Blog
|
Written by Gagagoogoo
|
|
Wednesday, 13 February 2008 |
We are delighted to receive a lovely review of Blankie Bear from LittleStuff - a brilliant website with everything you could possible need for all things little! See below:
Blankie Bear by Gagagoogoo - What WE say... A soft, cuddly, friendly, comforting teddy bear can be a wonderful thing indeed. When a child takes a teddy bear into their heart and bonds with them and loves them it can be a VERY wonderful thing. Made even more wonderful if the darn thing can be whizzed up in the washing machine when some horrid, sticky, smelly, yucky ‘stuff’ gets all over poor Ted! The Blankie Bear by Gagagoogoo is one such magical teddy bear. In fact, he’s more than just a teddy bear because inside the pouch on his back is a small, soft and just-perfect-for-clutching-in-a-small-fist blanket that folds out and has Blankie Bear sitting tucked up and proud in the middle of the blanket. Very useful for placing over a child’s lap while they are sitting in the car or in their buggy. Tuck the blanket away again and his legs re-appear and he’s now a tuck-under-your-arm teddy bear ready for action. The Blankie Bear has been given a very contended cuddle and thumbs up by both Ella and Ben. Ella likes to sleep with him tucked at the top of the cot, just within reach should she need to check he’s still there. Ben likes to drag him around, throw him down the stairs and tackle him for an oh-so-tight squeeze at any time of day or night. The quality and softness of the Blankie Bear is second to none. The careful thought and design that has gone into his creation shines through from his cute, smiley face. Yes, we at LittleStuff really really like the Blankie Bear. | |
|
|
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 13 February 2008 )
|
|
|
Practical Parenting Awards |
|
|
|
|
Written by Gagagoogoo
|
|
Thursday, 18 October 2007 |
Yesterday was probably one of the busiest days of my life! Earlier this year we were delighted when we heard that little Blankie Bear had been shortlisted for a Practical Parenting Award - from 100 entries down to the final 5. As we ummed and ahhed about whether we could a) get a babysitter and b) afford to go, we decided that if we went up and back in a day then it wouldn't cost quite so much money and that the girls could be looked after by a babysitter until we got back. Yesterday morning was crazy - with lots of people ringing in the office and orders coming in from last weeks BPA Baby and Child Fair so when we eventually left the office an hour later than when we were planning to it was a mad dash for the train. Considering that we've both been staying up late every night this week working it wasn't long before we were both fast asleep on the train with all the weekly commuters around us quite unimpressed with me gently snoring in the corner. The Aquarium was the venue for this years Practical Parenting Awards and it was an amazing location. The champagne flowed and there was an abundance of food, we had a fantastic time watching the fish and the shark dive was great. We were then led to our seats for the Awards. Comedian Jeff Green was the host and his introduction was hilarious - considering how many mums and dads were in the audience he entertained us with stories of his hormonal wife and his own experiences as a dad. As we cheered and clapped everyone who won we waited with baited breath to hear our category, but as we listened to the 'amazing people' stories from 'Birth story of the Year' to 'Health Visitor of the Year' we realised that it's not always about winning but how people cope with being a parent or how others help people when circumstances are really hard or diffficult. When our category was called out we held our breath, but we had practised our Oscar losing set smile and applauded the winners. On reflection Blankie Bear was in the toy category and up against some fantastic interactive toys, so we could see that the snuggly bear may not be the whizzy toy a child would play with during the day but he would be the friendly bear you would take to bed with you to keep you company throughout the night. We had to sneak out before the event finished as our last train left at 10.35. As we dashed out the door and ran past the millenium eye we were sad to miss the end of the party. Two and a half hours later we finally walked in the door, and then at 3am Charlotte woke me to tell me that she was cold and could she have a hot water bottle! Needless to say today I am very fuzzy round the edges but amazed at how far we have come in such a short space of time. Big congratulations to all those who won the awards and to the 'Amazing People'. Well done Practical Parenting - it was a great event - and as for Blankie Bear - well there is always next year and our new range! | 
Mark enjoying his glass of Champagne and the fish
The amazing fish in the tank
at The Aquarium
|
|
|
Last Updated ( Thursday, 18 October 2007 )
|
|
|
BPA Fair & The Winter Lurgys |
|
|
|
|
Written by Gagagoogoo
|
|
Tuesday, 16 October 2007 |
|
Wow, what a crazy time it has been, the BPA Baby and Child Fair was great, we met some wonderful people and had a fantastic response to our new bunnies and the new Blankie Bear who is travelling to us as we speak. The little bunnies are arriving at the end of November and they will be appearing in many shops ready for Christmas. We also launched our new gift box, which was very popular, they come flat packed so I can see a little production line forming so that all the bunnies and bears will be ready to be despatched. Charlotte breaks up school for Christmas on 15th Dec so I think we may have a happy little elf coming to help us! Everyone was impressed with our flyers - we found an amazing printers online - www.alocalprinter.com, who did us proud and we were so happy with our stand from Exhibit UK. It looked amazing and it received great comments from the people who met us. Thank you to everyone who stopped and allowed us to demonstrate our Blankie World characters, we really appreciate you spending your time with us. I have to say Mark was fantastic and put me to shame with my demonstrations! It's always nerve wracking doing a show and when people stopped and took time to talk with us it was really encouraging. Thank you also to everyone at Steiff UK and Haptic (UK Distributor of Taggies & Minimink) who happily helped us with advice on how to get into various stores and how to get 'out there'. Considering that Blankie Bear was just a little idea by Mark last year it really made us realise how far we have come. When we came back both the girls were struck down with illness - poor little things - as beautiful as their pictures looked on the stand, they were both feeling very sorry for themselves and were wrapped up in duvets on the sofa to recover. So as we begin this week having just moved into our new office (very small but it's all ours) we are trying to fight off anything that comes our way! |
|
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 17 October 2007 )
|
|
|
All things come in three's |
|
|
|
|
Written by Gagagoogoo
|
|
Thursday, 04 October 2007 |
|
I can't believe we leave on Friday to get to Birmingham for the BPA Baby and Child Fair. Normally when we do an exhibition it's a chaotic frenzy to get props for the stand, produce literature, and get the products to us on time. This time we planned everything with plenty of time in advance. So why I am sitting here at just after midnight frantically trying to get everything sorted? Well, we are nearly there...but our new and very exciting packaging has been delayed due to the fact that the couriers have lost the ink, our new adorable prototypes have been sent to Glasgow by mistake, and the bracket for our fantastic new stand is stuck somewhere between Switzerland and the UK. It would be very easy for me to start to panic, particularly as the girls have been struck with nasty colds - the eldest being sent home from school today and was diagnosed with tonsillitus and as sorry as I am for her, demands from under the duvet on the sofa for Annie, Bugsy Malone and High School Musical have started to wear thin. Add to this we are trying to move into a new office, so nearly everything is in boxes and I'm currently sitting on the floor with the computer on the coffee table trying not to get lost in The Restaurant and indeed tomorrow when the demands for the DVDs begin again to not give my daughter my rendition of 'It's a hard knocked life' (if you haven't seen Annie you will have no idea of what I'm talking about)! So as we pack up our leaflets and get ready to display our wares (which will all hopefully arrive) I wonder is it all worth it, but already we have received calls and emails from people we have sent pre-show registration forms who are looking forward to meeting our new friends and the thought of meeting new people fills me with pre-show excitment. The bunnies are all packed up and looking very adorable next to Blankie Bear and I can't wait to show them off. |
|
Last Updated ( Thursday, 04 October 2007 )
|
|
|
Where do the weekends go? |
|
|
|
|
Written by Gagagoogoo
|
|
Sunday, 01 July 2007 |
 This weekend we took a trip to photograph the lovely Cameron with our blue bunny - he loved his big ears and was a wonderful model. We are frantically running around trying to get everything ready for the BPA Baby and Child Fair which is Oct 7-9th. Normally our stands consist of us scrabbling around to find wallpaper, children's furniture and often the pretty throws from the girls bedroom to dress the stand, this time we have pushed the boat out and got a fantastic Pop-up stand from a lovely company close to us - Exhibit UK . They have been so helpful and nothing has been too much effort, which has made our lives much easier in the run up to the fair. On sunday we took the girls out for some much needed fresh air and fun at Moors Valley, were we hired some bikes, Charlotte with a tag-on to Mark's bike and worked so hard she was even peddling when Mark wasn't - pushing him along and Annabelle in a little pull along basket attached to mine - even though she wasn't keen at first she soon settled down when we strapped her Blankie Bear in the seat next to her - which she thought was great fun. While Mark rustled up some amazing scones when we got home, Charlotte and I sat down to do her weekend homework it made me realise how good the weekends can be to make you stop and enjoy time with your family. It's so easy to get bogged down when you are running your own company with everything you have to do and today I'm sitting with the biggest 'To do' list but it was worth it. |
|
Last Updated ( Monday, 17 September 2007 )
|
|
|
|
