The Journey of our Bag….

As we often get asked about how and why we started TTW, we thought it would be nice to share some insight into the journey, story behind us and why the oversized waxed canvas bag.

We are two busy mums, juggling all the usual things such as kids sport, school, work, study, kids parties, play dates, weekend activities and all the other unexpected surprises that somehow happen always .

But both of us were looking for a small business to get involved in and so a year ago, we sat down and discussed what that venture could be. We quickly whittled it down to things use everyday and ended up talking about bags, how they annoy us because the fact is most bags under perform for the task of ‘busy mum’ / ‘busy family’.

We use bags every day for a multitude of different tasks, yet somehow they have never really hit the mark, for us anyway. Things spilling, never being able to find things in them, handles not long enough or too long, too floppy, not enough water bottle holders for all the kids, the list went on. So we decided we would make the ultimate bag, that would serve our purpose. A bag that could be used as a beach bag, carrying-kids-stuff tote, picnic bag, a going to the gym bag, a baby bag or a travel tote.

Designing a bag

The task of designing this ‘bag of bags’ would be simple, we thought. We wanted it to be just big enough, durable, functional, and attractive with a calming and simple deep colour pallet. We drew the bag on paper (old school), created measurements and built in every feature we wanted to see in our ‘ideal’ bag and then we contacted a seamstress in Brisbane and had a prototype made.

It was so great seeing this first prototype and allowed us to make tweaks like deeper water bottle holders (big enough for standard wine bottle (you’re welcome), adding pockets, taking away loops and adjusting handle length. We asked all of our mates what they would like to see in the ideal ‘day to day’ bag and what they could do without, how big, how many pockets, would they use a snap? It was a lot of research and a lot of questions. We learnt as we went along, made mistakes and worked out how to fix them.

The material was a no brainer, we both love the texture and look of waxed canvas, how it ages and wears and how, by virtue of its nature, it is stiff so it stands up.

Finding the manufacturer

Months and months passed of research and searching for a supplier/ agent. With the help of the amazing Brisbane based artist Lordy Dordie we found someone to help us with fabric, factory and manufacturing. After months of viewing samples, working on them and finessing the product, we decided on final design, canvas type and colour pallet. That was a great moment.

However it didn’t stop there. Once we’d found someone to work with, there were months of reviewing samples sent and tweaking very small details to ensure that we were delivering the best possible, well made, quality product. The process was long, difficult and frustrating at times but in the end, we made a waxed canvas bag we are so proud of.

Local mentors

We have had two amazing small business gurus help us along the way, Lordy Dordie has been there every step of the way, supporting with contacts, socials, pop-ups and general advice. Go check her out, she is an amazing talent, a cherished friend and brilliant businesswoman. Eliza at The Paws Room has also provided us with awesome counsel and support and has created and designed herself an amazing luxury dog crate and accessories business, please also check out her page, her stuff is brilliant and unique.

A BIG thank you

We would like to thank our families for being patient and supportive and allowing the dinner table to become the office and the spare room to become the warehouse. Thank you to our many friends who have been behind us every step of the way, your counsel is always so appreciated (and so is your wine).

What have we learnt, well I guess to start with, this process has been generous with lessons bestowed on us.
We have learnt that you really can achieve what you set out to do, if you stick at it and adopt patience as your best friend. We discovered the best way to overcome problems is to ask lots and lots of questions, give it a go and perhaps ask more questions. We realised early on that meetings needed to be flexible (5am isn’t out of the question, in the forest, in pj’s or over a glass of wine). We knew this already, but our journey has reminded us that our friends are the absolute beat and our families even better.  So our final learning is that there is some truth in the saying ‘it takes a village’….

.…because it certainly did.

Bags featured on this page are:

ALL THE DAYS Oversized Tote in London Grey

ALL THE DAYS Oversized Tote in Nordic Blue

ALL THE DAYS Oversized Tote in Rusty Pink