Cookie nightmare!

Maybe I've been living in a cave or something but I only heard about the new EU cookie law a few days ago so have spent hours reading up on it and finding out what I need to do to comply.  From 26th May it became law that websites based in the EU (and targeted to people in the EU) must tell people what cookies they use and get consent for non-essential cookies to be used.

See the ICO website for full details: http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_organisations/privacy_and_electronic_communications/the_guide/cookies.aspx

I am certainly no computer expert but think I have a good basic understanding - although it turns out I really didn't know that much about cookies!  And according to the ICO's statistics only 13% of people fully understand how cookies work.  I hope if I share some of what I have learnt it might help someone else!

What is a cookie?

A cookie is a small text file downloaded onto a computer to send useful information back to the website.

Some cookies are essential to the running of the site and if cookies are disabled parts of the website might not work - for example cookies used to remember the contents of your shopping basket when proceeding to checkout.  These cookies are exempt from the law.

Other cookies are used for things like tracking visitors to your site (Google Analytics) and even plugins from places like facebook use cookies.


What do I need to do?

This is a bit confusing - especially as they changed the rules to say that 'implied consent' is a valid form of consent now.

Some websites now have pop-ups with a tick box for agreeing to the use of cookies.  But as most people don't understand cookies they will probably tick 'No' which will mean websites won't be able to properly analyse how people use their sites to improve them.

Even a lot of large websites aren't using the pop-up technique yet and with 'implied consent' something along the lines of an updated privacy policy page seems more sensible.  A few lines to explain that you use cookies, what they are for and what to do if visitors are not happy about cookies being used.

Do I have cookies on my website?

The ICO recommends that you conduct a cookie audit.  Apparently it's easy to see some types of cookies you have and you should get your IT department to check for the rest.  I thought that sounded great - it's just me, I don't have an IT department and don't want to pay someone else to do it for me.
After much research I've found that you can see exactly what cookies are on websites using Google Chrome (free to download!)

When your website is up, click on the spanner symbol (top right - 'Customise and control Google Chrome').  Go to Tools >> Developer Tools and a window comes up along the bottom of the screen.

Under Resources there's a drop down box for Cookies - listing all the cookies on that page (remember to check all the pages on your site).

This site has more information on doing a cookie audit: http://www.equimedia.co.uk/how-to-do-a-cookie-audit.html

Can't I just ignore this and hope it goes away?

There are probably thousands of websites now breaking the law and I really doubt whether they will go after every small business or blogger.  But there is a maximum penalty of £500,000 and I'd rather do something now than pay a fine later!  The ICO wants to encourage compliance so you at least need to show you are working towards complying (eg cookie audit) and they're more likely to help you before handing out a large fine.

I suppose there are some cookies where this law will be a good thing and it is probably targeted at larger companies, but it seems over the top to me when most cookies are safe.  It's already annoying coming across websites that keep asking for you to accept cookies and as most people don't understand them it's more likely to scare users and turn people away from using the sites.  By adjusting the privacy settings in your browser options you can already choose how you want cookies to work on your computer.  Perhaps it should be up to users to make sure their settings are correct to protect themselves from intrusive tracking cookies, like you use anti-virus software to protect your computer.
Hopefully I have done enough to now comply with this law! (Here's the piece I have added to my website)

Colour Inspiration #2 - Daisies

I've been enjoying the sunshine and taking lots of photos in my garden of the flowers...

Embellishing printables

Today I have a couple of ideas for embellishing printable gift boxes and tent cards.  They can be made very simply - just print, cut, fold and they're finished, or if you have a little more time you can make them more unique...

On this Pastel Buttons gift box I used some fancy scissors to make the front flap a little different.  The box is tied with lilac cotton yarn and I made a tag from one of my matching cupcake toppers.  I punched rounded corners on the tag and stitched a pretty vintage button to the centre.

I think the tent cards look nice simply printed - but I also love to add an extra dimension to cards with embellishments.  This thank you card has some pink ribbon glued along the edge of the button pattern.  As they're only small cards (3.5 inches wide) it's a good way of using left over pieces of ribbon too!

Baby birds

The weather has changed this week and it's starting to feel like summer is on the way!  Our garden is filled with birds at the moment.  We have at least 2 blackbird nests and we're waiting to see the when the babies leave their nest.  They've been more active the last few days and we keep seeing them peaking out from the hedge - we think there are 4 in here!

We also spotted a pair of goldfinches feeding their baby - I don't think I've ever seen a baby goldfinch before.  It looked like the adults except for having a brown head instead of the disinctive red / black / white.

How to make lined envelopes

All sorts of stylish lined envelopes are available for adding an extra special touch to your invitations and cards.  If you're looking for a coordinated look you can make your own...

I wanted to make a lined envelope to match my Pastel Buttons wedding invitation so have used the coordinating paper from my printable scrapbooking paper set - you can of course use any paper you like!

You can line ready made envelopes or make your own from scratch.

I found an old envelope which I carefully opened out and used as a template to make my own envelope from off white cartridge paper.

Make the liner template from an envelope.  The liner should be about 0.2 inches smaller than the envelope and level with the gummed part of the flap.

I layed the liner in the envelope and folded the flap down before glueing to make sure it was in the right place.  Only glue the liner to the flap so that it has room to move when the envelope is opened or closed.
If you're making your envelope from scratch it's easier to glue the bottom flap to the sides after attaching the liner.

Keeping with my button theme I finished this envelope with a little button stitched to the flap..

New Pastel Button printables

I have two new Pastel Button themed printables to show you today...

Experiment with your fancy handwriting to personalise these cards for parties!  I used a brush tipped pen for the card above.  There are 8 different designs in this set of name place cards...

 Also new is this set of personalised cupcake toppers (great for using as tags and labels too)...

The set can be personalised for birthdays (like above with name, age and Happy Birthday) or for weddings (with the name / initials of the bride and groom and date of the wedding).  Each sheet of toppers has 4 different designs and is available in a green, teal or cream colour sheme.

I still have more new pastel button themed designs to share in the next few days - and a tutorial too!

British Sellers on Etsy Treasury Challenge #10

I missed the last few challenges so thought it was time to have another go!
So here is my entry - inspired by Blossoming Silver's lovely lampwork bracelet (top left) I chose a British glass theme...

You can view the treasury in full here.



Please go to www.etsy.com/teams/6966/british-sellers-on-etsy/discuss/10246208/ to find out more about the challenge.