sophie says go!

Maternity Leave Over!

2008-01-18T13:12:00.000-08:00

Greetings and happy new year!

I’m happy to say that sophie says go! is back from maternity leave and excited about 2008 and the spring season that is just around the corner.

I’ve been very busy taking care of my two little bundles of joy, but in spare moments I’m doing what I can to get things working again.

I’ve got plenty of inventory in most styles, so head on over to my Etsy shop and check out the bags to see if something interests you.

In the upcoming weeks, I’m planning on posting frequently, so please check back on the blog to see what is going on.

New Butterfly Pouch Now for Sale

2007-07-24T13:19:00.000-07:00

Happy Tuesday!

I just wanted to let you know that I have posted a new product to my Etsy shop, the Butterfly Pouch in Coffee. This pouch, which can be used as a make-up bag or just as a tool for organization in your larger bag.

These pouches feature a silk-screened butterfly in blue on brown fabric. Each pouch measures 7" x 5" x 1.5" and holds quite a lot. The pouches are made of the same 100% cotton fabric as all of the sophie says go! bags, and are completely lined, with a zipper closure.

Pouches are $15.

10 Things That Make Me Happy

2007-07-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

I've been attempting to refocus my attentions over the past week on my goals for my fall designs. Honestly, I've been having mixed results... I am finding it pretty challenging just getting through some days. My little babies must each weigh over a pound now. It seems like my belly is growning daily! Only a few more weeks to go, and I'll be out of the second trimester and into the home stretch. It seems like 1) a lot of time to go, 2) no time at all, and 3) there is A LOT to do prior to having these babies!

At any rate, today I thought I'd share with you the 10 things that make me happy, at least right now. Here's my list, in no particular order:

Isabella Oliver maternity clothes: these clothes are pricy but very worth it for polished pieces that look great, and are great quality. I'm looking forward to wearing mine not only now, but after I have the babies as well. They are some of the few things that don't make me feel like a giant sack of potatoes. As a small business model, the company is pretty inspiring as well. Founded by two women, they have seen their sales grow exponentially since they opened.

Cubis 2 on my iPod: there are days (or parts of days) where I can't really do anything beyond sitting on the sofa, hoping that I'll be able to sleep and feel better. Cubis has been terrifically fun for my "sick" days; it keeps my my mind occupied and engaged but at the same time, doesn't require any higher functioning. It's the perfect zone-out for me since we've turned off our Direct TV (that's right, no TV).

Harry Potter: I'm a big fan, what can I say? I saw the latest movie (of course), and have just begun to re-read 6 prior to starting 7, which I picked up yesterday. Once I've finished book 7, where to go from there? I'll probably re-read The Golden Compass, by Phillip Pullman, in anticipation of the movie release in December. How realistic is it to think that I can go see a movie in December, having just had the babies in November?

Twitter: This cool website allows you to post brief messages about where you are/what you are doing, and read posts of other people that you choose to follow. Right now it's a great way to feel connected with my friend Stacy, who just moved to England, and who I miss.

Mephisto Hadassa sandles: Yes, they are crunchy granola. Yes, they are the sandle favored by my mother. But they are also the only sandles right now that really feel good on my feet as I'm lumbering around with two little babies inside of me, so I LOVE THEM.

Tums: You got it, another pregnancy friend. Heartburn has been my constant companion these past five and a half months, and these help me to deal with it. My favorite flavor is Tums Smoothies in Assorted Fruit flavor. Yum? Not exactly, but does the trick and provides heaps of calcium to boot.

Neutrogena Moisture Shine Gloss in Swizzle: Not a new color or product, but a favorite, and for a something that you can pick up at the drug store, it's pretty great. Glossy without being sticky.

Bliss Beauty Products: I have large pores and typically somewhat oily skin, and these products have my skin completely breakout free. I'm particularly fond of the Steep Clean line.

So, that's my list. Yes, I realize that it's actually eight things that make me happy, not ten things that make me happy, but why quibble over details?

What things make you happy?

Sites that link to me...

2007-07-16T16:20:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, my husband sent me an e-mail with sites that linked to my blog. I was pretty excited to see that some people were actually out there reading it, as well as checking out my site on Etsy.

He sent me the following links:

esdesignsjewelry.com

www.ibabuzz.com

iloveindie.blogspot.com

ES Designs creates beautiful and delicate jewelry that draws inspiration from nature, using various metals and semi-precious stones.

Ibabuzz is a blog for the San Francisco Gate (website for the San Francisco Chronicle). Dino Ray Ramos, the fashion blogger, mentioned sophie says go! in his write-up of the spring Appel and Frank Show.

And finally, iloveindie.blogspot.com is a blog dedicated to indie designers. It's a great showcase of the many fun and beautiful things that are out there.

Check these websites out!

News of My Demise is Greatly Exaggerated

2007-07-12T08:33:00.000-07:00

After almost four months of silence, I'm back! What has been going on, you may ask? Many things, the most all-consuming of which is that my husband and I are expecting, due in November. We're very excited, but I must say that being pregnant has been pretty much my sole focus until recently.

I have been doing a few things business related, however. In early June, I had a trunk show at the Charles Schwab offices, which was a great opportunity to meet new folks and sell some bags. I've been connecting with other business owners at the Rennaisance Business Center in San Francisco. And finally, I'm working on a fall collection right now, which will be carried at Relish At Home, as well as online. As I develop the collection, I'll be sure to include pictures.

Until next time!

Spring Into Style (Appel and Frank Show)

2007-03-27T08:47:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I participated in my first shopping event, Appel and Frank's "Spring Into Style." I had attended these shows in the past as a shopper, and it was a great learning experience to be at the show as a vendor. Getting ready for the show started weeks before, but nevertheless, I found myself working furiously on Friday to get ready. My list of things to do included getting all product together, filling out and attaching hangtags, making signage, and putting together my list of supplies. Fortunately, Tim came home early to help me. Without his help, I never would have gotten ready in time (and gotten any sleep). As it was, we got to bed late, but I felt ready to go on Saturday morning! It reminded me of every show prep that I've ever done in the past.

(One of my jobs in the past was selling and training people to use computer software. Part of my responsibilities included going to several trade shows a year, and all involved a mad dash to get ready hours before we had to go, regardless of how well prepared we were.)

I was very lucky in that I had a friend who had agreed to help me. Jen arrived on schedule at 9am, and once we had the call loaded, it was into the city to get set up. Everything went smoothly, and we spent the next couple of hours getting the booth set up and getting ourselves familiarized with procedures for taking credit cards and checks (I am set up to take Visa and MC now). The nice people at Appel and Frank had provided bagels and cream cheese for breakfast, which was great.

After that, it was just manning the booth, answering questions, and making sales! It was very exciting to see people respond to the bags and to get feedback about what they liked. I recieved many positive comments about the designs. It was very fun and rewarding to actually sell my bags to people. Several friends turned out to support me at the show, which was really great as well.This was the first time that I'd attended a show during the day (the previous Appel and Frank shows that I'd been to had been in the evening), and the traffic for the show was lighter than I'd experienced at previous shows. Still, there were still quite a few people there, and I was really excited to see my friend Saralynn at the show. She was a sponsor, and was there selling her beautiful and delicious cupcakes. The name of her company is That Takes the Cake. I think I was her first customer that day... yum!

I also met some really nice people towards the end of the day that I'm looking forward to getting to know better. Joy, of Joy O jewelry designs was not selling at this event, but will be at the next Appel and Frank Show. Kelly introduced herself, and I'm looking forward to checking out her store, Relish at Home.

All in all, I would say that it was a success, and I'm looking forward to the next one (whatever that may be)!

New Bags Have Arrived

2007-03-22T15:22:00.000-07:00

I've been very busy getting ready for the Appel and Frank show on Saturday, but I wanted to get some pictures up of the new bags that I've got ready to go. It will be a few days still until I get these latest bags added to my Etsy shop, but if anyone is interested in purchasing any of these bags, please contact me via e-mail.

New Market Totes

Details:

Cost: $85
• Hand silk-screened
• Made of heavy-weight cotton
• Lined with our 100% cotton signature stripe
• Roomy enough to accommodate everything that you need to get through your day (18Wx11Hx5D)
• 10 inch strap length
• Five external pockets and interior zip pocket
• Made in the United States
• Dry clean only

New Pocket Totes

Details:

Cost: $125

• Hand silk-screened
• Made of heavy-weight cotton
• Lined with our 100% cotton signature stripe
• Magnetic snap closure
• Roomy enough to accommodate everything that you need to get through your day (12Wx8Hx4.5D)
• 9.5 inch strap length
• Five external pockets and interior zip pocket
• Made in the United States
* Dry clean only

New Cosmetic Pouches

Details:

Cost: $20

• Hand silk-screened
• Made of heavy-weight cotton
• Lined with our 100% cotton signature stripe
• Zipper closure
• Perfect for lip gloss, pens, or other small items (7Wx5Hx1D)
• Made in the United States

Make-up pouches are on the way

2007-03-16T07:53:00.000-07:00

I've been very busy with some personal matters, but in between taking care of those things, I've been cutting out pieces for the new make-up pouches that will be ready next week. As soon as I get the pieces cut out, I'll be silk-screening. I hope to have all of this done by Sunday, so that I can assemble the pouches early next week.

The pouches come in two sizes, 7" x 5" x 1", and 9" x 4" x 1". They come in six colors: light blue (capri), dark blue (marina), brown, celery green, mandarin orange, and red. They will use the following graphics: koi, lantern, hibiscus, bicycle, lotus. I haven't yet decided what color will get which design, although they will probably closely follow existing bags.

Pictures will be posted to my Etsy shop as soon as I get them completed and photographed, and the pouches will be available for sale at the Appel and Frank show.

New style: Cosmetics Pouch

2007-03-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

In preparation for the show, and to increase my product line, I'm working on a new style. It is a cosmetic pouch and will come in all six of the nine colors that I currently offer. I'll be using some of the existing designs that I have for the silkscreen image, such as the lantern, lotus, and bicycle, but I'll also be adding a new design, a butterfly. The bags will be completely lined and have a top zipper. I'm sourcing zippers right now, and should have my sample made by the end of the day tomorrow, so that I can be in production on these by next week!

I'll post pictures as soon as I have them.

Sunny Monday

2007-03-05T11:03:00.000-08:00

Today finds me busy and counting down the days until the Appel and Frank Spring Show, and working through my list of things to do in preparation for that.

I was so excited to get my website up last week, and many people were very kind to take a look at it and respond with feedback. One really interesting piece of feedback was actually regarding this blog, and that it may diminish the professionalism of my website/company image and what I'm trying to accomplish. I am seriously considering this as I progress, because I want to put the most polished foot forward. My hope for this blog was that it would serve as a venue to create a relationship with the public and my customers and help to create a personality for sophie says go !. I know that I really enjoy reading blogs by other small business owners and designers that discuss their adventures in launching and running their customers. Of course it is possible that the average customer out there is not interested in such things. I will be thinking about this as I move forward, and I'd love to hear any other opinions on this matter.

Website Finished!

2007-02-28T12:18:00.000-08:00

Lot's and lot's of web work over the past couple of days, but I'm happy to say that my website is finished (yea!), and I've opened up my shop on Etsy (the craft website). It's lunch time right now, but after a quick bite I'll be back at the PowerBook, adding merchandise to my store.

I've sent an e-mail out to a group of friends for some feedback, and am planning on putting the site up live tomorrow.

Proceeding According to Plan

2007-02-26T19:31:00.000-08:00

I'm happy to say that I was able to get all pieces completed and dropped off at the sewers by Friday, so I should have a whole bushel of bags in a couple of weeks. I have moved on to my next project, getting my website up, which should happen over the next few days.

I decided to go with Etsy for the host of my online shop for the time-being. I like the website, it is fairly simple and straightforward, both from the seller and the buyer point of view. Similar to eBay, it's a site where people can list the products that they are selling, for a small fee. Etsy also gets a small percentage of the price of the item when it sells. Unlike eBay, it is not an auction site, and the fee schedule is very simple. It seemed like it would be a good interim solution while I figure out how to add a shopping cart to my website (once I get it online, that is). Anyone purchasing one of my bags through my new shop will need to have a PayPal account, which takes a few minutes to set up.

I also did some experimenting with photography, and was able to get some shots of bags using just a roll of white paper in the breakfast nook of my home. Here is an example:

And here is how the bag looks after I dropped the background out:

Silk Screening Studio Is Open

2007-02-21T17:04:00.000-08:00

I've been busy the past few days with some large scale (for me anyway) silk screening, and am almost finished with all of my pieces. I'll be taking them back to the sewers tomorrow. They look really great! Lot's of colors, and vibrant contrast between the fabric and the silk screen.

I'm glad to wrap this up, as my next project is getting my website up, and to do that, I'm heading into... a photoshoot! I'll be turning my breakfast nook into a photography studio, and taking pictures of the bag samples that I have.

I spent an hour or so creating a light box (using this tutorial), which unfortunately was too small to handle my bags. However, I'm going to use parts of the box as screens for my lights... We'll see how it all works.

Weekend Recap

2007-02-09T16:05:00.000-08:00

My husband gently reminded me that I haven't posted in a few days. I'm sure that you have all been eagerly waiting to find out how things went at the 80s party and wine tasting event. Well, wait no more! Here's the recap...

On Saturday, Tim and I donned our 80s best and headed to his cousin's for a rocking 80s gathering! It was "totally awesome" and gave us an opportunity to stroll down memory lane. The evening started out with videos playing on a big screen as people arrived. After that, the fun really got started with our cousin Chris's band, Cronkite played a set of hits from the 80s, including covers of songs by Elvis Costello, Adam Ant, and Modern English. We finished off the night with tunes spun by my husband Tim, who was the official DJ for the evening.

We had the drawing for the sophie says go! 80's fun pack, and the winner was Karen Parker. I learned something from doing that drawing, and that was that next time I do something like that, I'll make sure to spread the word more before the event, and make more of an effort to talk up my bags and company during the event. For whatever reason, I got a bad case of the "tireds," and consequently felt like I missed an opportunity for exposure. But everything is an opportunity to learn and get better; the same could be said of my friend Jen's wine tasting event on Sunday. I didn't sell any bags there, but I did get a lot of positive feedback, as well as some ideas about how to set my table display up, what items I'll need to make it look great, etc. It's actually got me really thinking about what I will need for the Appel and Frank show to make my table stand out. I'll also need to make sure that my energy level is good and that I'm "on" for the show, full of energy and enthusiasm.

I'm in full blown prep mode for the Appel and Frank show, working on meeting my self imposed deadline of getting my website up this week. In order to do that, I need photos of my six basic styles, so I'm working right now on getting the last of the samples made and photographed. Busy, busy, busy!

80s Fun Pack

2007-02-01T21:19:00.000-08:00

I've made steady progress these past couple of days. My website is about half way done, and now just awaiting copy that I (and Tim) need to write. I got a cool post card designed, and ordered, in a somewhat painful process, with a company called PS Print, here in Oakland. They will be ready for pick-up tomorrow after 5pm. I've even gotten some sewing done today, and will have three green Pocket Totes completed by tomorrow. I may be ready for the wine tasting event yet!

For my sewing session, I checked a few movies out from the library. Since we are gearing up for our eighties celebration on Saturday, I thought that Fast Times at Ridgemont High would be an appropriate choice, and it was. It was pretty much a blast from the past, and I am ready to apply my hot pink lipstick and get my groove on Saturday.

As a way to get some PR at the party, I'm going to be raffling off a Pocket Tote filled with 80s goodies. I picked them out today: a magic 8 ball, bonne bell lip smackers, and the Breakfast Club DVD are a few of the things. Let the good times roll.

When Opportunity knocks

2007-01-30T11:22:00.000-08:00

They say that when opportunity knocks, you should be ready. Well, opportunity is knocking on my door this week, and I'm scrambling!

Some PR opportunities popped up this week. My husband and I are going to an 80's party this weekend (yes, I will be posting photos), and the hosts suggested that we film a short commercial for sophie says go! that could be aired during the evening's band and video entertainment. Can we get it together? Do we have any ideas? Hmmm... Whether we can get the commercial together or not, we will find a way to get a bit of publicity for the business.

Separately, A friend called to tell me that the wine store where she works is having a "Women's Wine Tasting" event during the Super Bowl. She mentioned my bags to her manager, and to make a long story short, they would like me to be at the event, with some bags in tow.

Both of these are great opportunities for me to get some exposure. Am I ready? We'll see what I can pull out of my hat this week; I have made considerable progress on my website, but the going is definitely slow. Provided that I can get to a stopping place on that today, as well as get promo postcards and hangtags designed, I'll be in a great place to do some sewing for the remainder of the week.

Woo-hoo!

Web Authoring 101

2007-01-27T14:31:00.000-08:00

Tim and I returned from a wonderful Hawaiian vacation rested and ready to hit the ground running (look for more about our trip in upcoming posts). I'm so glad that sophie says go! has been accepted into the March Appel and Frank show; it provides focus for me and the tasks that I need to accomplish to get ready. Number one on my list of Things To Do is to get a functional website up and running. To that end, I met with my friend Orion this week for a web authoring tutorial. It has been years since I created websites, and things have changed. After getting pointed in the right direction, I'm spending the next few days getting a page written. My goal is to have a site up (with a viewable collection) by February 15th at the latest.

A New Year

2007-01-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, everybody! Although I've been quiet in terms of posting on the blog, I have been very busy, both with work and with holiday events. I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's, and I hope that you all did, too. I was lucky enough to see many family members and friends, and share wonderful meals with them. I even made a few Christmas cookies!

I'm looking forward to a great year. I have many plans for the next few months: getting my product on line, designing a handbag and cosmetics pouch, and hoping to participate in my first trunk show (Appel and Frank, in San Francisco) in March. Of course, I'll be taking you along with me! I already know that it's going to a great year since I started off with a few orders, which I am fulfilling (and which I'm very excited about).

Here's to a great year!

1% Inpiration

2006-12-19T10:50:00.000-08:00

As I've mentioned before on this blog, my inpiration for this venture came from trips that I've taken and things that I saw along the way. As an example of that, here is this picture that served as the inspiration for my spring '07 collection. I used this photo as the basis of the colors that I'm using in my line.

What's in Your Bag?

2006-12-14T09:16:00.000-08:00

Recently I was perusing the New York Times style section, and came across a book review for It's In the Bag: What Purses Reveal -- and Conceal, by Winifred Gallagher. While I haven't had an opportunity to read the book (note to family members, this would be a great Christmas gift :D ... ) it did get me thinking about what I carry in my bag on a daily basis.

Lately I've been using the Hibiscus Pocket Tote, which I love (because of all the pockets, of course!). It let's me keep everything a need, and everything in it's place.

Here's a list of what I carry around with me:

Will Shortz Sudoku book (great for waiting in lines)

writing implements (work with the sudoku book and the moleskin)

gloves

cell phone

Orbit gum (my favorite flavor - sweetmint)

Moleskin notebook (I use the 3.5x5.5 daily planner; all of their notebooks are excellent.)

cosmetics (I found a great makeup palette at Target, of all places, that keeps my makeup bag small)

wallet

travel atlas (published by the fine people at DK, let's me dream about all the places I want to visit)

pop-up map of San Francisco (I never lived in the city, although I was born there, so this helps me to get around)
Canon PowerShot camera (I love this camera! It is my friend. I always have it with me.)

sunglasses

Many times I have my iPod with me, as well.

What I love about purses/handbags/totes is that they allow you to carry an annotated version of your world around with you, so that you always feel comfortable wherever you are, knowing that you have what you need (or might need).

So, what's in your bag?

Market Tote Bicycle Bag is Here!

2006-12-13T15:57:00.000-08:00

Yea! The third style of Market Tote is finished and ready to go! The style is called Bicycle (no surprise there!), and has all the same details as the other Market Totes. Here's the info:

Market Tote
Diminsions: 12 (h) x13 (w) x4.5 (d)
Styles: Peacock (Brown), Lotus (Khaki), Bicycle (Blue)
Cost: $85

100% cotton. Fully lined with cheerful stripe fabric. Zippered interior pocket. Three exterior pockets, to keep all your stuff organized.

Give a holler if you're interested!

Four Bags to Go

2006-12-12T15:10:00.000-08:00

Woo-hoo! I'm only four bags away from completing ALL of my product samples. I have been very focused this week on getting my sewing done and working on my website. Today I was able to complete a page on my website, which is pretty amazing (to me) considering that it has been about four years since I did any sort of web development. It's not exactly like riding a bicycle (as in, once you learn how you never forget), so as I'm creating pages I'm spending a lot of time cross referencing old websites that I've built as well as books on how to write HTML. Yes, that's right, I'm using HTML rather than CSS. If someone out there is starting their own business and has to create their own website, I'd really recommend using CSS. Eventually, I'll go back and rewrite the site using CSS (or better yet, pay a qualified professional to design and build the site for me), but I'm moving forward using the (admittedly limited) web design knowledge that I already have. I really hope to have the site up just before Christmas.

I also got two more bags about half way done. The style that I've been working on today is a new version of the Market Tote. I'll be posting pictures of that tomorrow, when it's completed. Progress!

Leaving The Rat Race

2006-12-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

I recently reconnected with a friend that I haven’t seen in years. We lost touch for a stupid reason; I was really surprised and happy when I got an e-mail from her a couple of weeks ago, saying that she would be in town for a few days on her way to Bali. To Bali!?!

My friend, Chrystine, whom I’ve known for over fifteen years, has worked in retail since she was a teenager. She’s been a manager for several large and well-known retail chains. As a matter of fact, the way that we met was through retail, when I took a job as a sales associate at The Gap, where she was my manager. We quickly found that we had a lot more in common than a perfectly folded t-shirt, and fast became friends. When last I’d heard from her, she was managing a district New York (where she lived) for a well-known apparel company. So when I received an e-mail from her stating that she’d recently started a travel company and would be in SF for a few days on her way from NY back to Bali, I was intrigued. What led her down that path?

We ended up meeting for lunch at Café de la Presse in San Francisco, and then went to the new Westfield San Francisco Center for a day of shopping and catching up. It turns out that things with the well-known apparel retailer went south in the way that often happen in retail (generally a very unhealthy working environment and the subject of which is worthy of it’s own blog entry). Her brother was getting married in Bali, and so she decided to take some time off and regroup, while helping them get ready for their wedding.

Being away gave her an opportunity to rethink her priorities. She decided to look for a different way of supporting herself. Her brother reminded her that she had been running a multi-million dollar business for other people, so why not try running a business for herself? Initially, she thought that she would stay in Bali for a couple of months, but as she started looking into renting a place to stay, she could only find year leases, so she decided to make the commitment, and Bali Ultimate Experiences was born. Her tour company offers photo safaris with gourmet meals and luxury villa accommodations. Sounds pretty good to me.

As someone who is in the throws of getting their own business started, I found it really energizing to talk to someone else in the same position. She even had some ideas about materials from Bali that I could use in my bags.

This is an interesting time that we are living in. So many people are striking out on their own and trying to create something that is productive and feels right to them, rather then spending their energy and time on someone else’s dream. I wish all the best to Chrystine. You can find her website at www.baliultimateexperiences.com.

Bags go on sale today...

2006-12-01T07:18:00.000-08:00

That's right, I've completed my initial order of Spring '07 product, and after some very long days spent at the sewing machine, I'm happy to say that I have four styles available for purchase today at Stella Shoes (my friend Llyndara's very stylish shoe boutique in Burlington, VT). You can also order them directly from me. Just send an email to: nrickards"at"sophiesaysgo.com ("at" = @. Just trying to foil the spammers).

I actually hand delivered this order, so I'm in Vermont right now, watching the rain, and the thermometer, come down. I'm pretty proud of myself because I got outside and went for a run this morning in that rain (woo-hoo!).

I've been taking pictures of the bags but honestly they don’t really do them justice. However, here are the ones I do have, mugshot-style. The larger bag, called the Market Tote, is a new design, and I have to say that I'm thrilled with it. It's a great size, and the graphic looks really dramatic.
Here's the details about the bags:

They are all hand silk-screened. Each one features an image from a trip I took to Malaysia.

Pocket Tote
Diminsions: 8 (h) x12 (w) x4.5 (d)
Styles: Hibiscus (Brown), Lantern (Blue)
Cost: $125

100% cotton. Fully lined with cheerful stripe fabric. Zippered interior pocket. Five exterior pockets, to keep all your stuff organized. Magnetic closure. Hard base.

Market Tote
Diminsions: 12 (h) x13 (w) x4.5 (d)
Styles: Peacock (Brown), Lotus (Khaki)
Cost: $85

100% cotton. Fully lined with cheerful stripe fabric. Zippered interior pocket. Three exterior pockets, to keep all your stuff organized.

I hope to hear from you soon!

In the trenches (an update)

2006-11-15T15:54:00.000-08:00

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!