Wednesday 25 May 2011

Updating folks on what's happening (or not!)

Cy Bear having done the last two blogs is having a rest!  He performed one of his official duties yesterday when he monitored me packing Brown Hairy Bear - ordered by YvonneB-P from Saudi Arabia for her baby nephew, R who lives in Portsmouth, England, UK.  Having wrapped Hairy Bear in two sheets of chemical free tissue paper, he then had a layer of bubble wrap put around him.  Next, he was slipped into a polyester Royal Mail envelope complete with "FRAGILE" labels prominently displayed.  Hopefully he should arrive at his destination in the next day or two. We took a picture of Cy "waving" Hairy Bear off on his journey, but we won't be publishing it, because the address is too prominent - and we've got to protect such confidential details -  however small the intended recipient may be.

Meanwhile, I've been working on a new Mrs. Fox.  She has her dress on, I'm stuffing her tail and will be completling head, ears and bonnet in the next day or so.  I shall take pictures to show her progress for another post.

She is the replacement for Freda Boss Fox, who is a sample of a Mascot Toy and doesn't now exist in the shop at www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com.  As explained in her description in the Shop, she is now a fulltime employee of the Boss Federation - as a fund-raiser for their benevolent fund.  She and Freddy Boss Fox (Etsy Listing #62236267 and #62236009 respectively) were "recruited" by  my elder daughter, who is General Manager of the Boss Federation (British Office Supplies and Services Federation in full) and is also Secretary of their Benevolent Fund.  Both Foxes attend major industry events and occupy prominent positions on the BOSS stall.  The idea is that if any orders are generated from folks who visit the Boss Stall, then the 10% I usually give to charity is sent to the Fund.  They have received one donation already - and as the Industry Events season is about to start, I'm hopeful that there will be more orders coming from that direction.

The colour scheme for their clothing reflect the Boss Federation corporate ones.  They seem to have attracted a lot of favour with fellow Etsians, as they are often "favourited" by them on the Etsy activity site. Hope that the new ones will be as popular when they appear in the shop.  Had to order more Chesnut Plush fur fabric before I could cut the new Mr. Fox out.  That arrived yesterday, so have no excuse now for delaying their completion (except for the fact that I don't have 48 hours in the day in which to do so!).

Today was the monthly meeting of the Women's Section of the Royal British Legion who meet in the Resident's Hall here at the Hospital of St. John - we had an interesting talk, illustrated by a video, from a gentleman who spent 44 years working fulltime at the Royal Mews in London, followed by a further 11 years as a part-time employee.  His most recent involvement was to ensure that the coach carrying the new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge from Westminster Abbey after their recent wedding stopped exactly opposite the red carpet at both the Abbey and Buckingham Palace.  That move necessitated some "fancy footwork" by fast car between the two venues to ensure he was in the right spot in time to help their Royal Highnesses out of the carriage, and clear the other carriages out of the way in time for Her Majesty to alight upon her arrival after the ceremony.  Apparently, some of the bridal attendants, having thoroughly enjoyed the trip back in their carriages, were somewhat reluctant to alight and had to be gently "encouraged"!  Simply fascinating talk, and much enjoyed by all of us (25 plus) who attended.

The point of telling you about this is to say that I was able to donate a further £11.00 to the British Legion funds, making a total of  nearly £20.00 since the beginning of the year, when orders to www.coldhamcuddlies.etsy.com began to drift in. I'll end by including a picture of both Freda and Freddy, because once their replacements are made, I'll be withdrawing them from the shop.  If anyone needs a mascot for their promotional activities, then any of the Cuddlies would be willing to fulfill that need - just contact us and we'll be happy to try and meet your requirements.

Freda and Freddy Boss Fox

That's it for tonight.  Until the next time.  Isobel