We don’t fall in love easily at MADE, but this seller’s endearing stuffed creatures have us hook, line and sinker. Cavey is a plush series by the equally awesome A Little Stranger, and by heck are they adorable. We spoke to creator Holly about her little toy family, why guinea pigs are so great, and her undeniable love of Hellraiser.
Tell us about yourself in one sentence.
My name is Holly, I live just outside of lovely London, England and I have the best job in the world – I make toys for a living!
When did you start your business?
I’ve been running alittlestranger.com since 2008, and I’ve been working as a model maker since 2006. I started Cavey in 2010 (He’s about to have his second birthday in May, awwwww)
What inspired you to take the leap to setting up your business?
With Cavey it just kind of happened – I came up with the idea and made a run of 10 each of two designs, they sold out so I made more, then before I knew it I was releasing a new design each month. It’s been a lot of hard work behind the scenes turning it from a hobby to a business, and I’m so proud of how little cavey is coming along.
Tell us an interesting fact about yourself.
If I were to go on Mastermind my specialist subject would be Hellraiser. I’m totally obsessed and have watched them all 29867274623876 times. I once drove to Birmingham to go to a Sci Fi convention just to meet Doug Bradley, it was the best day of my life and my signed picture has pride of place on our living room wall. It says “Holly, see you in hell, love Doug Bradley” how amazing is that?!!
We’ve read on your website that you love guinea pigs. We do too. What do you love so much about them?
I got given two guinea pigs by a friend’s mum, the family no longer wanted them so they came to live with me. That was in 2004 (??) and i’ve been obsessed ever since. I love their little teddy bear faces and fat bodies, their funny little legs and squeaky noises. I could gush about them all day ^__^
We love your Cavey plush series. If the Caveys could create a playlist, what tracks would it feature?
Probably drum and bass, i’m usually listening to podcasts when I’m designing them and making the prototypes.
What is your proudest achievement to date?
Starting up my own business doing what I love and living a life that me at Uni would be sooo excited about if she knew what was coming 
Are there any other creative businesses you think deserve a mention?
Blamo toys, Chris Ryniak, Mark Ryden, Audrey Kawasaki. These guys are all way too talented and I’m just in awe of their work.
Who or what is your biggest influence?
80′s adventure movies and Jim Henson films.
Can you recommend us an inspirational read?
When I’m looking for a bit of inspiration I love browsing Japanese dolly books and ‘art of disney’ books, I love the baddies!
What’s your advice for those looking to start their own creative business?
Keep at it and get your work out there as much as possible. Working in the creative industries is a labour of love, and the rewards are worth all the hard work