The folding shopping bag

At the minute I am trying to develop some new lines specifically aimed at craft fairs. Given the current economic climate people are being more careful with their money and are less likely to "treat" them selves to a clutch mid year. With this in mind I have been looking at some ideas to have practical items that are sellable at a competitive price point. I already have a range of totes for shopping but I thought maybe it I could change the bag so that it would fold into a pouch, it may make it more desirable.

I reworked my normal production method for shoppers and after much studying other bags of this nature, decided how I could get it to fold.I, also, decided to not line the bag as this would add extra bulk to the folding and drive the price for the buyer up.

The irony of the design rework is that I actually thing I made it trickier to sew by making the bag simpler, but there is room for changes there.

The results are still open for debate: I thing it looks..... not in keeping with the type of products I produce. Other opinions vary from it's ok to there is nothing wrong with it, and I think there in lies the problem (probably a common one among crafters who sell). Being ok is not good enough, well certainly not for me. I am fussy about what I sell because as a consumer I am fussy about what I buy. I often stand at craft fairs and watch people buy things that haven't always been made with the highest level of care, but at a price they are happy with. Whilst I, like the next person, likes a bargain, I don't like it at the cost of quality.

So this brings me back to the discussion I have with my OH at many of these craft fairs - I am here just to make money or am I here to showcase what I do and hopefully make some money at it. I feel currently I stand at the latter, but realistically I need to be more it the middle. I know I need to make products that have more all year appeal, at a competitive price, but this bag has a way to go before it gets a look I am happy with.