The Purple Saurus Blog
What's going on at Purple Saurus HQ!
Sodbury Summer Search 2020!
7th May 2020
Good evening all!
At Purple Saurus HQ we have some exciting news - after the resounding success of the Dinosaurs last year, we have been asked to make the cuddly cuties for the Sodbury Summer Search 2020! I'll be posting teasers on the Facebook page so keep an eye out for them :)
Obviously, due to the strange times we're living in at the moment, we don't yet know when the Search will be taking place but when I know, you'll know!
A Guest Post From Saurus & Co.!
14th October 2019
Hi everyone!
Rach and James are having a Halloween party this year as a very belated housewarming, but Rach says those of us cuddlies who are downstairs will need to go upstairs and keep safe - she seems to think we might get squished or have things spilled on us, and that wouldn't be good! None of us would mind having chocolate dropped in the vicinity though, we do love our treats :)
As you may have spotted on the homepage, we're having Purple Saurus gift vouchers made up by our lovely "go-to" stationery lady, Stacey, over at SLS Creative - her design skills are wonderful, and she makes our business cards, leaflets, loyalty cards, receipt books and account books, phew! I love her Purple Saurus design, because there's lots of purple with green spots going on ^__^ Anyway, Rach says they'll be available in plenty of time for Christmas - she's so excited about them that she's popped the "T&Cs" for them on the website already! She's more excited about gift vouchers than Christmas at the moment, I do think she's odd sometimes. I know she'll get excited for Christmas once her birthday comes though - she gets into full present-wrapping festive mode, and I have to supervise her in case she sellotapes herself to something!
In other news, Rach and James went to the Bristol Central Library yesterday on a little mission to find out about some of Rach's ancestors who, I'm told, were doctors and had lots of money 300-400 years ago. I get very confused with all this family history stuff, though I do try to pay attention! Rach was telling us all about the shelves and shelves full of books, as its a big library and she hasn't been to a library for years. I love books. I sit in the living room next to the bookcases, so I have lots to choose from! I have some friends down here with me too, we like to read together quite often :) Rach says I take after James, as he's a big bookworm too (maybe she should make him a cuddly bookworm? I'll mention it!). James has got what seems like thousands of books, while Rach only has a small collection (many of them children's books). One of our favourites is "Christmas Teddy Tales", a book that Rach has had since she was tiny, and which she reads every Christmas Eve. She tried to get James to read it to her last year but he wouldn't, so she says this year she'll convince him! Hopefully he'll read it in the living room, then we can all gather round in front of the fire and listen :) (Not too close to the fire though, too toasty!)
I suppose you're wondering "How is that Saurus typing all this with those great big feet?" Well, I'm dictating to my good friend, Teddy! He's not as fast as Rach on a keyboard because he still has to be a bit careful, but he's a very good typist, and takes after Rach with his good spelling :) For those who don't know about Teddy, he was Rach's first cuddly make using a "proper" sewing pattern. She made him for James for their first Valentine's Day together, and caught the toy-making bug - that's how I came into being a few months later! I love all my cuddly friends, but Teddy and I are very close as we were the first makes :)
The cuddly "boss" in this house is Rach's oldest teddy, Squidge. He's been extremely well cuddled over the last 28 years and he's very well travelled, so he's a bit floppy and grubby now, despite a gentle wash last year! Rach keeps saying she should perform some surgery to give him some more stuffing and make him less floppy, but she can't bring herself to unpick any stitching. Squidge doesn't mind though, he's happy to lollop about and grow old gracefully :) Rach is very careful with him these days as she doesn't want to over cuddle him, but he very often cuddles up in bed with her if James is away with work, and when she's sick he's usually found tucked up with her :)
Besides Teddy, Squidge was the first to welcome me into the fold when I was made, and taught me a lot of what I know about how to be the best cuddly toy I can be! I keep telling him he should write a book on the subject.
One day I'll ask Rach if I can do a biiiiiiiiiiig post introducing all my cuddly friends - she keeps meaning to, but ends up being very busy and not getting round to it. We need to update the Cast of Characters page too! Hopefully the nice photographer, Rich, might be able to take some pictures of some of my cuddly friends as well, the next time he does some product photography for us - I'll have to ask him nicely :)
Teddy and I will sign off now, as Rach has just asked if she can have the laptop back to do a couple of bits and pieces!
Speak to you all soon :)
Love,
Saurus, Teddy & all the other cuddlies xx
A Busy Year!
11th September 2019
Afternoon everyone!
What a busy year it's turning out to be at Purple Saurus HQ!
The Sodbury Summer Search was a huge success, with new customers for us off the back of it and - so I'm told - first refusal for next year's Search toy making! Naturally Saurus is extremely pleased about the whole thing :)
We're booked in for plenty of events through to the end of the year, I have an order of Wolves to complete (which is proving to be much trickier than anticipated due to the slippery fabric and having to hand stitch bits before machine sewing), as well as Halloween and Christmas makes to think about! The list of events is as follows;
Saturday 28th September - Hatherell's Yard Market
Saturday 12th October - Hatherell's Yard Market
Saturday 26th October - BristolCon
Saturday 9th November - Christmas Shopping event at Brimsham Green School (my old school, I'm looking forward to going back and having a look around!)
Saturday 7th December - Victorian Day, Hatherell's Yard Market
Friday 13th December - Hatherell's Yard Christmas Market
See the Events page for all the details :)
I'm also hoping to receive an invitation to trade at the Donkey Sanctuary Christmas Fair, which takes place on the weekend of the 23rd and 24th of November, so watch this space! I have made sure these are the only events we will be attending for the rest of the year, as I ended up very stressed last Christmas and would like to enjoy it properly this year! Thankfully we'll be at my parents' on Christmas Day this year, so I don't have the cooking to worry about, although I will be making a pudding of some description as always :)
This year I'm aiming to make my usual Ghosties and Pumpkins for Halloween, and hopefully a couple of other things - I've had my eye on an extremely cute Spider pattern since last year! For Christmas there will be the usual Reindeer and Penguins, and I'm also aiming for cute little Snowmen, Donkeys (I made the prototype last year but didn't have time to make any for sale), and some very special little Mini Hanging Saurus Ornaments - I made some for the local Tourist Information Centre to sell during the Search and they went down a treat. I was planning on making some last Christmas but, again, I ran out of time. One of my suppliers has started stocking minky fabric with glitter, so I may get hold of some specially for Christmas ornaments!
As I've mentioned on the home page, I'm also trying to minimise stress this year by not taking any fully custom orders, and having a far earlier cut-off point for "guaranteed for Christmas" Made To Order items. All my usual products will still be available to order on request, and I will still be happy to customise the colours and fabrics. The Made To Order guaranteed for Christmas cut-off date for the UK is the 1st of November, and the 14th of October for overseas orders. This ensures that I won't have to rush anything and have to worry about getting orders done instantly when I need to stock up for events. It takes me, on average, anywhere between two and eight hours to make a toy from start to finish (depending on how familiar I am with making it, how fiddly it is, and how many features I have to add once it's stuffed), so naturally it gets extremely hectic and stressful if I have multiple orders coming in!
Ready To Ship Christmas orders are guaranteed for shipping in the UK until 22nd of December - I ship next day delivery in the UK at Christmas but this is at your own risk, as once it's shipped it's at the mercy of the postal service! I recommend ordering Ready To Ship items by the 7th of December if you're overseas.
Well, I think that's everything for now - don't forget to get your Christmas requests in asap as I'll probably only be taking a limited number!
Rach x
Sodbury Summer Search
17th June 2019
Afternoon all!
Well, it's still manic at Purple Saurus HQ! The promotion of the Sodbury Summer Search is now ongoing, I'm still working on the Dinos, and of course on my Wolfy order when I get chance! The Wolfy prototype is almost finished, and in true Purple Saurus fashion, will be staying with me ^__^
The Search will be taking place from the 20th July to the 27th August, so make sure you head to Chipping Sodbury with the kids and go Dino hunting - hopefully the weather will be better than it has been over the last couple of weeks! As well as hunting for the adorable Dinos, don't forget to pop into the lovely shops where they're temporarily living too - supporting local business is the name of the game =)
I thought it'd be nice to share some photos that Rich has taken of the Dinos that have gone up on Facebook so far (I've already seen them all, but they're being drip-fed onto the Summer Search page, so I'm using them one by one as they're put out!), so with that in mind, pop over to the gallery and take a look at the first batch of five Dinos being adorable and causing mischief in Chipping Sodbury =)
I should mention that Fat Dino was sadly rejected by the Chamber of Commerce (boooo!) so he's been replaced with a gorgeous Nessie. Never fear though, it means that Fat Dino now has a loving home here at Purple Saurus HQ ^__^ He's currently living it up on the sofa with some of the others. The living room is getting a little crowded =P
As a side note, this week is my last week in the Home Crafters shop on Yate Shopping Centre, so if you want to buy Purple Saurus goodies quite literally off the shelf, now is the time to go do so! =)
Rach x
Exciting Goings On!
16th May 2019
Evening everyone!
Yes, I know, I'm rubbish - Saurus has just been chastising me for not keeping the blog up to date! I know I always say this, but it's mad around here! As you may have seen, I have the privilege of making this year's cuddly toys for the Sodbury Summer Search, an event which takes place across the summer holiday. Each year has a different theme, and cuddly toys relating to that theme are placed in shop windows throughout the beautiful market town of Chipping Sodbury (literally two minutes from Purple Saurus HQ by car!) This year's theme is Dinosaurs. The lovely Rich McD (who did my product photos a couple of years back) and Rob (a customer of mine as the owner of Giant Malcolm and his Mini Saurus friend, "Brian". He is also, as it turns out, on Sodbury Town Council!) are both on the Chipping Sodbury Chamber of Commerce, who run the Summer Search. They thought of asking me to make the Dinosaurs, instead of buying mass-produced cuddlies like they usually do. Naturally I was over the moon (Saurus is still incredibly excited about the whole thing!) and jumped at the chance. This will be really good for the business, as the publicity around it should give us a nice boost! Did I mention I'm making 30 Dinosaurs?! There are five different designs and six of each design, in all manner of different colours. I'm handing one of each over to Rich imminently to take some photos, so when I have access to those they will be added to the website =)
Aside from the above, I also have an order for 12 (yes, 12) cuddly Wolves! When I was asked if I could make one for this lady and a few for her younger cousins, I was expecting 3 or 4. When she said 12 my head nearly exploded! It's given me a great excuse to buy some beautiful Shannon fabric all the way from the States (nowhere sells even close to the full Shannon range in the UK, so I've been looking forward to having an excuse to import some!) I found an Etsy shop that sells an amazing selection, ordered it last Wednesday and it turned up on the Friday, all the way from California! Needless to say I will be using that shop again.
Finally, as you may have seen, I have set up a Patreon account for The Purple Saurus - this is down to me having a dream-related kick up the backside and wanting a bit of regular income to help towards said dream! It's a great way for people who love my work to support me without shelling out, say, £20 all at once. You might not be in the market for cuddlies, or my products might be out of your price range, but if you'd still like to provide some financial support then my "Purple Saurus Helper" tier membership is an affordable way to do so =) My content for this tier includes WIPs, early event announcements, early info on upcoming projects, etc., as well as an exclusive discount for my Etsy shop that you can use as many times as you like!
There is also a higher tier, "Purple Saurus Enthusiast", which gets you the above benefits, as well as one small plush of your choice when you pledge, one standard (non-custom, although I can do all sorts of colours!) plush of your choice of up to £25 value every four months, behind the scenes videos, input on future products, and exclusive digital access to my, sketches, doodles and completed drawings!
In the future I plan to add things like prints and greeting cards to my rewards, as well as stickers, patches and other goodies. Patches will not be available until I get an embroidery machine, but the more people who pledge the sooner I'll be able to get one! This will also mean I'll be able to make more of my smaller plushies, as I'll be able to embroider facial features rather than using felt and fabric paint =)
My main, very exciting reason for setting up the Patreon account is explained in my first (typically wordy!) Patron-only post.
On that note, I'm off to bed at 7.30pm to put the football on - living the glamorous life! =P
Rach x
Happy New Year!
1st January 2019
Hello everyone!
It's been a crazy few months at Purple Saurus HQ - events and Christmas orders have taken up a lot of my time, as well as the kitchen being done! I had a bulk of Christmas orders to ship out to the States and it all got rather stressful. Needless to say this year I will be closing Christmas orders (with the exception of Ready To Ship) much earlier! That being said I love how my custom orders for one particular lovely lady came out - I'll post some pictures in the Custom Orders gallery when I get a chance =) This lady was very patient, and I was so happy when I received an excited message on Christmas morning to tell me they turned up on Christmas Eve! I also got some lovely photos with the message, which I really appreciated as I love to see my creations in their new homes =)
In other news (as you may have seen on the homepage), I am incredibly excited as my Purple Saurus cuties will be available to purchase in The Home Crafters shop for SIX MONTHS from Monday the 7th! I haven't sold in the shop for quite a long time, and I'm really looking forward to getting back involved. I'll even be working a few shifts in the shop every month, so the locals amongst you can come and say hello, should the fancy take you =) This means that my plans for the year have been somewhat altered, as the original plan was to focus on selling at the market this year! However, selling in the shop means I can just poddle along and get things made, without having to worry about getting things up together for events - a shelf in the shop requires much less stock to fill it than a stall, so I have the luxury of being able to pop in and switch things around once I have one or two new items! I'll aim to switch things out once a week, although if it all goes mad I might be replenishing more - I can but hope =P
All of the above being said, I'm still planning to do some open days over the summer after last year's success, and we're on the Donkey Sanctuary's trader list so we may be invited to some events there too =)
That's all for now, I'll try and be a bit better at keeping the blog up to date this year!
Rach x
Open Days
3rd September 2018
Evening everyone - I can't believe it's September already!
We attended Bath Cats and Dogs Home's fun day on Bank Holiday Monday, which we thoroughly enjoyed! So many gorgeous pups everywhere, I was in my element =) Sitting in our gazebo playing "guess the crossbreed" was great fun, hehe. We took our first card payment there too, and everything went smoothly which was a great relief! I saw two Rotties and lots of bull breeds, which I was very excited about - I spent half the day squeaking at James about how cute they were ^__^
The Oak and Furrows Wildlife Rescue open day was rescheduled from Sunday the 26th to Saturday the 1st due to the bad weather, which actually suited me because it gave me an extra day. It was a huge success, with a large turnout and - very importantly in our case - plenty of customers! We took three card payments there too and all have gone through without a hitch =) There's a possible deal in the pipeline with the centre for some of my cuddly Foxes (who the founder, Serena, was extremely taken with!) to be sold in their shop. I am super keen on this, because not only would it get The Purple Saurus some exposure but it will also help the creatures, which is very very important to me as a lover of our gorgeous British wildlife =)
Our next event is Bark In The Park which, as the name suggests, is all about raising money for the pups! It's being hosted by Friends of South Glos Strays, who did a lot for the beautiful Sky when she was being held by police under Breed Specific Legislation, so I have an awful lot of time for them. We happened to be next to them at Hatherell's Yard last time we were there and the lovely Julia invited us to attend - having donated one of my Alpacas to them last year to be auctioned off to raise funds for Sky's case, how could we say no?! I'm really hoping that Sky might be there so that I get to meet her - if that happens I will try and get a photo with her =) For those interested, Sky's Facebook page can be found here =)
I've been getting quite a few sales on Etsy lately, so hopefully that will continue fairly steadily - not too many though, otherwise I'll have to minimise the amount of orders I take on, especially on the build-up to Christmas! I've added a handful of new products to the range recently, and in the last couple of days I have bought a Bulldog pattern and a Octopus pattern, so they are coming very soon =)
Hope to see some of you at Bark In The Park!
Rach x
It's Been A While!
15th August 2018
Good evening one and all!
It's been a very busy year, and as per usual I've been terrible with the blog... Believe it or not I did get three quarters of the way through a post about our New York trip back in February, but then I couldn't remember what we did on one of the days, put it to one side for a bit and never got around to finishing it! I will at some point, I promise. It was an amazing trip. I finally got to see the Balto statue that I'd wanted to see since I was six, and we went to the American Museum of Natural History and saw the huuuuuuuuuge Titanosaur - Saurus was quite disgruntled that we went to visit his cousin without him though! There's a handful of photos from the trip in the gallery, for anyone who's interested =)
So, what's been occurring? Well, since the start of the year we've traded at Hatherell's Yard a few times (naturally), done a couple of craft fairs and an open day at Vale Wildlife Hospital near Tewkesbury to help raise money for all the little creatures. Over the August Bank Holiday weekend we're doing another wildlife rescue open day, this time at Oak & Furrows Wildlife Rescue near Cricklade, AND the Bath Cats and Dogs Home fun day, on Sunday the 26th and Monday 27th respectively - yes I think I have finally gone mad! Ooh, did I mention I now have a lovely, commercial grade purple gazebo? =D
Another event I've recently booked us into is Bark In The Park, which is taking place on the 16th September in Page Park, Bristol. I used to go to Page Park with my mum and gran quite a bit when I was little, so it'll be nice to spend a few hours there for the first time in a long time, particularly when there'll be lots of pups about! Not only that, but we will be at BristolCon on Saturday 27th October. Info on all our upcoming events can be found here.
Oh yes, James and I finally moved in together! This was in April and the house is still fairly upside down, but we're getting there =) We had the bathroom redone and the kitchen is being done in October (we're renting from my parents, and on the advice of my electrician brother-in-law we had the bathroom done and now the kitchen), so it's a bit hectic. The front bedroom is full of "stuff", and until James finishes building my sewing room furniture (he's good like that!) my craft things that are in the front bedroom have nowhere else to go. The reason for the craft things in the front bedroom, is that my parents' neighbour recently passed away, and I've had the privilege of having free rein on her craft room! She used to do card making, and she was also a slightly compulsive spender. As a result, there's a seemingly infinite amount of card making stuff, much of which has never even been opened! I'm slowly plodding my way through it.
I recently treated myself to a super cute Christmas cardmaking kit from Hobbycraft to practice with, and I love it! Needless to say I will also be selling a little selection of greetings cards from now on, too =) Naturally they will match the theme of "cuteness", which of course is what The Purple Saurus is all about. Don't worry, I've cleared it with Saurus, he thinks it's a great idea!
Finally, when we moved in, we found a gang of cuddly toys abandoned in the attic, including six Bulldogs, a Gorilla (now named Cuthbert), a GIANT Monkey (now named Penfold), and a Giraffe (now named Herbie)! I've decided to found "Saurus and Herbie's Rehoming Centre for Rescued Cuddly Toys" as a result, which will involve me cleaning up and adopting out cuddlies that I come across on my travels who are in need of homes =)
There's probably more to update you on, but it's been so long I can't remember everything!
I look forward to seeing some of you at our various upcoming events =)
Rach x
A Very Belated "Happy New Year"!
25th January 2018
Afternoon all =)
I've been terrible with the blog over the winter period, I know!
So, what's new? Well, firstly, I now have an adorable, ready-to-ship cuddly Tortoise listed in the Etsy shop!
James and I were at Hatherell's Yard Market again last Saturday - it was just us and one other trader (the lovely Carolyn of CB's Accessories - if you're at a market or fair and you see her stall, I highly recommend checking it out!), it was a miserable day - freezing cold and raining near enough all day - but we still got a couple of sales out of it, which was more than I was expecting given the weather and lack of footfall! It took me hours to warm up after we got home and I was all damp and disgusting (it rained on my back while I was finishing off a couple of things, eww!), but it was worth it =) We'll be there again on the 24th of February, a week and a half after we get back from New York.
In the meantime, I'm doing a couple of made-to-order Penguins (one for a child and one for an 80 year old!), getting a special Baby Dragon made for Valentine's Day, and working on a very special commission for a 60th birthday present =) Don't forget, tomorrow is the LAST DAY for made-to-order cuddlies to guarantee sending before I go away on the 6th. Last posting day will be on the 2nd, so ready-to-ship items can be guaranteed for postage up until the 1st =)
We're also booked in for the Craft and Vintage Fair at the Methodist Rooms, Thornbury on the 24th of March, from 9.30am-2.30pm. Happily its not a long day as we're heading to a gig in town in the evening!
I've also ordered yet MORE stationary from the lovely Stacey, this time in the form of a 2018 planner, a craft fairs and events book (both extremely important!) and some loyalty cards! The loyalty cards idea came about when one of my customers on Saturday was a repeat customer from Victorian Day (credit to James for that idea!), so once I have them ready they will be coming to events with me for you to pick up and get yourself some lovely Purple Saurus-related rewards in return for your custom =D
I'm off to feed my face now, followed by finishing off some Penguin-related accessories =)
Rach x
Markets Over & Time To Chill! For The Moment...
18th December 2017
Morning all =)
Christmas markets are complete, and I am pooped! I had a fantastic time at Victorian Day and the Harbourside Market - made some sales and shifted lots of business cards, what more could I ask for? I also had a couple of commission requests at the Harbourside on Saturday, which pleased me no end =) Santa also popped by and handed out some choccie - I was extremely grateful for the fun-size Milky Way as I hadn't had time for breakfast! Plus y'know, Milky Ways. Yum =D
James and I got lots of compliments on our costumes on Victorian Day. A lovely lady said he looked very handsome, which I had been trying to tell him, but he wasn't having it! It was freezing cold, but we managed the eleven hours outside, particularly with the hot drinks from the nearby coffee shop, and some lovely brownies from The Pudding Wagon (you can find them on Facebook, best brownies I've ever had, and this is from a woman who is obsessed with baked goods so I've had a few brownies in my time!) I will be adding a new page to the website today, a gallery for market and other random pictures, so you can see what we get up to =)
Meanwhile, I've just fired off an email to the lovely Stacey over at SLS Creative (who is now my go-to lady for all my business stationary needs!) detailing the info I'd like on the flyers I've ordered. These will be coming to markets with me throughout 2018 and include a special coupon code, so I highly recommend coming along to these events =P I've also just sent an application over to Hatherell's Yard to see if I can squeeze in a stall in January before James and I head to New York at the beginning of February. Well, I'll need some money to spend on minky while I'm there, priorities!
Before I sign off, I must add a massive thank you to James - I couldn't have done these markets without him, and he's been a real champion! He stuffs the cuddlies, does the display and I'm also convinced that his is the friendly face which helps bring in the sales =D
I look forward to seeing some of you at markets in the new year! For now, I'm off to make Christmas presents (a sewist's work is never done!)
Rach x
Soon Be Market Day!
30th November 2017
Good evening ladies and gents =)
So, I haven't posted to the blog for over a month(!), but I promise I do have a valid excuse - I've been beavering away in preparation for the Christmas Markets, I'm pretty much up together, and the first one is almost upon us! This Saturday I will be dressing up in Victorian garb and poddling my way up the road to my local market at Hatherell's Yard in Chipping Sodbury, ably assisted as always by my wonderful other half (who incidentally will be on toy stuffing duty this evening!).
Hatherell's Yard shares its name with the family-run hardware store which used to be at the entrance to it (now Coffee #1) and to this day it still confuses me that Hatherell's is no longer there, even though its been gone for a long time now. I love what they've done with the yard, and aside from the market stalls every Friday and Saturday, there are a few permanent units down there too, including a haberdashery and a florist. I'm hoping for some good footfall on Saturday, particularly as the yard is on the cut-through from the big car park, and with the high street being closed off to traffic many people will have to come through via the car park, when they would normally park on the high street and not pass through the market.
I have one plush left to sew up in its entirety, and all other unfinished items just need finishing off. The plan is for tomorrow to be mostly spent writing up price tags, with a side order of hand stitching things closed, finalising my stall display and making sure my costume is perfect!
Busy last couple of days but I'm on the home stretch now - frankly I'm looking forward to Saturday so I can have a rest!
Rach x
Time for an Update!
20th October 2017
Hello everyone!
I've been super busy the last month or so - hence lack of blog updates - and I'm now at the stage where (give or take a cuddly) I'm starting to stitch everything up! We already have ten almost complete Reindeer, so its Foxes, Fat Bats, Narwhals, Dragons, Tiny Fat Dinos, Penguins, Pygmy Owls and other things to do ready for the markets =) Not only that, but I'm sewing up a few pumpkins and only TWO Witch Kitty plushies specially for Halloween, which will hopefully be up on Etsy over the weekend!
Speaking of the markets, as Hatherell's Yard is on Victorian Day, this means Victorian dress is a must. I've had my skirt, shawl and bonnet for a couple of months now (interestingly the bonnet rather suits me - I know I can wear most types of headgear without looking ridiculous, but this is getting silly!) but I haven't been able to find a suitable blouse for love nor money. But, as is often the case, when I wasn't looking for one, I found it. My other half and I were in an M&S Outlet store, when I stumbled upon a lovely cream blouse with a high neck, a bit of lace and little flared cuffs - perfect!
That's all there is to tell for now, don't forget to keep an eye on the Facebook page for all the random little updates =)
Rach x
Illness, Folksy & Christmas Production Time!
14th September 2017
Good evening everybody!
If its not one illness, its another - I appear to have picked up some sort of stomach bug this week, bleugh! I'm just feeling a bit "yuck" during the day, luckily, so I can still work, but waking up at 3am feeling sick is not a lot of fun and nobody likes disturbed sleep. This is particularly annoying seeing as I NEVER get stomach bugs, and this one is extremely inconvenient. Its okay though, I'm being looked after by my oldest cuddly, Squidge, in my other half's absence! He's been looking after me during illness since I was about 18 months old, so he knows what he's doing, hehe. I'll introduce you to Squidge soon =)
Moving on, just a quick note to let you know I now have some listings on Folksy. For those of you who don't know, its similar to Etsy except its British! Any ready to ship items I have will only be listed on one or the other, so do make sure you check both the Etsy shop and the Folksy shop =)
Anyway, as you may have spotted on the homepage... I've been accepted for the Harbourside Christmas Market! I honestly wasn't expecting to be, so I feel very honoured indeed. Obviously this means I need to be super focused, organised and productive over the next few weeks (no pressure then!) but I have my product target and I have set my deadline date.
Speaking of deadline dates, the final date for Christmas orders is the 20th November this year, on account of my particularly busy Christmas period. This then gives me plenty of time in between finishing things for the market to get everything done (as well as having a break for my birthday!). I've already announced this on Facebook and in the shop, but I'll add it to the homepage too, just in case.
I'm heading off to cook myself some tasty chicken for a slightly late tea - chicken with rosemary and black pepper, delicious! =D
Rach x
Its Christmas Prep Time!
5th September 2017
Afternoon all!
As usual, its a bit hectic around here. The good news is that this week I am feeling quite a bit better, so hopefully I should be pretty productive!
Last week I applied for a stall at one of the Bristol Harbourside Christmas Markets in December, which I am very excited about and keeping everything crossed that I get the space. It means lots and lots of work however as its only two weeks after the Victorian Day market, and what with the latter being my first market I don't really know how much I'll sell, so I have no averages to refer to! Oh calamity! Why do I do these things to myself? I'm not panicking at the thought though, so long as I stick to my production target I'm sure it'll be fine - I am thankfully an optimist by nature =)
The teal Narwhals are looking gorgeous (the colour is amazing), and I have just this minute printed an enlarged version of my reindeer pattern - who wouldn't want an adorable, big cuddly reindeer under the Christmas tree?! In between my product making I am also setting aside a Griffin for a rather special Bristol establishment!
I'm off to have some lunch, stick this pattern together and cut some assorted plushie pieces ready for sewing =)
Rach x
Izzy, Whizzy, Let's Get Busy!
23rd August 2017
It's a busy time over at Purple Saurus HQ at the moment - new fabric coming in, pieces to be cut, new patterns to be tested... it's very tempting to get the fun parts done first, but Saurus and the others are keeping me in line!
My other half and I were supposed to be moving in together in October, but due to a problem with the lettings agency it's looking increasingly likely that we won't be moving until April. This is stressing me out slightly, as I was expecting to have my own sewing room well in advance of the Christmas Market, so I'm having to re-organise my time management.
Speaking of the Christmas Market, I will be taking Mini Sauruses, Hamsters, Narwhals and Mini Fat Dinos along with me - as my smallest and cheapest plushies, they'd make great stocking fillers =)
I'll also have some very special "exclusive to Victorian Day" plushies with me which I am VERY excited about, as well as some limited edition plushies made from fabrics which aren't minky or fleece.
Today, I'm aiming to cut out some Griffin pieces and hopefully make a start on hand sewing a Manatee prototype! I've not been too well this week so I've been getting the "not much thinking required" bits done!
Fingers crossed I'll feel better over the weekend so I can power my way through some actual sewing.
Rusty the Fox is keeping me company, and extends his greetings =)
Rach x
Finally!
12th August 2017
At last, the Purple Saurus website is up and running once again!
I'm having a very busy time of it at the moment - I've set myself a slightly insane production goal for the Christmas market, but at least I know that if I aim hard for it I will still have plenty of stock even if I don't reach my target =)
My other half is away at a festival until Monday, so I have lots of sewing time to myself while he's in a field in Derbyshire. There were no bands I wanted to see this year though, so I'm not jealous!
Recently I've bought quite a few new patterns and I am super excited to share the creations with you all when I get them done.
In the meantime I will do my best to keep everything updated. Here's an amusing photo from the recent product photography shoot, courtesy of Rich McD - Saurus is unimpressed!
Don't forget, there are plushies in my Shop waiting for new homes =)
Rach x