Planning Our Next Collection

Following on from the last blog post where I talked about the new direction Ta Muchly is heading in, it’s time to get planning! (If you didn’t read it, catch up here.) 

I’m working hard behind the scenes to plan the next few collections, which will be launching in the coming months. So I thought I’d bring you along for the ride, and show you a bit of behind the scenes action as I go. It’s actually pretty crazy the amount of work that goes into planning each collection, way more than I realized before I got started on this journey. You’re probably thinking, surely you just design a product, photograph it and then stick it up on the website? Yep, I thought that too!! As it turns out, that’s only a very small part of it.

Right now, I’m right at the beginning of the process, so it seems a good time to talk through my ideas with you. First up, I’m trying to decide which places to feature in the first few collections. (So if you want to see a particular place let me know in the comments below!) It’s hard to know where to start with first, as there are so many amazing locations that I can’t wait to feature. I’m torn between places I know, and places I don’t. We’re currently making the most of this beautiful summer weather and exploring the stunning Alberta scenery on our doorstep, so I definitely have lots of things to share about our travels, and I’d love to tie this in with the latest launch.

BOW VALLEY PARKWAY, ALBERTA, CANADA

Having said that, I do already have quite a few Canada themed products in the shop, so maybe it would be good to have a bit of variety?! So I’m also toying with the USA, Europe and more Asia themed designs too. And of course, I could very easily talk about the UK and places we’ve visited over the years there! Where would you like to see first? Currently, a European collection is high on the list I think, but I could definitely be swayed by your feedback, so let me know quick!

Once I’ve decided on the place, or places, I’m going to focus on, it’s time to start planning each product design. Some are easier than others. For the mandala map art prints, finalizing the idea is pretty straightforward, as it’s just a case of deciding on the location, be that a Country, Province or State. Once I know where I’m working on, I can just get on with the actual design of it, which is a fairly similar process for each location. It gets more tricky when it comes to some of the papercut designs, as more often than not, what looks good in my head, doesn’t necessarily translate properly onto paper! I almost always end up changing the design as I go, and I’m then constantly tweaking and changing it for several weeks before I settle on a final design. I also then have to do several rounds of test cuts and then adjust the template accordingly to make sure the design works properly. Likewise, with the paper flowers, the hardest part is the actual initial concept selection. Choosing which flower to make, and deciding what is going to look good together in a bouquet, before spending hours and hours making them. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t!

On top of all that, working out what’s going to sit well together in a collection can be a challenge too. My problem isn’t actually coming up with enough ideas, it’s that I usually have too many to narrow down! Ideally I’m always aiming for a 10 piece collection, but that’s easier said than done when you have hundreds of ideas buzzing around in your head, each desperate to be made into reality! For example, I could easily do a collection of just 10 European Country mandala prints, but where’s the fun in that?! I want to add papercut maps, and paper flowers from Spain and Italy too! How do I decide?! There’s so many!!

I think for now, I have to settle for making a note of all of my ideas, and then working through them one collection at a time. Just because I focus on one city right now, doesn’t mean there wont be opportunity to launch a second one with different designs further down the line. So for now, who knows! Watch this space to find out where I decide to feature first!!

Michelle x