Night Time in the Studio
At the Commune there's plenty going on after most people go off to sleep. We're working overtime to get our bike ready for the Strida exhibition.
New Home at the Commune
We had our opening party at the Zixag Commune on Saturday- it was great to see some of you there. Favourite part of the day was the audience's sigh of relief when I switched from English back into Canto for the presentation :D (Kent's idea to start off in English). Other highlights include HK trail running legend KK Chan buying a Melanie Messenger bag- now Handsome will be all the rage on the mountains. Also had a good conversation with Luisa Mok re what constitutes environmentally friendly design. Thanks to Jeff and Kit for helping to get everything together and to Jess, Athena, Yat, Davey, Eudora, Joey, Keting and Andey for coming to support. Big thanks to Julian, TC and Kent for making this possible- we're really going to enjoy our time working here.
Melanie Messenger Bag
This is basically an update of the Chet Tote with an adjustable shoulder strap, pinched handle straps and a zipper but I've been finding it really really functional and I am most reluctant to pass it on to its rightful owner- but I must! I will make another for myself.
Kevin Messenger Bag
So yes, I promised to post pictures of the new models about a week ago and I realise I've been a little tardy- here they are: Kevin Messenger Bag - A large bicycle messenger bag that can hold a large laptop and most other everyday things. The prototype for this bag is now in New York- but we're making more.
Making Chairs for Rooftop Cinema
We've been at the Women Worker's Association helping Simon Roberts and James Fearnside to make these seat covers out of old rice sacks for Rooftop Cinema. The ladies at HKWWA did an amazing job sewing these together- averaging one seat cover every 4 minutes! AMAZING! The first screening is Zoolander on the 7th of April (Thursday) at the Fringe Club. See below for info or go to: http://rooftopcinema.hk/
Simon, James and Meilin from the HKWWA
Linda and Her New Site
Our good friend, Linda, has just updated her website and she included her designs for Handsome Bag Co. http://linda-huang.com/wordpress/?p=197
Exhibiting at Detour 27 November, 2010
Flying Colours
SO, we've had a big couple weeks. What most people don't know is that we've been hard at work on THESE the whole time. Now Handsome Bags come in 3 colours: 1. HK and Kowloon Red; 2. New Territories Green; and 3. Lantau Island Blue
Believe it or not, there is EVEN more to come as we've been working flat out. Stay tuned!
In Search of Icons
Wokai Scramble V2 Urban Scavenger Hunt
The Wokai Scramble happened last weekend and it was a great success. We raised over HKD8000 for Wokai, which is a microfinancing institution that aids entrepreneurs in rural China.
Handsome Bag Co. was one of several prize sponsors for the scramble - well done to Kathryn and Francis, the fastest pair, for winning those tote bags! We hope you make good use of them.
This beautiful video was made by Brian Fu, from flwrider, who also shot our craftslady interviews
http://vimeo.com/15841845
An Intro to The Women Worker's Association
This is our second video in a series about the craftspeople and NGOs that we work with. This is Ha from the Hong Kong Women Worker's Association http://vimeo.com/15530878
Better, Stronger, More Detailed
After a long month of product development and working closely with our seamstress, Kwan Tse, we have come up with a version of the taxi bag which we are very VERY happy with. The new version has a canvas interior and not 1, not 2, not, 3 but 5 pockets (if you count the exterior pocket). The lining is in the familiar bright red and proudly displays our 'Made in Kowloon' tag that was designed by Linda Huang.
Home Sew for Handsome Bag Co.
Hey everyone! Please head over to our 'IMPACT' page to see our newly edited interview video of our seamstress, sister Kwun.
As much as this project is about the finished product, the design and manufacture process is just as important to us at the Handsome Bag Co. So here is a glimpse of the people that work behind the scenes to deliver you a good, honest product.
http://vimeo.com/14494407
New Logo by Linda Huang
Our new logo was designed by the talented Linda Huang—everybody should hire her! Linda is working in New York and I am in Hong Kong so we did this over three hours on Skype and I could see the whole process with screen share.
Visit Linda’s portfolio- and contact her if you need a great logo!
Big Cutting Weekend
Got down to lots and lots of cutting over at the Handsome Bag Company (we like to call it 'the HSBC'). Design Mini Mart is coming! Must get to work - also purchased the most expensive pair of scissors I have ever encountered. These bad boys better last for the rest of my life!
Orders and Commissions, Mini Design Mart- Thanks for all your support!
Dear Friends,
We never imagined that the Taxi Bags would be such a hit and we are very grateful and overwhelmed by the positive response and encouragement- thank you!
The Taxi Bags are now available to order, please contact us for information (prices / 'fares' available on request). We will also be at various stores and events- in particular we will be at the Mini Design Mart from the 13th to the 15th of August . It would be fantastic to see you there.
Cheers! Billy
林一峰 is our first customer!
We are very proud to announce that our first customer is 林一峰, who bought #3 - henceforth to be known as 'the Chet'. What can we say? The man has style!
Version #4
Picked up #4 - pretty much identical to #3 but no front pocket. Think we've got this one down. #4 features a second inside pocket, extended shoulder straps for added comfort- see #4 on its first outing here:
Version Number #3
Just picked up bag #3 on Thursday- big improvement! #3 was a surprise, I wondered how the material was being used up so fast and then I discovered that the ladies at the Women's Worker's Association had been experimenting with using the piping for the front pocket- only thing was they'd given up half way for some reason! I thought it looked great and asked them to finish the bag and this is the result:
Prototype #2 and the Carbon Reduction Campaign Fair
We were kindly invited, by the Climate Group, to show our bag at the closing fair for their Carbon Reduction Campaign at Chater Gardens last week. We finished prototype #2 just in time for the show. This bag was fabricated at the Hong Kong Women Workers Association and they really did a great job on it. I think we've made many improvements on the second try- the bag is larger and more useable, with better details and a much better lining. Scrapped taxi seatbelts were used for the shoulder straps and we've tried to keep some of the original features. I've saved buckles for clasps for future prototypes. More coming soon!
Prototype #2 complete with original taxi seatbelt shoulder straps
Better lining- red to mimic a taxi, of course.
Subtle details leftover from days as part of car.
Temporary use for all the buckles
Showing off our prototype #2 to curious passersby