The Joy of Making Your Own and Finding Beauty in Simplicity with Anja Baak

Are you feeling uninspired or longing to get more in touch with your creative side? Then you'll want to listen to the latest episode of the Choosing Change podcast featuring Anja Baak of The Great Glen Charcuterie.

Anja shares her life lesson of finding joy in making her own, through crafts and cooking. She discusses how creativity has always been a part of who she is since childhood. More importantly, Anja emphasises how making things, whether in the kitchen or through crafts, has brought her immense satisfaction and fulfilment over the years.

Rather than focusing solely on business growth, Anja chose to prioritise spending quality time with her family through shared creative activities. She reflects on this decision with gratitude, recognizing the value of those memories now that her children have grown.

Anja also stresses the importance of passing on life skills like cooking from scratch. She hopes others can find similar joy in turning everyday items into works of art or beauty. Whether through gardening, crafts or cooking, Anja encourages listeners to tap into their creativity however they can.

This inspiring conversation will leave you feeling motivated to get creative yourself. So grab a cup of tea, turn on this episode of Choosing Change, and find new ways to express your creativity through hands-on projects using simple materials you already have at home.

I can’t wait for you to listen to this conversation.

Highlights from this episode:

• The joy of making and creating comes from both the process and the finished product. It's therapeutic and brings satisfaction.
• Prioritising family time and relationships over business or material success leads to happier memories and stronger bonds.
• Passing on life skills like cooking, crafting and resourcefulness to children is important for their development and sustainability.
• Finding beauty in simple, everyday things you already have can inspire creative projects with little cost or waste.
• Upcycling and reusing items sustains creativity while reducing consumption and waste.
• Developing self-trust and confidence in your own taste and style allows truly personal creations.
• Creativity and making are core parts of who we are that should be expressed through hands-on projects.

BEST ONE-LINERS:

"I think creating and making is such a big part of who we are." -  Anja Baak

"A gift for instance …  it's been a big thing in our family when the children were growing up, you know, I would never buy a ready made cart. We made our own." -  Anja Baak

"I think we probably could have grown our business much faster if we had focused more on the business, but we really focused on doing things for the children, and making things." -  Anja Baak

Do reach out to us to continue this conversation.

Connect with Anja Baak

Anja Baak is a Director at Great Glen Charcuterie, the company set up by her husband Jan Jacob in 2003.  Great Glen Charcuterie uses locally sourced wild venison to produce a range of charcuterie which they sell to independent retail and food service across the UK. 

Anja is responsible for the Marketing and Sales of the company. She loves telling the story of Great Glen Charcuterie through social media. 

She is an ambassador for Women Enterprise Scotland, an organisation championing and supporting women. 

Anja had her first business in high school and loves making things, especially her own clothes, gardening, baking and cooking for others.  She is a mum of six and enjoys outdoor swimming in all seasons.

Trained as a primary school teacher she gave up teaching when her second daughter was born. She had a business which fitted around her children teaching others skills such as flower arranging and doll making through workshops at her home. 

When she had moved to Scotland with her husband and 3 daughters she set up a business using local materials such as Harris tweed and deer leather to produce items for children. The business called Little BoPeep sold handmade Waldorf dolls,  deer leather booties and little bags to independent shops across Scotland.  She started to work with other local mums and established a network of mums who manufactured these products at home. 

Anja closed Little BoPeep when there was a need for someone to take on the marketing and Sales in Great Glen Charcuterie in 2010. As her youngest had started school she decided to focus her time on her husbands business. 

Together they have grown the business and have received many awards for their charcuterie products which can now be found in most independent retail outlets in Scotland. 

Website: www.greatglencharcuterie.com

Facebook:  @greatglencharcuterie

Instagram:  @greatglencharcuterie

Connect with Lizzie

HOST OF THE CHOOSING CHANGE PODCAST

Web: www.lizziemoult.com

Facebook: @lizziegmoult

Instagram:@lizzie_moult 

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