I’ve always thought the word “stockists” looked a little funny, I had actually thought it was “Stocklists” for the longest time. Oops.

Well, we have some great news on the stockist front– we are very excited to announce that our products are now available at 2 local retailers!

Seattle’s Veridis Clothier in Capitol Hill now carries our bags, purse organizers, and iPad 2 sleeves in their boutique. If you want to see any of our products in 3D, head on over to Veridis!

We can also be found at Velocity Art and Design’s online store!  I met with the owner of Velocity today, and we had a great conversation about buying what you truly love, and how important it is to buy American. So if you need to buy a unique gift for a friend that’s hard to shop for, definitely check out Velocity.

We love our STOCKISTS that start with the letter “V”!

We received this email yesterday, and it made our day:

“I LOVE IT!! I had a purse organizer that I ordered off QVC from Lori Greiner and thought it was pretty good until I received yours! It actually fits my wallet and has way more compartments for my items.”

Sorry it’s been a while since I’ve blogged. Wordpress doesn’t seem compatible with IE9, so I’m doing all of my blogging on Chrome now. If it weren’t for the lovely weather I’d say BAH HUMBUG. It’s just too darn purty outside!

Have a good weekend!

March 11th is so soon! The good news for us is that our 12″ x 9″ iPad sleeves can accomodate an iPad 2. I’m going to save up for the iPad 2– my husband has the original one and won’t be upgrading anytime soon. I LOVE Facetime, and love that the new iPad has the ability to edit videos. Also, it’s 0.3 pounds lighter, which puts it closer to the Kindle in terms of ability to read it in bed without having the device fall on your head, giving yourself a concussion.

We’ve had a lot of really wonderful press mentions over the last few days, so we wanted to thank Ecofabulous, Awakenened Aesthetic, and My Life Scoop for featuring us! 

http://www.awakenedaesthetic.com/2011/02/ethical-designer-profile-plaid-doctrine/

http://mylifescoop.com/featured-stories/2011/02/6-alternatives-to-the-stuffy-briefcase.html

Here’s one we got today from a proud owner of the iPad sleeve:

I just wanted you to know how much I love this case! It holds the iPad, my Kindle, the chargers for both in one pocket, my iPod and charger in the other pocket with the charger for the phone. I throw it in the car and I’m ready for anything. Love it.

Designing and producing a messenger bag is a long process, especially when you’re trying to make messenger bags that are green, eco-conscious, sustainable and sturdy. We carefully consider each and every component that goes into our bags, trying to keep our carbon footprint low by manufacturing locally and sourcing materials in the USA.

Here are the components that we’ve procured to make our messenger bags:

–Exterior fabric: Recycled polyester from a mill in PA, and locally-sourced ripstop nylon

–Interior fabric: Recycled nylon

–Webbing, hardware, and zippers: Sourced from the USA

We’re proud to announce that our bags will be manufactured in the Seattle area, less than 20 miles from our office. Our prototype is almost ready, and production of the bags should take place next month. Woohoo!

It’s only Monday, but it feels like the end of a long week. We shipped some bags out today (yay!) and FINALLY updated our press page to include links to press coverage over the last few months.

 I also just received some sample fabric from a mill in Pennsylvania, and it looks awesome. I ordered only a few yards, and for some reason it was delivered to me on a huge fabric bolt that was taller than me. I didn’t realize they’d ship the fabric in the most absurd packaging ever imaginable. 

So I’ll be working with my prototype guy on the messenger bag over the next few weeks. I can’t wait to get back to designing again– it’s the fun part of the job

After a few grueling hours of working side by side with my accountant, I finally submitted my state taxes today. HOORAY!

Let me tell you, the way they do local tax collection here is bizarre and doesn’t make any sense. Each municipality/city has a local tax, so someone in Bellevue could have a different local tax than someone who lives down the street in Redmond. Needless to say, categorizing taxes by local codes and tax rates was daunting. I’ve updated my website so this is tax categorization is more automated on the back end, but even still there is still manual involvement that needs to happen.

I’ve also realized that WA state has really strange tax classifications. Did you know that there is a special tax for “moist snuff”, and this tax is different from just plain ol’ tobacco products? There is also a tax for “hazardous substances”– but this tax is miniscule compared to taxes on more innocuous things like carbonated beverages? And the weirdest thing of all, there is a “little cigar tax (acetate integrated filters)” and a “cigar tax”. I guess they each warrant their own tax?

All of this makes me wonder exactly how small-business-friendly the state of Washington really is. Is this why everyone moves to Las Vegas? I wonder if the tax categories in Vegas are simpler– like “NC-17″ and ”Non NC-17″ taxes.

Well, it’s now officially 2011…I can’t believe it. I have a few personal new year’s resolutions I’d like to share with you, all of which were borrowed from Archival Clothing:

1. Decide that quality matters and pay for it. In the end, it will save you time and money.

2. Before you buy, be selective. Scrutinize items for build quality, fit, finish, functionality and lasting style. If an item is not perfect, catch and release it.

3. Do more with less. Add a few key pieces to your wardrobe and wear them until they dissolve.

4. Shop from yourself and from thrift shops. Repurpose strategic items from the past.

5. Support apparel companies that manufacture their products in the US. Buy products still proudly made in their traditional country of origin.

And a few business-related resolutions that I’d like to follow:

6. Create meaningful, interesting blog content. Admittedly, I’ve sort of lost my way with regards to blogging– I’ve migrated from start-up woes to lots of different fashion topics, and I need to focus. I need to get my voice back.

7. Increase distribution through offline channels

8. Network a lot more!

So here’s to 2011 (*clink*)!

Wow, I can’t believe 2010 is almost over. And I still can’t believe that I launched a business and had a baby this year! How can I top that?

Well, to keep our momentum going, we have a few products we are working on right now that we can’t wait to release. Unfortunately, sometimes not everything goes as planned in this business (doh!) but we’re going to try our darned best to release new products every few months.

Here are just a few things we have up our sleeve (no pun intended…ok well maybe we were trying to be a little punny):

–Messenger bag: we are in talks with a few local sewing establishments in Seattle and Portland to see if we can make these bags locally. We’re working on prototypes now, and we’d love to get your feedback and comments about what features you love and hate about any messenger bags you’ve seen. Our laptop messenger bags will be made with recycled polyester and recycled nylon.

–11″ Macbook sleeve: Hopefully in early 2011 we’ll have some sleeves for the 11″ Macbook. We have a version that is nearly identical to our iPad sleeve– people love those 2 roomy accessories pockets. But we’re working on a few other designs to see if we like those too.

We’ve also gotten many requests to design diaper bags and backpacks. We’re researching this now, so if you have any features you’d like included or excluded, let us know!

–

A few folks have asked me for some ideas for green holiday gifts this year, so I’ve decided to spend some time blogging about this, just in case someone at the North Pole is reading my blog and wants to send a few of these gifts my way.

As you may know, I like simple and polished eco-fashion and eco-design, so my aethetic preferences might not align with most people’s “green” tastes. That said, here are some eco-friendly coveted items that I’d love to get under my Christmas tree:

1) WeWood wooden watch: $119. it’s 100% natural wood, no toxic chemicals. 100% awesome.

http://we-wood.us/collections/best-seller/products/wewood-crono-beige

2) Keds by Loomstate: $110 (other styles available too). Made of organic cotton and recycled rubber.

http://www.keds.com/store/SiteController/keds/productdetails?productId=5-172240&icid=HPKICKER_101122_LoomstateBoot

3) Organic lemon tree: $95.  I think I want this because I had a kumquat tree in college.

http://www.vivaterra.com/garden/plants/organic-meyer-lemon-topiary.html

4) Jewelry!

State necklace: $39. They don’t have Tennessee (booo!) but they have Washington State. Made from recycled sheets of metal.

http://www.krisnations.com/kn/pages/necklaces/nstates.html

Stackable rings: $440. Made from recycled gold. Delicate, simple, and beeyootiful.

http://www.christinemighion.com/details.php?proid=28

And of course, you can find some wonderful, sustainable products at Spun Sustainable Collective, ranging from wooden jewelry, greeting cards to organic dresses (http://spuncollective.blogspot.com).

I’ll add more products as I find them. Happy holidays! And happy shopping!