Tuesday 12 March 2013

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!



Friday 8 March 2013

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.


Monday 4 March 2013

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!





Friday 1 March 2013

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!





Monday 25 February 2013

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.






Friday 22 February 2013

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


Monday 18 February 2013

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!


Thursday 14 February 2013

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





Tuesday 12 February 2013

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


Monday 11 February 2013

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!



Friday 8 February 2013

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!




Monday 4 February 2013

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!



Friday 1 February 2013

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