A couple recently stopped by my stall at the Britten Centre and asked if I could make two commemorative plates.  They'd had one done for their granddaughter's birth years ago, but had not found anyone to do one for their grandson's birth in 2005.

They told me what kind of design they wanted and this is the result.  Both plates were identical.  The couple were very pleased.

It's too late now for me to make any more items for Christmas, but I have a fair amount of stock already made, so hopefully anyone still wanting gifts will find what they need on my stall this week.  I'll be in the Britten Centre from Thursday right up till Christmas Eve.

Hannah Hayward, aged 9, is the winner of my 2011 Christmas raffle for the Fairy Castle.  Hannah lives in Pakefield with her parents and her brother, and was thrilled to receive the castle.  Her mum told me it will be treasured.

I'll be at the Britten Centre this week from Thursday right up to Christmas Eve with more lovely items, so if you're stuck for a last minute Christmas present, you know where to come!

After a hectic and freezing cold run-up to Christmas, it's nice to relax!  My friends and I were trading out of the Britten Centre in Lowestoft for several weeks.  Although it's under cover, it's basically outdoors.  So when the temperatures dropped during the cold snap and the snow, we just had to wrap up warm and get on with it.  My coldest day was at the Beccles Farmers' Market when it was -10.

Now that I can relax, a nasty cold has made itself at home so I have a cough and the sniffles and have felt ill all over the holidays!

I'm having a few days off and then will have to get back to work again to restock as I'll be trading at the Farmers' Market on 15th January.

I'm so tired!  I've been working 7 days a week and all hours to try to make sure I have enough stock for my stalls.  My eyelid keeps twitching, which is a sure sign for me that I'm overtired.

After our initial outing to the Britten Centre, my sales calmed down a lot.  People make lovely comments about my work but they just aren't buying it in as much abundance as I'd hoped they would!  I think with the current recession, they are a bit worried about buying what they see as luxury goods.  My feeling however, is that seeing as the banks aren't paying any interest worth a hoot, you might as well spend!  You won't gain much by saving.

One item that did prove popular was Christmas tealight holders.  I made two sets that spelt out "Noel" and two that spelt out "Joy" and they all sold.  So this last week I've made some more; I'm just hoping I can find the time to actually get them glazed and fired etc, what with all the events I'm committed to attending.

I'll be at the Great Yarmouth Christmas Fayre this week, from Wednesday to Sunday.  I'm trying not to hope for too much in the way of sales, but you never know.

On my return from Scotland earlier this month, a couple of my good friends and colleagues told me they'd managed to secure us a prime trading position in The Britten Centre in Lowestoft.  This is an undercover shopping mall right in the middle of the shopping centre, a very busy place.

We had our first outing there a couple of weeks ago and we went along trying not to expect too much - after all, it was still only October and many of the regular shoppers wouldn't have seen us before.

But it was great!  Lots of interest and quite good sales.  We're hoping for even better in the run-up to Christmas.

As well as The Britten Centre, we are all going to be at the Great Yarmouth Christmas Fayre from 1st to 5th December, a very big event.

So now, of course, we're all working like mad to ensure we have plenty of stock, especially as once all these events start, we'll be too busy there to be at home making stuff.