Alanna

Based on the recommendation of my friend Erika at Delphine, I have been reading this book: Craft, Inc.: Turn Your Creative Hobby Into a Business by Meg Mateo Ilasco.I am loving it! First of all, I loved the shape of it - rounded corners on a book...I'm already intrigued. I opened it up, and just fell in love with the typography! It is printed in blues and greens, in boxes, with neat little borders, etc. It is a creative book about being creative!
I had started reading a couple of other books on starting a creative business, but they didn't really do it for me. They were full of good information, but a little dry. Now Craft, Inc. on the other hand just drew me in right away. I LOVE reading it! It's a simple read, but I am already gathering so many ideas from it. I can't wait to get started putting some of them into practice!

Product Description
Craft, Inc. is the hipster business primer for entrepreneurial crafters to turn what they do for fun into what they do for money. Pro crafter Meg Mateo Ilasco offers a step-by-step guide to everything from developing products and naming the company to writing a business plan, applying for licenses, and paying taxes. Chapters on sales, marketing, trade shows, and publicity round out the mix. Plus, in-depth interviews with such craft luminaries as Jonathan Adler, Lotta Jansdotter, Denyse Schmidt, and Jill Bliss provide inspiration and practical advice. Accessible, informative, and more than a little spunky, Craft, Inc. paves the way for today's creative minds to become tomorrow's trendsetters.

About the Author
Meg Mateo Ilasco is a designer, writer, and illustrator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She was in grad school when she started designing wedding invitations for extra money, but the demand for her distinctive designs was so great that she eventually made the business full-time. Her company then expanded into stationery and accessories, and was featured on NBC's Today and in publications such as The Knot and Islands: Weddings and Honeymoons. She has since sold that business and is launching an eponymous housewares and gift company, Mateo Ilasco (www.mateoilasco.com). Meg is the author of You Can Wear It Again and The Space Planner, both published by Chronicle Books.

Alanna
Stop over at Ashley's site to see what she's giving away! :)

http://drewashleyporter.blogspot.com/2009/02/secret-shopper.html