Bag Ad

This is a LV advert from the New Yorker.

I'd work in that workshop, for sure.

Makin' Stuff Flat

So this is what I've been doing for the last coupla days: ironing the hell out of some bag flaps.
The embroidery machine (I forgot to take a picture of it--six heads, pretty impressive) left these nice circle creases in the fabric, which I had to iron out. 'Tweren't too bad. Though I had to do it 109 times. Ha.


There's the little offender there.
Sorry 'bout the shoddy images. I couldn't be bothered to use a proper camera.

Super Musette

I just put this together. My friend Linds did the screen print. 15x11", 12x3" bottom. #8 cotton duck, lined with 1000d Cordura nylon.


Trying a new simple pocket design here. This is a two-part pocket. The front pocket has a lip on the top. In theory this will keep small things like coins from sliding out if it's turned upside down. We'll see how it actually works... And then there's an open pocket behind it...with some pen pockets in there. Pretty snazzy.
Cross-strap attachment on the shoulder strap. I was going to put it in the seam, but I forgot. This works better anyway.
And here's what it looks like on someone who's fairly small. How tall are you, Jenny? I forget.

Workshop

Whole lotta bag pieces.

HP/MWBPC7

Columbia hosted the Seventh Midwest Bike Polo Championships this weekend. The weather was amazing, there were 43 (or so) teams, and como polo did a great job of organizing their first event.
And I made some waxed cotton hip packs for prizes.
Here're a few shots from day one of the tourney:
Chicago/Milwaukee

Saint Louis/Chicago
Bring out the artificial suns!

Barista Apron

Dust off your gold-plated tampers, kids, barista competition regionals are upon us.
This is my friend Mike's.
Appliqued stripes from 1993.
And I guess it's reversible. Ha.

Simple Bag

Here's another simple 15-inch bag.
#8 cotton duck (~18oz), lined with 1000d Cordura nylon.


I hand washed all fifty yards of the cotton. Although it's treated with something, I wanted to make sure it doesn't shrink after I turn it into bags. I also washed out some of the extra dye. It's crazy how stiff this fabric gets when wet.
Made a cutting table especially for this project. Gonna be makin' a lot of these bags.

Back from Kaua'i

Well, we're home again after an amazing time in Kaua'i. All the bags held up and performed as expected (great). Here're a few photos from the trip:
Hiking the Na Pali coast...well, a bit of it. It was way too wet and mucky. And I didn't fancy a slip'n'slide into the ocean.
My pack held up pretty well. I'd say I was carrying about 35 pounds...thereabouts. It's so tall 'cause I have a bag of Cheerios in my pack...and some other poufy things.
I didn't use a bag bag when I was flying and the pack got roughed up a bit. I took the belt off and put it in the bag, but made the mistake of sticking it buckles-out...so when the bag handlers dragged it on the ground it tore some holes in the X-Pac. They were small and I fixed 'em with duck tape. Lesson learned. Also, the roll top's not so good in the baggage chute. It came unrolled one time. Fortunately I had a drawstring closure on it too. Next time I'll use a more typical lidded pack.

Hanalei.

Also Hanalei.
Our first campsite at Salt Pond.
Na Pali Coast...nice 'n' wet. The X-Pac did really well in all the wet weather. And there was a lot of it. My Sierra Designs tent also performed awesomely. Thanks, Sierra Designs!

Where we camped on the coast.



Hangin' out in trees.


Trying to find the tunnel in the mountain. It didn't happen, unfortunately.
Jenny's tiny pack performed well, though.


Polihale Beach. Super long badass beach on the west side of Kauai.

Waimea Canyon, Koke'e State Park. This park had some amazing hikes, and one of our favorite campsites.

More canyon.
Koke'e.
And the obligatory sunset shot from Hawai'i. Salt Pond.

Hawai'i Pack, Part V

[Part Four] Here we go...I think it's done! 42" circumference, ~33" long, pictured. X-Pac & 1000d Cordura. Some accessory pockets. I should've sewn more tri-glides on the pack to attach pouches to, like on my last alpine pack. Next time... Shoulder Straps So these are the first straps I put on the pack. I was going for a simple old military design, but since I used 1/2-inch foam (which would be considered fairly thick for shoulder padding) I was getting some pressure points at the end of the pad. Not good. I also made the sternum strap a little too low...whoops. So I cut 'em off and made these: Curved shoulder straps: pretty much the standard for backpacks these days. Also note the removable backpad/seat pad. Small Stuff Tiny hip pack for cameras & knives and what have you. ~5x5x2" X-Pac water bladder sleeve. This was going to go on the other side of my belt but I forgot to sew the loops on it. Ha. Sometimes I slip into autopilot while sewing.... This is a little beach backpack for my girlfriend. Another hip pack. 1000d Cordura & X-Pac. Velcro loop attachment. So, this concludes my Hawai'i Pack series. I leave tomorrow. Hope everything works out. Ha! Here're some links to some sweet pack-makers: McHale Packs Mystery Ranch Cilo Gear Wilderness Equipment