Yes, I know, it’s only the end of October and it seems far too early for a Christmas message, but as I currently have a 4-5 week lead time in my order book I’m already quoting an expected posting date of November 25th for orders taken today. Believe me when I say there isn’t much time left if you want a new strap for Christmas!

As you can imagine, we’re now coming in to the busiest time of year for me. As we get closer to the holidays I get more and more enquiries about Christmas orders, so this year I thought it would be a good idea to write this short blog post to try to give everyone a heads up about the probable “deadlines” involved.

 

International Christmas orders.

The first thing to recognise is that the deadline for posting straps internationally comes earlier than for posting to addresses in the United Kingdom. Royal Mail are saying that the final posting date for international mail this year is December 7th, and they are pretty good at judging delivery times. Of course it’s not impossible for a package posted after this date to arrive in time, but sending international mail after this date only increases the likelihood that it won’t be delivered before Christmas.

As a result I’m planning to post a batch of straps on December 5th which will contain the last of the international orders I expect to be delivered before the holidays. If you live outside the UK and you fancy commissioning a new strap for Christmas (or you are dropping hints, hoping a loved one places an order with me for your present) it is a good idea to get your strap included in this batch. International orders placed before November 9th will be included in this batch and your strap will therefore be posted on (or slightly before) December 5th.

 

UK Christmas orders.

There isn’t such a panic if you want the strap delivered to a UK address, but even here the mail slows down the closer to Christmas we get because of the volumes of mail Royal Mail has to cope with. The next date I am planning to be at the Post Office after December 5th is December 15th, so you have about a month from now to order if you want your strap posted on December 15th. The deadline for UK Christmas orders to be included in this batch is expected to be November 18th.

 

What happens if I can’t get my order placed in time?

All my straps are handmade, and there is only me here, so there is a limit to how many straps I can make each week. I won’t take on more work than I know I can fulfill, so at some stage I am going to have to close off the batches for December 5th & December 15th posting. After these batches are closed off, all new orders will be given scheduled posting dates in the New Year. Believe me, I will do everything I can to make sure that your Christmas orders are posted to you in time, but it would help me to help you if you could order sooner rather than later.

 

Christmas orders - why not buy a gift certificate to give as a gift on Christmas Day?

If all else fails, give a gift certificate.

Every year I get emails from people telling me they want to order a strap as a gift for their loved one, but they need help because they don’t know what size or colour to order. Obviously I help where I can, but it’s often difficult without speaking to the person the strap is for. This year I have gift certificates available, which may be the solution to the problem. Instead of having to guess you can now give a gift certificate which will allow the recipient to order what they want when they want to.

My Gift certificates are available in different denominations and are emailed as codes within 24 hours of the order being placed. The code can then be used to pay (in full or in part) for an order placed through my website, and they are valid for a full 6 months. So if you have left it too late to get the strap delivered in time, or you’re simply not sure what to order, you can choose to give a gift certificate on the day. They are also a very good suggestion if someone has asked you what you want for Christmas – just point them to my website and you’ll be able to choose what you want at anytime over the next 6 months.

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