05/06/2026
I woke up at 04:43 AM. I just didn’t think of writing.
Today is an exceptional morning. I woke up in the cabin in the association garden in the suburb of Paris. So fun. It was planned in advance, well organized, and I slept in warmth and with a wonderful vibe.
Really reminds me of the old, good Ukrainian dacha.
I had a great time.
I had a great time, I slept well, so now I am full of energy, and I am ready to create!
08:45
This recharge in Paris is very useful for my creative reset, and it hasn’t even finished yet!
I still have a psychiatric hospital visit today in the afternoon, and then 4 trains to get back home. Hehehe. Stay strong, Camambert!
So, as I am full of energy, I’ve already done all my work for my lovely regular job, and it’s not even 9 AM. Which means that I can do something useful for my Project.
I was waiting for that textile salon to see if there were any fabrics I could use for my clothing, but that was not at all the type of salon that my brand needs.
It was a useful experience and just the fact of seeing your pass with your name and “Je m’appelle Camambert” and “Paris, France”… it’s so validating!
I mean, I am still a little kid inside my head! I never thought I would even visit Paris! Would I have ever thought that I would work here, create my company here, and then participate in the luxury textile salon here, under the name of your humorous paradoxical company?
Oh my girl.
Imagine!
Now you don’t even have to imagine, it’s happening!
Yes, for now I haven’t released a single product yet :))
And so?
I started the way. That's what matters.
And I will keep doing little steps.
Every day.
And I will get there.
What’s next? What should I do?
Haha, I said you’ll get a chaotic founder’s diary, and here you are.
Okay, I have a website, I have my drawings, my skills… How do I put it all together?
To understand how to arrive somewhere, I need to define very precisely where I am trying to arrive.
What is the goal? Not the big general cosmic goal of this Project, just this particular goal now.
Answer: to get a working website with the products ready to be bought and produced/shipped, ready to be marketed.
Wonderful, that’s very precise.
What do we have? The working website, with the integrated payment options. So we have the beginning and the end. But we do not have the core element - products ready to be bought. Hopefully, the core element can be divided into two parts: the creative and the practical parts. Creative part is completed: I have designs. I know what I want to get on my clothing. This is the base of all. Yet, here comes the practical part. I need to find either the fabrics, the manufacturers, or make a compromise until print-on-demand services, to start somewhere. Print-on-demand services are very convenient, as they take care of the stock, the shipping, the printing, and everything. You basically connect Shopify to Printify (lol), upload your designs, make a few clicks, and your online clothing shop is on. But the quality of print-on-demand services, as well as the absence of personalised packages, or any sort of personal touch, is going strongly against the values of Je m’appelle Camambert, and I am ready to work more to maintain those values. I want to add hand-written notes to my packages. I want to add flower leaves. Sprinkle some perfume. Add some exotic sweets. I want my clients to know and to feel that they are appreciated. That they are unique. We found each other in this endless ocean of the Internet, and I am really happy about it. My product is not for everyone, and I understand it, and I am happy about it. So if you like it too - wow!
I am a big fan of automation and optimization where it’s beneficial. But I am first of all adept at human interaction. There are things that we shouldn’t automate. We can. But just because we can, doesn’t mean that we should.
I am very old-fashioned, yeah. You will see it later through the texts.
Reflections are good, but practical steps are also important!
So, no print-on-demand. Crossed out. Next. Then I need to get some fabrics. Can’t believe that I’ll make the T-shirts myself.
Okay, let’s imagine that we move in this direction. Where do I get the fabrics?
There are online stores, but fabrics it’s something that you should touch. Feel. Love.
I know that there is a mini district in Montmartre where a lot of different textiles are sold. I need to go there. I won’t go there this time in Paris because I have other missions to accomplish, but I will come back to Paris next week for this. Yes!
Then, I am also a member of the Association of learning to sew on a sewing machine. Well, they have a different name and purpose, probably, but I use them for this.
I will write them an email today. That’s a practical step I can do right now.
You know what? DONE!
Took me 30 seconds. I asked if there are any available spots for the next few weeks, and if I can book an individual lesson so that someone can teach me how to sew a T-shirt.
I will calculate how much time and effort it takes me to make a T-shirt, I will add the material, some service charges like Shopify fee and Google Workspace fee, and then the reasonable margin. And I will have the price.
What is really interesting is that once you add a hand-made dimension to your product as well as a unique and creative component, the pricing becomes so abstract.