July says hi!
6.30.2008
July says "Hi!"
It also says, "Here's a new tee and a hoodie!"
Since it's release in February, "The Most Fantastic Things" has been a popular tee and has gotten a lot of reprint requests as its gradually sold out in various sizes. Request no more! It's finally back, in a new colorway and a bonus hoodie!
Also, I've dropped the prices of some of the older shirts down to $5, so if you're low on change this summer, take a peek at the selection and see if you can find something. Once these designs are gone, they aint never comin' back.
Stay fresh....
-Eric
posted by Mr. Linty @ 10:57 PM,
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$5 Tees!
6.29.2008
In order to move out some old stock to make room for all the new stuff, I've just lowered the prices of the following tees to $5.
The guys tees of these designs were printed on Fruit of the Loom 50/50s, but the gals sizes are all AA, so it's quite the deal.
(Although only the top two tees are available in girls sizes.)
Get em before they're gone forever, because I'm not reprinting them!
posted by Mr. Linty @ 5:37 PM,
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Black tshirts in summer?! Bad idea Eric!
6.28.2008
Or so I used to think. But seeing as Mack has sold consistently for the last two months, I aint afraid of a little summer sensibility. So:
Yeah, so LF's style is definitely narrowing in a bit. Trying to keep that consistent sharp graphic look with a cartoony flare but subtle "dark" influence. I don't like using that word, but I can't think of another to fit what I'm trying to describe. Basically, they're cartoons that aren't for kids. So there's always something that's just a bit edgy or strange about it (ie, the body bag in Fish, Etc. or the inexplicable severed arms in The Dotted Line) Honestly, I'm not doing it for the purpose of being edgy or anything like that, it's just what comes out of my head... And my head's a strange place, yanno?
ANYWAY: this tee will be released probably in August, but we'll see. I'm printing a bunch of stuff behind the scenes so it's tough to keep up with the costs there when you aren't selling the items you're producing (YET. They'll all get released at once!).
Oh, and this poem is going in the product write-up. Wrote it in 10 minutes while waiting for a CD to burn. So the syllable count aint perfect, ok? :P
Keith was always quiet
Lurking about his home
There was little else he'd ever do
But lap his ice cream cone
Some folks thought he couldn't speak,
Some folks jeered and teased,
But Keith only needed one short phrase:
"I want more ice cream, please"
Friends would ring the doorbell,
"Keith, come out to play!"
But through a screen Keith stared at them
And lapped his cone away
Eventually the friends gave up
On strange Keith and his cone
Eventually they found other games
Keith was, at last, alone
But one day in hot July
Visitors arrived
An alien race from another world
called Elron Exus Prime
They zapped the small town where Keith lived,
His school and all his friends
And when he was given the chance to live
He just shrugged, "Depends."
"Depends on what?!" the creatures asked
Their black eyes gleaming wide
"Tell me a bit about your spaceship,
the things you have inside"
And so the aliens listed things
They'd captured from the earth
From bugs and worms to cows and trains,
Stacks of volume's worth
But little Keith kept quiet,
Nodding as they talked
Waiting for a single item
To decide to stay or walk
And when they finally mentioned it,
He cheered and bounced and ran
For he could be happy anywhere
With an ice cream cone in hand
posted by Mr. Linty @ 11:30 PM,
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I quit my job!
6.19.2008
Well..... it's final.
As of today, I'm officially employed only by Linty Fresh!
I set a sales benchmark for myself at the outset of this year and decided that I'd quit my job once I'd made (or surpassed) that goal for 3 consequtive months. My original guess was that this would happen in January '09, but lately things have taken a turn for the better, enabling me to move that date up by 6 months. (And yes, I did say recently that I was quitting in mid-July, but again, fortuitous happenings have moved this up!)
In all honesty, I am super nervous about going into this. Although LF has been picking up a lot and the support has been flattering, it scares me to know that there's no safety net, no plan B...
But sometimes I guess you just have to jump in the deep end and pray that you know how to swim... :P
So what's next? Gah, I don't know where to begin! Obviously, tees will keep trickling out each month on the first, but keep your eyes peeled for hoodies as well. Of course, I've also got some top secret goodies brewing, which I'll unveil with time. And have I mentioned custom packaging? I can't remember... But yeah, that's in the works as well.
As a matter of fact, this week has been dedicated to getting some of these new projects rolling. I've started working with two new printers who I have assigned to separate projects, due to varying techniques and equipment they're using. I'd love to deal with just one of these printers and perhaps this will become a reality in time, but for now this seems like the only viable option.
Anyhow, that's pretty much it. Just wanted to come on here and brag a bit about it... :P
posted by Mr. Linty @ 6:35 PM,
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More secrecy and vaugeness
6.17.2008
Well that was unplanned.
Originally I had a ninja and frankenstein (like the belt) slated for full character design, but at approximately 4:30 on Saturday I decided to make a bit of economic commentary and make one of my characters a bandit gas pump. I scribbled the idea down in my little idea book and didn't get a chance to work it out digitally till this afternoon. I'm really diggin the bits of graffiti on the back. These are loads of fun to do!
So, that leaves one more character to design and then I can move onto the next stage.
My mom and I browsed through Joanne's yesterday for materials for yet another product I'm wanting to produce: wallets. She's an awesome seamstress but hasn't done much of it in awhile, and she seems to like the idea of me being her boss (go figure..?), so I'm going to be using her for a bunch of future products. Anyways, wallets - I've tried a few options for this so far, and I just don't like the results, so I'm thinking of having my mom stitch them up by hand. Most likely I'll get high-quality vinyl printing done and stitch this onto plastic leaves... Eh, there's still a ton of stuff to work out and it can't happen till my current project is done, but I like thinking out future problems, because with open eyes I often stumble inadvertently onto the solution.
What else...
Oh, I put in my notice for work! I'm quitting midway through July, about a month from now. As it is, I'm barely there (only 1 day this week), but it'll be nice to be free once and for all. It'll save me loads on gas (and wasted commuting time, though I'll probably sleep that away on work days anyway), so I'm looking forward to it. It means really getting more organized, but the motivation shouldn't be an issue.
Ta ta!
posted by Mr. Linty @ 12:17 AM,
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In over my head
6.15.2008
Everyone who's known me for any length of time would agree that I'm a detail-oriented person. Like, to a fault.
Back in my school days I was the kid that always took charge of group projects and assignments, meaning that I typically ended up with a huge headache since I was the one up till the crack of dawn the night before, stuck with 90% of the workload. And the bad thing about it was that it wasn't necessarily that the other kids didn't do their share of the work. Instead, it just didn't fit my vision for what it was supposed to be. Seriously, I am (and always have been) a control freak.
I'd say 7 times out of 10 it's a bad thing to be so anal about stuff. In the case of school the worst part of it was the self-induced stress, but in grown-up life, it means that I often step on other peoples toes when they're not doing something the way I feel it should be done... It's an illness I tell ya! But I'm working on it...
Now, as for those other 3 times out of 10, as in the case of running my own business, being this crazy about details and perfection-izing everything is actually great. Because basically, it means I'm not satisfied with something until I have disassembled and rebuilt it a handful of times. I try to see it from every angle in my head, anticipate every possible problem, and make adjustments where I see fit.
A great example of this is this new project I'm working on. See, tshirt designs are one thing, because it's a path I've run a gazillion times and I know exactly what the steps are from start to finish. It's just a matter of coming up with a fun style or image, doing the design, and prepping it for my printer. But new products are a completely different beast because there are so many unknowns! They're a ton of fun to do because everything is fresh and exciting and different, but they kind of scare me to death. This one, especially, makes me nervous just to think about it, because I'm literally going to be involved in every stage of production, as in, the actual manufacturing of the product. That being the case, I'm putting in 110% to making it a super unique product with all sorts of extra details. And those details pop into my head randomly, go onto a sheet of paper in my notebook, and distract me constantly from the task at hand (that of doing the actual graphic work!) So, sadly, after sitting at my desk in front of my computer for nearly 6 hours, I've accomplished a tiny percentage of my design goal for the day (which was doing 2 more characters).
The good news is that I've got a page full of little notes and sketches, new ideas that I think will make this project even more unique and exciting...
posted by Mr. Linty @ 12:13 AM,
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Say whaaaaaat?
6.13.2008
Oh, so this is STILL a secret because I'm not telling anyone what these characters are for...
But yeah.
Still in the super early stages of this. These "things" won't be released till September, probably...
So excited!
:P
Anyways, lately I've been giving a lot of thought to what I'm going to be producing in the upcoming months. I've got several pages in my "Linty Fresh Idea Book" that are covered in notes about said releases.
I guess what's really been hitting home is how important it is to keep refining and refreshing what Linty Fresh is offering to the public. As time goes on and I become more familiar with the industry, it's become increasingly evident that right now (and possibly more than ever), the tshirt industry is absolutely flooded. There's just no end to these little clothing lines run by teens and tweens, and while I have nothing against them (heck, I even root for their entrepreneurial spirit), it's a good indication that it's time to move into new things, to at least let the market cool for a bit.
As I've said before, this doesn't mean that I'm stopping production on shirts. By all means, I'm still set to be releasing new tees each month from here on out. However, I want to try new things, new products, and just have fun experimenting with it and stirring up the market a bit.
In other news, I'm still waiting to hear back from Renegade about my application, but I'm going ahead and planning for it as if it were official. This means that I'm doing a huge push for massive amounts of new stuff between now and September. If all pans, I should be releasing a total of 11 new products on September 1st. Of course, this could change, but I'm gonna go ahead and say it so it'll be tougher to back down. ;D
Anyhows, that's that, and it's a late and I have other things to be doing, so nighty night.
posted by Mr. Linty @ 11:21 PM,
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Quick Update...
6.10.2008
First things first - great news! I've just applied for Chicago's Renegade Craft Show! I've heard loads of really great stuff about Renegade and hopefully I'll get in - it'll be this September, 13th and 14th. Can't wait to hear back! (I'll know by July 11th)
Second thing is that the print info for the new shirts went in last night, so they're on track for a July release. It looks like it'll be just a single reprint this time around, but I've got a few secret releases in the works, so keep your eyes peeled... Whatever that means (?).
I've also kept the production costs for July a bit low because I'm saving for something special later on in the fall... I can't say what it is, but it's gonna be sweet, and hopefully an agreeable addition to the current LF gear. Anyways, I'm off to work on that right now. Ta ta!
posted by Mr. Linty @ 10:05 PM,
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Indie Craft Experience!
6.08.2008
Well, after about 3 months of intense planning and preparation, my first ICE experience is finally over. And I'm happy to say that it totally paid off. Every dollar I spent, every sign I labored over, every cursed trip to Walmart for supplies... it was all totally worth it in the end.
When we first got there in the morning (thanks Michelle, Nico, and Bailey!), at about 8:30, there weren't too many others there setting up, so it was a little tough to figure out where exactly our space was. Finally I realized that the little orange flags on the ground had numbers on them, and that those numbers marked the corners of where our booths were supposed to go, and subsequently matched our assigned vendor numbers. Oh. Duh.
It too about 10 trips back and forth to the van to get all the stuff unloaded and onto our little 10'x10' plot, but mercifully we were able to unload it really close to our spot before getting shooed away by the police, who explained that this wasn't the official unloading area. Oh well!
I was surprised how quickly we set up - although I brought my ENTIRE inventory (over 1,000 shirts and 150 belts) plus three 7-foot shelving units, 2 square tables, the tent, and all sorts of other display equipment, we had it completely set up in about 25 minutes. The lady who was vending next to me seemed surprised that I got it all up so quick. It was then that I realized why the show didn't start till 11... Nice.
So I sat around, checked out some of the other booths, chatted with the other vendors, and even networked with some folks in the screenprinting business. Everyone was super supportive of LF and seemed to really like my stuff. Several of these vendors even ran over throughout the day to check up on me and make purchases! This was especially cool, though I feel like a bit of a jerk now because I didn't buy from any of the other booths since I was so focused on my own thing!
When the event finally started at 11, it was surprisingly slow. I guess I'd kind of pictured this huge horde of people throwing cash at the vendors and clambering over the merchandise. Instead, most of the folks seemed to have stumbled on the event accidentally on their Saturday morning city stroll. Ugh. Not good!
Another factor that had me worried was the temperature. It was in the 90's before noon and the humidity was almost unbearable. I kept wondering to myself why they hadn't scheduled the event in May, when it would've been far more appealing to folks that didn't want to get a heat stroke. Still, I chatted with the few folks that wandered my way and did my best to stay positive.
My first sale came in around 11:30, and it was a great one to start the day. The guy (should've gotten his name!) was super enthusiastic about my stuff and promised to check out the online shop as soon as he got in. He got a kick out of the fact that I was based right here in Georgia, too.
And I guess that's when things started turning around. Suddenly the traffic started picking up a lot more, and all kinds of people were stopping to look through my belts and tees and asking me which design they should get since they couldn't choose! And even when they didn't buy anything, it was awesome to see them smiling as their eyes wandered around the display panels to check out the tees. That was a good feeling, and that was when I knew that it had all been worthwhile.
I think 3:00 was the absolute peak of the day. At times I had a little line forming from the booth, which was just too cool. I had a little jar on the table, too, where people could throw in their email addresses for a chance to win some free stuff. By the end of the day it was packed with entries! I also went through loads of stickers, buttons, and all my postcards. I sold a nice chunk of inventory, too.
At the end of the day, a lot of other vendors had wonderful compliments for me, saying how impressed they were with it being my first show, and how professional and amiable I'd been with customers. It was cool to feel like I'd gotten their respect in that way.
So all in all, it was a fantastic experience. Despite the heat and the absurd traffic that unceasingly plagues the city, people showed up faithfully and supported Linty Fresh. And if you're one of those people, thank you!
Labels: indie craft experience
posted by Mr. Linty @ 4:24 PM,
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