PPC28: A Tale of Two Gorillas

October 13, 2022 / Kat /

So…

an interesting this happened on the way to developing the pattern for this new design.

Normally, my first step after getting my idea down on paper (in the form of a sketch), I create a “prototype”, that’s to say that I create a skeleton form of the new design (without a lining and devoid of most interior features), just to get my important pattern pieces working together.

But this time…and for the 1st time…

I went straight from a sketch to a gorilla sample which I’ve been carrying for about 10 days (see the silver & gold sample below and at left).

And actually, if you’re wondering where our usual “initial prototype sample” is… here’s the deal… for the first time in our previous 46 patterns, I jumped straight to the Gorilla sample and you know what? I was actually pretty darned happy with how it turned out. But weren’t there things I wanted to correct or improve? Of course there are but first, let me play show & tell with our 1st Gorilla sample (at left), and the 2nd Gorilla sample (at right).

This design has two completely separate & roomy zippered compartments. I’ve included a three slot card caddy here, but these are easy to make and one could absolutely make up and extra one or two and place them on another lining wall.

And guess what’s in-between the zippered pouches? We’ve included one of our signature hidden drop-in slots between the pouches and this area is secured with a mag-snap closure. Your phone will easily fit here but so will your reading glasses, lipstick, pens or anything else you want quick and secure access to.

And finally, there’s another drop-in slot pocket on the back of the bag and my Samsung Galaxy 20 phone will also easily fit in here.

So why you might ask are there TWO gorilla samples presented on this page?

Well here’s the deal… as much as I liked the 1st Gorilla sample (on the left), after making the next sample (which I really believed would be the first show sample for this design) and carrying it for a week or two I found I was dissatisfied with that back slot pocket. When I carried my phone in that slot pocket, it seemed to blare open a bit making my phone seem a little too exposed and insecure. That’s when I knew that the right decision was to add a tab of some sort to strengthen this area, but I also knew that doing this would unfortunately render BOTH of these samples as totally ineffective as a true examples of this design… which means that although they’re both beautiful to look at, they could never truly represent the final design. For the first time ever, I had inadvertently created …

TWO Gorilla Samples!!!

As much as this was a disappointing turn of events, I’m satisfied with this course of action and I hope you stay tuned for our next post in this series when we’ll reveal the first TRUE sample of this design! I hope, I hope!

**And now… a word about these fabrics**, both of which I highly recommend!
The fabric on the left is part of Gustav Klimt’s collection for Robert Kaufmann and the on the right,
is a sample from Deborah Edwards’ “Luminosity” collection for Northcott Fabrics.

And now, it’s YOUR turn!

If you have comments you’d like to share or questions you’d like to ask about this design in general or these samples in specific, please feel free to leave either or both in the space provided below.

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