My welcome and confession

OK, my first blog post. Slightly intimidating, but I guess I should start by fessing up. Having read the worthwhile Naked Conversations by Scoble and Israel a few months back, one thing that did stick is "don't be fake". So, I should probably start by explaining how I come to be writing about "Pretty Somethings" - what with me being a married man and father of one (a gorgeous little girl - Amelia)

Well, I am founder and managing partner (still clinging on) of pressies4princesses.co.uk - purveyor of fine gifts for women via internet mail order. Take a look. Yes, I know it's very pink and girly! Which is probably why everyone asks the same thing when they see it: "But aren't you straight?". The answer is, of course (I'm a father after all), YES and I think it's a shocking indictment on the pervasion of modern stereotypes that people should even wonder. Whoops - I didn't imagine my first post turning into an "I'm straight - honest" plea. And, please don't even suggest I'm anti gay or owt. I'm not.

The point is that at pressies' one thing we love doing is working with really talented people who make absolutely fabulous things. (God, that sounds like an advert; it's not meant to be. I am just trying to explain why I am blogging here.) And, unlike most retailers we don't care how big or small they are or where they work or what hours they are available. Some of our suppliers are tiny - even 'kitchen table' workers. Several balance their craft with motherhood or part-time work or both! We find them somewhere on page 240-odd in Google and launch them on to the world at large. I guess it's like using the Internet to revitalise good old-fashioned cottage industry! Anyway, because we have to take photos, write some copy, weigh, measure and analyse things - and type lots of stuff into little boxes on a computer screen! - we can't sell everything we love. And, that's a real shame.

So, some of the stuff I write about here will be in the pipeline for pressies' catalogue. Other stuff will already be at the store, but deserves broader recognition (pressies' is very much a gift website, which limits the audience). Much, much more will never make it. And, that's why I want to write about it. It seems such a shame to let it slip through one's fingers. I already invested time finding this gorgeous (nee pretty!) something and it takes 15 minutes to say something about it here. I'm hoping it will be cathartic; it will make night after night of rummaging around in the lower echelons of the search results feel just that little bit more worthwhile!

There you go then; my first post and raison d'etre all wrapped-up. If you got this far, I thank you for your time - I've always struggled with brevity. I suppose I best get back to rummaging. Why not check back soon and see what pretty somethings I've found? I don't expect they'll change your life, but they may just make your friends green with envy!