SOS Singer Sewing Machine with Help From Jen & Jim

It's so important to have friends to count on, in a time of need.

This past weekend, we were reminded how good our friends are. We worked on Paris-Roubaix Sunday, waking early at 4 AM for the exciting race. The day started early enough. Joey was over to work on his costume for his upcoming play. So, time was divided between his project and our ongoing huge custom cap order.

My Singer had been purring along, like it already does. Then suddenly, I noticed a muffled sound that reminded me that I needed to perform some maintenance. The sound grew consistent and loud. To my horror after lifting the top lid I discovered one of the gears was broken in half! Probably the only piece of plastic in this almost all metal Singer 257 sewing machine.

I had to quickly make a decision. Again, by this time my day was rather long and I'm tired so the thought of not having my sewing machine working (this is the first time ever) to finish my order didn't quite cause a panic. I was cool as a cucumber and I contacted my friends Jim and Jen for help. I've known these two for a long time, true friends. We've done so many crazy things together even crossing Canada, in three days in a snow storm, in a pick up truck.

Jen was so nice and invited us over to pick up her machine. She had it ready to go and showed me how to thread it. Now I can finish my custom cap order on time...

Thanks to the power of two good friends... Jen and Jim!

TGIF: Over a Week & Vancouver's New Bike Station

New and free

via vancitybuzz.com

Our indiegogo embroidered cycling cap campaign has taking more time than we anticipated.

We haven't had the time to relaxed. It's emotionally exciting and draining. It's like a full time job maintaining it; answering questions and taking care of the social media side. We are juggling many balls and we are the middle of a huge production for custom cycling caps. The feedback has been very positive. Since launching our embroidered cap project our online sales have doubled. Which is very good. Also, lots of exposure on other cycling posts - very grateful for this. If you missed it's here and here.

It's now over a week since our launch and we would like to thank everyone for all the positive feedback.

We have 34 days remaining... our campaign just started so contribute and share our link!



Interesting news from our fair city...

The power of the bike speaks tomorrow with a new bike repair station opening in Vancouver. We support this idea...


“This is awesome, we should have more of these in the city”, says student and avid cyclist GP Mendoza, “they open up future potential for cyclists of all ages and abilities”. Having access to tools for free, as well as being near a high-traffic bike route, will benefit and ease the ride of anyone with a bike.


The two bike stations will be at the Woodwards Atrium and Science World (next to the free air pump).

Indiegogo: Introducing Our New L'equipe $35 Perk

With your contribution of $35 gets you one Cappello Nero Cycling Cap

w/  embroidered Red Dots Cycling logo.

photo: Red Dots Cycling

There is 37 days remaining on our exciting indiegogo campaign of offering embroidered cycling caps. So, to spice it up we are excited to introduce - L'equipe $35.00 Perk!

It's a good one, contribute only $35.00 and be part of the team, receive: one Special Edition black linen/cotton cycling cap embroidered with Red Dots Cycling logo!

This design is based on our best seller -  Cappello Nero. When we first started to sell online, this black classic cap was among the first five caps offered. Right from the start it has remained a favorite. What's not to like!

We had a customer that lost his Cappello and loved it so much bought a new one. Talk about Love!

Contribute $35 - and join our team!

Our Cycling Caps Are Versatile Off the Bike, Too!

We just love it how our happy customers

show different ways to use our cycling caps.

courtesy:  Rob from Toronto

We hope everyone is having the chance to enjoy and relax this fine Easter long weekend.

Carolle and I know how important it is to combine our famous cycling caps with one of our favorite recreational activities.

We know our cycling caps are made to be versatile on and off the bike.

Thanks to Rob for sharing this photo of his Capello Nero Rosso cycling cap and his favorite cold one!

TGIGood Friday: Jukeboxprint & indiegogo update

TGIGF...

Yesterday, we picked up from jukeboxprint (Gastown Vancouver) our new 1000 business/hang tags!

It was long overdue. We designed and had them printed by Jukeboxprint. Usually, we wouldn't go for a high glossy finished card. For this design - it just works!

We are very impressed by the packaging and ...what 1000 cards look like.

Our indiegogo project update:

It's been an emotional roller coaster ride. From the time we launched the project, we never felt ready but we decided to launch our project with some fear and trepidation. Hard to perceive how people will react. We believe it's a solid idea to help our client's to have an even better product.

Crowdfunding is big deal around the world and also here in Canada. There is a National Crowdfunding Association of Canada.

After we launched our campaign we did some researched. It is interesting that it is a multi-billion dollar industry - almost 1.5 billion dollars was raised through Crowd Funding Platforms in 2011 with over 50% raised in N. America.

We feel that it's a natural progression of Social Media (communicating to one another), to go on a platform, reveal yourself, tell your story and raise funds for something we believe in.

It's great to part of this and like the adage... just to go for it!

So, go ahead and contribute to our project to offer the best embroidered cycling caps. There is no small amount. Remember we only need only $10.00 dollars from 1500 people to achieve our goal!

Thank You!

Carolle & Richard

My Dream Embroidery Machines

Since launching our indiegogo project,  folks have asked us, "What is our dream embroidery machine?"


Well, this was a quest in itself. Embroidery is so popular that you can actual find machines ranging from $500 to $12,000 dollars! Obviously, the lower end $500 machine would not satisfy the needs of a trained seamstress (like myself). This machine would benefit the entry level crafter that wants to experiment with sewing and embroidery.

The 6-needle embroidery machine.

My eyes are on the second level industrial embroidery machine (above image). This is a 6-needle embroidery machine and would be fantastic; advance hoop setting (specializing for hats), 1000 stitch per minute - the works. This machine is made for production. But it does not sew. The price is in the 5-digits.

I swear by my 1967 Singer Fashion Mate sewing machine. Since working with my Pfaff serger, I have found a new love for the Pfaff brand. So, for half of the price of the 6-needle machine, I can have a fantastic sewing and embroidery machine. Bear in mind, this is NOT industrial machine. It would take me more time for production. Pfaff stands for high quality, I would still be able to produce a high quality product at a longer time.

Having said that, I would be HAPPY with either machine. Of course, these machines will not produce a custom logo, so I will have to purchase a special embroidery software. And, then we will be ready for custom embroidered cycling caps!

Carolle

Shared LOVE!

It's so cool and wonderful.

After a few days since introducing our embroidered cycling cap project the response has been very supportive from many good folks.

It means the world to us that people believe in our campaign and are willing to help us achieve our dream.

What can $10 dollars mean in daily life? A quick lunch, a pint of beer, coffee and something sweet? So, we figure if 1500 folks would be excited in our project and willing to give just $10 dollars then we can reach our goal. This would change our lives forever. And, in addition of the new equipment would help grow our business so we can expand our studio.

Thank you for helping us fulfill our dream!

And...

Project Embroidered Cycling Caps via indiegogo

We have looked high and low on how we can move our embroidery project forward.


Our customers have been begging us, for a little while now, to include embroidery on our cycling caps. This is something we wanted to do for a long time. But, the reality is the equipment is specialize and expensive. Our attempt to work with an embroidery company has not been successful. So, our best solution is to get the embroidery machine and really push embroidery where no embroidery has gone before!

After reading on different crowd funding platforms, the best option for us is indiegogo.

From the first idea of knowing that we wanted to launch this campaign it's amounted to days of writing, re-writing, shooting a video, editing that... It's everything we do not normally do and pushes us to go further outside of our comfort zone.

So, here it is, our campaign and we are proud of it... Please go ahead and spread the word to your friends, family, business associates, the more visibility we have the faster we can achieve our goal!


Thanks to indiegogo for the opportunity to live our dream and Thank You to everyone for considering our project...


CROWD FUNDING = SPREADING THE LOVE!

TGIF: New Size Labels, maillot á pois rouges & Mountain Air

We are thank full for this...



As you may know, we have labels on our caps that we make ourselves. It was a printed label applied to the under brim. Now, it was not the best solution. Once the label was removed you would not know of the size of the cap.

In order for our caps to look more professional, we decided it was time to have a professional woven size label that we sew direct and stays permanently on the cap. It's practical, high quality and looks more polished!

Our new cycling cap label.

Johann Tschopp of IAM Cycling won the KOM's jersey in Paris-Nice.

via dtswiss.com

Enjoy your Friday!
via castelli-cycling

Flemish Winter Cap: All Sizes In Stock!

Photo: Red Dots Cycling

We are happy to announce full sizing for our Flemish Wool Winter Cap.

Sizes: Small/Medium and Medium/Large... available while quantities last!

Piccolo Pouch: Peace Out

Peace out

photos: Red Dots Cycling

Our piccolo pouch is what we consider an important piece of kit.

If not for the flashy and fun inside fabrics it's a strong little pouch to keep your valuables safe.

Before I go for a ride I make sure I have my essentials; cell phone, ID, coffee money, tools and bandages (you never  know). It's durable and water repellent made from recycled bike rubber inner tubes. We made it not bulky and fits in the palm of your hand for easy access into your rear jersey pocket. The natural grippiness of rubber helps keep it firm, safe in the back of your cycling jersey pocket.

Our pouches are one-of-a-kind, we like to keep it this way so you can have the only unique design.

We just posted the Peace and Love Piccolo Pouch and is now available.

 Handy and it fits in the palm of your hand!

TGIF: Label Crazy & Hats Off To Us

Our Tempo Cycling Cap made this Treasury... Hats Off To You, Thanks!


Now that we have solved our cycling cap labels we are happy to say that our hang tag design is also resolved.

We are ready to send the design to the printer and once we receive them we will post it. It's a busy time for labels and we are awaiting shipment of a new set of labels in the mail.

Introducing Our New Cycling Cap Label

photo: Red Dots Cycling

As our little company is expanding we are always looking for ways to improve on how we are making our products.

Introducing our new cycling cap label!

We researched endlessly from different hang tags, woven labels and direct heat press inside the garment. Our first choice was a woven label. The problem is the quantity to order. Our products are different and we only make small runs so we don't want to be stuck with thousands of labels. Embroidered labels would be nice but for us it's important to have 20-100 labels we can change and custom to each product.

What is important for us to include on our label is the name of the product, fabric content and how to care for it.

A big order for a small label!

After many trials, we figured the best for us is ...direct inkjet printing on fabric. This is a popular technique used among quilters. A positive is this allows us to have 100% control of what we want on the label and make as many as we require. We tested the new labels and they are totally color safe, they will not fade or shrink. This looks like a winner for us.

With sadness, we will let go of our recycled rubber labels on our caps. Sometimes, in order to go forward one has to let go of the old ways of doing things...

Onward and upwards!

TGIF: Labels and Red Bean Buns

We are in the final stages of designing a new label for our cycling caps.

Carolle is busy fine tuning and testing the design in the computer and it's looking damn good. Our little rubber label does not cut it anymore and we decided to pursue a better option to label our cycling caps. Brand identity is important.

We have tried different options and recently discovered a new method. So far, the inkjet direct printing on fabric is the best by far. The major problem is we have many differently named cycling caps and it's costly to have all the labels made. There's too many variables for each cap; content and name. So, we will present the winner... on a upcoming post!


Now for something extremely delicious...

Carolle has been making red bean buns and this time she nailed it down. I grew up eating them and Carolle attempted making the delicacies. She loves to make it from scratch, red beans into paste and dough.

I'm proud of her, nowhere near any Quebecois dish!

Seven Cycles: Our Newest Winter Cycling Cap!

Our latest custom winter cap for Seven Cycles.

photos courtesy sevencycles

Our latest custom winter cycling cap is greeted with fanfare from Seven Cycles in the US!

Lily, from Seven Cycles, said...


We are really pleased with them!


It's always a pleasure to work alongside Seven Cycles on their custom cycling caps and we are so proud to have made many custom cycling caps for them. Currently there are three custom cycling caps, made by us, and available on their site.

The Slate Sheep winter cap is made to fit comfortably under your helmet and to keep you warm on your cold rides. Made from 100% wool, the earflaps are double-layered made from bamboo cotton. Of course, all of our fabric is pre-wash to prevent shrinkage.

This handsome winter cap is exclusive to Seven Cycles and when it's gone it's gone.

TGIF: Iron Will, New Labels & How About a 3 Season Wool Cap?

The mighty 3...

(l to r): Reliable, Proctor Silex & Sunbeam

photo: Red Dots Cycling

My first iron (far right) was given to me by my Mother before I left for fashion school.

I can remember her using this old Sunbeam, she always had it. She knew how much I loved it. It was nice and heavy with full steam. When I moved to Vancouver, during shipping, a small piece of plastic housing broke that exposed the inner wiring. I do not use it for fear of a short circuit. The cloth extension cord is not safe either especially when you are working with power and steam so this stays on the shelf. 

As I moved to Vancouver, my friend Beverly was moving to take care of her Mother and so she gave me her Proctor Silex (middle one). This works ok but the steam is not constant and often leaves water marks. It's good enough if you are just ironing occasionally. I have it for many years and it was time for a new iron.

Well, finally, I bought a brand new iron ... my first iron ever!

Considering I iron almost everyday ...I definitely deserve this one. It's called, Reliable. As heavy as my old Sunbeam. The difference is it's solid = heavy and STEAMS VERY WELL! This one works as well as a professional iron with a separate water tank. The stainless steel plate glides beautifully. And another nice feature is the cord rotates 360 degrees never gets in your way. The control buttons are designed to be very easy to use.

And, on top of all it's orange... my favorite color!

Now, I'm ready for serious ironing!

We placed an order for satin labels to be sewn inside every cycling cap. It should take around two weeks and I can't wait to show it. One thing I can say, is that the caps will look better than our current printed labels. I will have a show and tell post when I receive it. This is the first step in improving our brand to give it a professional finish.

During Christmas, we had enquires about a 3 season cycling cap made of 100% light wool (no ear flap). Wool is an amazing fabric that can be worn all year round. It breathes and absorbs moisture. We believe a light wool cycling cap can be worn comfortably in Spring and Autumn. So, we would like to ask you all a question...

Would you like us to make a 3 season light wool cycling cap?

We welcome all of your comments!

Carolle

Sharing the LOVE

A heartfelt Thank you to our customers that enjoyed the LOVE coupon code this past Valentine's weekend!

We invite you all to follow us on facebook and LIKE US and also to find out when our next fun event will be. The new season starts with new cycling caps... and we have a few on the drawing board ready to take off.

During the weekend we were busy discovering some brand new fun fabrics for future pouches and wallets... coming very soon.


It touches us to be appreciated... our friends at Seven Cycles recently received their custom cycling caps   they requested for an upcoming event.

"... we are very pleased with them... and we appreciate the rush very much."


Thank you!

Sharing the LOVE!

photo: Red Dots Cycling

Carolle an I have worked together for a couple of years. 

Only our close friends know that we have been together for seventeen years, sharing our love and creativity. Today, we want to thank our clients for supporting us in living our dream of having our own business working together.

It's Valentines Day and we want to share our LOVE by offering everything in our website at ...25% OFF!

At the checkout use coupon code: LOVEU

And make sure to share the love... now until Sunday February 17th!

Carolle & Richard

Custom Brits Wool Winter Caps at Ride Studio Cafe

Ariela stylin' the custom Brits wool winter cap,

Lexington, MA

courtesy: Ride Studio Cafe

Our famous Brits wool winter cap has been chosen as a custom cap.

Ride Studio Cafe of Lexington, Massachusetts is our client that requested a Brits winter cap with a black stripe. Yesterday, they received their custom Brits caps appropriately in snowy Lexington. As you remember our Brits winter cap, made from 100% British Superfine Wool, was made famous and featured in the November/2012 issue of Bicycling Magazine. A proud moment for us.

We are happy and sad. Our fantastic supplier had enough fabric for us to make this small run. We bought up the remaining fabric and have a very small supply of original Brits currently on our website. 

There's already good response from Ride Studio Cafe...

We really like these new hats!

Thank you!

Our star... The Brits winter cycling cap

photo: Red Dots Cycling

Tools of the Trade: Tailor's Chalk & Hem Gauge

photo: Red Dots Cycling

Basic tools are essential in measuring and marking.

We use the simple tailor's chalk and hem gauge. Been around for eons, the tailor's chalk is made of talc and won't leave a residue. Very important not to have fabric permanently marked.

The hem gauge is used for everything that we need to measure, it goes beyond hems. It has a sliding adjustable guide to keep measurements pinpoint. This nifty tool is owned by Carolle and is over 30 years old and made in Canada. A rarity these days.  Even Carolle can not remember exactly how old it is.

These tools are truly classic and we wouldn't know what to do without it. If you sew... these are a must!

TGIF: Year of the Snake

Happy Chinese New Year!

via Fixielicious-Hong Kong

TGIF time...


This Sunday is the Year of the Snake, celebrating the lunar year of 4711. The forecast is for a year of optimism. We all need optimism and we are looking forward to a successful year!

Return of the Falling Leaves!

Falling Leaves is back!

All photos © Red Dots Cycling

It has been very busy for us since last Autumn producing our popular winter cycling caps. Our winter caps took us by a winter storm outselling very well. Not by choice, we had to put our regular stock caps on temporary standby. Now, we have a brief period between custom cap orders and have quite a few popular caps to produce...

We are happy to have the return of the Falling Leaves!

Made from cotton/spandex/denim in classic black. Don't worry about it shrinking on you, we pre-wash all of our fabric and just gently handwash in cold soapy water, squeeze gently and hang dry. It is a heavier weight fabric due to the denim content and that means one can wear it on cool Spring/Autumn days. Heck, you can wear it on a winter day too providing it's not too cold. The uniqueness is under the brim... 

Nicknamed for the great Italian classic ll Lombardia we include the tricolore , so we say ...show your Italian pride with the Falling Leaves!

Ciao!

In honor of ll lombardia!

TGIF: Carolle's Birthday & Seven Cycles

It's a special day as we are celebrating Carolle's birthday!

That means a skeleton crew is here (me) manning the controls so I'll be busy shipping, answering email and taking Carolle for a birthday dinner. Happy Birthday Carolle!

We are happy again to be working with the fine folks at Seven Cycles of Watertown, Massachusetts. That means custom cycling cap orders are now in preparation mode. Photos upcoming.

Richard

What to do with a bent cycling brim

Darn that's a bend in my brim!

A customer recently asked that his Petit Breton winter cap sat under some dirty laundry and discovered a bend in the brim. He tried to flatten it with a heavy book and he wanted to know if there was a fixable solution....

The main reason why we use a heavy interfacing for our brim material is that it is flexible and if you find yourself with a bend in the brim, you can fix it yourself. Unlike most cycling cap companies, WE DO NOT USE plastic for our brim material for the simple fact that it can crack when folded. From experience I had cycling cap brims made of plastic, that cracked when folded.

One of our requirements for our cycling caps was that we wanted the cap brim to be folded without the risk of damaging the brim. Plastic was out of the question. So, we are using heavy interfacing that is strong and flexible.



Here's what to do if you find a bend in your brim on your Red Dots Cycling cap!


1. Have a hot iron on steam setting at the ready. Make sure you have water in it.

2. Wet a cloth.

3. Sandwich your injured brim between the wet cloth.

4. Apply the hot iron to create lots of steam. Repeat until the crease comes out.

This will remove the crease and bring back your brim to a healthy state.

Under Pressure!

Sandwich a wet cloth between the brim,

Apply hot iron, steam setting ON, until crease is removed...

Afterwards...

your brim may be a little wet but let it dry and all's fine

and ready for the next ride!

Richard

TGIF: Custom Cap Crazy, New Wool & Dog Gone!

Custom caps...

As we are currently immersed in our custom winter cap orders, we are also quoting on new custom cap orders... it's all very exciting. We have never before worked and quoted on so many custom cap orders in such a short time.

rubber labels shaping up to cut...

Here's our newest wool blend fabric that will be destined as a new cycling cap. Now, the question is whether we introduce as a Spring cap (no ear flaps) or a Winter cap? We have been asked for a wool cap without ear flaps... so m-a-y-b-e this will be the one.

New wool blend waiting to be unleash!

TGIF and beers are planned for beer o'clock.

One day we will have a shop dog...

Have a great weekend!

Dog gone!

TGIF: Parker St Studios & Very Busy

It's Friday and and it's just about to get  REALLY BUSY here at Red Dots headquarters.

January has started with a bang... for more custom cycling cap orders. We have a list of cycling caps that need to come back into stock but we haven't had the time to do it. So it looks like we will be pulling late nights next week to fulfill the custom orders, approved today, and back into making our regular cycling caps. 

You know, we have been looking to expand our little company. Our friend Hans mentioned 1000 Parker Street, here in the Vancouver Eastside. Here's a video on the denizens and some history of this fantastic Artist community....

Quest For The Right Scissors

Cutting to the top!

Scissors are a very important tool in our Red Dots Cycling world.

We have gone through so many and spent many bucks trying to find the right pair. There are many types, sizes and brands... it's a jungle out there.

It's funny, the one that we end up using the most is under 5 dollars. We discovered that we both cut differently. The way we both hold our scissors are one distinction. So, we will try to find and label our own scissors so we always use our own pair. Let's see if this makes a difference. So far, nothing stands out from the crowded scissors world.

We are big fans of Henckels and bought two pairs today from our new supplier. Those are the two scissors, top left hand corner of the photo. It's too early to say, but we will put them through a grueling test on our next custom cap order. In fact, I see our next 50 custom cap order waiting to be cut. This will be a good test.

So, we are still on the quest for the ...right pair of scissors!

Carolle

TGIF: NO January Blues.

Flemish Winter Wool Cap,

by Red Dots Cycling.

January is remarkably busy for us.

The month is usually a time for us to reaccess and plan for new products for the upcoming year. Now, our work table is full-on for more wholesale custom cap orders. In fact, we just finished and shipped off a batch of cool custom caps to the US. A detailed post upcoming.

We received a unique request to make our Flemish wool winter cap into a ...summer cap. That's a new one for us, that means no ear flap. It's unusual. But, it makes us think there may be a demand for a warmer cap without ear flap. This could be a cap for next Autumn.

After our last craft show, in December, the attention grabber for us is that our winter cycling caps are  a fashion accessory. A young woman, not a cyclist, enthusiastically purchased the Red Hunting cap for about town. Many women bought our winter caps based on the design. It's made to be stylish to walk around town, warm and comfortable to keep that rain/snow out of your eyes. Our winter caps are popular with dog owners.

You may have notice the price has increased on all of our recycled inner tube products. After evaluating our products and the long hours of preparing and producing we can now confidently enter the wholesale market. In fact, we shipped off our fun rubber products to a US sportswear company. Again, a detail post upcoming.

We are planning our upcoming new 3-season caps with new fabric and colors. And, we will be working on some old favorites; to all the folks that have requested some of our popular caps from last season... have patience, they will return!


Have a fun Friday!

500 Recycled Bike Inner Tubes, and Counting!

Back from the local bike shop

with raw tubes and with plenty of hard work we turn

it into...

We realized that we have passed the 500th recycled bike inner tube used in our popular rubber products. That's a milestone.

When we first started Red Dots Cycling, we thought it would be fun to use re-cycled material for our products.

The reality is when it comes to fabric, many companies are already making garments out of re-cycled fabric. In fact, it's difficult to find and if you can find the material it's usually not fit to make a cycling cap. We tried to make caps out of old denim, suitings and shirts. It was fun to make but not a reliable source of fabric to build our cycling cap business. The only option is to purchase new fabrics, pre-wash before making cycling caps.

There must be another plentiful, re-cycled material to use?

Richard requested a pouch to hold keys, money and tools on his rides.

So, we came up with the idea of rubber bike inner tubes from bike stores. A sustainable practice that makes sense. We are happy and proud to be using re-cycled bike inner tubes  that would be destined for a long time in the landfill. But, it requires a lot of work to get it, secure it, wash it, cut, and produce. Many companies have approached us for our rubber inner tube products to sell in their stores.

We looked long and hard and having sold our products for the last two years at a low price it was time for a price change. We are thankful it's a free material. When Richard returns with bags full there are often surprises. It does come from a bike shop and it's always dirty or really dirty. We often find rust, oil, grease, and that annoying no-flat goo to prevent flats. And of course that allergic white powder inside every tube. What this means, there is many hours of prep before we go into production. Cleaning that is!

So, this is why we have raise the price of our popular inner tube products to cover our costs and time. They are all one of a kind, fun, well-made and now available in many stores in Manchester UK, Ontario and Oregon!

... fun, innovative products!

The New Presta 100% Wool Winter Cycling Cap

Happy New Year everyone!


We are proud to introduce a new winter cap...

The New Presta 100% Wool Winter Cycling Cap!

Handmade from 100% British fine wool, it's a black wool beauty with tiny grey dot pattern. Also new, our ear flap is better... made from Bamboo cotton blend fabric. Why?

Bamboo cotton is far superior than just cotton. Properties: antibacterial, hypoallergenic, wicks/dries quickly and super comfy.

Now available in two sizes: Small/Medium (21-22.5") and Medium/Large (22.5-24").