Comments on: 21 mistakes fashion designers can make

By: Marci

Marci — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 03:19:08 +0000

Jennifer I am reading this later than you but I feel the same reassurance. I even contacted Sally about a year ago for my design I thought I should keep things close in the beginning. Oh how I wish she was closer too me!!

By: Jennifer Philbrook

Jennifer Philbrook — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:35:59 +0000

I know I am way behind on this post but I wish I had read this a year ago. Number 2 speaks directly to me. I have been pushing back my launch date for so long and have been feeling like a failure! Now I feel better about myself as I realize the problem was an unrealistic date.

By: Parker+Muse » Blog Archive » Clicks of the Week

Parker+Muse » Blog Archive » Clicks of the Week — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 02:12:58 +0000

[...] Incubator presents 21 mistakes fashion designers make. I guess at every corner there are possibilities for [...]

By: Patricia Barnett

Patricia Barnett — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:31:09 +0000

What a great list, I could look at every one of them as a way to improve. #1 is especially hard for me to follow as far as narrowing my focus and specializing. I hopefully have a good idea, am getting patterns made, but I constantly find something I want to add.

By: sally

sally — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:16:38 +0000

Carissa, Good to hear your shirt made it in O magazine! Keep up the great work.

By: carissa

carissa — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:35:21 +0000

Great Sally! We had our team read your post and discuss it. You are great at what you do! And if anyone needs a pattern maker, we wholly endorse Sally. O Magazine featured a shirt she did for us, and it is a best seller.

By: Jennifer Bailey

Jennifer Bailey — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 20:01:45 +0000

Just what I needed, Thanks!

By: sarah

sarah — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 17:30:30 +0000

These are all great tips! Thanks Sally!

It all takes time, determination and constant improvement. I always learn so much here.
Reinforcing good and positive actions, cements my drive to keep pushing on.
Number 2 figures strongly for me and my work. There have been so many small and large accomplishments on the way, I don’t feel a need to rush into a tradeshow. Instead, I savor those moments as successes in themselves, even if it’s the ability to maintenance my machines myself. It’s so much more important to be a scientist about your fit and a sleuth for your supplies, and know why you’re doing it and how you really want to go about it before you go in headfirst and fritter away those precious hours and dollars. I keep talking about showing, I’m sure it will happen. I just don’t want to make an a** of myself! I’ve been a bulldozer before and just knocked down the good with the bad in fool hardy pursuit.

It’s all happened so organically, albeit with some forehead-slapping mistakes, it hasn’t felt like work, well not intense back-breaking labor. And I never quit my day job!

By: vee

vee — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 07:03:17 +0000

Thanks for the endearing information.

By: Anaka Narayanan

Anaka Narayanan — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 03:37:48 +0000

Thank you Sally and Kathleen for being so generous with advice. I have to say that number 1 is a lot tougher than it seems. I’m a place in my business where I cater to such a niche segment with my product- too niche to make money and comfortably pay my bills. This means I have to diversify, but just a little. I am going to start incorporating less expensive fabrics and make styles that have more mass appeal- and if it works then I might put them under a different brand name so that the original brand’s image does not get diluted. I said it’s difficult because when you are struggling to make ends meet (and make it all look effortless!), it’s hard to not make compromises and just make anything that you know will sell, even if it’s not in keeping with your design philosophy.