Dog dud delights; or "Peru or bust"

Samples came in from Peru today and for a first try, it's way

more than I expected. Patricia really "gets" the concept , which had been the most difficult part of working with China. There, things are done cheaply and that's fine for a lower range price point. She has her own collection of quality woven Andean ponchos and some hand knits, so she really strives for the best in workmanship. That, coupled with the use of alpaca, makes the sweaters feel and look worth the price. Sizing has to be finalized and some colors and yarns need tweeking, but I'm sure we can go into production next month. This continues to be Liebo's great adventure...

Skyped another resource from Peru this morning and he's interested in making the matching scarves for pet parents. Everyone who sees the sweaters says they want one for themselves but since I'm basically out of the women's fashion business, scarves are all I'm interested in doing for now.

Victor sent me jpegs of the colors he has available in Alpaca (they are distributors of the yarns as well as manufacturers) so I have my work cut out for myself for the next few weeks.

Sketches, specs, yarns to put together for scarves. Corrections sent for the sweater samples, colors exchanged. Sizes adjusted and written up for each style. It's also time for me to get my insecure butt to the bank and get a loan working for me. Everything I'm reading points to pet products as being "recession proof" and that people turn to their pets for comfort during difficult times and I have seen first hand, how stores and pet owners reacted to the product. I'm still gathering signatures from groomers and store owners, touting the product so I have ammo when approaching a bank. Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize........ Should be interesting.

Javier in Bolivia sent pictures of the samples he's doing and hopefully I'll get them soon. There may be a problem with the choice of yarn being too heavy but it's hard to tell from the picture. I'm glad I gave the "Candy" to Patricia to develop......it looks so beautiful. She's working on "Pepper" too so that should be ready by the time I get there. Why did I wait so long to do this???? I've never been happier.........

Beside myself with glee..............

Some samples came in from Peru and they're EXACTLY what I have been trying to achieve over the past year as far as color and qualities. The materials are sumptuous, the colors delicious and the price ........well, we'll work on that. Basically, this young woman has a great eye for color and although there are a few tweeks that need to be made, she attempted to recreate the prototypes of two styles FROM THE PICTURES I SENT HER, just to show me that she could do it!! Great job. I can live with that. Now that she has the actual prototypes and specs, I have no doubt she can do them.

She sent the color cards for the alpaca and pima cotton (which I love) but I'm going to have to juggle things to make the price work. Still waiting to hear from Bolivia but I know Peru is a good resource and we're on to great things. She also sent knitted swatches ( just because.......) of amazing jacquard trials and all I can say is how smart this young woman is to have added these to the package. I'm hooked..............and happy to have found a resource I can work with.
More to come.............

Vote for Lollypups..........

In the never ending quest for start up funds, I have entered the Intuit "Love a Local Business" contest to win 30K which I sure could use now that the samples are in the works and I'm going to have to start production (yikes and yikes) If anyone is actually reading this, I sure could use your vote so just click on the link and write a comment for Lollypups........then hit "vote"

http://lovealocalbusiness.intuit.com/fan?b_id=16290&cid=ad120x60

I thank you..........Lacy thanks you..........and those terrific artisans from Peru thank you (gracias)

Also working on different grant options for Women entrepreneurs and then, the big bad banking boys! Wish I could spend as much time on designing.

Pepper is here........

Finished the Pepper style and am happy with the way it came out. I think the smaller flower embellishment is the right scale since the sweater itself is in a smaller size, opening up the range from xs through to large. XS can be more Yorkie size or Chihuahua but not teacup. Some day, maybe in knit styles but the crochet is bulky and may be too heavy for a tiny dog.

Next trial is going to be a spring style in cotton boucle and a bit more complicated. I think I need something that's not made in Alpaca so as not to be only about winter. I saw a beautiful crocheted free form Chris Benz dress in plummy colors that's very inspirational and I do want to get back to the free form

designs.

Let the waiting begin.......

All prototypes have been sent to their respective allocations in Peru and Bolivia I'm delighted to say. Now comes the not such fun part. The waiting....the anticipation.......I still have no idea how the garments will cost out but have informed both vendors of my target wholesale price point and if we need to change a button here, or a yarn quality there, I'm willing to compromise a tad. Patricia is sending out the yarn package on Monday and Javier is awaiting receipt of the protos in order to see first hand, what yarns will be suitable. I'm not sure all that is necessary since the jpegs I sent him were pretty clear and explicit. He did send me an attachment of the available Alpaca and Llama colors which always translate differently then the real thing, but I did see the yarns he was supplying to the knitted dog sweater company who I spoke with back in December at their booth at the high end craft fair.
While the clock ticks away, the fun part (and the least amount of time I get to spend creatively) is that now all those ideas sketched, yarns and trimmings researched, trade shows visited, fashion blogs and magazines perused and new novelty details discovered, can be made into the next new designs. It gets easier actually making them now that the pattern is pretty much solidified. Less rip out time. I'm doing a black and cream striped number, called "Pepper", with a brightly colored flower embellishment at the base of the collar. The style is simpler than the others but a bit more sophisticated and creates a focal point for the beautiful flower. I'd like to get at least 4 more styles made before the samples come in and either submit them for development or take them with me to So. America when I plan my April trip. I'm anxious to meet these amazing women of Peru and build an ongoing relationship with them and other Fair Trade artisens. This is quite a journey and keeps getting more and more interesting.
I'm so antsy to get this product launched but will continue to take one step at a time and avoid past mistakes. All is good (and Emily made the Dean's list and will graduate UAlbany in May)
So it's not just Lacy who makes me kvell. It's my daughters too.

March.......in like a lion.........out like a pup

Seems there's a light at the end of the tunnel once again (in more ways then one). The 20 inches of snow from last week's February 2010 snow storm (part deux) is melting away enough for Lacy to actually step precariously onto the 5 or so inches remaining on the patio, in order to go beyone the path shoveled for her, to take care of business. She's happy, so I'm happy.
I'm sending out the Lucky, Candy and Tigger specs tomorrow to Peru. Patricia sent me swatches that were done over the weekend to show that the artisans there are very capable of recreating the intricate shapes used in my designs and to say I'm thrilled is to put it more than mildly. Above and beyond I'd say, though we all have to do what we can do to stand out in order to drum up business. I think I found my ideal resource.
The colors will need to be worked on but the Alpaca quality is just what I wanted all along. My fault entirely...........having said I wanted high quality materials from the get go, I was faltering in order to save money. Bad move on my part I summized, because it really wasn't my vision at the start, to make sweaters that look and feel cheap. So it took a year of research to conclude that I must remain with my initial vision in order for Lollypups to work. And after much legwork and brainwork, I think I found the right people to do it.
Feeling great once again and moving forward. Next stop, Peru. Then Bolivia. April, Spring, new beginnings...............:::happy dance:::::