Hi, I'm Naomi Romero, but you call me Nao. I am a Hispanic illustrator who started off doing character design for studios like Dreamworks TV, Nickelodeon, Hasbro, Sesame Workshop, and even more. All my life, I knew I loved drawing animals and bringing joy to others! In the same breath, I knew that I was "different" from others, being more sensitive to many things, having irregular mood swings, trouble focusing, and so much more.

In 2015, I started doodling a little white fox on paper in order to help me cope with panic attacks. Drawing this little critter helped me manage and accept my own disorders by imagining them as an innocent little fox that I had to befriend and learn to live with, instead of pushing away or hiding. At first, I was reluctant to share these doodles online, especially on my professional pages! Would people think I was weird?? It turned out that others also found comfort with this little fox!

Anxiety Fox helped me so much so I wanted to share them to everyone all over the world, with the purpose of spreading kindness and softness!

Thanks to Anxiety Fox, I was able to come to term with my own disorders and get regular care from medical professionals. Without this little floof, I wouldn't be the person I was today.

Over the next several years, I slowly explored more characters to keep Anxiety Fox company, as well as cute things like pins and stickers and thanks to Anxiety Fox's fans, I get to do this for a living. I couldn’t have done it without the support of everyone who connected with these characters!

Each product created shares my values of spreading mental health awareness and I hope they can continue to help others!

Every Anxiety Fox plush project has one thing in mind.. bringing comfort to those during hard times. Cuddle Friends are no exception! Each friend is made from luxurious, soft fake fur with beautiful embroidered details. The tails are lightly stuffed, making them fun to wiggle and bap around when you are bored. If you love tails, then the kitsune variations are perfect for you!

Cuddle Friends are about one (1) pound each, giving them just enough weight to feel substantial but not heavy enough to make them difficult to carry around.

At about 7 inches tall from tail to rump and 13 inches tail with the tail length, these sweet ones feel like little creatures that need your comfort just as much as you need them.

With the massive popularity of my previous plush series, Pocket Friends, I wanted to bring the same cuteness and companionship of this line in a larger series through Cuddle Friends! In a larger size and added weight, they still deliver the charm and warmth!
 
Besides making them larger and having the added weight, I wanted to use Cuddle Friends to explore new designs that were difficult in the Pocket Friends size, while still making larger versions of fan favorites!

The plush toys are easy to carry around in your arms while still being cuddly! Their size makes it easy to travel with and put away in a bag as well.

Did you know that the first 48 hours of a campaign sets the pace of its success? It's true! To show our thanks for you pledging early, we have exciting rewards! In addition to backers who pledge in the first 48 hours, returning backers and teaser page followers can also enjoy free goodies! Yay!

In order to help Cuddle Friends become a reality, I have a variety of pledge levels for old and new fans alike! Please take a look below to get a good idea of what is included in each pledge tier level. You can also check out the tiers more closely when you make your pledge (thanks in advanced!).

When the campaign ends, you will receive a survey/ questionnaire that will collect things like your address, shipping fees, and most importantly, ask which designs you would like to adopt!

The more funding raised, the more designs and cool things we can unlock! Below you will see some of exciting stretch goals that we can all unlock together! There will also be more stretch goals too!!!

I have enlisted the help of friends to help me make some really adorable and execlusive enamel pins!

Are you excited for your Cuddle Friends but don't know when you expect them in your hands? Check out this timeline to get a general idea of the campaign from start to finish!

In order to ensure we can offer the best shipping rates people, all shipping fees will be collecting from all backers after the campaign through your survey (a weeks after the campaign itself ends).

*Please Note: These shipping fees are estimates and can fluctuate in price due to current world events. We are not responsibility for shipping fees being higher than the estimated fees shown above.