daisyjanie

a message from the glory days

{image courtesy zapp196, flickr}

I've seen so many pretty & interesting inspiration boards posted on various blogs recently (poppytalk and modish are great places to see some of these), and they've 'inspired' me to examine my own inspiration board. It's filled with lots 'o notes and cards from Matt, my sister and the Peanut Man, in addition to pics, colors, shapes and patterns that lift me up. The note that I always have in my periphery as I sew is the one I like the most, and thought you might get something out of it, too!

Background: Back in 2004 (seems like much longer than that!), I was a partner in a painting business called Fresh Paint LLC. I'm sure you've heard me reference it previously. We were asked to be part of a Designers' Showcase, which was a fundraiser for a women's shelter. It was one of the most challenging and labor-intensive things I've ever done. I was so stressed out, couldn't eat, had no time to do regular things. When it came time for opening night, Matt gave me a card with this note inside about what an inspiration Fresh Paint was to him and Peanut Man - and the lessons they took away from this experience just by watching it all unfold. Without further adieu...

1. Make time, don't kill time.
2. TALENT may start it, but ATTITUDE will finish it.
3. Why 'push the envelope'...when you can shove it the hell through!
4. A war for integrity lost is always better than a battle for pennies won.
5. Never be ashamed of a creative idea.
Bonus: Never agree to paint a house that has no working bathrooms. {long story for another day}

{handpainted powder room & floorcloth from Designers' Showcase 2004 - my sister liked it so much, I replicated it in her powder room!}

TV work and zipper tape

If you use a lot of zippers in  your sewing, a looooong length of zipper tape can be your best friend - both where your sanity and your pocketbook are concerned. Plus, there's barely any waste at all b/c you only use exactly what you need in each application. [Less waste = many smiley faces]

The sanity part comes into play b/c, in most instances, you would NOT have to add your pull until you have the zipper installed and topstitched - thereby having one less obstacle to fight with. Even with a zipper foot, the pull can be a pisser to maneuver around. Without the pull, I have gotten away without changing my presser foot - depending upon the width of fabric adjacent to the teeth (usually wider on tape than on fixed lengths).

Most of my customers have told me they want a zipper so I have learned to incorporate them without grumbling. Changing thread and feet is par for the course. As Peanut Man says, "Deal with it, gal." Last night while watching a few shows and enjoying an adult beverage, I loaded 50 pulls onto this length of tape b/c I'm trying out a new installation method. These nickel pulls where only 5 cents more than the standard type - aren't they great? I never bothered to ask b/c I assumed they were $1 more or something. Duh. Anyway, I will photograph the steps so I can post a tute here for you.

What kind of work do you save for evening TV?

articles and etsy treasury

• Product photography: A task I have long struggled with - I am open to any and all the info I can get. This article from Lindsay Landis of Purr Design and Pattern & Paw was immensely helpful (I've mentioned this one before). I just found this one at The Boss of You (a great resource for female business owners, recently posted about by Holly on decor8).
• Thoughts about art and the business of art: Renee from Wolfie & the Sneak posted this thought-provoking article last week. As I mentioned to Renee, it hit me like a ton of bricks in a very good way. As someone with a B.S. in Marketing and still working in the field, I cannot help but bring that aspect of 'my person' to Daisy Janie - all the branding, positioning and packaging. Sometimes I don't want to bring this person to the decision table, but she shows up like clockwork - and therein (sometimes) lies the problem. I want my work to be perceived on some level as creative and artistic - to stand apart from one crowd while being lauded by another and being purchased by yet another. But all of these crowds change as my aspirations and ideas change, and marketing-girl is always tagging along trying to spin the ideas into a product that can become a cash cow. Can't help it. I sense a business plan on the horizon...
• Etsy treasury: This past Saturday, the hearts on my etsy 'hearts me' page went from 94 to 162 in a 4-hour span. I'm sure I had to be listed on someone's treasury, but I could never find it! Bummer for that, but yippy-kie-yay for the hearts. Wish I could thank the person who picked one of my fabrics. Love to sift through the hearts, BTW, and see who they all are - and feature their work on Scoutie Girl!

art star craft bazaar

Just applied to Art Star in Philly. Show dates are Sat, May 31st and Sun, June 1st. I did this show 2 years ago, and it was a great show for me.

2 funny things about that 2006 show:
1) Jen from Indie Fixx was at the booth next to me - she really *seemed* like a total newbie. It was veeeerrrryyyy windy and rainy the first few hours on Sat, so her nice husband went out and bought her a tent but nothing to hold it down with. Then they spent the entire time taking turns holding it down - I felt badly that I didn't have a cinder block to lend her! During takedown on Sunday, I pinched my finger in my tent pole, and Jen's husband rescued me. He was quite the helper that weekend! Jen was so sweet & unassuming (I'm sure she still is) - who knew Indie Fixx was in the works! What a great resource!

2) Etsy also had a small table there, and some of their peeps were handing out cards and talking it up to anyone who would listen. I was such a craft-snob, and said, "Oh, no thanks, I have my own website." Little did I know what a powerhouse of indie goodness they would become! I guess that's what I get for being on the arts & crafts scene for too so many years - I've been approached by every Tom, Dick and Harry with snake oil and empty promises, trying to get me to do this or that for this fee or that fee. I trained myself to say 'no thanks' without even listening to the pitch anymore.

And I DO have an etsy site, now. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

**Illustration by Julie West, Copyright 2008 Art Star LLC**

cut your losses, literally

Sometimes all your hard work, time and $$$ will be reduced to a pile of rubble. Harsh reality of business. Each of these handbags in the box had something wrong with it. I've been shuffling them around for 3 years, through purges, rearranges, organizations - certain that I would fix them and sell them. Never got around to it. Now they're worth more as "disposed inventory" on my Schedule C than as an inventory asset. I had to admit that I will never do anything with them. Ever. So I cut them up, salvaged worthwhile parts and scraps. Done. Freedom. Don't have to have this on a to-do list ever again!

Found these signs in the bottom of the box. I made them and had them laminated for a couple shows in Summer '06, when I was selling my Resort Collection. Seems like eons ago!

working on...taking good pictures

These 2 shots really capture the palette of this fabric collection. There are 14 colors in all, with the chocolate, taupe and cream being the most prominent. Pretty much my "comfort" colors...they make me happy in almost any context.

In all the years I've been creating artwork, photographing it has always been a monumental task that left me fit to be tied b/c there's just so, so, so much to be done between setting up to take the GD picture, actually taking it and then getting it into a usable format. Takes as long as the artwork itself, and it's not nearly as fun! I visited camera shops, asked professionals, borrowed cameras that cost more than my car, made lightboxes, crossed my fingers, waited for full moons - nothing worked! I put up with it b/c they seemed good 'nuff. But these fabrics, oh these fabrics. I don't think anything is good enough for them! I want to get the absolute best pics I can b/c this. is. it. I've been on a journey, and I'm where I want to be - where I can see myself for a long, long time. I want to stay here. So no more pissing around with so-so photos (amongst other things).

I searched hi and lo for my Canon manual today, then I remembered an article on The Switchboards by Lindsay Landis of Pattern & Paw and Purr Design. She gave an incredible synopsis on what you need to do to take your own great pics. If you don't know Lindsay's work, she is an overachieving perfectionist - her work is great and she knows what she's talking about! The first thing (and only thing) I did upon reading this article was fiddle with my light meter. WOW!!! I knew I didn't really live in the dark ages, yet every picture I ever took made my house and family look gray and icky. The light meter was the ticket!!! Thanks Lindsay! Onward and upward people! 2 good days in a row! Who'd have thunk?

3 great articles

The Venus Zine gets dropped in my inbox once a week, I guess. I'm not even sure. Sometimes I peruse, sometimes I don't. But one of the headlines grabbed me today: "The Many Arms of Promotion." I clicked through, read the article, found links to 2 other articles under the umbrella Crafting a Business by Jenny Hart of Sublime Stitching. They're thorough and informative for the newbie and seasoned indie designer alike. 2 snaps up in a circle.
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Starting a small business is all about being innovative and savvy and learning from mistakes

Getting some ink: How to score good press

The many arms of promotion
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My education/background is Marketing. I've been very fortunate to have both theory and experience in my backpocket to draw upon when needed. Sometimes it's not the know-how, it's the know-when and for how-long. What most authors don't mention is that any business, and I mean just about any, is 50% production/service and 50% marketing/promo, like it or not. You must, must, must set aside time to accomplish both. I remember sitting in Marketing 101 (18 years ago!), first day, first minute, first page, first topic of discussion: "Even if you build a better mousetrap, nobody will beat a path to your door if they can't find you." What does that mean to you and how you go about your daily business activities? For many of us, who wear many different hats each day, it's hard to devote 50% of your time to any one thing. If your business isn't where you'd like it to be, you might want to pad your marketing time a little bit and see what happens.

Here's the full mousetrap quote:
If a man can write a better book, preach a better sermon, or make a better mouse-trap, than his neighbor, though he build his house in the woods, the world will make a beaten path to his door. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

cool new fabrics for jcaroline by jessica jones

Have you seen the new fabrics Jessica Jones has designed for jcaroline creative? It's smashingly delightful...the vividness of the palette is so refreshing! Check it out here. I'm a big fan of leaves, too (I've been painting them for years).

I have purchased a good load of raw materials from jcaroline over the past 3 years (some of her prices are quite good), and her one-woman-owned business has grown by leaps and bounds. She remains completely hands-on in her business - nice to see and easy to appreciate. And I learned about Jessica when she somehow found my other blog Scoutie Girl about this time last year and commented on one of my posts - that's when I started following her blog. She's a talented graphic designer - love her clean, precise style. So, what a great collaboration between these 2 creative ladies - their ideas have come to fruition, and they must be pleased! I'm sure their respective legions of followers will be, too!

Side note: About 6 months ago, I sheepishly emailed Caroline (of jcaroline) to introduce myself, let her know about Scoutie Girl and Daisy Janie and to offer services to create some one-of-a-kind fabrics just for her business. I thought it was a wonderful idea - original fabrics just for her! - but I was sooo nervous to send it, thinking I was overstepping my bounds and she would be like, "Yeah right, lady!" I never heard back from her, but knowing now that she was already working with Jessica actually boosts my confidence a bit, even tho she's not working with me. At least I was on the right page with the possibility, and next time, I will listen to the little voice that tells me to 'go for it' (sounds a lot like my husband) and NOT to the little voice that says 'yeah right, lady!'

cross it off the list!

Waaaaaay back in August, I rec'd a wonderfully generous order from the Girl Scouts of Swift Water Council; they serve New Hampshire and part of Vermont. They were looking for cool items to put into a giftset for girls who sell over 500 boxes of Girl Scout cookies! Over 500 boxes! Wow. I couldn't even imagine 25 girls selling 100 boxes, let alone 500 boxes. So guess how many wristlets they ordered? 350!! That's unbelievable to me! I think some may be used in their store, but evenso, that's a lot of cookies no matter how you slice it!

So, I just rec'd all 29 lbs-worth of these wristlets from my sewing contractor in Washington State. And I'm wearing a big dunce cap right now. Why? B/c I have to turnaround and ship all 29  lbs-worth to NH. Why, why, why wasn't I thinking straight?! A colossal waste of my financial resources, and the natural resources to ship them twice. Don't repeat this mistake! If you have a contractor, make sure they do good work (mine does!) so that you can have them ship directly to the retailer. If necessary, have smaller orders shipped back to you for inspection until you've established your contractor's quality level. I've been working with Patty for over a year now; she knows I like things consistently perfect and perfectly consistent. She always comes through!

FAQ: Do you sew all of the handbags you sell?

Short answer: Not *all* of them. Loooooooooong answer:
Realizing my limitations early-on, I researched various types of manufacturers and sewing contractors and read-up as much info as I could on forums and blogs with similar subject matter. (Try Fashion Incubator - more on this site in a devoted post coming soon...it's worth it!). [edited: new post on FI about this very subject.]

I limited myself from the get-go to US-based companies - a personal & business decision. (Is that exactly what you're not supposed to do?) I asked a ton of questions: price per piece? minimums? quality control measures? turnaround time? ability to adapt patterns? Found a broad range of answers to all my questions, but what was consistent throughout is that most of these companies are scrambling for business b/c their bread & butter accounts have gone overseas! To the point that they're willing to work with micro-businesses like Daisy Janie. My heart breaks for them!

The first contractor I tried wasn't quite up to the details - pencil marks, misaligned flaps, lack of efficiency- they actually asked me to fly out to help them figure out the best production methods. That's when I knew that we weren't a match. So the search began again. I found a wonderful company that was very close to me - I thought the stars were aligning. But their prices were out of my league! (They were making bullet-proof vests for soldiers in Iraq when I went on a tour of the floor.) I hope someday I can use them, but my production would have to be more than tenfold.

I finally found a great contractor/seamstress from googling various things, and eventually ended up here. I replied to a few ads, and that was that. She works alone but meets all my requirements for everything else. The only downside is that she's all the way across the country so shipping is nuts, but she's experienced, flexible and her prices are fair. When I have a collection or a big wholesale order, she's the one I use. But when I have  just some one-offs or a few items, I use my Kenmore...more on this in another post, too.