Although life has been extremely busy preparing for the birth of my 2nd child I was ever so lucky to be recommended by the lovely Joanne Dewberry to do a feature within the magazine Craftseller to co-ordinate with their new look!

Here is a little sneak peek at the first entry from this month’s magazine no.24, my diary features on pages 70 and 71 and is a snippet into my life as a craft selling mum. Alongside insights into my business life you will also find out about my life as a mummy and how my business is run around my family.

This month’s magazine is now on sale so visit Craftsellers website HERE for further details of how to get your hands on a copy!

© 2013 Immediate Media Company Origin Limited

Baby Lottie Rose

Introducing our gorgeous baby daughter born naturally on Sunday 5th May 2013 at 10.13am. Both baby and I are recovering well at home with our family and I shall be back soon to tell you all about the new addition to our family along with lots of other lovely surprises x

New Baby FREE Digi Stamp

As my little bundle of joy is due anytime now I thought I would give away one of my New Baby Illustrations as FREE digi stamp for you to download and use for your crafting projects! This adorable little sleeping bear is snuggled up with a precious sock monkey and will make the perfect image for any new baby card or crafting project. Just click on the image above or visit my FREE DESIGN page to collect your copy x

© Erica Martyn – All Rights Reserved

Birthday Giveaway

As this next month is full of birthday celebrations here at Odds & Soxlets I thought it would be a great time for another GIVEAWAY! Firstly baby Odds & Soxlets is due in just over two weeks time, secondly it is my 34th Birthday on the same date and then a few days after it is Odds & Soxlets 2nd Birthday too… so lots to celebrate I think!

As this is a BIRTHday celebration I thought I would giveaway one of my gorgeous handmade ribbon tag blankets! Up for grabs is this yellow moo cow ribbon tag blanket. It is a 23cm square of soft moo cow print minky fabric with a yellow fleece backing with an 8cm fabric tag in one corner which plastic snap clasps which press together to create a loop, perfect for attaching the tag blanket to the child’s car seat, pram or pushchair. The blanket has 16 x 2.5cm wide, 4cm long coloured satin ribbon tags which are perfect for tiny hands to grasp and develop co-ordination.

This style of tag blanket is 31cm square including the ribbon tags. My ribbon tag blankets have been fully tested under the Toy Safety Regulations and are proudly CE marked. They have been designed with newborns and babies in mind to aid basic development skills and are suitable from birth.

TO ENTER – Just comment below here on my blog post to why you would like to win this ribbon tag blanket and a winner will be chosen at random by a number generator at the end of May.

Best of luck everyone x

Over the Easter weekend whilst being in my 35th week of pregnancy my wonderful little sister became our photographer and took some truly gorgeous photo’s of my baby bump with my very precious family.

My husband is not keen on having his photo taken, so my sister did some artistic shoots that would just include my rather large baby bump and just our hands.

My son Harry is completely the opposite and he loves having his photo taken! A perfect opportunity to make some extra special memories of him with his soon to be baby brother or sister…

As I am now entering into week 37 and with the end in sight I am thankful to have such a supportive and loving family who have supported me throughout. These photo’s are a positive reflection on what has been a very difficult pregnancy with the sickness condition Hyperemesis (HG) and we are very much looking forward to the arrival of our new bundle in the weeks to come.

If you would like to read more about Hyperemesis then I have written on all about it in an earlier blog post here – Hyperemesis is NOT ‘morning sickness’

Feature in Bustle & Sew Magazine

Although I have been trying to slow down this past month with up and coming arrival of baby Odds & Soxlets soon upon us, I  have been very lucky to have been featured with my business in a few crafty magazines due to the powers of social media and networking!

Many of you know that I regularly use Facebook to interact with my customers and followers of my work alongside being involved with various CE marking and testing groups for fellow soft toy makers.

After spotting Bustle & Sew’s – FOUND ON FACEBOOK advert I decided I had nothing to loose by sending a quick email and link to my website & Facebook page to see whether or not my crafty business would be suitable to feature in their magazine.

Low and behold Helen, the creative brain behind Bustle & Sew contacted me and said she would love to feature me in her April issue of her magazine and here is a sneak peek of the magazine below…

A BIG thank you to Helen for the feature and if you love to sew and sew then you must pop on over to Bustle and Sew’s WEBSITE to take a peek at everything Helen has to offer, including original applique and embroidery designs and a great monthly magazine too!

Bustle & Sew – April Issue 27 now on sale HERE!

The Power of Twitter

Although I have been using Twitter for sometime I still haven’t been using it to the best of it’s ability and I must confess that I certainly need to learn how to use it and make the most of it regarding my business.

Last month I sent a cheeky tweet along with a picture of one of my ‘dinkie dollie TAGLETS’ to the magazine Craft Business answering a question they had posted about what products are your best sellers this spring…

Well after completely forgetting about the tweet a friend of mine Joanne Dewberry alerted me that I had featured in their March/April 2013 issue in their Top Tweet section! Take a peek below at a spinet of the magazine…

So never under estimate the power of one single tweet! If you would like to follow me on twitter then our tag is @oddsandsoxlets!

New Digi Stamp Downloads

As the world of digital products is developing I have now been able to add a new feature to my website to be able to offer all of my new digi stamps as instant digital downloads! This will enable you to purchase them via my digital product checkout and once payment has been accepted you will be re-directed to a download link which will allow you to download your digi stamp instantly.

All of my 2013 digi stamps will now come in a line art and coloured artwork version in png format allowing you to get the most out of your paper crafting! Pop on over to my DIGI STAMP page for all the latest designs!

New Free Design

As spring is just around the corner pop across to my FREE DESIGN page to collect this free soxlet owl digi stamp!

© Erica Martyn – All Rights Reserved.

Handmade Toys – CE Marking

UPDATED POST – 1st February 2013

The law regarding children’s toys and CE marking changed back in July 2011 and the new Toy Safety Directive 2011 came into force. This meant that all products designed or intended (whether or not exclusively) for use in play by children under the age of 14 are required by law to have a CE logo and all soft toys must be made suitable from birth.

This includes handmade products that also look like toys even if you have specified they are are for decorative purposes and not suitable for those under the age of 14 years. The only exception to this is Christmas/novelty decorations although they do have to comply with general product safety standards. As this is a legal requirement now for any toy which is manufactured and sold in the UK and EU you can be fined £5000 or even receive a prison sentence if you are making and selling toys without the CE mark.

I have put together a variety of information and links together regarding this subject for any fellow artisans who make soft toys such as knitted / crocheted / felt or other fabric style toys (including sock toys) on how to obtain a CE logo for there products.

To start you need to get to grips with the Toy Safety Directive and how handmade toys are now required by law to comply as with any other manufactured toy. In regards to soft toys the standards they all need to comply with are BS EN71 (parts 1-3),  you have to ensure all materials and the finished product pass BS EN71 parts 1-3 – part 1 torque and tension, part 2 is flammability, and part 3 is migration of chemicals. If you contact your local library they should be able to give you advice to where you will be able to read a copy of the directive.

The most obtainable way for handmade toys to gain CE marking is to self certify your products. I would highly recommend a company called Conformance who sell a self certification pack called ‘CE marking for handmade soft toys’  which is specifically designed to help home toy-makers to meet the legal requirements of the Toy Safety Directive. This pack has a step by step guide to CE marking for those making handmade toys which includes testing details, what certificates of compliance you will need to collate for your materials and templates for your all your paperwork which is required by law for each type of toy you manufacture. Once you have purchased this pack Conformance are also on hand for advice and guidance via phone or email correspondence.

To help meet like minded people and to gain support during this process I would recommend you joining the CE Support Page over on Facebook, although they will not be able to give legal advice they can point you in the right direction and there are various groups which you can join to help with the collation of certificates.

If you are not making handmade toys however your products are aimed at Children then it is best to seek advice regarding this from your local trading standards. They will be able to advise you on whether your product requires CE marking or if needs to comply with other general safety standards specifically to your product.

Here is one of my latest handmade sock toys undergoing a few of the tests involved in obtaining their CE marking.

Soxlet Orbble Test Sample

Sample undergoing torque test on one seem with a 180 degree twist.

Test sample seam being testing with over 7.2kg of weights.

Close Up of test clamps on toy and arm seam being tested.

Test sample undergoing the probe test.

Test Sample of sock after flammability test.

In regards to sock toys specifically, they unfortunately do not already conform to the BS EN71 toy safety standards as they are an item of clothing and are not manufactured for the use as a toy material. This means that if you make and sell toys using socks then you have to ensure that every pair of socks you purchase conform to the new toy safety directive. You will be able to test parts 1-2 at home yourself in accordance with the directive as mentioned above however you will require a 3rd party to test for part 3 which is the chemical migration.

If you make sock creations in particular then I would recommend you pop on over and join our Support Network – CE Marked Sock Toys. We have now had tested a variety of high street sock and wholesale brands tested for chemical migration and have a variety of certificates available to purchase. We also have a number of free certificates for threads, stuffing, felt, fabric and so forth which we are more than willing to share.

Once you have obtained all this information and your product complies with the BS EN71 (parts 1-3) you will be able to add the CE logo to your product. Which can either a sewn in label on your handmade product or a tag style label around your product which ever if more suitable.

Here is an example of my hanging swing tag labels for my Soxlet Orbbles.

This will cover any products you offer for sale in the UK and Europe ONLY! If you want to sell your products worldwide then you must check out the laws on toys for those countries too!

Each type of toy you test will require a full Technical File and Declaration of Conformity to show that your toys reaches the appropriate standards with the BS EN71 (parts 1-3) and is safe for the appropriate age of child for your target market. Once you get the hang of it all it isn’t too complicated it does however just take time and needs to be kept up to date and then kept for 10 years of making each toy.

Please note: Full details regarding how CE marking effects handmade toys can be found in the Toy Safety Directive EN71 which can usually be obtained from your local library. I am no expert on the subject of CE marking and can not offer any legal advice. I only have personal experience from going through the process myself since early 2011. This blog post is intended to help other artisans find out further information regarding CE marking. If in any doubt about your creations please seek advice from your local Trading Standards to find out exactly how the new toy directive effects your handmade creations.

Further details on product safety can be found over on the Craftseller website from Clare Harley from Conformance HERE.

‘Odds & Soxlets’ takes no legal responsibility for the content of this blog post. For further information about ‘Odds & Soxlets’ toy safety please click HERE.

Happy New Year Everyone!

2013 brings forward a very exciting time indeed as we are expecting our second child here at ‘Odds & Soxlets’ mid this year. Due to the new arrival many of you already know that I have been suffering with an extreme sickness condition known as Hyperemesis throughout my pregnancy and it has been a rather tough time to say the least. I still have 4 months to go and have to take each day as it comes as the condition can be rather unpredictable.

I was rather lucky to at least have a few days of the festive period where I was able to travel a small distance and not be too poorly which was a relief I have however been not feeling so good since getting back home and with this in mind I have made the difficult decision to no longer take any custom/trade orders for handmade toys or design work for the foreseeable future.

There will be a variety of ready made creations and co-ordinating products available to purchase throughout this time and in My Shop so be sure to pop on by and take a peek if you are looking to get your hands on one of my creations.

If you have any questions or queries then please feel free to email me at ericamartyn@oddsandsoxlets.co.uk

Thank you so much to all the lovelies that entered although I was originally going to choose a winner I decided it was just too difficult so decided to opt for the fairest way and went with the trusted random number generator once again.

The winner was no. 7, so that was the 7th person to comment on my giveaway which was

SONIA GAMBLIN

Congratulations Sonia, I have sent you an email so check your inbox and contact me for further details!

Hyperemesis is NOT ‘morning sickness’

After it was reported yesterday that Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, wife of Prince William had been admitted to hospital with hyperemesis gravidarum there has since been an abundance of publicity about the condition some of which is very sad to say has been incorrectly reported and which makes light of the condition!

As an HG sufferer myself, I know first hand what it is like and hyperemesis is NOT ‘morning sickness’. The condition is a severe sickness during pregnancy which usually begins earlier, is far more intense and debilitating than normal morning sickness so much so that hospitalization can be the only option to control the condition otherwise it poses severe risks to the unborn baby and the mother if left untreated.

For myself I wasn’t diagnosed with the condition until my second pregnancy and it started during week 4 only days after finding out I was pregnant. It started with vomiting just a few times each day and escalated very quickly into not being able to keep any food or liquids down at all and vomiting in excess of 40 times a day, which included all through the day and night. None of the usual remedies for morning sickness, such as eating little an often, using an array of ginger products worked and after 3 days at this extreme, I was so week I could barley stand up, I was no longer going to the toilet and with a 2 1/2 year old to look after I couldn’t do even the most basic tasks let alone my important job as a mum!

I was first admitted into hospital through A&E, with severe dehydration and sleep deprivation which in turn had lead to blurred vision, a persistent migraine and ketonuria which is where the body uses fat stores as energy and releases chemicals into the urine called ketones. I was placed on a drip, fed anti-sickness drugs. As I hadn’t been diagnosed with hyperemesis during my first pregnancy I was discharged after a number of hours with the advice to see my GP about some anti-sickness medication.

Although this treatment had temporarily stopped me from vomiting I still felt very week and could barely perform normal tasks, let alone eat or drink. After a visit the next day to the GP I was given Metoclopramide tablets which for the day or two kept the sickness at bay and I managed to start eating a little once again. However once again this soon escalated and the medication was no longer staying down long enough to take effect.

After an emergency call with my GP they prescribed another anti-sickness meds to try and avoid hospitalization, however this also had no effect and the extreme sickness continued. At this point I was admitted into the women’s health unit of Bournemouth Royal Hospital here in Dorset, I had so far lost over 5% of my body weight and again was suffering with the same symptoms above from my previous trip to hospital. I was in a horrendous state both physically and emotionally to say the least, I couldn’t stop crying and this only made the vomiting far worse. I never knew you could vomit for so long on an empty stomach!

The staff here were amazing and were able to start to calm me down and reassure me that they would get the condition under control this time. I was once again placed on a drip and fed anti-sickness meds, however this time these meds didn’t work alone so I was also given anti-sickness injections too. I was seen by an array of doctors to work out some kind of home care plan and what medication they could provide so that I could return home. I was also given an early internal scan to check for multiple babies as apparently this is more common in women carrying twins (or those with multiple babies).

It was estimated I was now 7 week pregnant with just one baby which resembled a very small nut! I was discharged after 24 hours with more anti-sickness meds including metoclopramide, cyclizine and pyridoxine. Again they kept the sickness at bay for a few days and the cycle began again where I could no longer keep the medication down and was once again admitted for a 3rd time back to the same hospital and ward.

As above this stay was very similar although my recovery took far longer. I had now lost over 10% of my body weight, which for those of you who know me I am only very small and to loose almost a stone in weight was not good at all. I was so dehydrated by now It took many bags of fluid and a few days in hospital for me to even start eating and drinking again. After now being so sick for over 5 weeks I was struggling to swallow medication so after examination the doctors were able to prescribe the metoclopramide as a sirup to hopefully help stop the previous sickness cycles from re-occurring. After a 4 day stay in hospital I was discharged and since that day the combination of medication have kept the sickness at a more manageable level.

I am now in my 18th week of pregnancy and have survived the last 10 weeks without being re-admitted into hospital. I still have to rely on my medication almost daily and there are days where I am far more sick than others but at least it is now under control enough for me to look after my son by myself, and even work a little! I have to take each day as it comes and although some days I can function there have been others where I can’t which can be very difficult to cope with. Although I am still a little underweight however the baby is doing just fine and I am putting on weight so my bump is now starting to show which is lovely to see!

Thank goodness I am self employed and have a loving supporting family. I’m not sure how an employer would behave under these type of circumstances and for some families they may have struggled to get through this. I have been very grateful to all the ladies I have met who have also suffered with HG and there are many great support networks out there so if you are an HG suffer too, you do not need to suffer in silence. Hopefully this added publicity will only help the cause! I would love to hear from anyone who has also suffered with HG to tell your story or if you are a support group then please comment below or email me at ericamartyn@oddsandsoxlets.co.uk

Please visit the Pregnancy Sickness Support website for professional advice, help and support, follow them on twitter @HGSupportUK or find them on Facebook.

To celebrate the launch of my new GIFT VOUCHERS I am giving away a digital one to the value of £10.00 to one lucky person in this festive giveaway!

To enter all you need to do is comment below this blog post with what makes Christmas special for you and your family?

Closing date is Thursday 6th December. My favorite answer will be chosen and announced on my blog on Friday 7th December along with the launch of my Market Night of all my 2011 stock.

Wishing you the best of luck everyone…

For the month’s of November and December 2012 you can download my illustration of these two ‘dinkie dollie’ elfs as a FREE digi stamp to use within your crafting projects during the festive season.

Just click on the image below to find out more…

© Erica Martyn – All Rights Reserved

Odds & Soxlets are finally MOVING!

After putting in our initial offer on a house back in April, months of uncertainly due to an un-adopted road and temporarily living with family after moving from our previous home we are now in the final stages and looking to complete and exchange contracts before the end of October 2012! We shall be moving to the north Dorset town of Gillingham and our new contact address will be available in the contact section of my website.

Temporary Closure of Online Shop’s

Due to our forthcoming move and up and coming craft fair for Odds & Soxlets my online shops will now be closed until late November 2012. During this time I shall be updating this website and then be having a market night in early December where all remaining stock will be available to purchase in time for the last Christmas to make way for new stock from January 2013 forth.

Christmas Craft Fair

After the success of attending last years Christmas Craft Fair at The Hub in Verwood I shall once again be having an Odds & Soxlets stall. This year I shall have a variety of handmade products for sale including just a few Christmas themed one’s too. The even will be held on Saturday 24^th November 2012 from 10am – 4pm. So if you are in the local area it would be great if you came along to join in the festivities.

Firstly a very BIG thank you to everyone who entered the competition, I was blown away by the response and some really wonderful suggestions for design.

Unfortunately there can only be one winner so drum roll please……..

CONGRATULATIONS to JESS HUGHES

who was the 10th person to comment on my competition blog post and was chosen by the random number generator! (If this is you please check your email as I have sent you details on how to claim your prize)

There will be another **GIVEAWAY** here on my blog after I reach the great milestone of 1000 followers over on my ‘Odds & Soxlets’ facebook page so watch this space for further details…

Summer 2012 Competition!

Updated Post: 21st August 2012 – Final chance to win yourself one of my gorgeous new ‘Dinkie Dollie TAGLETS’ in my Summer 2012 Competition here on my blog!

To enter just comment on this blog post with details of what your perfect taglet doll would look like by answering the questions below…

• Would you like a girl or a boy?
• What colour hair would they have?
• Would you like a pale, tan or dark skin colour?
• What colour and style of fabric would they have for there body?
• And finally what colour of ribbons would you prefer?

The winner will have their perfect taglet doll made for them!!!

Closing Date: Friday 31st August 2012

The winner will be chosen at random by a number generator and announced on my blog on the amended date of Wednesday 19th September due to suddenly being taken into hospital on the original date.

Thank you for your understanding x

‘It’s Wedding Time’

The time has finally come for my fiance and I to get married so things here at ‘Odds & Soxlets’ will be a little different over August / September.

We are getting married this forthcoming weekend in the beautiful Roman City of Bath, just across the weir pictured in this stunning photo above in the Guildhall and then at the end of the month we shall then be venturing off to gorgeous city of Rome in Italy for our honeymoon with lots of family time in between.

From this week forth I will only have limited postal runs and be able to send digital files on Wednesday 8th and Wednesday 22nd August, with my services returning to normal from Monday 10th September. I may not also be able to respond to emails, facebook and twitter messages as quickly as normal so I apologize in advance for any inconvenience this may cause, please bare with me during this time and I shall endevour to get back to you as soon as I can.

From 10th September I shall be making new stock for my website, however my order book for any custom items is now booked up until 2013.

This will also be my last blog post now until mid September as these past few weeks have been far too busy and I never got the chance to get some written and schedule them in before the wedding! I will however have lots of lovely photo’s to share with you upon my return!

Thank you for all the love and support,
With Love
Erica x

Earlier last year I was very lucky to be asked to be a case study for the lovely Joanne Dewberry, who was writing a book all about crafting and running a successful small business. It is now almost time for the book to be released and Odds & Soxlets feature in various sections throughout the book plus my craft activity is the first one on pages 10-15!

With small businesses being on the increase and many parents with young children alongside others turning there crafting hobbies into businesses what better time for this wonderful book Crafting A Successful Small Business to be released.

Take a read of the press release below and click on the image to be taken across to the publisher’s website where you can pre-order the book! Exciting times!

As many of you know we have been planning to move since early this year and the time has finally come for us to move out of our current home!

Odds & Soxlets is a home run business so therefore having a home is rather quiet important! The down side of our house move is that we are having to stay with family until the contract on our new house have completed and exchanged!

The whole process should have only taken a few weeks as the house we have brought was a rental property and was empty. However some things in life are never quiet this simple and with very slow solicitors and estate agents that only work two days a week it has now taken 3 months so far and we are still waiting!

The hold up has been down to the adoption of the road due to being a private build of houses. We shall be moving to the town of Gillingham and most councils have details on their website of the adoption of roads however North Dorset Council doesn’t and so the solicitors have been trying to find out this information since early June!

Now in mid/late July and the solicitors are now waiting for the conformation of the road status before we can complete and exchange! Thank goodness we weren’t in a chain!

My little boy and I have been renting our house from a family friend and they were good enough to let us stay an extra week hoping we would have moved by then. Unfortunately this has not been the case and we are moving into temporary accommodation with family in the near by town of Ringwood, Hamsphire.

With just over 3 weeks till my finance and I get married, it would be rather nice for us all to live together by then so keep your fingers crossed and wish us luck!

Please Note: Details of our temporary address can be found on my Contact Page and our new address will be announced once we officially have our new house! I will only have limited stock available during this time which has already been made however I am taking orders now for Christmas 2012 which I shall commence from October. I only have limited availability so please email me foe further details if you would like to reserve a space: ericamartyn@oddsandsoxlets.co.uk