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I'm delighted to let you know that all orders have now shipped and I've closed out this project! In fact, the majority of orders were sent 4th-7th December, so I'm hopeful most have made it to you in time for Christmas. Of course, let me know if there are any problems.

Alongside festivities, I've been getting ready for Pintopia, which launches on 22nd January 2026. I'll be creating my first pin collection, inspired by this little lady, the Mycoplasma Bacteria Sticker I made for my exCELLent Holiday Shop!

I liked the complexity I brought to the drawing by working in a map of the village I grew up in. I've always loved visiting fallen-down castles, and have often thought castle plans look like bacteria, so for Pintopia I'll be crossing castles with bacteria! What's not to love?

Clicking on the banner below will lead you to the project teaser page. I'll be posting follower-only RPG-style updates on the run-up to launch, so do make sure you click to follow to get these in your inbox!

I'm also going to be strict with incentives this time - pre-launch follower, early bird, returning backer and banner rewards will only be available as incentives and not available to purchase as add-ons.

As well as the pins and antibiotic mini-pins, there'll be special 'key to the castle' keychains and yet more stickers! Make sure you follow along to get a glimpse of the designs prior to launch.

Thank you so much for backing my exCELLent Holiday Shop! I think all that's left to say is have a great Christmas if you celebrate. See you on the other side!

Hi everyone,

Well, the Holiday Market was a fantastic success, thanks to all of you!!

Cards have now been charged so the next task is to collect shipping addresses and shipping fees. I will be sending surveys shortly, so please look out for these and complete as quickly as you can. You will have an opportunity to add any items you may have missed to your order. Unlike in normal campaigns, these surveys have been set to auto-lock and charge as soon as you submit.

The quicker you return your survey, the quicker I can send your lovely items!

Any problems, please let me know.

Thanks again!

Kathryn

Good morning!

A quick update to let you know I've added a couple of Secret Santa Bundles for £10 to the pledge levels!

The Organoid & Spheroid Secret Santa Bundle - these two are such a perfect match it makes sense to purchase them together!

And a YOUR CHOICE bundle of 1 x rectangle magnet + 1 x large sticker - the Magnet and Sticker Secret Santa Bundle!

This bundle includes your choice of one rectangle magnet, 1 of these:

Plus one large sticker, 1 of these:

Visit the story section to remind yourself of the different Cell Painting magnets and stickers from my Drawn to Cells? Curious Magnets campaign.

Choices for this bundle will be taken via the backer surveys, together with shipping fees, after the market closes on 1st Dec.

Don't forget to check out the shops of the other creators in the Holiday Market - there're over 150 of us!! In particular, those of my super cross-collab buddies, Jess aka Loadofolbobbins Holiday Shop and Annie Shao's Winged Wonderland Holiday Shop for fantastic freebies!

Happy Shopping!

Kathryn :)

Did you notice the mistake in my previous update?

It's the Mycoplasma Bacteria Sticker that's the Early Bird freebie, not the Spheroid Cells Sticker (that one's for the Pre-launch followers!)

Oops!

It's been a fantastic start to the Holiday Market! I'm delighted and genuinely touched to see so many returning backers - thank you so much for your ongoing support!

The wooden Holiday Decorations arrived from the manufacturer yesterday (I know, cutting it fine!) so that means that officially, all items are ready to ship!

I'd had an idea I wanted to make something special for the Holiday Shop, and sought hard for something that *I* would make, and I'm so pleased with how it turned out. I chose organoids (kidney organoids, you might not be surprised to hear!) as the subject as these are a complex ball of cells that I thought might look like baubles when hung on a tree.

I started looking at pictures online and from my research when I worked in biotech R&D. When I realised that most of my images are fluorescent - green and red - winter holiday colours! - I knew I was onto something.

As for the oil rig, I was thinking about what might make the painting more visually interesting, and started to think about other complex, self-contained structures. The image of the oil rig seemed perfect, with its spiky cranes, windows and platforms, and thus the O-O-R (Organoid-Oil-Rig) Holiday Decoration was born! I hope you love it as much as I do!

The O-O-R Holiday Decoration is 9.5 cm (3.75") high and made from responsibly sourced wood from FSC or PEFC certified woodlands, with a 4 mm (0.16") hole. I'll add a loop before I ship them out so you can you it on your tree. It's available in the 1-2-3-4 Mega Mystery Bundle, and also as an Add-on here.

As a reminder, there's only four hours left to bag yourself an Early Bird freebie Spheroid Cells Sticker!!

Happy Shopping!

Kathryn :)