Face of Princess Ratbag Ending soon!

There are only 6 more sleeps until the close of our fabulous Face of Princess Ratbag competition. We are BEYOND excited with the incredibly gorgeous Princess Ratbags that have entered and we cannot wait to share with you!

So what will happen and how does it work? Entries close 31st August and on 1st September our voting gallery will open, and then its time to vote vote vote! You can only vote for one entry per age group. The top 3 with the most votes from each age category will then go before our selection panel and a winner from each category will be crowned and be the super lucky winners of our $2000+ prize package!!

So tell one, tell all and come 1st September dont forget to vote vote vote!

Win a free pettiskirt!

If you have had an eye on our pettiskirts but have been waiting for the right time to spend your hard earned dollars, or if you already have one but want another, enter our comp to win a pettiskirt and save your pennies!

We have a facebook fan page found here http://www.facebook.com/home.php?pwstdfy=e6a00fd23f35e7898a74e10a2e14d56f#/pages/Brisbane/Princess-Ratbag/100328330414 (someone please tell me one day how I can insert that link so it is hidden in the word 'here'). All you have to do for a chance to win is become a fan and add your two cents to our discussion and tell us your favourite pettiskirt style from our website.

Easy peasy right?!

We're having a sale!!!

Its finally time to clear our old season, discontinued and excess stock so we're having a sale until all stock is gone. The way our pettiskirts sell faster than we can keep up, they wont last long so hurry and check our sale page to grab yourself a bargain!

SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE SALE

Click here to take a shortcut http://www.princessratbag.com/store/WsDefault.asp?onSale=On%20Sale

Face of Princess Ratbag Competition Officially open!

Hooray! After a couple of weeks of delays getting it up and going we are finally open for entries, and there are gorgeous entries coming in already which we cant wait to share!

If you think your child or someone you know would be perfect as the new Face of our brand, make sure you tell them to check out the competition details http://www.princessratbag.com/step1.php

Entries close 31st August so there is still plenty of time to get your entries in. Have fun!

Special note: A big big shout out to Andrea from Design & PR Girl for designing my comp pages, she did such a beautiful job im ecstatic with the results. Another great big giant shout out to Matt from Webnovation who is the saviour that finally got it all workable and up and running. Thank you thank you! If you are after any design or website needs they both come highly recommended.

The cold is setting in...

Time to bring out the heated blankets and warm fluffy slippers! I love this time of year, I only wish I had a fireplace. Those I know that have a fireplace tell me I would tire of it after a week seeing the mess it makes, but I think I could deal with that for the smell and the crackle of a fire.

I am loving putting my little ratbag in legwarmers and tights without having to change her current wardrobe, and the comments she gets are enough to make me blush with pride.

This winter im loving the Max Daniel Signature collection blankets (although a little small for me) available at Petit http://www.petit.com.au/ .

They are truly the softest most luxurious blanket I have ever felt, and I often try to steal my daughters to have a little snuggle into it. We have a solid colour, but im loving this one with the baby pink/choc zebra print. One for the wish list!

But you know what I really love about winter? The food! Oh the stews and soups and hearty home cooked bubbling pots on the stove. Mmmmm I love food at the best of times but in winter it seems extra special.

All this delicous winter comfort food means I will have a lot of work ahead of me, but its worth it. Lucky the hubby is a Personal Trainer then!

New Dittany packaging

Myself and Shannon from Dittany have been working on new packaging for their gorgeous luxury tights, and we are ecstatic with the results. These will now make perfect little gifts for those special little people in your lives, and only make them even more special than they already were.

Here is a sneak peak. New packaging will be ready in 2 weeks *yay!*

Face of Princess Ratbag Comp (again....)

To everyone waiting for the Face of Princess Ratbag comp to begin and wondering what on earth has happened to it, we are so sorry it has been delayed a little longer than expected.

We had some hiccups with the necessary online elements so are working through these and it should finally be up and running Monday 8th June (fingers crossed please everybody!).

We have already been swamped with emails of proud parents ready to enter their little Princess Ratbags, so we cant wait to see the gorgeous little faces out there.

Stay tuned, I will do a post of rejoice when we finally open for entrants.

Face of Princess Ratbag Comp

Hi all, as you have probably noticed the Face of Princess Ratbag comp hasnt yet opened and was intended to start today being the 1st June. Im sorry, I had a weekend in Adelaide and havent been able to get the things done by the people I need as yet, so ive had to delay the start by a few days and it will now begin this Friday 5th June. Still very close, so not long to go!

Dittany is now available at Princess Ratbag

Also available at www.milliemollymoo.com.au and will soon be available at www.myminimoda.com

Its almost time!!!

The Face of Princess Ratbag competition is almost here and we're jumping out of our skins with excitement!

Launching 1st June 2009- only 9 more sleeps!

An amazing prize package valued at over $1500 for the lucky winner. This is a must see competition if you think your child could be the new Face of Princess Ratbag.

Prize Sponsors:

http://www.alannahrose.com.au/ For gorgeous exclusive stationary

http://www.czarque.com.au/ For the most divine infants ballet shoes- made in Oz

www.littlepjs.com/littlepearls.htm Darling cultured pearls for precious little girls

http://www.yunginz.com.au/ Super cool boots for the mini fashionista

http://www.walnutmelbourne.com/ Casually chic canvas shoes for comfort & style

http://www.naomivphotography.com.au/ For simply exquisite photography- Bris based

http://www.petit.com.au/ Distinctive & luxurious childrens toiletries

Courtesy of Naomi V Photography...

Now lets hope im competant enough to make this work, lets see:

Addicted to Dittany

Well after my last post I couldnt resist. I had to have some Dittany tights, and I had to have them in bucketloads.

So in saying that we are super duper proud to be the new Australian Distributor for Dittany Designer tights!

Stock will be available early May so keep an eye out so you can snap some up and your little one can get about town with trendy pins.

Who has the cutest little legs in the world?

Anyone that dons a pair of Dittany Baby tights, thats who!

Oooh have you ever seen anything as delicious as these tights? I can already envision doing some amazing shoots pairing them with my pettiskirts, cotton candy, boots, farm fields, ferris wheels, carousels, on the beach, in the park, anywhere!

If I cant get my hands on these tights I may possibly die of heartbreak. Must. get. dittany.

We've been blogged

Word is quickly getting out about how special our pettiskirts are. Babybites in NZ and Little Light House in Brisbane have spread the love.

Be sure to check them out, not only for our plug but also for their lush offerings.

http://www.babybites.co.nz/articles/200904_articles/200904_PrincessRatbag.html

http://www.babybites.co.nz/

http://littlelighthouseblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/princess-ratbag-ultimate-girly.html

http://www.littlelighthouse.com.au/

Thank you so much lovelies!

Princess Ratbag has a New Zealand Agent

And the most fabulous Agent at that!

We are proud to be represented by Skout Trade Fairs and Lou herself. Lou is the owner of www.skouttradefair.ning.com, the best networking forum ive come across for designers and business owners in the childrens fashion industry.

If you are from New Zealand and interested in stocking our products, please contact Lou at donelly-davey@xtra.co.nz

If are you in the childrens fashion or design industry, its defiantely worthwhile checking out Skout Trade Fairs, just be prepared to find yourself glued to it and hitting refresh every ten mins ;)

So many things in the works...

As ive mentioned before, we are running the Face of Princess Ratbag comp this year. Ive been a busy bee working away on the finer details, not to mention getting some fabulous sponsors on board. The winners are going to be absolutely delighted with the prize package we're putting together. If only I could win it myself!

I also have some great PR (meaning public relations not princess ratbag) for the comp with magazines and online blogs, so the competition will have the exposure it deserves and our judging decision will be made that much harder.

Some other excitement in the PR camp (this PR I mean Princess Ratbag. Confused?), is that I have been working away endlessly the past couple of weeks on the new designs ill be launching in August. Thankfully the MIL is a pattern maker so it makes my life that much easier. This weekend saw us starting to put together the first samples, and saw me jumping up and down with delight. I cant wait to see them in their final form ready to go!

The one thing im having a little trouble with is finding someone to do my logo in diamonte/rhinestone heat transfers or even a glitterati transfer. Apparently its too intricate, but there HAS to be a way, so ill keep digging my way through google but if anyone happens to know of somewhere, please let me know.

Once again another 2am finish in store for me tonight- but only if I get out of here now and get back to my email replys.

Hoorah! Pettiskirts are arriving by the truckload

So im currently surrounded in a sea of fluffiness and am a little bleary eyed after many 2am finishes, but all for the greater cause of spreading Princess Ratbag joy to all!

It isnt all positive though, as I still have almost half my stock running late and another week or two away, but for the most part most of you will be receiving your orders this week.

If you're interested in purchasing something for immediate delivery please contact us to find out what is in current stock.

(IM)patiently waiting for stock

Just a quick update to those of you who are like me and hoping 'today is the day!' the pettiskirts will arrive.

Stock will be arriving Thursday (hopefully) this week and further stock the end of next week. Thank you public holidays for causing further delays.

Soon enough stock will be readily available, so we thank you so much for your patience while we are surviving off smaller runs until our big orders are ready.

Keep your eyes peeled for deliveries late next week :)

A Princess & a Ratbag courtesy of Naomi V

A few weeks back I had the absolute pleasure of having my children photographed by Naomi Vasington www.naomivphotography.com.au , one of my most favoured childrens/lifestyle photographers. Luckily for me she is Brisbane based!

Here is just a snapshot of what she captured of my Princess and Ratbag. I wonder if you can tell which is which.....

Latest News

Well its been far too long since ive last blogged. Things have been crazy busy since the KIS Expo and I have had trouble keeping up, but thanks to my Bookeeper and my new PA that will be starting this week, ill finally be able to get back on track.

It also means I can put more focus into getting FACE OF PRINCESS RATBAG up and going. This comp will be open for all Princess Ratbag Customers that have purchased a pettiskirt or petti co-ordinates and there will be lots of goodies in store for the winner so if you have a little princess or know of one that you think would be perfect for the face of our label, be sure to let them know about our comp. Further details will be posted next month so stay tuned.

A new business has plenty of ups, but it certainly isnt without its downs. Stock delays being my biggest one at the moment, however thankfully we are just about up to date with our past orders and soon enough our bulk production will be ready and we can say goodbye to our 5+ week waits *hallelulljah!* I thank all my customers so very much for the patience you have shown, it has helped keep my stress levels to a minimum thats for sure!

Another change worth mentioning is the change in my regular line. You will notice that approx. half of the styles have disappeared from our website, and this is going to benefit everyone. It means we can double the inventory of the most popular styles and it means I dont have to sell my children to keep enough stock of every style! There are still over 20 different colour combinations available so we still offer plenty of choice, but if you dont find something you love we are still able to custom make our discontinued line or create your own colour combo. This requires a minimum of 5 per size per style and the turnaround time will be 8-12 weeks.

As my stockists begin to receive their ordered stock I will update the website with their locations. We currently have 26 new stockists and are looking forward to doing business with them, as well as making the decision easier for our buyers. There's nothing like touching and feeling the tangible item to really fall in love with how soft and gorgeous these pettiskirts are.

Princess Ratbag @ Kids in Style

Well what an AMAAAAAZING week Kids in Style was for me. If I had not taken a single order I think I still would have been so happy with the wealth of knowledge other exhibitors had to offer, and all the magazine and journalists that are interested in using my range for various features. That sort of networking and publicity is priceless, and add to it approx. 20 new stockists that ive picked up and Princess Ratbag is becoming a label that will be well recognised amongst little girls and parents all around Australia & overseas. Expect to see big things from us in 2009, with plans for Prince Ratbag in 2010.

I wore a pettiskirt in the size XL on opening day and was astounded at the 50+ orders I received for black XL pettiskirts! I must admit, they feel absolutely gorgeous to wear, you bounce around with every step you take. Thanks to my Princess for suggesting I wear it ;)

Counting down the days already until Melbourne Kids in Style, July/Aug '09! Ill be introducing my new designs, so stay tuned for some super cute things for the little ones 0-3 years :)

Lovin' the new layout!

Thank you so much to Becky from Cutest Blog on the Block (and thanks Crystal for the referall). Hasnt she done a fantastic job? You'll find her at www.thecutestblogontheblock.com and she is very well priced with a fantastic service. Definately worth a look for those wanting to jazz up a tired old blog.

8 days until Kids In Style!

After months of planning and trying to get into this exclusive expo, the time is almost near and I couldnt be more excited! Its going to be lots of fun setting up my stand. I have a wonderful company doing some vinyl stickers for my floor and back wall- my logo and a few branches for the back wall which will be adorned with our rosettes to look like beautiful colourful blooms, my crown logo will be applied on the polished concrete flooring, and I have a GORGEOUS pic , by Naomi of http://www.naomivphotography.com.au/ that will be a full length banner. For any of you that reside in Brisbane, I urge you to give Naomi a call and book in a photo shoot, she's a snapping genius *hail Naomi*.

Unfortunatley for so many of us that would love nothing more than to get amongst the best labels in kiddies fashion and accessories, Kids in Style is industry only, but if you are lucky enough to be in this category its one you cant miss. See here for details http://www.kidsinstyle.com.au/ .

And what am I most excited about? The final day all of the exhibitors have a swapping frenzy, barter away and we all go home with an armful of treasures. Im salivating just at the thought of it. Damn Virgin and their baggage limits. This might call for a package sent home via TNT ;)

Ill be sure to post piccies of my stand after the expo. Wish me lots of stockists!

Ruffle Bum!

Yesterday I opened a sample arrival of my petti shorts and petti pants ive had made to add to the range. In the packet, cute, very cute and just as I envisioned, but nothing that made me jump up and down. That is until I put a pair on my 18 month old ratbag. My oh my, they are the CUTEST most gorgeous little things ive ever seen! Her little bottom looks so cute as she waddles and runs around in them, and I was chasing her around the house just so I could enjoy them for a moment longer.

I will be getting some pro shots done with a photographer in the next two weeks, but until then here's a sneaky peak of them without the fillings of chubby little legs. I have to be honest- the pics when they are not on a little model do them NO JUSTICE so I cant wait to show you them on a little princess and you can see just how adorable they really are.

Im having them made in white, black, baby pink, red, aqua blue, lavender and white, raspberry and baby pink and baby pink and chocolate. Other colour combinations may be added at a later stage.

Both the petti shorts and petti pants will be $28. The pettipants are designed to sit at knickerboker length, halfway down the calf.

See us in the print

After enquiring about advertising with My Child Magazine yesterday I was contacted by someone from their team to ask if I would mind them featuring my pettiskirts in their newsletter as a "things kids love" item because they adore my range. It appears its not just the kids falling in love with our pettiskirts- adults too are joining the petti frenzy and once my ads come out in the coming issues of Studio Bambini, Shop4Kids and My Child im preparing for an onslaught of crazy mothers/grandparents/aunties whose life purpose (for that particular day anyway) is to get their hands on one of our fluffy creations.

Be sure to grab a copy of one (or all) of these 3 mags for the most devine childrens finds you've ever seen. I have to be honest and say that id never really picked up one of these magazines before, but went out and purchased them all in the name of 'research'. Buying those gorgeous Walnut shoes for jj and wall motifs for the girls room, the kindy swag (fantastic creation!), not the mention the amazing little nick-naks for bath, play and sleep... yes that was all research too!

You'll find us featured in Studio Bambini in their fashion shoot (Little Red Riding Hood theme- style 1607) as well as a full page ad, Shop4Kids as a product feature as well as a full page ad, and My Child in their newsletter, as a product feature and a 1/3 page ad. These magazines are all due for release in Feb and last an entire season or two.

WARNING: When flicking through these magazines, be prepared for plenty of 'oooh's and 'aaaaah's and an overwhelming compulsion to give the plastic a workout.

Im a blog virgin no more!

Yes this is my very first blog addition, and lets hope they get more exciting as time goes on ;)

Welcome to my love, my passion, my life- Princess Ratbag. I dont mean the pettiskirts, I mean my two girls- the Princess (9- almost 10 eek! where did my baby go?) and the Ratbag (18 months). They have led me to where I am now, and they are the reason this business exists. This little venture began as a way to assist in paying the Princess' exorbitant school fees and fund the Ratbags future schooling, and anything else is a bonus. I love being able to support my family while still being a work from home mum, this is a dream come true for me. Everything that becomes of Princess Ratbag is for them and I hope it continues to receive the incredible support to date for many years to come.

I hope you enjoy our range of pettiskirt and petti co-ordinates. You will see the range expand in the next year with new products and accessories. We have many exciting and unique ideas in store for new products to add to our collection and cannot wait to see them come to fruition.

Ive received overwhelming photographer support and I am immensely humbled and grateful. I would love to share an image or two that a few wonderfully talented photographers have sent me, so that brings me to the end of this blog entry while I figure out how to upload images.

Candice
xoxo

Some amazing images by Natalie from Sweet Blue Photography

These images are of Natalie's daughter modelling our solid red pettiskirt. Isnt her daughter just gorgeous?! Im very proud to have her as a little Princess Ratbag model. Thanks again Natalie.