2023 Advent Box ...#6

 

Currently multitasking like a mad woman.  I know I won't be able to get everything done and ready to despatch in the next 10 days but I'm tentatively hopeful that by the end of the first week in November I'll be good to go.  All the remaining kits are under construction and I want this final Advent Box to be the best so I'm definitely going the extra mile.

It hasn't helped that one of the items just wasn't working so I've changed tack completely and started again from scratch on that kit, which has definitely put me back a few days, especially as there will be more elements in the kit which I'm going to have to make but it was definitely the right decision as the replacement is going to be far better and I'm much happier with it.

Right.... best go and get on then! 

. 

2023 Advent Box ...#5

I've been a bit lax with Advent Box updates lately, but in my defence I've been quite poorly and juggling multiple hospital visits for scans and tests.  As a result, my deadline of having all the boxes ready to despatch by 1st November is definitely going to slip, possibly by up to 2 weeks.  

That said, so far, I've managed to design, make and package 17 sets of kits, and the remaining 8 are all in progress, although I've left the hardest ones till last so they will take longer than most of the others. 

Last year's theme was Fairy Tales.  This year's theme is, of course, a closely guarded secret. Well, to be fair, there are two closely linked themes, with a few tangential kits thrown in.  It will include a 'structure.' Also, this year I'm including 2 doll projects, neither of which have ever been available as kits.

The growing collection of completed kits is pleasing, and knowing I have just 8 sets to complete is satisfying.  Of course it doesn't stop there.  I'll have to decide on the daily sequence of kits, conceal them in their stealth packaging, and number each one.  It's only then I'll be able to finalise what size mailing box I'll need and order them.

I now have 78 people on my 'interested' list, which is brilliant.  However, I will have a grand total of 25 Advent Boxes available, so unfortunately, not everyone will be successful.  Last year I produced 20 full scale 25-day boxes, which was a major undertaking.  The additional 5 this year may not sound like much, but it's an extra 125 kits, on top of the existing 500.  A total of 625 kits, and I've designed and made every single one of them. 

One thing I can say for absolutely certain sure.  This is definitely my final Advent Box ever. 

I'm all boxed out.  But I'm finally on the home straight.

So when I package the final kit, you'll likely hear a whoop of victory, closely followed by the sound of a bottle of something cold and fizzy being popped.  

Can't wait.....

  

2023 Advent Box ...#4

Scene: Sandra's craft room.  Every flat surface is covered in boxes of kit components.  The table is piled high with assorted prototype 'structures' in various shapes and sizes.  A second folding table has been drafted in to help with the overflow of kits already packaged and those in production.

Sandra is struggling with a recalcitrant structure, trying to hold four different pieces together while glue dries.

A small furry presence wavers into view.

Sandra:*frantically* Ah, Small Dog.  Just the dog I'm looking for.  Could you put your paw here please and hold this bit in place?

SD:*incredulously* Whott?!?!?  Ar yue kwite mad?

SD waves a paw over the bit in question, passing right through it.

Me:*apologetically* Ah.  Sorry SD.  Didn't think....

SD settles down on the only clear space on the floor and looks expectantly at Sandra.

SD:*questioningly*  So.  This is another fine mess you've got yourself into.

Me:*belligerently* Yes.  Yes I know. Bite me.

SD: *raised eyebrow* Yue kno veri wel ai kant.  

Me:*smiling* Hmm... bet you wish you could though.  Might jolt some sense into me.  Anyhow, it's too late now.  The die is cast and there's no way but to go through it.

SD:*looking around the room* Itts goen wel then?

Me:*exasperatedly* No. Of course it's not. What on earth was I thinking? I swore up, down and sideways last year, that I would never, ever, under any circumstances, EVER do another Advent Box.  

SD:*opening her mouth*

Me:*interrupting* DON'T SAY ANYTHING!  I know you told me not to.  I know you said it was madness.  I know all that.  If only I'd listened.

SD*smugly* Aim knott goen to sai itt.  But I did yue kno.......

She fades away, her smirking smile hovering in the air like a small dog version of the Cheshire Cat.