Dublin Festival of Fashion 2010

Dublin Festival of Fashion 2010 is about to kick off and both of us here in LUHQ are pretty excited to attend...It will be a first for me (Rob) to attend a fashion show of any description although Elena is a veteran of a few already..I'm looking forward to going and to try understand the latest styles and trends...For a guy who is somewhat lacking in style (no need to act surprised hehe) I'm going to find it tough to hold my own in there tonight but shall endeavour to do so anyway, for the good of our ladies t-shirts hehe...

Dublin Festival of Fashion is going to be a great event and you can find out a lot more about it on the Dublin Festival of Fashion site. I really don't know what to expect from it but what I do know is that we will be open late tonight in the Loft Market so if you are in town feel free to swing by..We'll even have a special giveaway running in the Loft to celebrate the DFF so make sure to call in, say hello, check out the fashion and be in with a chance of winning one of our limited edition tote bags...

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

Follow Friday Freak Out! We're No.1!!

Stop the clocks, hold up, pause the tape and take a moment to calm down..We've been having a follow Friday freak out as we received this tweet that we were the most #FF'd tweep in all of Ireland beating off musicians like Paul Hughes and Jedward...Check out the screen capture below, really can't believe our twitter account, @ladyumbrellaltd, is in the number one spot for last Friday..



I'm a sucker for numbers though I had to go and see where us and our ladies t-shirts ranked globally. It turns out we are no. 282 globally out of 5,888,995 and our ranking for English speaking twitter users is no. 242 - not too bad all things considered.

Needless to say I'd trade 90 FF's every Friday for 90 t-shirt sales every Friday but it is really humbling to see that so many people are talking about us and helping us spread the word...I don't know how many times I've said it in the past now but things like this really make everything worth while - the support from you is really over whelming and all I can do is ask you to please keep it up...

...and next target acquired now is to be the no. 1 #FF'd English speaking twitter user..will take a while but the challenge starts now..Will it ever happen?

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

LadyUmbrella on the Road! First stop, Microsoft

Here at LUHQ we're always trying new things and ways to get our ladies t-shirts in front of people so that we can spread the word of LadyUmbrella and possibly tack on a few sales..This desire to get out there has now taken us to the road and our first stop is, eh...Microsoft HQ..

It might seem like an odd one and I'll be the first to admit that it does sound a bit odd but it is a huge opportunity. We've teamed up with a brigade of other businesses who travel from large office building to large office building selling their wares for a few hours on select days. Tuesday sees us in Microsoft Building 2, Soutt County Dublin Business Park in Leopardstown and then on Wednesday we head to Microsoft Building 3, Carmanhall Road, Sandyford Industrial Estate.. - it'll be interesting to say the least but we're looking forward to it..We are in the process of getting lots more trips lined up so stay tuned, could be coming to a building near you soon :)

So, do you work in Microsoft? Or, know anyone who does work in Microsoft? If so, let them know we're coming :) And wish us luck, have never done anything like this before.. Ole...


P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

The Compers Challenge!

We have just started a brand new competition today, our 3 tee giveaway and already it is going well with quite a few entries received..but, the entries received got me thinking...How powerful are the compers?

Since starting this ladies t-shirt business I've become interested in social media and the likes and am really astounded at the speed with which "compers" can spread a message of a competition via facebook and twitter (heck, sure I tweet with lots of you regularly now, tis great hehe)..So, I was thinking, how about a challenge for you all?

The 3 tee giveaway is going to run for 3 weeks, until the 14th of October and I'm curious to see how many entries can be received..I would love if you (everyone who reads this) could take a moment to share the competition page (http://www.ladyumbrella.com/3teegiveaway.php) on any competition or giveaway site/forum you may be active on and then leave a comment below with a link to where you posted it...may very well be a bonus prize in it for someone :)

Would love if some (or all) of you could get on board and help us spread the word of this competition...How many entries do you think are possible?

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

Want to Hang Out and Win?

We're rather proud of our hangtags and like sneaky "find the prize" give aways...So why not combine the two?

For those of you who are "likers" of our facebook page you might have seen our hangtags but of course I had to spread the hangtag love and mention them on our blog.

Each graphic t-shirt comes with an accompanying custom signed, dated and numbered hangtag as we think they add a bit more to the t-shirt and also ensures each t-shirt is unique...Tis important to us so of course, we made a video about the stamping process (below).

Those with eagle eyes on our page also might have discovered a giveaway which is happening now on our facebook page and if you want to check it out I strong suggest you click HERE! Won't say anymore about it but check it out and you have to check out the comments - some good stuff happening, join the "windowsill gang" and check out the poetry ;)



P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

None for Ireland today but...

I'm about to head up to the post office to send out yesterdays orders and have just noticed something which I thought I'd mention...Usually we have a few ladies t-shirts to send around Ireland most days alas there is none for Ireland today but...

The lack of t-shirts to be posted to the homeland is made up by the fact that we have a bundle of them going abroad..We have t-shirts going to Spain, Canada, UK and the United States which is kind of cool and today is one of the random days when none are being sent to anywhere in Ireland..I looked into it a bit more and seems like over 50% of our sales come from abroad which is kind of cool, nothing wrong with international sales :)

Will there be any for Ireland tomorrow I wonder? You can order your t-shirt now from our online shop and using the code sweet15lu will get you 15% off + free shipping...

And now, off to post these babies out..get your order in and stay happy, ole..

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

Cough Cough Launch!

Well, it has happened..the big day has come and gone and I for one feel a bit disappointed about the whole thing..Poxy Murphys Law..

Some of you might have heard (or at least I hope you did) that we were launching our 2nd collection of graphic t-shirts yesterday.. Sadly, I was mad sick as we were launching and not able to tweet with the fervour I'd like to tweet with. In fact, by my standards, I did hardly any tweeting/facebooking etc and so for me, I feel like the launch was a flop...

Thankfully a few others took up the mantle and did some tweeting etc to help get the word out and I'm most grateful but I can't helping feeling a little bit cheated by the cold which ruled me out of action yesterday. Now, I have to wait until our next launch to see if I can redeem myself..

Although, the path to redemption will start here I hope..I hope that if you read this you'll take a moment to check out our 2nd collection and possibly press the big green retweet button up the top...If you are a facebook fanatic I'd appreciate if you could press the like button to help spread the word..Heck, if you want to buy some of our new designs you're more than welcome to do so, step into our shop :)


I personally think Elena has come up with some sweet designs for the 2nd collection and am gutted that I couldn't promote them accordingly..Anyway, lets see how things unfold..the fingers are crossed that the word will still get out to the masses..As my cold recedes I'll step up the promo effort and your help is big time appreciated...

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

Size Wise!

I don't want to say we are slow learners as that might be a bit harsh but I do think it's fair to say that our initial offering of ladies t-shirts was, well, limited when it came to sizes. We only had small, medium and large and the error of our ways is now apparent. We sold out very quickly of our larges but then our smalls (size 8) were the slow movers. Now, though, from what we've seen and your feedback, we've learned a bit and have gotten size wise.

We want everyone to be able to purchase and wear our t-shirts and are happy to announce that we finally have more sizes available. We now have five sizes, S, M, L, XL & XXL in 3 t-shirts from our first collection (Away with the Birds, Wise Owl and Sir David) and all of our 2nd collection will have the same increased size range.

To celebrate the extra sizes we kicked off a SALE yesterday and have slashed 5 euro off our prices (and coupon codes still apply) which will last until midnight on Sunday. Really, head on over to our online shop and snag yourself a t-shirt whilst the going is good...



P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

And the Winner Is...

What Just Happened?
The last 24 hours or so have been pretty much magical..Really, that might sound like an overly strong word to describe facebook & twitter antics but for us seeing the magic unfold in front of eyes as people suggested our page to their friends was overwhelming..When we started the Race to 6,000 yesterday I really thought it would run for a few days..In the end facebook won and it took just 5 hours to cross 6k finish line..Twitter followed suit today but heck, everyone is a winner here :)

The Winners
And so, onto the winners..Between both facebook and twitter we received over 500 entries which is really staggering..The super computer could barely handle such large digits but when it finally came to terms with them it produced the following two winners...The lucky fan who helped us out on facebook and was randomly selected is Alison Doyle..And representing twitter the first name selected was @Sheamusx..Congrats to both of you..Please get in touch with us on facebook/twitter so we can get your tote bags sent to you...

But Wait, There's More!
You're help and support has to be recognised..You went above and beyond what we ever could have imagined and to thank you all we've set up a coupon code which will get you 20% off your order. The code is valid for the next 24 hours so get in there whilst the going is good...When ordering your tote/tee use code take20 at checkout for the savings from our online shop - we really want you to take advantage of this code, you're earned it :)

And so, that ends the fun and games for a while..We have lots of big things coming real soon (cough cough new designs!!) and can't state how important it is for you to join our mailing list so you don't miss their launch or future competitions...Thanks again to all for taking part and helping us out and avail of the coupon code from our shop now whilst the going is good...ole

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!

Race to 6,000 - Facebook vs Twitter! [Give Away]

Sometimes things just work out nicely don't they? We've been wanting to have some fun with our friends and followers for a while and then low and behold an opportunity like this presents itself for us to give away some tote bags..Magic..So, what is the opportunity?

Well, at the time of writing we have 5,874 facebook likers and 5,861 followers on twitter which I think you'll agree are pretty close to each other..And so, the stage is set for a race to 6,000 to see which account will make it their first...Which one do you predict will win?

We could just wait it out and eventually (or at least we hope) we'd make it to the sought after 6,000 mark but we want you to help us out..If you're rooting for twitter we have set up the #oletrain (inspired by Jared Thompson of Design Juices, the originator of the oletrain) to help you tell your tweeps about us...If facebook is your preference then it is really easy to "Suggest our page" to your friends - the more the merrier...

We are on the brink of launching our 2nd collection of ladies t-shirts but really want to have 6,000 friends before doing so..Why? Well, it is a silly target we set for ourselves and we are so close to hitting it that we might as well try hard..We really need your help for this to happen AND we've got some prizes up for grabs...When we get to 6,000 on facebook one of the peeps who helped us get there will be awarded a bag at random...And, in a similar fashion, when we get to 6,000 on twitter one of the peeps who helped us will win a bag...

To be in with a shot of winning on facebook just suggest our page to our friends & leave a comment to let us know you did...To enter into the tweepstakes just tweet "Want to WIN a tote? Join the #oletrain & follow @LadyUmbrellaltd, they need 6000 tweeps! http://bit.ly/lusite" - simples :)

So, who do you think will win - facebook or twitter? leave a comment & let us know and of course would love for you to share this post and help us get to 6k - ole :)

P.S. Sharing is caring! Our IT boffins have have got a new Facebook "like" button and Twitter ReTweet button on the top of all our blog posts..Give them a click and make us smile!