Sending back the scraps

It's been brought to my attention that I do something other memory keepsake makers don't do. Most customers don't query it, but I have had a couple of keepsake recipients who have felt saddened by receiving pieces of cut up sleepsuits. So it's time to explain exactly why I choose to send back the scraps.

Firstly, for me, the thought of binning part of someone's most cherished baby clothes, is so awful. I just can't bear the thought of throwing them away. This is initially the reason I chose to return all leftover pieces. Then I started to think what the leftover pieces could be used for. This is where the idea of making a blanket with the leftovers came from, coupled by the numerous requests for them.

I'm often asked if I use the leftover fabric to stuff the keepsakes. Although this is a fantastic idea and would certainly save on waste as well as the cost of stuffing, it would also most likely give a lumpy look and texture to the finished keepsake. It's something I'm happy to try though if a customer would prefer this to regular toy stuffing.

One of the benefits of having your leftover fabric returned, is that you can use it for other craft projects. If later down the line you wanted a memory keepsake blanket, you could return the fabric to me, along with additional sleepsuits if required, to have them transformed into another item you can treasure. You might decide you want a second keepsake making, maybe for a Grandparent or another relative. Another option would be to use them for your own craft project.

Some customers choose to just keep the leftovers in a memory box with their sleepsuit keepsake.

For those who can't bear to see their precious items cut up, there is the option to not have them returned at all. I can either use them for my practice items, or can bin them at your request.

Keepsakes not Toys

I've been wanting to write this blog post for quite some time, not quite getting round to it and not really knowing how to word it. Then last night I had a nightmare........

Ok, so it wasn't the typical nightmare, no monsters, no being chased by some axe murderer (although I may dream that now I've put that thought out there!), but a nightmare in my business head.

I dreamt that I had taken Sock Baby to the playground, and while there, was approached by an angry man, not bearing an axe, but a monkey I had created for his family, from his son's most cherished baby sleepsuits. He started pointing where the seam had come undone on one of the arms, and where the fabric was tearing at the point where the tail was attached. The monkey was looking pretty battered, and covered in fingerprints. I tentatively asked the question: 'Has your son been playing with it?'. The reply I'd expected came: 'Well of course, it's a stuffed toy isn't it?'.

'Erm, well actually it's not. It may have the appearance and feel of a stuffed toy, but it's actually intended to be a keepsake, a memento of your child's early days'. Of course I woke up before I'd carefully worded my response. Well actually I was kicked awake by Sock Baby, but that's another story!

Although sleepsuits are tough little suits that get worn again and again, getting thrown up on, pooed on, and washed and washed more times than you'd imagine, they're not always that tough once they've been cut. The fabric can become quite fragile, especially when you add a needle sewing through it into the mix. Of course, some are stronger than others, and this varies by brand and how much or little they've been washed, but all potentially could tear if pulled about or played with roughly. 

From a safety point of view, each keepsake has button eyes, and although I try and sew these on securely, they still pose a choking hazard for young children. Because clothing isn't CE tested, I can't have the keepsakes CE tested, so therefore, from a legal sense, these can not be advertised as being toys. 

Another point to consider is washing. Sock Baby has claimed my keepsake samples and has them sat on a chair in her room. As they are samples, and hold no sentimental value to me, I'm not worried if they do get pulled apart. Mostly they just sit there untouched, but one day she ventured upstairs shortly after eating a chocolate biscuit. She took the lion off the chair. I put it in the washing machine to clean it, and although it is now clean, the stuffing inside has displaced and the appearance of the lion is now not as pleasing on the eye. Therefore, I would deem these keepsakes as 'sponge clean' only. 

Hopefully my nightmare will never become a reality, and of course if anyone did have any issues I'd like for them to contact me so I can try to resolve them. However, if your keepsake is used as intended, then it's very unlikely any problems will arise. 

Thanks for reading. 

Rachel's camels

Firstly I need to apologise for this post being a couple of months later than planned.

Following on from the last post, after I had posted photos of Carly's bear on my Facebook page, my diary started filling up with orders for more memory keepsakes. However, it wasn't just bears that the customers wanted.

I 'met' Rachel online when I was planning my wedding, sometime between 2008 & 2010, and have been Facebook friends since sometime after then. Rachel is an Expat living with her family in Dubai. Her daughter was 9 months old when they moved to Dubai, and her son was born out there. She wanted a reminder of their time there, for when the children are older and possibly living back here in the UK.

She contacted me and asked if I could make camels for her. I was quite surprised how quickly I was able to find a pattern, and purchased 'Chrissy the Christmas camel' from Funky Friends Factory. I have to admit that I was a bit unsure about purchasing the pattern, and feared that it would sit redundant in a folder, once Rachel's camels had been completed.

How wrong was I?! The camel has become one of my most popular sleepsuit memory keepsakes. Maybe Rachel knew something I didn't!

Carly's Memory Keepsake Bear

Everyone has to start somewhere, so the first bear I made was from Sock Baby's old sleepsuits. Armed with my pattern from Funky Friends Factory, I set about cutting and sewing, and transforming Sock Baby's outgrown sleepsuits, into a practice bear, and an example, to hopefully start some orders.

Being reasonably pleased with my first attempt, I decided to launch a prize draw on my Facebook page, to win a personalised keepsake memory bear.

Now, I mention the word 'personalised'. During my research, I discovered that most memory keepsake bear companies use embroidery to personalise their creations. With my lack of embroidery machine, lack of funds to buy one, and desire to be different from the rest, I set about seeking an alternative option. I turned to Shelley, a friend, and the lovely face behind 'I Heart Henry'. I saw that she creates some beautiful plaques with wooden hearts on. Each heart has a name of a family member on. This gave me my idea. I decided that by working with Shelley, I was able to offer a personalised, hand painted and hand stamped wooden tag with each memory keepsake bear. On one side, she can stamp the child's name, and on the other, the date of birth, therefore making my memory keepsakes quite unique.

Back to the prize draw. The lucky winner was Carly, mum of triplets, who were coming up to their first birthday. Absolutely ideal timing for a memory keepsake bear. She sent me 3 sleepsuits, one worn by each boy. I was so honoured to have been trusted with such precious items, and to start with was very nervous about cutting them up! However, I was blown away by the result and even made Carly cry (happy tears of course) when I shared the photos on my Facebook page. After that, the orders came flooding in, and with them, the request for different animals. I hope you'll agree that I've created something pretty special for Carly. A great keepsake for remembering those early days.

Next time.........The story behind Rachel's camels.

Creating Memories

Things have taken a turn here at Sock Creations HQ, and as demand for sock creatures has slowed down, I've realised that my business needed to move in a new direction.

After 'umming' and 'ahhing' for quite some time, I decided that I'd have a go at creating a memory keepsake bear. Ok, so I'm not the first person to do this, and there's certainly a lot more people doing it than there are sock creatures, but when I started my market research, I found several really good reasons to give this a go myself.

Firstly, I should say that there are some amazing memory keepsake bears available out there, but then I discovered some not so amazing examples. I appreciate this is just my opinion though, and also discovered that there are plenty of people lining up to buy these 'not so great' designs. Secondly a lot of the companies making the really good memory keepsake bears, either charge a lot of money for them, or have a really long waiting list, with some customers waiting more than a year to have their keepsake created. While they can't do anything about being popular, the prices of some of these, I felt was extortionate. Yes, they're lovingly handmade, but at the same time, the majority of materials are provided by the customer. So having learnt that there's definitely room in the market for another memory keepsake bear maker, I decided to have a go. I thought if I can offer a great looking memory keepsake, for an equally great price, then I might be on to something.

Starting at £23, I can create memory keepsake bears, lions, monkeys, camels and bunnies. The price includes postage. All items are posted using recorded delivery, and can be tracked.

At this point, you might be wondering, 'What is a memory keepsake bear?' Well, I'll tell you. A memory keepsake bear is a bear (other animals also available) made from your babies or children's outgrown sleepsuits, or other clothing, therefore creating something you can keep and display, that provides a great memory of their early days. While most people choose to use those tiny sleepsuits from the early days, other clothing can be used, that bring back special memories to you. Maybe sleepsuits, or clothing that was bought as a special present, or bought from a special place. Or perhaps their first school uniform. Remembrance bears can also be created to remember those loved ones who are sadly no longer with us.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be sharing, here on this blog, the different animals I have created so far, some stories behind some of my memory keepsakes, and more insight into the transformation process. For now, I'll leave you with a few photos of recent work.

More examples can be found on my Facebook page www.facebook.com/sockcreationsuk

Redesigning the Dribble Bib

I hate letting people down, and this is one of the reasons I always said I wouldn't make to order. Life is unpredictable and you never know when something can get in the way of sewing. I decided to open up a very small order book earlier in the year, and although nothing got in the way of my sewing, there were some hiccups.

I started making dribble bibs a few months ago and had originally settled on the basic triangle shape. To start with they worked great. I sent a few off to some mummy and baby testers and also tried on on Sock Baby. How unfortunate it was that as soon as I opened my order book and took a nice little order for dribble bibs, that things started to go wrong. To start with I thought it was the sewing machine. The tension was all wrong and was gathering up as I sewed each edge of the bib. I'd had this problem before and it had been easily resolved by a slight adjustment on the machine. This time however, nothing I did seemed to make the problem better. It soon became apparent that the fabric was stretching under the sewing machine foot as I was sewing. I persevered as I really didn't want to let my customer down. The problem just kept getting worse and worse. To make matters even worse, I no longer had enough of the fabric to just cut and start again. What a nightmare! Eventually I did get the bibs finished, although they had to be undone and re-stitched several times. I decided that I can't be doing with this every time, so decided I'd create a new shape for the bib.

The basic triangle design

Folded

I looked at lots of different branded bibs that Sock Baby owns and decided to make my new shape a bit more slim lined than the triangle bib, but with finish that didn't look too different when folded and worn. I also decided to use a more absorbent backing fabric. You can see the new bibs in the photos below. There are currently 3 in the post on the way to testers to try out. Once I have the thumbs up they will go into production and be able to buy through the website and facebook page.