Ride of Silence, Access for All, and Hops Hops Hops

In an effort to honor the life of a friend and fallen cyclist, Sylvia Bingham, a group of cyclists rode clad in white along the route she had taken that tragic day. We stopped briefly to pay homage at the ghost bike that was placed on the intersection by the Ohio City Bicycle Co-Op one year earlier and left the bike covered in a bouquet befitting the fallen.
Not two days later, a group of cyclists committed to normalizing bicycle safety and complete streets in NE Ohio's regional development discussions hosted a great event trying to raise interest in passing complete streets legislation in the city of Cleveland. There were several bands, reduced food and drinks, plenty of information on what is in the works and how to get involved, and a great chance to see the beautiful Progressive "I really mean the Jake" Field without a baseball game. I donated the Cle bag as a raffle for those who signed up to receive emails about upcoming cycling events and volunteer opportunities.
Finally, a coworker of mine and musician/home-brewer was in need of a new bag for carrying around music and other bits. The result is a pretty big bag that features a giant hop bud and the symbol for resistance. I really like how the muted colors came together.

Late Summer

While summer was flying by and the bar was keeping me from my shop, I did manage to do a little work and was able to complete a really fun project for Cub, a little man with a big love for bikes. His father, a courier, has the little guy flying around town and the two of them enjoy a daily ride to school together. The final product is a two part bag. The main bag is a traditional courier bag and is large enough for a full-sized human carrying a full days worth of books while the second bag is a tiny bag for him now that can hold a book, maybe two, a folder and some pencils. This one is appliqued with characters from the Scooby Doo series and features the 10,000 Volt Monster, the Tar Monster and the Creeper. This smaller bag has a unique design in that the strap is removable and the bag can be strapped onto the larger bag, acting as the front pocket. In doing this, Cub will be able to enjoy both bags as he grows out of the smaller one. Thankfully, it wasn't all work and no play and I was able to spend some time on the Goodtime III on the Cuyahoga River for a friend's birthday and was able to get some great shots of downtown Cleveland from a somewhat unique perspective.

Made in the 216 2010 Hip Packs

These are some of the hip packs that I've done for the even at Danielle's store! You may recognize the patch from an earlier post!

John's Crooked River Bag

This bag was months in the making and is maybe the most complicated bag from a design standpoint. The panels were cut and printed from linoleum blocks onto Sailcloth by Alex Nosse. These panels represent the aspects of the Cuyahoga River: agriculture, industry, and recreation.

Dave's Piggly Wiggly Bacon Bag

Prototyping is over and the Big Boy Backpack is ready to hit the streets. Featuring the zippered document pocket, split shoulder strap, side pockets, compression straps, you know, the works, this behemoth deserves to go to the guy who did the testing in Chicago with its father, the camo pack. Dave wanted a pig with bacon crossbones and I'm pretty sure I hit the mark!

Sparrow Hip-Pack

Inspired by old school tattoo imagery, this sparrow bag is the first of its kind. Not only does it feature the normal fittings of a hip pack, but it also has a zipper in the flap for keeping money, keys, whatever sealed away.

Katie's Ohio Bag

This plain little number has a cute little ohio and star on the lower right hand corner. Chicago here we come.

Jess's Elephant Family Bag

This is one of the most endearing bags I've made to date. It features mommy and her two babies walking. The detail is just enough and the colors look great!

Molly's Millencolin Bag

I made this little pink number for Molly. It is an ode to one of her favorite bands Millencolin.

Fatty's Daddy Baggy

My dear friend Brian welcomed his baby girl Clover Jane into the world recently and to celebrate the birth, his loving wife got him this rad baby baggy. It is special for a few reasons. First, it utilizes magnetic snaps instead of velcro for the closures to eliminate that obnoxiously loud noise which can easily wake your baby after hours of trying to get her to sleep. Also, the interior features a series of removable pockets and pouches including a bottle holder and a dry bag as well as a movable divider for partitioning the insides. Not only do these make organizing babies things easy, but since they can be removed, the bag can double as a courier bag during and after the baby bag part is needed. Finally, it has a series of D-Rings and Clips for toys, pacifiers, etc.

Sugar Skull Hip Pack

This sweet Hip Pack was a little late to its owner, but I think it turned into a nice X-mas gift in the end. The design is really intricate and took some time to complete but the final product is awesome! Thanks for your patience Gregg.

"216" Task Bag

The task bag is my new favorite here at the shop. Though I have already made some adjustments, this bag was so killer that I kept it for myself. Added since this bag were buckles and straps and slight angle adjustments on the straps, but other that that... Perfection. It is smallish, sleek, comfy, frill free and MINE. Hard to believe, but I have only a few bags from my own shop, and most of them are prototypes that I'm not really in love with.

"You Are Here" Musette

Perhaps the most iconic of the flaps to date, this medium musette is a longtime hipster tattoo design and a great signifier of your love for the great green city on a blue lake. The muddy banks of the Cuyahoga seem a little more inviting to those who like this design.

"Om" Tote

The time has come for Totes. Not only are they easy to make and fun, but they are a great way to avoid using plastic bags at the grocery store, and are versatile enough to be bookbag, purse, and shopping bag interchangeably. This small tote stays with the Sanskrit theme and has already found a home in the hands of a budding yoga instructor.

"Cascading Circles" Musette

The musette has become a favorite of mine recently as it combines the great comfort of an over-the-shoulder civilian bag, with the bike-a-bility of a courier bag. They have simplified straps that work best when walking around, but leashes and adjustable buckles for when jumping on your stallion. This one is a small and is so darn precious!

"Fast Forward" Bag

A medium bag with the new strap design featured on it, the fast forward bag has been on my list of to do's for some time and the opening at Studio 11 for the Art Walk was just what I needed to kick my butt into gear.

"Checkerboard" HP

I love the simple color scheme and classic design. The white background really highlights the color gradients.

Cleveland Skyline Bags

A family friend ordered a pair of task bags for her boys. The result
is two nice bags that are identical in design but divergent in color.

"Biking is Free"Day Bag

A new bag style at Forest City Portage is the Task Bag... It is basically a stripped down bag that has most of the elements of the traditional bags but less fuss. The idea here is to create a bag for the casual cyclist that is functional, but doesn't force them to pay for the features of a bag built for year-round, on the job couriers. It has the same 1000D Cordura exterior and the floating 18oz. Vinyl liner. It also has a padded split strap and a leash. It has a giant exterior pocket with pen slots and a wallet slot on the outside, and a double-wide pocket just inside it. There are no pockets on the interior of the bag making the main compartment a holding zone more than an organizing area. Gone is the double layer base and the straps for closure. This bag is not meant to be overfilled, but it will do the job for trips to the market or class. Also, a new strap design featuring fins that are similar to those found on backpacks which really increase the comfort when carrying odd-sized and smaller loads.

"Cog" HP