CRAFTSPEOPLE from far and wide are being stitched together by Kate Ulman's blog, writes SARAH HUDSON

Kate Ulman clearly relishes a challenge.

As if running Daylesford Organics with her husband Brendon Eisner was not enough, including making jams and preserves, Kate has also started a craft clothing label and craft blog, Foxs Lane.

The mother of three young girls admits she's constantly asked, "how do you do it all?"

"I tell everyone, 'you should see my house'," Kate says. "It's a hobby and it's really snatching moments here and there. I don't have the luxury of going into a studio to sew and crochet or do the blog."

Much to the couple's surprise, despite the industry acclaim Daylesford Organics has received, it is Foxs Lane that has scored blog kudos, receiving about 300 hits - or visitors to the site - a day compared with the organics business's 100 blog hits.

"The thing with craft blogs is that there's a real community behind them, particularly for young women who are mothers who live remotely or are stuck out on farms and find it hard to get out," Kate says.

"I've even surprised myself at the success of the blog. It blew me away. I don't have much extra time so I was wary of it at the start and I fought against having one.

"But now the community and friendships have been a surprising by-product. I get a lot of feedback and tips.

"And it's also been useful as a record keeper.

"I put everything I make on the blog and find that I go back a few months later to see how I did it."

The blog site has also expanded into a charity arm. Kate auctioned a crochet bunny to raise money for Haiti's earthquake victims.

She also hosted a pin-cushion swap on the site, with 120 women from across the world, including from Saudi Arabia and Romania, making a pin cushion to a global swap partner.

So popular is the blog site that Kate is careful to keep Foxs Lane craft reined in.

Her clothing designs use vintage materials, including old sheets with bold prints from the 1970s, with crocheted frills and trims.

She has made for shops and held market stalls around Daylesford through to Ballarat, and has pondered the idea of selling on line, but does not want it to become an all-consuming business.

"I like the idea of making what I feel like making rather than to a specific size or specification. I want it to be about the creativity and the fun, rather than the business."