and the new design is...

...called Chaos! You can kind of see why, it's a beautiful chaos though, thanks to the uber talented Nicky Perry up in Auckland. 

Understand now why it's going to be interesting to print? The grey is on one screen and the black on another, I'll have to line up those little squiggly lines perfectly to get it looking just right. But it's definitely do-able, and I'll get to spend some quality time with every pair of nüdel. That's got to be a good thing - every unit bought has been in contact with the owner of the company - how many other clothing manufacturers can say that?!  

I'm just trying to work out what's the best promo item I can include in the press pack I'll be sending to promote the nüdel artist competition. It needs to fit in a noodle box and has to be something cool - nothing tacky - they're being sent to media savvy people who get this kind of thing all the time. Hmmm... any ideas? 

Round 2

Finally they have arrived - the cut panels, all 250 pairs worth of them. While they look deceptively less than the first run because they consist of less material, (being shorter leg trunk style) it's actually going to take me twice as long to print them due to a two layer screen print. But it'll be worth it!

Who just loves keeping track of stock and invoicing? Want to do mine? While I find this side of business quite intense and at times incredibly frustrating, it's good to learn these new skills if you want to succeed at this early stage. No one else is going to do it for me and it's a good idea to get these systems in place right from the start because if I didn't, I know I would just keep putting it off and off... however I'm really looking forward to the day when I can employ an account AND accounts manager type person! Will pop some bubbly that day.

...on Good Morning

Well, I didn't see the nüdel feature on Good Morning this morning but I got texts and nüdel facebook messages from people who did, so thank you! Sounded like it went quite well and was featured with another brand of undies called Four Fontaine. TVNZ's website is a seething beast and I didn't realise I could stream GM until I found the miniscule link hidden in the bowels of the site until too damn late. Anyhoo, here's a little link on the TVNZ website to a shred of nüdel exposure

I had some great news from Miranda, my PR lady on the weekend (who I met face to face at ChCh airport for the first time) Rex Turnbull is keen on submitting a piece of art for a limited run! This is big news people, Rex is a living legend. So along with him and Tiki Taane the list is slowly but surely growing, I can't wait to see who else jumps onboard the nüdel band wagon.

As soon as I get any footage from Good Morning I'll post it quick smart!

Good Morning TVNZ

nudel will be on Good Morning tomorrow (Monday 16th March) on TV1!!! The show starts at 9am and airs until 12pm but I'm not entirely sure exactly when they'll be featured. If you miss it, you'll be able to replay the segment on TVNZ On Demand

Some other great news - Jet clothing store in Auckland is taking on nudel ALSO a very special TV celebratory will model nudel for our next photo shoot so stay tuned for that one! 

Cut it out!

Well, finally the next run is being cut! End of this week it'll be ready, and once the screens up are made up, it's full steam ahead with the printing. I have to print each panel before they're assembled then take them to my new CMT place for... assembly!

It's OK once you get into the swing of things, infact it can be quite therapeutic! But starts to get a little old by around 1am... especially we you begin work at 6:30am that morning. 

The wheels have been set in motion for a grant application from the CCC for a new project I'm really keen on pushing to find another local artist. So here's hoping they'll be able to throw a bit of cash my way, the next artists is sorted and I'm stoked to report it is Auckland based graphic designer and artist Nicky Perry with a piece called Chaos. I'll post a pic asap. But seeing as I've got to always plan ahead, I need to find some more talent and I really do like the idea of getting local artists out there, even more so now that nüdel is getting some media attention.

Phase 1. Take Christchurch to the masses

Phase 2. Take New Zealand to the world!

Auckland and beyond!

My mind boggles when I think of the opportunities for nüdel in Auckland, hell, they've gone off in Christchurch so I'm hoping Aucks will gobble them up. I will be whoring them up there in the not too distant future anyway so will keep you posted on that. Thank you to Kristen and Miranda for some retailer suggestions, I think on the most part nüdel will be well suited in those stores too.
This pic is from the Slynkey.com party at the end of '08, it was kick ass. A big thanks to Ruth for letting me get those buff strippers in some nüdel!!

In a weird way I'm quite looking forward to having the next screens made up and getting into the printing side of things. Once you get your groove on, it's quite a meditative process. Plus it gets me hands on with every pair and I like knowing that I've been a part of the construction, then I get to box them all up, and seeing a big pyramid of nüdel boxes before they get shipped off to stores and ultimately on to guys asses is quite satisfying indeed!

Another step

Meet Bart Hoedemakers, the first nüdel artist. Bart is a super talented stencil artist based in Canterbury, to view more of his work click here

I received the pdf mock up of the nüdel competition guidelines today from my brilliant PR person in Auckland at Coco PR. It looks great and it's simple to understand, anyone should be able to follow the instructions and submit their work. From what I can tell, most artists nowadays are pretty internet/graphics editing program savvy so I don't foresee any problems. Get your creative wheels cranking for the 1st of April!

The cutting is almost under way for the next run of short leg 'trunk style' nüdel, just had to clarify a few issues first, as last time equal numbers across the size range was cut - not what I wanted. But this time we're all on the same page and I won't have to worry about trying to get rid of a large stock pile of XLs. 

Can't wait to get up to Auckland and start whoring nüdel to shops up there, I know it's going to go off! 

Preparing to launch

Things are well under way in preparation for the big nüdel launch this month. It's going to all start happening after they feature on Good Morning on the 16th March then we'll kick off the artist competition. All comp details will be on the nudel site of course, but it's basically a chance for artists around the country to submit an original piece of work online with the chance to have their design feature on a limited run of nüdel! The winner will also receive some pairs for themselves, or to give away to some lucky mates.

The big question I'm asking myself right now is; how many pairs should constitute as a 'limited run'? This has been something I've never quite been able to pin down, it needs to be enough to be financially viable to produce - making up screens, printing, cutting and assembly as well as distribution but made in numbers low enough to be something unique and desirable. Hmmm... anyone? Producing limited runs to the world market could be in the 100's of thousands while here at home it would be obviously much less, but what's the magic number...