With two days to go until the auctions for our “Celebration With Purpose” go live, I am in the last stages of preparing the technical side of things. Taking photos of my own items for the auctions, compiling the images for items that have been donated (and will be sent from their current location to the future auction winners), drafting the descriptions that need to be posted in the auction posts on eBay. Not all is ready yet, and I know from experience that it will take a bit of time tomorrow evening to post all the auctions and to create a post here on the blog, but I can’t wait for it all to start. To whet your appetite, I’d like to give you a quick preview of what you can expect to find in the auctions.
Guided by the hope that we will have something for everyone and for every budget, I have put together some “sets” for the bigger budget, as well as kept some individual items that may attract smaller bids. This is what you can expect:
- a couple of RAPS + plushie sets
- a couple of RAPS on their own
- Armitage autographs ready-framed and photo-only
- two magazines to complete your Armitage fan item collection
- merchandise and autographs from Love Love Love
As of yesterday, the number of auctions came to 13. More than in previous auctions, btw, and not least because of generous donations from several kind fellow fans!
However, I couldn’t get over the number 13. I’m not really superstitious, but well, maybe I just needed an excuse to get my arse into gear and create something. With my extensive stash of fabric at hand, I spontaneously improvised a little at my trusty sewing machine, accompanied by the warm timbre of Mr Armitage’s voice narrating Lords of the North. (That was actually prompted by @HBDayRArmitage on Twitter who has created a hashtag party for the birthday week. Yesterday it was tweets about Richard’s voicework, today we are tweeting about Richard’s work on television… Check the hashtag schedule in the picture (left) if you would like to take part. Click picture to enlarge.)
Anyway, to get back to my crafty efforts, I decided to knock up a fan-proof tote bag. My favourite accessory this summer has been a 10-Euro bag from British discount clothing store Primark (called Penney’s in Ireland). In shiny silver, it was my beach bag in Greece and is currently serving as my classy shopping bag. Yeah, always in style, even when buying loo roll in Tesco. But the new bag has a twist. Literally. Because it’s reversible. If silver faux leather is too tacky for your taste, you can turn it inside out. In which case you’ll be carrying you membership to the Armitage fandom on your sleeve – quite literally – because the fabric used is one of my chaRActer patterns.
Modelled by ‘Claus’, the retired rocking-horse, here’s the fan bag:
Straight from the horse’s mouth, eh? Sorry, the puns are flying low today…
I’m actually quite chuffed with the bag – made without a pattern, just with a few measurements taken off my Primark bag and a bit of sewing experience. So if this is not a goer in the auction, I’ll be happy to strut it myself.
Right, so, hoping to get the general instructions/small print for the auctions out tomorrow after the weekly round-up. Meanwhile, already many thanks to you for reblogs, RTs, and mentions. (There’s another thing – I have to keep track of all the shares for the promised raffle.) Two more days and we’ll be off, with the individual auctions staggered to start from Sunday morning (BST)!
Guylty Pleasure 
I’m sure that bag will be a hit!
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Look at you making reversible bags. Very cool! Les Plushies are raring to go..
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Yep, you can’t leave me alone with a sewing machine or else I’ll start messing around with stuff.
Looking forward to putting ‘les Plushies’ up for bidding xx
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Loving the bag! I use my smaller version that you sent me every day 😊 I think maybe it needs a big brother!
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*hehe* that would be a great pairing!
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Exciting! I know the bag will be a goer. 🙂
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Here’s hoping. It’s roomy and shiny. And relatively discreet – at least in terms of fangirling 😉
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🙂
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I want Sundasy to come quickly. And I predict ”Batle of many a chick”, I mean Ladies 😀 ❤
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Yes, I look forward to kicking off the auctions, too. And I look forward to packing the parcels for the winners and putting a few surprises in them, too…
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Guylty, I have something to add if it is not too late. Can I PM you?
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Yes, of course – on Twitter? Or e-mail guylty@photographer.net?
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Will tweet right now
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And the excitement is mounting!!
Wish I could listen to ‘Lords of the North’. It sounds like it would be great, but it just isn’t available anywhere that I know of.
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SueBC, not sure where you are but there’s one RA-recorded MP3 CD on eBay right now coming out of Australia. They don’t ship to Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Jersey, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Svalbard and Jan Mayen, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vatican City State…..I don’t know why.
Here’s the link. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bernard-CORNWELL-LORDS-of-The-NORTH-UNABRIDGED-read-by-Richard-ARMITAGE-/152637798973?hash=item2389ebfa3d:g:7FsAAOxykMpTIgc7#shpCntId
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I’m in Canada. Thanks. I’ll take a look.
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oooh, that’s valuable information 👍🏻
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Ok I bought it! Free shipping too. Thanks.
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When I bought mine several years ago, it also came from Australia. I had to buy an MP3 CD player to play it but it was pretty inexpensive from Best Buy online. One thing I noticed is sometimes the last one or two words of sentences were cut off. So I ended up reading along with a book. His voices were incredible. LOTN was the first audiobook I ever heard him read. You’ll love it.
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I would recommend the book, too – I read it much later than listening to the audiobook, but with the Armitage visuals by then established in my mind, it was a true pleasure to read. Plus, it is very accessible in terms of language and really fast-paced/exciting.
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Luckily, my car stereo can play MP3s. Looking forward to it!
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Besides the Heyer audiobooks, Lords of the North is the one Armitage audio work that really gripped me. I listened to that with bated breath, it was so good. Sadly, neither Copperfield nor Romeo and Juliet did that for me…
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… I think my Armitage spending may be out of control! But I can’t wait for Lords of the North to come!
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You won’t be disappointed. It’s absolutely compelling. And long! Hours of Armitage’s voice in your ear.
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OMG that rocking horse is a classic but then you did tell me you basically live in your husband’s family home museum. I love the silver bag. Not sure which side I’d display the most. Can’t wait. Can’t wait. On your mark. Get set….
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Yes, Claus the horse is fabulous. Not a family heirloom, though, but a rubbish find, left out for the bin men by the previous owner… What a shame!
Glad to hear the silver bag doesn’t just appeal to me 🙂
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The auction will be a great success I am sure. Each item is a must have or minimum a wanna have. I hope my vacation bonus suffices.
Btw the wifi works (hehe)
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Hooray, glad to hear the wifi works – that means you’ll be able to have a look at the auctions. – I have just spent the last five hours creating the auctions on eBay. Ha – and I thought eBay was making it easier to do the auctions… Very time-consuming. But all worth it, of course…
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