2014 Super Swap - sign up now!
Posted: Mon May 26, 2014 1:15 pm
Hello one and all! Today I’m pleased to open signups for the new and improved swap! Before you start throwing surveys at me, let me explain some of the changes.
Mini and Big Swaps are now Mini and Mega Tiers
Previously we had the mini swap every year and the big swap every other year – this has now changed as the swaps have been merged into one event. They will still exist in the new swaps, but run concurrently as “tiers”. You can sign up for the mini tier, the mega tier, or both if you enjoy that kind of challenge.
Rule Changes
General rules will apply to both tiers, but there will be a couple of extras for the mini tier (nothing scary I promise) and also rules that apply to the participants themselves. I will of course elaborate at the start of the swap.
Duration
As the two swaps will be happening together, I saw fit to change the duration of the challenge. Normally a mini swap would be two months and a big swap three. I have noticed a lot of difficulty in completing gifts within the time limit so I have extended it to four months for both tiers. This should give ample time to participants to create and send their gifts.
The rest of the changes are things you lot won’t see, because it’s all logistics and bookkeeping and other wizardry. So, on to some rules and extra information.
General Rules and Other Things I Have Deemed Important
Signing up and surveys
Signups will be done by sending a survey (which I will provide at the end of this post) but also by adding your name and tier(s) to a Google doc. Surveys must be 100% complete – please don’t leave any questions blank and do include your first name and surname with your full address.
Commitment
For Cosmos’ sake, do not sign up for a swap if you know you can’t complete and send gifts out in good time. You may have work or life commitments, for example. I understand that sometimes stuff happens and you can’t always see it coming (believe me I understand only too well), in those cases all I ask is that you let me know as soon as you can.
Time Management
Both swaps will last for four(ish)months, from the first week of June until the end of September. It sounds like a long time but don’t let yourself become complacent – time waits for no-one, especially procrastinators! If you need some help with managing your crafting time I would be happy to assist.
Data
I keep a record of swaps and this includes participants’ names and addresses along with notes I add for each person. All personal data is held securely by me and will not be used outside of Sprite Stitch. Information relevant to the swap will only be shared with your approved swap partner(s).
Communication during the swap
All questions will be relayed through me (and my poor inboxes!) so if there’s something you absolutely need to know, PM it to me and I’ll ask for you. This is just to ensure that partners remain a mystery until you get your gifts.
Shipping and Customs
If you can, please make yourself available for international shipping, or at least to the country/countries next door. There will be a field in the Doc for specifying your shipping preferences.
The other thing is customs – many countries require a declaration of the items inside and value of your parcel. If your destination country needs a customs form filled in, please mark the items as Gift as this will prevent your intended recipient from having to pay import taxes and customs fees. I will try and let the international peeps know if they need to obtain a customs declaration form and assist in completing it where I can.
Help and Advice
As always, I am available to help with patterns, designs, advice and even if you just need to rant that your gift went horribly wrong. I can be contacted in the following ways:
Forum PM, email ( miragedance@hotmail.com or crazyblackmage@gmail.com ) and Facebook/Twitter (hit my buttons in my sig for those).
Now all that’s out of the way, I can move on to the survey! If you’ve participated before, you’ll find this survey slightly different. Please download the .txt, add your details and answers and save it as <username>.txt. Then return the file to me via PM or email.
I would very much appreciate all of you sending me the survey in this format, as it will save a lot of time!
Anyway, here it is: And the Google document:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing
Please return all surveys by Friday 6th June and ensure that you have added yourself to the document. Swap begins on Saturday 7th June when I make the opening post.
Thank you!
Mini and Big Swaps are now Mini and Mega Tiers
Previously we had the mini swap every year and the big swap every other year – this has now changed as the swaps have been merged into one event. They will still exist in the new swaps, but run concurrently as “tiers”. You can sign up for the mini tier, the mega tier, or both if you enjoy that kind of challenge.
Rule Changes
General rules will apply to both tiers, but there will be a couple of extras for the mini tier (nothing scary I promise) and also rules that apply to the participants themselves. I will of course elaborate at the start of the swap.
Duration
As the two swaps will be happening together, I saw fit to change the duration of the challenge. Normally a mini swap would be two months and a big swap three. I have noticed a lot of difficulty in completing gifts within the time limit so I have extended it to four months for both tiers. This should give ample time to participants to create and send their gifts.
The rest of the changes are things you lot won’t see, because it’s all logistics and bookkeeping and other wizardry. So, on to some rules and extra information.
General Rules and Other Things I Have Deemed Important
Signing up and surveys
Signups will be done by sending a survey (which I will provide at the end of this post) but also by adding your name and tier(s) to a Google doc. Surveys must be 100% complete – please don’t leave any questions blank and do include your first name and surname with your full address.
Commitment
For Cosmos’ sake, do not sign up for a swap if you know you can’t complete and send gifts out in good time. You may have work or life commitments, for example. I understand that sometimes stuff happens and you can’t always see it coming (believe me I understand only too well), in those cases all I ask is that you let me know as soon as you can.
Time Management
Both swaps will last for four(ish)months, from the first week of June until the end of September. It sounds like a long time but don’t let yourself become complacent – time waits for no-one, especially procrastinators! If you need some help with managing your crafting time I would be happy to assist.
Data
I keep a record of swaps and this includes participants’ names and addresses along with notes I add for each person. All personal data is held securely by me and will not be used outside of Sprite Stitch. Information relevant to the swap will only be shared with your approved swap partner(s).
Communication during the swap
All questions will be relayed through me (and my poor inboxes!) so if there’s something you absolutely need to know, PM it to me and I’ll ask for you. This is just to ensure that partners remain a mystery until you get your gifts.
Shipping and Customs
If you can, please make yourself available for international shipping, or at least to the country/countries next door. There will be a field in the Doc for specifying your shipping preferences.
The other thing is customs – many countries require a declaration of the items inside and value of your parcel. If your destination country needs a customs form filled in, please mark the items as Gift as this will prevent your intended recipient from having to pay import taxes and customs fees. I will try and let the international peeps know if they need to obtain a customs declaration form and assist in completing it where I can.
Help and Advice
As always, I am available to help with patterns, designs, advice and even if you just need to rant that your gift went horribly wrong. I can be contacted in the following ways:
Forum PM, email ( miragedance@hotmail.com or crazyblackmage@gmail.com ) and Facebook/Twitter (hit my buttons in my sig for those).
Now all that’s out of the way, I can move on to the survey! If you’ve participated before, you’ll find this survey slightly different. Please download the .txt, add your details and answers and save it as <username>.txt. Then return the file to me via PM or email.
I would very much appreciate all of you sending me the survey in this format, as it will save a lot of time!
Anyway, here it is: And the Google document:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing
Please return all surveys by Friday 6th June and ensure that you have added yourself to the document. Swap begins on Saturday 7th June when I make the opening post.
Thank you!
Sent my survey in!