CamJams – Sweet Dreams Are Made of This

About a year ago, Naomi and I joined some friends for a weekend getaway. Our good friend Cindy was there and when she wasn’t out in the water crabbing for our dinner, she was looking super comfortable and adorable in some flannel pajama’s. They felt old school in their quality, heft and attention to detail. They were made for men and came from a company that no longer makes them.

We moved from nostalgia to light bulb in about two seconds flat. Had we had cell coverage we would have called Julie immediately. Lucky for her, we waited until Monday morning. “We want to make flannel PJ’s by next Christmas!” In her typical calm way, Julie replied, “Oh you guys. Let me see what I can do.”

Next thing you know we were fondling stacks of flannel swatches, looking for the right weight, the right amount of softness and of course the cutest patterns. In the meantime, Julie was searching for a factory in the US, trying to find the right waistband material and a drawstring that wasn’t too wide or too flimsy.

The flannel became the biggest challenge. It’s not easy to find quality flannel that’s 100% cotton and can withstand our testing. Julie takes initial measurements and then washes it, dries it, pulls on it, measures it again and then repeats the process a few more times. Most of the fabrics didn’t hold up to her standards but after searching the globe, we finally sourced some high quality flannel.

Next, we needed a place to have them made. Julie’s standards for quality production are as stringent as her fabric tests. Finally, after several months of searching, meetings and site visits we settled on a family owned factory in LA. They were up for the challenge and got us our first samples in early summer. We tried them on several different shaped women, took notes, placed pins and chalk lines and sent them in for changes. We did this a few times, until we got it right. I got to be one of the testers on the day the final sample arrived. I went into the dressing room, put them on and immediately wanted to take a nap. Since I’m not prone to napping, I knew we had a keeper.

We named them after our friend Cindy. We hope you’ll love them as much as we all do.

Sweet dreams,

Fran