Lilly Bean News! Youtube Videos, new kits and more

Hey Everybody,

It's been a while since I've posted on my blog! We have been so excited over all the orders and comments from all of you out there!!! Thank you so much for your kindness and support in making Lilly Bean such a success :)

We now have some extra help to get packages out the door. This means faster service, more timely responses and more products. We apologize if the "Martha Stewart rush" made your packages take a little longer than you expected, but rest assured that we are working hard to make the Lilly Bean experience better than ever. Each item is carefully inspected and only our best products get sent to you. We are now sending out packages within a few days of your order.

Many of you have asked if "everything will be made into a kit?" The answer is yes! We are working to make kits available for every Lilly Bean product. We will try to release 1 or 2 new kits a month. If you have a suggestion for what you might want to see next, post a comment or send me an email :)

We are now releasing our Make it yourself Chocolate Cake kit and our Make it yourself Peanut butter Kiss cookies and Black and white Sandwich Cookies. Happy Sewing!

Also, I just uploaded a new Youtube video. Head on over to the Lilly Bean Play food Youtube Channel and check out How to make a Lilly Bean Felt Fish. Don't forget to watch Part 1 & 2.

You'll also notice in the Make it: Wool Felt section of the website, we have added Purple Jelly felt and Silver Gray wool felt...more colors for you to enjoy.

The Grand Rapids Press and Martha Stewart...OH MY!

If you managed to pick up a copy of my local paper (Grand Rapids Press) you might just find me in there! If not click this is a link to Craftsanity . Jennifer Ackerman Haywood wrote a great follow up story about my trip to New York to be on the MARTHA STEWART SHOW!

Yes... You read correctly... I am going to be on the Martha Stewart Show that airs Feb. 18th!!!
I taught Martha how to make a felt Cherry Pie and Cherry. This kit is available on my website :) The kit available on the website is for a 5.5" pie and there is no enlarging of templates necessary ;) Watch the show and enjoy!

NEW KITS!!!

I know, I know....you are probably saying "about time!" Well here are 3 new kits so that you can feed that felt food addiction. Introducing Cherry Pie and Cherries, Sushi, and Chocolate Bunnies! Enjoy these and new items will be along very soon :)

My Family just got bigger :)

Just a little announcement: January 23, 2009 I got married! Introducing my new husband Todd Karnatz and his adorable son (and now my stepson) Jaden. And, YES, that means my name has changed :)

and Away We Go....

Hi All,

Thank you so much for all of your business and continued support! We will be out of town from January 11th - 21st. While we are away I will still be working and the Amish are continuing to stock our shelves with lots of play food. However, I will not be able to mail packages. Please know that any orders placed between January 11th and January 21 will be shipped by Jan 23rd. We hope that you understand :) Keep watching for new products to be released later this month including cherry pie, cherries, hot dogs, and several fun new kits. I will still be answering email while I am away.

Thank you so much,
Hilary

Have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The packages have all been sent and we have spent lots of time at the post office. Good thing Lilly is such a great little helper! Thank you for all of your help in making this such a wonderful holiday season! In spite of the economy, Lilly Bean is holding up well in part to our fun products and people like you supporting small American companies.

We are currently restocking our shelves, working on new products and getting ready to release some fun new kits. Please check back for updates later this week.

We hope you've had a very merry Christmas and a spectacular New Year!!!

Thank you,
Hilary Seabolt

Help Save Handmade Toy companies like Lilly Bean!

Help Save Handmade Toys in the USA from the CPSIA

The issue:
In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China and other developing countries violated the public's trust. They were selling toys with dangerously high lead content, toys with unsafe small part, toys with improperly secured and easily swallowed small magnets, and toys made from chemicals that made kids sick. Almost every problem toy in 2007 was made in China.

The United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US. So, they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August, 2008. Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number.

All of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with. Large manufacturers who make thousands of units of each toy have very little incremental cost to pay for testing and update their molds to include batch labels.

For small American, Canadian, and European toymakers, however, the costs of mandatroy testing will likely drive them out of business.

• A toymaker, for example, who makes wooden cars in his garage in Maine to supplement his income cannot afford the $4,000 fee per toy that testing labs are charging to assure compliance with the CPSIA.
• A work at home mom in Minnesota who makes dolls to sell at craft fairs must choose either to violate the law or cease operations.
• A small toy retailer in Vermont who imports wooden toys from Europe, which has long had stringent toy safety standards, must now pay for testing on every toy they import.
• And even the handful of larger toy makers who still employ workers in the United States face increased costs to comply with the CPSIA, even though American-made toys had nothing to do with the toy safety problems of 2007.

The CPSIA simply forgot to exclude the class of toys that have earned and kept the public's trust: Toys made in the US, Canada, and Europe. The result, unless the law is modified, is that handmade toys will no longer be legal in the US.

If this law had been applied to the food industry, every farmers market in the country would be forced to close while Kraft and Dole prospered.

How You can Help:
Please write to your United States Congress Person and Senator to request changes in the CPSIA to save handmade toys. Use our sample letter or write your own. You can find your Congress Person here and Senator here.

This information was provided by the Handmade Toy Alliance.