In the trenches (an update)

I have been slugging it out with my sewing machine this past week, and I'm happy to say that I've completed the linings for all of my pocket totes. Woo-hoo! In addition, today I reacquainted myself with my rotary cutter and started the project of cutting out my market totes (that is bag style number two). The brown totes are cut out (yea!); the slow march forward continues. I repeat to myself "I will have my samples completed soon! I will have my samples completed soon!"

Although it feels painfully slow and as if I'm not making any progress in task of getting sixty bags made (have I mentioned that I feel like it's taking a long time?), I'm glad that I chose to make this initial batch myself. It is teaching me the demands of production sewing, as well as allowing me to control the quality of my bags.

Fortunately, there is always plenty to do, so when I feel like I can't handle cutting out one more piece or sewing one more seam, I can always head to my computer and work on my website, which I will have published in a minimal form very soon. My husband and I are hosting a Thanksgiving dinner this year, and prep for that will take some time out of the week; but I'm committed to getting some bags done in the next week!

Craft: Zine -- available now!

For all of you who are interested in getting crafty, Craft: magazine is the latest offering from the publishers of Make:, and is available at bookstores now. I picked up my copy and was pleased to find a very thorough silkscreening tutorial, which I'll be trying the next time that I have to create a batch of screens (thankfully, that won't be until I design my fall/winter 2007 collection, in the spring).

Check it out -- there are also some great projects ranging from light-up clothing to a zen garden. Very inspiring for us DIY types. I especially enjoyed the profile on embroidery artist Jenny Hart.

Jill of all trades?

For the past week, my to-do list has looked like a composite of several different people; for instance, I'm:

• Building a website
• Sewing pocket totes
• Silk-screening fabric
• Designing a small pouch sized bag
• Designing a hangtag for the collection
• Researching trade shows for the spring
• Designing a button and working with pin companies to have it manufactured

It's a bit frustrating, really, because I've got so many things that I'm working on, I'm not seeing completion in anything yet. However, I know that I need to forge on. I should have one set of (thirty) bags done by the end of the week. Whenever I feel frustrated, blue, and crazy, like I'm not getting anything done, I read Pamela Barsky's blog. It's a great read for anyone interested in what it's like to run your own design business.