moop :: handmade

hello hello hello!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sun, 28 Feb 2016 19:30:00 +0000

Hello! I'll be re-starting making entries on the blog here...it's been about a year since we moved everything to the website but, we'll be making some more changes over there and I don't see why we can't have both..ya know?! So, you'll see updates posting over here soon again.
xoxo,
wendy & co.

Blog has moved!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 23 Apr 2015 14:29:00 +0000

Hi there,

Just wanted to give you aheads up that I've been making all new blog posts on our website's blog which you can find over here: http://www.moopshop.com/blogs/news

Please update your links and keep on reading over there.

Thanks for reading along for all these years! Hope you continue to do so!

xoxo,
Wendy

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 11 Feb 2015 14:45:00 +0000

A few things about this image:1. I cannot wait to have the plastic come off our huge windows (though, they make for good diffusion panels).
2. I feel very lucky that I get to spend my days in this studio.
3. I’m carrying The Shopper no.2, which I use as my camera bag. I just slipped a padded insert inside to protect my gear.
4. I’m thinking a lot about my little brother who just deployed…again.
5. I’m sewing lots of Backpack no.2’s for the next few days and listening to every podcast The Memory Palace has produced.

p.s. I've mostly moved the blog to our main website. You can follow along with all the updates here:
http://www.moopshop.com/blogs/news

Introducing Dana and Sara

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sat, 07 Feb 2015 16:48:00 +0000

I have finally had a moment to process after our whirlwind drive across the country to solidify my partnership with Spooltown in Portland, Oregon. I started working with Dana and Sara about 9 months ago. We started with a conversation about shoulder straps. Then, very soon after, my entire world turned upside down and my feelings about how I was accomplishing my personal and business goals changed entirely. For the last 8 years, I have been a very direct part of making every single Moop bag and I have run every other aspect of the business myself. I have had some great people to consult with along the way and help out with things I couldn’t have done on my own (like, hiring an accountant was one of the smartest things I had ever done). But, I took a minute to envision the next 8 years and I did not want to see myself in the same place, with no personal growth and no additional happiness, still working 7 days a week, seeing my entire creative practice slipping away. There have been so many moments over the years where I have been so overwhelmed by simply the time spent on production and managing those doing production with me that I did not see how I could continue to build an exciting business that keeps not only me interested but, you as well. When everything fell apart, I knew the solution that would help me rebuild in a way that made me really happy and allowed me to focus on the areas in which I work best.

About 3 years ago, Spooltown had reached out to Moop and while I was not ready to think about sharing production with anyone outside of my studio at that time, they never left my mind. I watched them grow as they built a sustainable, living wage, female owned, private label manufacturing space in Portland. They have been operating with the same ethics in manufacturing, job creation and visible production as I have with Moop. The textile industry is a very closed, secretive world. No one wants to talk directly about who does their manufacturing because it opens them up to criticism or to vulnerability with competitors. I have long held that I am not a part of the fashion world and I definitely do not operate under traditional business practices. I make functional, stylish, practical products and like to believe I float between many worlds ie; art, design, fashion, business, music, food etc., and I want to talk about who will be manufacturing with me. I am really excited to have found a small manufacturer who is so compatible with my personal ethics and business goals. I am proud to talk about them as a company and a noteworthy model of ethics in manufacturing and small business ownership. And, it makes me very excited about the evolution in Moop bags that will come from our shared experience, equipment and expertise.

I’ll be spending a lot of time in Portland and can’t wait to keep the conversation going about what this manufacturing shift means for my small and growing business. I will also, still be making lots of bags in Pittsburgh, having the same conversation about creative practice and small manufacturing. And, I might even take a vacation this year. 2015 is going to be great.

Click here for the full post and a few photos of our trip, Dana & Sara and Spooltown with a few of our machines!

Enjoy and thank you, thank you, thank you!

xxx

Wendy

HELLO, THIS IS VERY LONG AND YOU’LL WANT TO READ IT.

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Mon, 12 Jan 2015 11:00:00 +0000

Hello!! The holidays are over and I can’t thank you enough for your patience with our growing pains this year. We had our most successful holiday season to date (8 years strong now!) and did it all with one less person than usual (which meant, I worked like three people where I normally work like two). Even though the exhaustion of creating my own personal sweatshop was so intense and yes, I did cry from being so tired (emotionally, physically, intellectually..a lot of things happened in my life these last few months), I shared those moments with two people who have become so important to me. I know it is not normal to have such a close relationship with the people you work with but, working at Moop is not a normal place to work. Gena and Lexi know that. They have been so incredible to devote their days to the thing I devote my days to and I can’t thank them enough.

Now that the crazy intensity of holidays have settled and we are completely caught up on order fulfillment and slowly rebuilding our stock and making a few design changes, there is one absolutely hugely major fantastically incredible overwhelming and great change that is coming to Moop this year. We are slowly beginning to work with another small manufacturer to help build our bags. Hold your wild horses…we’re still talking small manufacturing, employing local people, working with the same local ethics in manufacturing as I have. In fact, it has been like hiring myself (seriously, we have such crazy shared life experience it is almost uncanny). These two women, based in Portland, run a small batch manufacturing space much like my own. Only slightly larger, with more specialized equipment, a slightly bigger team and with the same focus on main street manufacturing as I have worked towards all these years. Dana and Sara are like my twin brains who I get to join forces with to make our bags better. I already believe our bags are so so good. But, I also believe everything I do can always be better. I can always be better. I will always believe that and always work towards that.

By teaming up with these two and their team, I can begin offering things we have not done in the past..things you all want - like top zippers! and leather! and vegan leather! and heavier canvases and more colors and keeping things in stock so you can order and receive bags from us sooner. This decision has not been a small, light hearted decision to make. It has been massive for me to decide to collaborate with another team to help make Moop bags the best bags you can buy. I firmly believe in working within the limitations you have to make great things. I have done this successfully for the last 8 years. But, I have also reached a standstill. This past fall, when my life turned upside down, my priorities of time and family and work all changed. This manufacturing shift will help me achieve some of the work life balance I need. It will also help me to grow. We have not been able to meet demand because I can only sew so many bags while also doing everything else required to run the business (like this holiday season where we had to cut off orders on December 10th because we couldn’t sew any more bags…that was a big deal for our tiny little company!).

So, Gena, Lexi and I are embarking on a cross country drive to hand deliver a few of our heavy, customized, industrial sewing machines to Portland!!! (don't worry...we are keeping several machines in our studio because we will always make bags in house...we are only shifting some of our process) We will be documenting the entire trip via Instagram and Facebook and introducing you to Dana and Sara when we get there. It might be like sloppy teenage band photos or it might be like a bunch of hippy punk fiercely feminist independent nuts and berry eating ladies driving through the US, stopping at cheap hotels and dive bars for road food french fries and end of day beers. Or it might look like nothing but a lot of Nebraska. Either way - we are all really really excited about this trip, this transition and everything 2015 has in queue for us (plus, I cannot wait to show you the new Letter Bag and Tote no.1 designs that we’re working on…they will be our best bags yet…eeek!!).

I hope you’ll keep with me for this next stage of my life, Moop and for the journey this week. All of it, the life, the Moop, the trip are going to be so much fun.

Many many hugs and lots and lots of kisses,

Wendy

p.s. While we're traveling through the US countryside, we are offering FREE US SHIPPING at www.moopshop.com Simply enter the code: PGHPDX and you'll get free UPS Ground shipping within the United States. Starting now through Saturday, January 17th, 2015.

Yokoo

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 08 Jan 2015 13:54:00 +0000

I have long been a fan of Yokoo. She hand knits scarves and hats and other amazing things. We started our businesses around the same time and have developed one of my most favorite online maker friendships (one day we'll meet in person!). I recently moved (as noted in this emotional post here) and started taking the T to my studio (Pittsburgh has a light rail system and it is one of the best things about this town...wish it went all over the city though). This hat arrived this morning and it will help keep me warm on these frigid days. If you need warm things, here's where you can buy Yokoo's scarves and accessories (plus, she's a fantastic photographer).

xxx
w

p.s. gray is my favorite color.

2015

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 01 Jan 2015 16:09:00 +0000

Happy New Year 2015! It's going to be so good and so different.

Hello and Thank You!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Mon, 29 Dec 2014 14:37:00 +0000

Good Morning, Monday! We are back in the studio just a few days this week, working on sewing up as many remaining orders as we can that did not ship prior to xmas. We are giving ourselves a little space to recover from the intense holiday production schedule...we'll be back to normal starting Jan 5th. So, just a heads up, we are currently on about a 10-14 day turnaround while we work on rebuilding our stock of bags and fulfilling all of the remaining orders in queue. Seriously! y'all are amazing! Thanks so much for the orders that keep coming in!! We'll get them made and shipped out to you as soon as we can. And, with that - hope you have super fun New Years plans!

xxo,

Wendy

done!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 13:13:00 +0000

And here I am, four weeks later, wrapping up the busiest holiday season we've ever had...thank you a million times over for all of the orders this year!! We are here working today then signing off for the rest of the week for a much needed break. If you see Gena or Lexi or Jesse on the street give them huge high fives and bear hugs for making MoopHQ the best place to be this year.

Much love,
Wendy

HOLIDAY RUSH + GIFT CARDS + A HANDFUL OF SECONDS BAGS

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 13:12:00 +0000

Good Morning, Monday! We have had quite a few weeks, eh?! So much has happened and we can’t thank you enough for all of the amazing holiday orders (plus, I bought a house and moved over the weekend). We apologize for cutting off orders on the 10th…there was just no way we could have made any more bags in time…Gena and I have been sewing like mad, and Lexi has been packing orders non-stop. Luckily, we all get along and make each other laugh so through our delerious state of working, we’ve all had a good time. We’ll be here sewing as many more bags as we can today and tomorrow then closing down for almost a week. We are pooped! But, for all of you who waited until the very last minute to give the gift of handmade, we have a solution - GIFT CARDS! This lets your recipient choose any bag they want and you get to be the winner who gave them not only a thoughtfully handmade bag but, also the one they wanted!

And, one quick announcement…we made a mistake on two runs of Paperbacks. Not good for us but, great for you. So, we’re making them available on the site this morning. There are a handful of the Moop + Thread Paperbacks and a handful of Gray wax Paperbacks. Here’s what’s wrong with them: we mis-cut one piece and did not realize the dimensions were off until they were all sewn up so they’re about one inch shorter than our first quality bags (we’re calling them a casualty of our overworked brains). As with all seconds bags, there are no structural issues, they are final sale and they are 25% off. If you want one, grab it now. We’ll only have the product page up today and tomorrow until 1pm EST, if there are any leftover, they won’t be available until our next seconds sale (and who knows when that will be!).

We’ll do our best to get as many as possible shipped before the holiday but, if you want to ensure it arrives in time for xmas, you’ll want to expedite shipping (you can do that at checkout). They’re all ready to go so you won’t be waiting for us to make them. But, remember, we’re a small small team..we can’t make Amazon style turnaround times happen in this place. We hand wrap every bag.

Hope you’re off to a super great week!

xoxo,

Wendy & co.

Holiday Deadlines

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 11 Dec 2014 13:26:00 +0000

While I was curled up in a ball last night with a bottle of chardonnay and watching Gossip Girl for the first time (I know…late to the game. And, yes, of course I started at season 1 episode 1) after the 12th day in a row if 12+ hours of manual labor, I really had no real thoughts…I was in total Blair, I mean BLISS! bliss. I was in total bliss.. ok. yes, i have watched too much of that show. But, seriously! I have also sewn as many bags as I possibly can each day and my neck hurts so cut me some slack…I can watch mindless bad t.v. and still be a good person. Anyhow, did you see the new photos of Addie with The Letter Bag?? (god I loved Sunday’s photoshoot) all of this is also a very long way of saying, I left the studio late last night and arrived here really early and as much as I hate to do this, I think have to cut off holiday orders because this will continue to be my schedule for the next 12 days. Orders can still be placed on the website but, we can no longer guarantee delivery in time for Christmas for orders placed after 12/10. We have so many in queue, we’ll be stitching these long days until the last day we can ship and have things arrive in time.

Thank you a million million million for all of the orders!!! Now, back to work!!

xoxo

Wendy

Moop just got prettier + some news

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Tue, 09 Dec 2014 03:33:00 +0000

Good Morning, Monday! I spent all of yesterday working on a much needed update to our website imagery. You know the feeling when you need to reconnect things back to their origins? I had let the representation of what I do with my days slide too far away from my studio. So, I scheduled a last minute photoshoot in our new space and it turned out exactly how I wanted.

The last many months have brought an overwhelming amount of change. All change that will lead to positive things but still, quite a lot to balance. Sunday’s photoshoot was a reminder that good creative energy comes when you let yourself be aware of it, responding to it when it shows itself. I wasn’t planning on writing an emotional email this morning but, as you all know, Moop is not just a business for me, it is what shapes and influences my entire life. And, when I have a lot going on, it’s hard for me to shelter one from the other. So, a quick rundown: My amazing incredible husband and I have decided to split up. This has been difficult and emotional but, ultimately a mutual decision that we both know will be better for all of us. We care for each other deeply, but it’s where we need to go to reach whatever the next stage of our lives are. At the same time, my lead assistant of three years left Moop for another job. I am super happy for her, but that news paired with the studio move and the start of our holiday production season has made things more than a little crazy around here. I am also in the process of moving to a new house with my daughter, back in the city and closer to my studio (eek! It’s super cute!)..that happens next Tuesday. This will eliminate a 3 hour daily commute, but until then, moving is tiring and consuming…especially for me at this moment in time. No biggie, though, we'll just sling a few mattresses on the floor and live out of suitcases until mid-January. Oh, and also! we’ve had such amazing press over the last few months…that combined with your incredible support means our holiday production is in full swing as we head into our most successful holiday season to date.

So, we really are sewing and sewing and sewing, working as hard as we can! But, all of this…this beautiful mess of change and evolution and forward movement is all good…really good. I guess this might have been better suited to a “2015 is going to be awesome” email but, I felt the need to share this now instead. I can’t thank you all enough for your support - you’ve helped me build a small business that will be here for a long long time. We have lots of big and exciting things planned for 2015… I cannot wait to share with you, but I really can’t cram anything more into this long message.

Many many many thanks and a million hugs and kisses and tons and tons of Moop bags,

Wendy

p.s. Click through to see the new site! www.moopshop.com

p.s. Our holiday turnaround time is closer to 5-7 days now so, our previously published deadlines may not apply...get your orders in as early as you can and we're gonna be making as many bags as we can to get them to you in time for holiday delivery.

Moop + Tugboat + Reiko

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 04 Dec 2014 14:27:00 +0000

I am so excited to invite you all to my studio for a holiday pop up shop with Tugboat Printshop and Reiko Yamamoto on December 13th, noon-5pm. We'll all be there so you can do your holiday shopping. Here's a link to a few details and the facebook event page here. Also that day, Commonwealth Press is hosting a holiday sale in their studio so, come to Moop HQ, then head over to Commonwealth..or vice versa. Can't wait to see you all then!

xoxo,

Wendy

Holiday Shipping Deadlines

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sat, 29 Nov 2014 14:00:00 +0000

Hello! I have a Thanksgiving hangover (or a hangover because i joined my little brother on a bar crawl last night..who knows which) but, just wanted to give you a quick holiday shipping guideline for all of the Moop bags that you would like to give as gifts. Every Moop bag is handmade and handwrapped and that sort of stuff takes time so, please plan accordingly. We're currently on a 2-3 day turnaround from the time you place an order to when your package ships out the door. (this will change as the holidays approach..we're just a few people sewing all of our bags!)

And, don't forget, our Black Friday sale is still going on! 10% off with the code: MOOPBF from now until Dec. 5th.

xoxo and Advil,

Wendy

Black Friday Sale

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Fri, 28 Nov 2014 12:00:00 +0000

Hello and Happy Thanksgiving!

This is my favorite holiday of the year. I have hosted Thanksgiving dinner for 9 of the last 10 years. It is one of my most favorite things to do. Bringing together my friends and family to spend a day watching football, sitting around the bonfire, setting off fireworks and sharing conversation over elaborate food, fancy cocktails and pie brings me lots of happiness. This year was an all day affair filled with lots of cooking, cocktail making and zero stress. My last three months have been incredibly overwhelming and all I wanted for christmas..I mean thanksgiving, was a stress free day with those who mean the most to me. And, well, my wish came true. I hope yours did, too.

Many many many thanks for an incredible year. To celebrate friends and family and business and a life of making things and stress free days and well, everything!, we’re having a holiday sale!

10% off your entire order from now until December 5th with the code: MOOPBF

Enjoy your weekend and don’t forget to support your favorite small businesses this time of year!

xoxo,

Wendy

p.s. here’s a list of some pretty great things from the last few weeks:

I was profiled in The Atlantic. yes..the one that writes real news stories! You can read it here.
We released the new and instantly popular Envelope Clutch no.1. You can buy it here.
We teamed up with two of our favorite friends: Tugboat Printshop and Reiko Yamamoto Studio for a holiday pop up shop on Dec. 13th. You can read more about it here.
One of my favorite blog posts about the power of making things. Read it here.
Clyde (our studio kitty) has moved to my house where he thinks he is king and has usurped our house kitty, Mouse (who was previously the Queen). Sometimes he’s a real jerk, like the other night he bit my ear because I wasn’t giving him enough attention. Other times he’s a real deal snugglebug. He is also so confused by the chickens who get to wander freely outside. He wants to eat them. There is no link for that story. I just wanted you to know. He’s all well and good and has taken to home life like a champ.

A story about Moop!! In The Atlantic!!!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sat, 15 Nov 2014 16:05:00 +0000

I cannot even begin to describe the avalanche of crazy that has happened in my life in the last three months. More has been served up to me than I ever thought I could manage...but, I'm holding it together (might have cried when the UPS driver arrived suuuper late yesterday so maybe not as well as I think but, you can't win them all). This avalanche has been a mix of good and bad...bringing me to the extremes of both. One of the really exciting things was a series of meetings and interviews I did with John Tierney and Deb Fallows from The Atlantic. I wrote about the first mention a few weeks ago here but, this article is about Moop! How I began, where it is and where it's going. Moop is not just a business for me or a project or a side thing, it is my lifestyle and my entire livelihood. It means everything to me and dictates most every aspect of my daily life. It is deeply personal and it feels good to have that noticed in such a major publication.

If you have a few minutes, you can read it here.

And, big thanks and high fives and hugs to John and Deb. Such great people.

A new bag!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 00:10:00 +0000

Did you see we just released the Envelope Clutch no.1? It is a zip top clutch perfect tucked under your arm or tossed inside a larger bag. We're offering it in my favorite gray waxed canvas lined in teal, our new oxblood waxed canvas lined in silver and our popular tan waxed canvas lined in Thread® recycled plastic soda bottle fabric. All are water resistant, all are great. Find them here.

Press!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sat, 08 Nov 2014 15:29:00 +0000

Have you been reading this amazing new series of articles in The Atlantic? It's called American Futures, it is written by James Fallows, Deb Fallows and James Tierney. Their focus is cities across The US who are rebuilding in interesting ways. They've written about Burlington, VT (a city I love), Columbus, OH (the city I went to grad school in), a few other places and now Pittsburgh, the city I live and work in! Even better, we are mentioned in the most recent article with one of our fabric partners, Thread (they make our recycled fabric). There's more to come but, in the meantime, those are definitely my arms in that last photo, and bags we made in our studio...using my arms...and Gena's and Jess's, too. And, well, my arms and Moop bags in The Atlantic is pretty rad.

We are hiring!

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 15 Oct 2014 19:24:00 +0000

**THIS POSITION HAS BEEN FILLED**

Hello! We are hiring!

We are looking for a great person to assist with packing and shipping orders. If you love to wrap presents, write thank you notes and have a strong attention to detail, you will do well in this position. We have a very small and close knit workplace so it is imperative you are comfortable in a small working environment. Computer work is not too complicated but, you must be comfortable with a desktop computer and shipping software.

REQUIREMENTS:

experience making things 
strong attention to detail 
ability to follow instructions
 self motivated independent worker 
strong work ethic
 interest in small manufacturing
 must have some experience with fabric (sewing, cutting, pressing, measuring)
 must be comfortable with a computer 
comfortable using cutting tools and industrial equipment 
comfortable working in a very small environment (2-4 co-workers)

DESIRABLES:

previous packing/shipping experience nice
neat handwriting (you’ll be hand writing thank you notes) 
experience in a production and manufacturing environment background in art and/or design
 interest in handmade community and/or small independent business

HOURS:

Part time (10-12 hours a week to begin, more during our busy season) 
10 am-2 pm, 3 days a week 

This is an entry-level position. 
Looking for the right person to start immediately.

Please send cover letter and resume to: info@moopshop.com
Only qualified candidates will be contacted.

New Space

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 01 Oct 2014 13:06:00 +0000

Good Morning, Wednesday. This is my new landscape. The studio has been moved and we are slowly getting back to production and shipping out orders from the last 10 days. There's a lot of 'where's the such and such?' and adjusting muscle memories to the new space and finding better ways to organize. But, I love it here. Feeling pretty grateful to get to work in a space like this.

Moved

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Sat, 27 Sep 2014 11:41:00 +0000

This week has been filled with so many emotions of change and adjustment. We left behind the studio we worked so hard to build out three years ago...the one we thought we would never leave...to move into the most beautiful studio we've ever worked in. So much hard labor went into making it this way and I am forever thankful to Jeremy who made it all happen and for letting me be his assistant while we worked on refinishing the space. I want to say we will never leave here but, I've learned, trusting permanence is not a smart thing to do. Things change, commitments change, people change, locations change...our lives are filled with change. For now, I'm focusing on the moment and looking forward to settling into our new North Side location. I do hope everyone who can will join us for an opening party towards the end of October. I'll set the date soon. In the meantime, we'll be catching up on production and shipping and getting to know our new studio. It's beautiful here. I'm happy to have this be where I get to go each day.

p.s. I have moved the blog to our website and sometimes I forget to post things back over here...so, for the most up to date, visit the blog here.

smallness

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 27 Aug 2014 19:48:00 +0000

I am often immersed in a world of much larger than me, small businesses. The US Gov’t defines a small business as less than 200 employees - that is a lot of employees! That means you are dealing with a lot of volume, cash flow, materials, data, clients, customers, etc. That kind of business is huge to me. Moop is a business that employs three other people, besides myself. The four of us together can accomplish a lot. We make a lot of bags, every day of the week. The work is repetitive and labor intensive but, it results in really well made bags - bags that you’ll want to carry every day. I know this because I carry our bags every day and so does everyone who works at Moop and thousands of people worldwide. When I asked for photos of you all carrying our bags, you sent me the most amazing images of you in the most fantastic places - some close to home and some very exotic. I loved seeing those. I would venture to guess that a big part of why each of you have chosen to carry a Moop bag is because we are small. I am so committed to our smallness that I think it frustrates those around me. But, running Moop is not just my business - it is my lifestyle. It is so integrated into everything I do. For many years I talked about it as an extension of my creative practice but, it is my creative practice. Moop has taught me more about what it means to live a deliberate lifestyle than anything else. It has required me to balance and juggle so many things and has forced me to grow and learn on a daily basis. 7 1/2 years ago I never ever could have imagined I would be in the place I am. I have worked hard to get here and so has everyone who has ever worked for me. I have an immense gratitude for everyone who has devoted their days to helping me do what I do. Currently, Jess, Gena and Jesse help to make that happen and they are, quite literally, THE BEST! I had a birthday a few weeks ago and for the first time in my life I had emotions around getting older, how I have changed, the things I have experienced, where life will take us next. I am looking forward to what Moop will look like in 20 years, who will be working on it with me and where it will have taken us. In just a few weeks we are making another studio move. When we moved into our current space, I thought we would be here much longer. But, things change and we move - best not to cry about it! Every time we move, I am reminded of the kind of people Jeremy and I are - we are the kind that will make your space fantastic by putting in our own sweat and muscle to make it what we need it to be. One day, I dream of doing that in a building we own. But, for now, it’s okay to be doing it for someone else because the direct benefit to us is worth the weeks spent building and sanding and painting and cleaning (while also doing our other jobs). The new space will be beautiful when we are finished with it. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you, having a party and getting to make our bags in a space we worked hard to made great. Thanks for reading my long ramble! I love what I do and love more than anything the support you all have shown us by allowing Moop to continue to make great bags. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

xoxo

Wendy

Home

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Fri, 15 Aug 2014 14:17:00 +0000

I feel very lucky to call this place home. This is the view from my bed as I wake up each morning. This summer, Jeremy built the small barn, the chicken coop and 4 large raised bed gardens. Tomorrow, we'll be photographing the Moop collection in this space with a bunch of my most favorite people. I can't wait to share the images with you. It's been a long time since I've felt so inspired by a place, the people around me, the things I get to do everyday and the life I've worked so hard to build. Hard work pays off. Keep on trucking, folks and enjoy your weekend!

xoxo,
Wendy

Bayardstown

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 16:08:00 +0000

We will be at Bayardstown Social Club this Saturday for a last minute pop-up shop with Deadbury Dead, Tugboat Printshop, Cellar Door Soap and Steel City Cotton Works. Bring your friends, your picnic, your booze and your conversation because we'll be there with bags and ready to hang out. Starts at 6pm. See you there!

xoxo,

Wendy

The Pittsburgh Glass Center

noreply@blogger.com (moop!) — Thu, 31 Jul 2014 14:20:00 +0000

Jeremy Boyle / Travis Rohrbaugh :: 2014

Jeremy has work in the upcoming Pittsburgh Biennial. It opens tomorrow at The Pittsburgh Glass Center. He's been working with glass and water jets at TechShop and The Glass Center for the last 6 months in partnership with glass artist, Travis Rohrbaugh. The resulting work was complex to produce, subtle in design and completely beautiful. We will be at the opening tomorrow - I hope to see you there!

Event details can be found here.

opening August 1, 6pm-9pm

Pittsburgh Glass Center, Hodge Gallery
5472 Penn Ave, PGH 15206