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Dragon Bagons; CR10 dragon dicebags

Created by Bridget Hughes

These CR10 dragon dicebags would love to guard your dice hoard. Also available are Dragon dice, Bagthulhus, and Bagthulhu dice.

Latest Updates from Our Project:

Safety testing update
almost 4 years ago – Tue, Apr 21, 2020 at 06:53:45 PM

I just heard back from the manufacturers, the last of the safety testing has come in and it's a pass :). I've asked for an update regarding the embroidery/applique stage, and I'm waiting for a response.

In terms of timeframes, what I know right now is much the same as the last update: the expected completion time for the manufactured run is mid may (I'm taking that with a grain of salt), from there importing usually takes 2-4 weeks (again, grain of salt, every country has an evolving set of border protocols at the moment), and then 1-2 weeks for QC checking, followed by fulfillment (again, likely to be affected by different situations in different countries).

So while I can give a rough timeline, there's a lot of variables that could change at any time, so I can only ask for your continued patience, and hope that we can adapt and get through this safely together (with our draconic dice guardians arriving as soon as possible).

In other news

Yesterday the NZ government announced that the level 4 alert/lockdown will continue until monday next week. From there we'll move into level 3, which is similar, but with some changes. The main one is that we should be able to ship almost normally again (though I'm expecting the postal service to have a backlog to get through in the first couple of weeks). We'll stay at level 3 for at least two weeks and then they'll assess whether we need to go back to level 4, stay at level 3, or go down to level 2 (which would let us work largely as normal).

My helper and I have been working on how to work in two separate locations for longer. Before level 4 started I sent my helper home with enough materials to keep them busy for a month, when that runs out we have a new set of protocols in place.

We'll be continuing to work with no face to face contact, using sealable containers on the doorstep to exchange materials and items. The containers will be disinfected on the outside before going out and on arrival, and then the contents will either washed (if they can be) or quarantined for a week before being opened. The containers will be sterilised on the inside and outside after being emptied and then sealed to wait for refilling. This will slow down some of the production and dispatch of custom orders, but it will also make it difficult for anything unwelcome to transfer from my helpers house to mine, or vice versa, or while travelling in between. We will also be continuing with the usual handwashing, hand sanitiser, and other basic hygiene as well. Items that can be washed before being dispatched will be.

As most of the remaining orders for you lovely folks are either finished and already stored safely or are part of the manufactured run (or both), this procedure is unlikely to affect you. That being said, we're putting some guidelines in place for anyone receiving parcels from us, and given the situation worldwide, we're expecting them to need to continue for some time even if Aotearoa moves to level 2 very soon. We will update these guidelines as needed, and we'll post the updated version before we ship out the manufactured run.

Shipping info

The postal service will likely have a backlog pretty much everywhere, so we're expecting some delays.

At this stage our US based fulfillment partner is still able to ship.

Our UK based fulfillment partner is unable to ship at this time, as the UK lockdown has been extended for another three weeks. We will begin shipping finished UK orders directly from NZ as soon as we are able.

Safety with parcels

We're taking extra care with handwashing, cleaning, and general hygiene while working, but we still recommend some extra steps when receiving parcels from us to add another layer of safety.

If you are receiving a parcel from us within NZ, we recommend putting it in 'quarantine' somewhere out of the way without opening it, and immediately washing hands. From there we recommend leaving it alone for at least three days, preferably a week before opening.

If you are receiving a parcel from us in the USA or Canada, and it's been sent by our US fulfillment partner (it will be from Gamerati in Tacoma, WA, this will be marked on the shipping label) we recommend putting it in quarantine somewhere out of the way without opening it, and immediately washing hands. From there we recommend leaving it alone for at least three days, preferably a week before opening.

If you are receiving a parcel from us outside of NZ by regular mail (the shipping label will say it's from Wayward Masquerade in New Zealand), your order has likely been sealed in it's packaging for at least a week, so it should be safe to open, but immediately tip out the items, discard the packaging, and wash your hands before touching the items.

If you are receiving a parcel from us outside of NZ by international courier (again, the shipping label will say it's from Wayward Masquerade in New Zealand), your order has likely been sealed in it's packaging for at least three days, but just in case we recommend putting it in 'quarantine' somewhere out of the way without opening it, and immediately washing hands. From there we recommend leaving it alone for at least three days, preferably a week before opening.

If you are receiving a parcel from us in the UK or EU, and it's been sent by our UK fulfillment partner (Red Dice Games in Scotland, this will be marked on the shipping label) we recommend putting it in quarantine somewhere out of the way without opening it, and immediately washing hands. From there we recommend leaving it alone for at least three days, preferably a week before opening.

When you receive a parcel from us, remember the following:

The inside of the parcel should have remained sealed. The exception to this is customs opening the parcel, or possible tampering. If there is any indication that the parcel has been opened by customs, please leave the parcel in quarantine for at least three days, preferably a week, even if you normally wouldn't need to, just in case. If you believe your parcel has been tampered with, please put it in quarantine, wash your hands, and let us know immediately. Photos (without touching it, or washing hands immediately after touching) will help us to investigate.

The outside of the parcel has likely been handled by a variety of people and touched many different surfaces on it's way to you. You should wash your hands immediately after touching the parcel, and disinfect anything you touched before washing your hands, or that touched the outside of the parcel (e.g. scissors to cut open the parcel etc) and any surface that the outside of the parcel has touched. Try to discard the packaging directly into the rubbish as soon as possible. Try not to touch the outside of the parcel and then the items inside without washing your hands in between, and try not to let the items inside the parcel touch the outside of the parcel or any surfaces the outside has touched before they are disinfected.

Most of our items are spot clean only, if you do feel the need to wash them, avoid immersing them completely in water, and use a damp cloth with mild soap and warm water to clean just the outer surface. Do not tumble dry items. All items should be left to dry thoroughly. As we can't know how every different detergent or washing method will affect every fabric, we can't take responsibility for items that were washed differently to our standard instructions (spot clean with a damp cloth). If you have any doubts about safety and don't want to take the risk of washing an item/s, you can simply leave the items in quarantine for another week.

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Besides that, I've been mostly working on custom orders, and making face masks for frontline services that are struggling to get enough of the proper ones. We'll focus on NZ to begin with, and when the need here lessens we'll start shipping overseas.

I hope you're all safe and well.

Photos of the Rainbow and Purple/Teal samples and manufacturing update
almost 4 years ago – Fri, Apr 10, 2020 at 09:45:28 PM

Firstly, I hope you and your friends/family are all safe and well. We're about halfway through the lockdown here. No indication has been given yet about whether it will be extended or not, so we're just waiting. I've had some requests from frontline essential services for fabric masks so I've been making some of those to donate alongside working on a few custom orders. Shipping has been restricted to essential items only, so non essential (the definition of non essential changes daily O.o...) orders that need to be shipped from NZ can't go out until the lockdown ends (hopefully in two weeks time). Our fulfillment partner in the US is up and running again so they can ship anything they have in stock there at the moment. Our UK fulfillment partner is still in lockdown too, which will hopefully end in two weeks, but it's hard to say for certain.

Sample photos

These photos arrived in my email this morning. Obviously different monitors will show the colours differently, but on mine at least they seem to match reasonable well to the physical fabric samples I have. While they're not identical to the original Dragon Bagons I made, I do like how they look after a long, winding road. The custom dyed purple to me feels like a darker version of cadbury purple.

Final purple/teal sample
Final purple/teal sample side on
Final Rainbow sample
Final Rainbow sample side on

I preferred a slightly more intense blue for the body of the Rainbows, but the lighter blue does make for more of a contrast with the dark purple. It's really interesting how just being alongside other colours will make the purple look different. It's the same fabric, but colour combinations are always fascinating.

Manufacturing timeline

Safety testing of the fabric should be completed next week. The embroidery factory has estimated completion of the applique'd wings in the last week of April, and the manufacturers have estimated completion of the whole line around the middle of May. This will leave a week or two for quality testing on the manufacturing side. I am taking all this with a grain of salt, and with everything that's going on in the world I'll be happy if they're done by the end of May.

From there, we'll need to ship the run to three or four fulfillment centres - the US, UK, NZ, and possibly one in the EU (Brexit has made things interesting). However this is all a bit up in the air at the moment as every country has it's own lockdown rules and procedures, and different customs rules. Normally it would take 3-4 weeks for all the shipments to arrive, I'd like to hope it will only take that long this time, but I can't guarantee it with how upside down the world is right now.

From there I'll take a week or two to inspect as much of my shipment (NZ) as possible for quality. If the standard is good we'll start fulfillment. If it's not I'll ask fulfillment partners to do spot checks for quality before starting fulfillment.

Fulfillment will also likely be affected by the pandemic, and every area will have it's own rules and circumstances, so we'll just have to do the best we can to adapt, but there will likely be delays in some regions, I'm expecting all parcels to be tracked at this stage.

Updating or changing orders/colour choices

Now that you've seen the final purple/teal and rainbow samples, if you would like to add extra Dragon Bagons or change your colour selection, just let me know by PM and we'll sort it out :)

Finances

The extra support from you lovely folks is helping a lot, combined with a bit of financial support from the government here, we're nearly halfway towards towards closing the gap in the budget. The more we can keep it up the better.

Other stuff

I can't say enough how grateful I am for all the support, patience, and understanding you folks have shown. I feel very lucky to have you on this journey with me.

Also, I made peanut butter cups. And cleaned out the pantry. And dug poop into the garden. And worked on the accounts and this years projected budgets. And wandered around in my Wendy (Gravity Falls) cosplay hat. And started setting up a dice brunch for some handmade Dragon Bagons. And cleaned out my helpers desk (they're working from home during the lockdown). And the shower has been scrubbed three times. And I put a Bagthulhu in the window for the kids doing teddy bear hunts. And I gave Tootee half a bath. It was interrupted when a bumblebee bit me. Turns out I'm not nearly as allergic to bumblebees as I am to wasps and honeybees so it just ended up looking like a horrific bruise. I'm not going stir crazy. Honest.  I'm also learning to tablet weave.

Bagthulhu in the window

Kia Kaha
about 4 years ago – Mon, Mar 23, 2020 at 02:37:42 AM

Hello folks,

Just as I was typing this update out, the news came in that Aotearoa/New Zealand is preparing go into lockdown. The government is currently using a 4 level alert system. We were at level 2, we are now at level 3 and we will be at level 4 in 48 hours. Basically, most schools, public places, and non essential services will need to shut down for a month. I don't yet know how this will effect us work wise, as we're basically hermits already, there's only two of us, and we work from my lounge, but I'll keep you posted. Of the items listed below, the only ones we don't already have in stock are the manufactured Dragon Bagons and the custom colour items, which are made to order, so even if we have to stop working completely (which seems unlikely unless they come and take my sewing machine, and I'll fight them if they try), we can still send out orders :), which will have a nice trip in a sealed bag smelling faintly of hand sanitiser. As I've said before, anyone who is concerned about parcels can simply leave them in a quiet spot for a week to make sure any microbes inside and out have died, and wash their hands immediately after touching the parcel.

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Manufacturing

I've been chatting with the manufacturer, trying to get a more specific timeline on when the Dragon Bagons will be ready. China is almost back up to speed with their production, they can't give me concrete figures immediately, but here's what we know so far:

  • Now that the custom dyed fabric has arrived, all the fabrics are on hand.
  • The laser cutting and die cutting are in motion. The red/blacks should be a bit ahead of the purple/teals and rainbows since they started earlier.
  • The choke point is likely to be the embroidery for the wings, which may not start for another couple of weeks, depending on the embroidery factory and how far along they are with getting back in motion. Some elements of construction can be done without the wings, so depending on how the manufacturers process works, they may be able to keep moving until then.
  • The safety labs will likely need to test the custom dyed fabric for lead content like all the others. I'm waiting to hear back if this has been completed yet.
  • I should have photos of the finalised purple/teals and rainbows soon.

Ordering extra rainbows and purple/teals

The pandemic has hit our retail sales of other items, and the cost of changing the fabric has widened the existing hole in the budget created by the previous issues with the rainbows (there's details in previous updates), the NZ dollar has also dropped significantly, meaning our final bill will be higher than before if the exchange rate doesn't recover before we need to pay. In short, we are struggling. I have applied for support from the government to help with paying my helper (fingers crossed that gets approved and comes through ASAP), but that doesn't cover our other upcoming costs. To help with this, I'm asking for your support.

If anyone wants to add extra items to their order, they can. The prices for additional items will be as follows (add on shipping rates will still apply.) I've included approximate conversions at the current exchange rate. These prices really don't allow us to make much of a profit, but they will hopefully help bring in enough income quickly so that we can offset at least some of the big costs we're facing.

Manufactured Dragon Bagons (any colour)

  • KS backers - $41 NZD (23 USD | 20 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $43 NZD (24.25 USD | 21 GBP)
  • Preorder backers after June 2019 - $93 NZD for two or $45 NZD for additional dragons to an order already containing a Dragon Bagon or Bagthulhu (52.50 USD and 25.50 USD |  45 GBP and 22 GBP)

Dragon Bagon Dice sets

  • KS backers - $15 (8.50 USD | 7.25 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $16 NZD (9 USD | 8 GBP) 
  • Preorder backers after June 2019 - $17 NZD (9.50 USD | 8.25 GBP)

Manufactured Bagthulhus

  • KS backers - $38 NZD (21.50 USD | 18.50 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $39 NZD (22 USD | 19 GBP)
  • Preorder backers after June 2019 - $40 NZD (22.50 USD |  16.50 GBP)

Standard size Handmade Pride Dragon Bagons

  • KS backers - $90 NZD (51 USD | 43.50 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $115 NZD (65 USD | 56 GBP)
  • Preorder backers after June 2019 - $136 NZD  (76.50 USD |  67 GBP)

Standard size Handmade custom colour Dragon Bagons

  • KS backers - $90 NZD (51 USD | 43.50 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $120 NZD (65 USD | 58.25 GBP)

Double size (elder) Handmade custom colour Dragon Bagons

  • KS backers - $115 NZD (65 USD | 58.25 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $130 NZD (73.50 USD | 63 GBP)

Standard size Handmade custom colour Bagthulhus

  • KS backers - $80 NZD (45 USD | 39 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $110 NZD (62 USD | 53.50 GBP)

Double size Handmade custom colour Bagthulhus (Doublethulhus)

  • KS backers - $110 NZD (62 USD | 53.50 GBP)
  • Preorder backers prior to June 2019 - $120 NZD (67.50 USD | 58.25 GBP)

I can also do a 20% discount on any other items in our etsy store (not already mentioned here) for KS backers only, just let me know what you'd like and I'll make a custom listing for you.

These prices will continue until the end of April, at which point I will reassess and decide what to do next.

Upgrading from a manufactured to a handmade Dragon Bagon is still an option also :).

I absolutely understand if folks are not keen, it's been a long road with many bumps and detours, and times are tough right now. If you don't have the spare money, don't feel comfortable, or just don't want to, I completely understand, respect your choice, and will still do my absolute best to deliver the best quality beasties as efficiently as I can. That being said, if you do have some spare money from cancelled events or and want to help out, I could really use the support, and would very much appreciate it.

For those who do want to add to their order or upgrade, just send me a PM and we'll sort something out.


In other news

I made an Elizabethan Kirtle ^_^. I'm unreasonably proud of this one. I turned it out in 5 days from drafting the pattern to shipping, which is super fast for me. I didn't realise until after posting photos that it looks a lot like Belles dress in Disney's animated Beauty and the Beast. What I also didn't realise until I thought about it was that the outfit in that movie is actually 100-200 years out of date O.o.

Blue Elizabethan kirtle

Front lacing bodices aren't necessarily as historically accurate as back or back side lacing bodices, but they're a lot easier to lace on your own, and the look is recognisable. The colour is also a bit bright for the social class who would be wearing this style of kirtle without even pin on sleeves, but I fell in love with it all the same. The fabric is cotton broadcloth, which is reasonably historically accurate. I hand stitched the eyelets, which took around six hours and a lot of swearing. The bodice has six bones at the front and a middle layer of calico for strength as well as a full lining. I top stitched it for strength and to make ironing after washing easier. That's not really historically accurate, but I think it makes it tidier and easier to look after.

The underdress is actually a medieval shift rather than an Elizabethan shift/chemise.

Write to Bagthulhu

Bagthulhu is lonely, bored, and hungry now that everyone is staying at home, so any folks who also find themselves bored, lonely, or in need of chaotic evil advice as most welcome to write him a letter. Bagthulhu will respond to as many as he can with sage advice, anecdotes, demands for tribute, and maniacal laughter. All you have to do is contact us on social media (just look up Wayward Masquerade on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Tumblr), post your letter using the tag #DearBagthulhu, or send it to us in a PM.

You do not have to be following us or buy anything to write a letter and get a reply.

Tutorials

Keep an eye out on our social media accounts for the first free tutorial, it'll be on making ribbon roses. All you need is ribbon or a strip of fabric 3cm or more wide and 30cm or more long, a needle, thread, and a pair of scissors.

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All in all, times are tough, but it's also an opportunity for us to cultivate the better parts of our humanity and society, and to create positive changes that will last far longer than the pandemic. Kia Kaha everyone. Be safe, be strong, wash your hands, and most importantly, while we can't be strong in the same physical space right now, we can absolutely still be strong together.

Purple/Teal and Rainbow Dragon Bagons + Covid 19
about 4 years ago – Tue, Mar 17, 2020 at 11:58:57 PM

First of all, I hope everyone is safe and well. We're doing ok for the moment here in Aotearoa, I think our small size and relative distance from much of the world is helping to protect us, along with a lot of measures being taken by the government. Large events have been cancelled, 10,000 people are in isolation (our total population is 4 million), anyone coming into the country from almost anywhere in the world has to isolate. The government is trying to help businesses with the cost of paying staff who have to isolate, and to keep staff on as sales drop. It could be a lot worse over here, and considering the alternative, we'll just have to batten down the hatches and hang on till this passes, and hope the rest of the world is ok too. China is starting to recover, let's hope that trend continues worldwide.

As far as we know, no one I or my helper (or our families) have been in contact with has been exposed to COVID 19. If this changes I will let you know and we will take steps advised by the NZ Ministry of Health. We are also practicing sensible hygiene (hand washing, hand sanitiser, sneezing into elbows, etc). That being said, my understanding is that being posted with an item in a sealed bag over a week or more will kill the virus. Our items are shipped either from us in Aotearoa/NZ, or through one of our fulfillment partners (US and UK), so shipping times will vary from 1-3 weeks. We also cannot control what happens to the outside of the parcel, so if a parcel shows signs of being more recently opened (i.e by customs), or if anyone is concerned about a parcel from us, putting it somewhere isolated and immediately washing your hands (for at least 20 seconds), then leaving the parcel untouched for a week should kill the virus (Study regarding this here).

Also, I'm thinking of putting up some free simple tutorials for easy, low cost things to make to pass the time for folks who need to isolate. Would anyone be interested? I can link to them from here as well if folks would like. It won't be anything fancy, just basic quilts, pet beds, ribbon roses etc, things you can make with bits and pieces.

Rainbow and Purple/Teal Dragon Bagons

I just received these photos from the manufacturer. The custom dyed purple is quite dark, and the photos make it look a bit lighter in some spots, but your mileage may vary depending on screen brightness etc. I quite like how it turned out, and I've given the go ahead for production to start. I've asked for photos of a Purple/Teal sample, so hopefully something comes back there too.

Rainbow Dragon Bagon sample with custom dyed purple fabric
Rainbow Dragon Bagon sample with custom dyed purple fabric, side on

I'll be releasing details later this week about getting extra purple/teal and rainbow Dragon Bagons at a discount. They're only a few weeks behind the Red/Black Dragon Bagons, so hopefully they'll all be ready to ship together.

Manufactured Hangtag

I've finalised the manufactured hangtag (hoping I caught all the typos this time)

Hangtag Outer
Hangtag inner

Now I just wait anxiously, check in with the manufacturers every couple of weeks, and try to be patient.

*twitch*

Manufactured hangtag and purple fabric.
about 4 years ago – Thu, Mar 05, 2020 at 09:55:19 PM

Gah, I'm really spamming you folks with small updates lately. Apologies.

Here's where we're at to the best of my knowledge:

Red/Black manufactured Dragon Bagons: In production

Purple/Teal and Rainbow manufactured Dragon Bagons: I decided to go with the custom dyed fabric instead of the magenta purple as there was a real divide in feedback. I'm hopeful that the custom dying, while not an exact science, will get us as close to the original sample as possible, which I do think looks better against the teal/dark green than the magenta does. I also have that sample in my hands and can compare it in different lights. The fabric should be being dyed at the moment. The Rainbows and Purple/Teals will be 2-3 weeks behind the Red/Blacks, but they will hopefully still finish close enough together to be shipped in one go.

Finances: Needing to change the 'purple' fabric is going to hit us a bit, so once the custom dyed fabric has been completed I'll put up photos and open up the option for additional Dragon Bagons at a discount as discussed in previous updates. That will hopefully help us offset the extra costs. At that time I'll also ask anyone who wants to help us out (and it's much appreciated) to spread the word about preorders etc. Also, getting in touch with your FLGS and asking if they want to stock Dragon Bagons, Bagthulhus, and Dragon Bagon dice would help a lot. 

Manufactured Hangtag: Below are the first drafts of the manufactured hangtag. All three colours will use the same hangtag design. I made a typo on the Bagthulhu ones so I'm hoping you folks can help me proof read them. The hangtag folds in half.


Manufactured hangtag outer
Manufactured hangtag inner