Shameless Plug: Go Get this BAG!

One of my clients, for whom I do design and illustration work, manufactures the BEST recycled shopping totes out there in the marketplace.

Most of the work I do for this company is marketing: I design display signage, hang tags, sales catalogs, and the like, and occasionally will do the actual surface design for a bag. 

The problem is, a particular image won't get printed until my client gets a purchase commitment from the retail outlets that carry her product (mainly Fred Meyer stores here in the Northwest, and Kroger affiliates nationwide).  She presents mock-ups of many designs each season, and for some reason, I have the hardest time having my designs "connect" with the buyers (there is also a big turnover of personnel in the buying field, so establishing a rapport with one doesn't hold any guarantees for future sales).  Generally, they go for designs that are 'safe': appeal-to-the-masses, nothing too 'out-there'--and I think my stuff is too wacky or something(???).  It can be sooo frustrating, because all the designs I submit (after countless hours developing and completing each) are "on spec", meaning I don't get paid unless they sell, and only then do I earn a small (tiny, actually) percentage of the order.

Several YEARS ago (I think it was 2009 or 10) I came up with this "Flowers in Bloom" design, with a mixture of whimsical line art and collaged images (in fact, I did a whole series in this style, about 5 total).  My client loved it, we collaborated on color choices, and then she tried her darned-est to sell the dang thing--for years, faithfully hauling it to another season's presentation, always having it ignored in favor of other designs.

I've kept the mock-up on display because even if it never sold, at least I loved it. Many of you who have taken classes in my studio have seen it hanging here for years!

But she never gave up on it, and FINALLY it sold about 6 months ago, and it is just NOW in the stores for the Spring season!!!

Here's my bag, FINALLY inside my local Fred Meyer store, alongside other designs.

Here's a little background about this awesome tote-bag company:  The owner started her business quite a few years ago, before reusable totes were so ubiquitous, before 'eco-friendly' was such a catch phrase, and before many grocery stores started banning thin plastic bags (at least they're out-lawed here in eco-centric Oregon).

She found factories that used super-strength, multiple layers of poly fiber (made from recycled water bottles) in their manufacturing process.  She also designed the large tote bag to have several handy inner pockets sewn in, to hold bottles, newspapers, cell phones, et cetera.  Love that!

To test the strength of the tote bag, one of the guys that works for her GOT INSIDE one of them, and two other employees each grabbed a handle and could lift all 175 pounds of him with ease and no sign of stress on the fibers.  You've seen the ones at Trader Joe's or even at Joanne's or T.J. Maxx--but they are single-ply el cheapo-s.  Even the ones in gift shops, with cool funky designs manufactured by Blue Q, are also the single-ply, poorly constructed el cheapo-s--but with a hefty price tag (about $18.95 for their 'designer' shopping tote).  My client's company offers hundreds of different designs and several bag styles, at EXTREMELY reasonable prices---seriously, Patty Reed Insta-Totes are a great product!!  Go to their website (a direct link to my design is HERE) and check it out, or head over to your local Kroger Affiliate or Fred Meyer store and pick up a few! In the stores, they are almost always on sale, for about $4 each, and they will be the best shopping tote you will ever buy.  I have so many--I keep several in each of my family's cars for grocery shopping.  I can load them up with SO MUCH, they're easy to carry into the house, and they'll last forever.  I also use them for quick weekend trips to the beach, throwing clothes into one, books and projects in another.  They are great to use in closets, too, for organizing.  Also, they are awesome as gift bags, giving the recipient a little extra gift to put to use afterwards.  (See, I told you I do marketing for this company!!  But I do fully endorse her products:-))

And if you buy MY design, you will help send my daughter to college this fall........well, maybe you will help me pay for ONE textbook?!?!

Okay, my shameless plug is now over!!