Lately, things have not been going according to plan.
When starting this whole process, I imagined I would go through two fittings, three at the most. I never thought I would run into this many problems. Today, I began the process of my FOURTH fitting. Why is this a problem? Well for starters, it costs a lot of money to have samples sewn, especially when you are having three samples sewn each time. With this being my premiere line, I am operating on a very strict budget.
Aside from money, a lot of time has gone into these samples. Valuable time. I have a career outside of Fifth&Brannan that I dedicate 40+ hours to per week. My seamstress is the mother of three children, and my pattern maker also has a full time job. It’s safe to say that our time is precious.
I am not sure where the problems with the samples started. Was it faulty pattern making? Sewing? Or was I just too tired when I was cutting the fabric out at 3AM? Any of these could be the reason we are moving into our fourth round of fit samples. I’m not happy about it, but I must say I’m glad I’m not rushing this process.
Because I pride myself on finding the best fit for this brand, these fittings are key. I would rather take the time to correct these mistakes instead of throwing my hands up. The hardest part of running into problems like mine is to see your release date slip further and further away.
I have a list of things that still need to be done, but because I am doing everything on my own, those tasks seem to get pushed to the bottom of my list. Once I feel 100% about my samples, it’s off to purchase my fabric, complete my production samples, find models, and begin the fun stuff!
I hope to see a photo shoot in my near future :)
It's really cool to see your whole process unfolding. Making all of this happen with a full-time job is incredibly difficult. But, it'll all be worth it in the end. Be encouraged because you're encouraging a lot of people (including me) who would love to do what you do!
Your integrity and work ethic will produce an amazing line. Keep at it! And you know who to call when you need someone to cut fabric.