work bloody well move on! I also learnt a lot about fabrics, lead times, range planning, understanding the customer and costing stuff!
I think my favourite thing about being an indie designer is all the amazing feedback I get about my products. I get so many supportive emails and messages and stuff. It’s the little things. We went out last night and my friend Michelle was wearing her Custom Made apple necklace with pride – that’s the best!!
Oh and my Dad telling me what I should have in my range each season after reading articles in the paper – thanks Dad!
