Apologies for being a bit late this year. I’ve been distracted by various crises in Casa Guylty, but I have just been given the good news that Little Miss Guylty’s Covid test from yesterday has just come back negative. Master Guylty is on the mend, too, with most of the pain gone. We are Covid-free and can all breathe again. Sigh. – Regardless of family drama, the prep work for the December fundraiser have been ongoing. Yes, I am a tiny bit behind my own schedule, but we are still on track.

Here is the plan:

• This year’s fundraiser has been given the moniker and hashtag #HoHoHolidayFundRAiser. As usual, we kick off with a three-day auction of  fan items (see above) from Saturday, November 27 to Tuesday, November 30. We have a big range of items on offer, from custom made glassware, playbills and DVDs to amazing fan packs. All items have been donated by fellow fans – a massive thank you to all of the donors. The auctions will be conducted via eBay, as in previous years.
• In a second period, we will follow up the auctions with a fixed-price sale on Etsy/Pattern from November 30 to December 1. The sale and auctions may overlap, so those who already know they have been outpriced on eBay may already shop for charity on Etsy. As a new strategy I will be releasing the Etsy goodies in two batches, separated by 12 hours or so, to give people from other time-zones a better chance at picking up items in the sale. On offer here are multiples of lower priced fan items, mostly hand-made by fellow fans.
• The plan is to have everything sold and auctioned off in time for the first postal service deadline (all territories except EU, UK and US) on the 3rd of December.

As always, the details of the items are will be released over the coming days – to keep the suspense 😉. Some items will be posted by the donors themselves, but all proceeds will go into the charity donation for LOROS – in lieu of a Christmas gift for Richard.

The Small Print

The upcoming charity auctions will be conducted on eBay for ease of transaction, access and visibility. They are all private and non-commercial, a fundraiser for charity. I.e. the proceeds of the eBay auctions will all be donated to our chosen charity (minus incurred costs such as eBay and Paypal transaction fees). Postage costs will be covered by the proceeds and/or donation by sender. Items will be sent anywhere in the world.

So, how does an eBay auction work? In case you are not familiar with the online marketplace, you need to register on eBay in order to be able to bid. You can do so on the eBay platform of your country/territory and in your own language – you will still be able to access the auctions (which will most likely be conducted over my home platform, eBay IE). I will provide direct links to the individual auctions, and you can click on them to access the items that you are interested in. From then on it’s pretty self-explanatory. You will see the current highest bid on the item, and you can bid more in order to win the auction. The items will go to the highest bidders, upon payment. If you are the auction winner, you will receive a notification e-mail that contains all the info on how to pay for your item and other next steps.

As a little disclaimer, please bear in mind that the fan items are pre-loved unless described otherwise. That means there may be signs of use on the items, as per item descriptions. For the hand-made items it goes without saying that they might deviate in details – but are perfect in imperfection! Please also note that I have taken the liberty of setting a starting price for the auctions. These reflect regular prices of the items as researched on eBay/Amazon and are an attempt by me to guarantee a nice minimum donation.

Since our items are all for fundraising, we are charging no postage fees (see above). The items will be carefully packaged and sent anywhere in the world. In some cases, the items will be despatched directly from the donor and not me. Depending on items and final price, some packages may be sent by registered mail, so buyers will receive a tracking number to track the progress of their parcel. No returns possible, I am afraid, as this is a charity project. This is particularly important to consider when bidding on some of the more fragile items that will be on offer. Posting is at the buyers risk. But please consider this: First and foremost, your bids and purchases are a donation to charity – except that you receive an item in return. Bidding is open to all, anywhere in the world! (But to avoid disappointment, I would like to ask you to please have a look at your national postal services and check whether your postal provider actually accepts incoming mail from abroad *at this time*. Delays in shipping your auction winnings to you may be possible.)

The affordable fixed-price items for a simple purchasing transaction will be on sale via my storefront via my temporary Pattern by Etsy website. This is the URL: https://scissorsandsmiles.patternbyetsy.com The items have a set price and are all priced to include regular postage anywhere in the world. There will be several different items, made in multiples. You can buy multiples of the same item (via the “quantity” button in the individual listing) – or buy several different items during the same session. The shopping process is pretty self-explanatory on Etsy – and you don’t have to register for an account there in order to buy. IMPORTANT: The full range of items on offer will only be visible on the above mentioned Pattern by Etsy site (not my regular Etsy storefront.)  Note: As this is my own Etsy shop, there will be other items visible that are not part of the fundraiser. But the fundraiser items will be clearly labelled as such so you know that you are buying an item whose proceeds go into our donations pot.  (Learn more about checking out on Etsy as a guest user HERE.) In some territories, you may be charged sales taxes or VAT. This is automatically added by Etsy and beyond my control. However, postage costs are included in all Etsy listings, so there are no additional costs for that (unless you want tracking).

Fundraiser? FundRAiser!

As always, the point of the fundraiser is *not* to make anyone feel obliged to spend money or to make their Christmas donation in Richard’s honour via this fan initiative. We are 21 months into the pandemic, and many people have been impacted financially. So please do not overspend! Any contribution – whether it is a bid, a purchase, a won auction, but also a small donation to the final sum, is appreciated. Or if you prefer to donate in your own name, that is cool, too. The point is to raise money for LOROS – whether as part of this fan-driven fundraiser, or on your own. LOROS (and Richard) will be pleased either way 😉. So please do not feel you *have to* donate/bid/buy. Your participation as a watcher who comments, cheers and spreads the word is *equally* valuable to us. We’d like to have you along! Watching the bids rise can be a bit of a thrill(er), and following along on Twitter or blog is almost as fun as a community re-watch 😊. I usually try and write updates on the progress of the auctions as we go along – (twice-)daily posts here on-blog, as well as more frequent tweets over on my Twitter. You are welcome to tweet along yourself or to join the crew when the auctions come to a close. I usually need help with the live-tweeting because it is a real thriller at the end!

So – mark your calendar, put a few Euro, Dollars, Pounds or any currency of your choice aside, and join the fun. More info will trickle through over the run-up to the fundraiser start.