I feel really sad to see the rumblings of disappointment spilling over into finger pointing again. I just want to say for the record and most emphatically that no sale is ever fixed and it is always my aim to be as fair as possible. Everyone on the advance list has exactly the same information about times and the whole process of uploading them is automated by typepad so that everything appears at the exact time specified. Beyond that it's down to speed of typing and connection speed. Looking back through sales it seems to help if you have a TypeKey account as this removes the need to type in all of the contact details but even this is no guarantee of being first to leave a comment.
I understand that people are very frustrated and disappointed to miss out and I know that it's hard to put yourself in the shoes of another but believe me it's not a lot of fun for me either. I get a lot of emails after every sale, some of which can be quite scathing and venomous and it's hard not to take these personally and be hurt by them. At the end of the day I knit these toys because it brings me pleasure to make them. I don't do it to service a market or to become rich (I'd make far more money from a part time cleaning job) and I didn't set out to start a business - it's just evolved from a passionate hobby. I continue to make them because of the peace that knitting them brings me and whilst I'm grateful that people want to buy them (as it means I can carry on making them instead of getting that cleaning job) I too find these sales hard.
At the end of the day it is impossible to keep everyone happy as I simply cannot make enough toys to satisfy demand. Maybe the 'shop' here is no longer viable and I am currently looking into a new venue for selling the toys - I'll keep everyone posted.
I understand completely if people want to leave the advance list - as always please just email if you want to be taken off. For those of you who choose to remain I hope you'll understand that it's my intention to be fair and try to spread a little happiness rather than disappointment.
