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TOM BIHN
Smart Alec backpack available at Tom Bihn, $100.

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Apparel & accessories

City/neighborhood: Sodo

Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-4 p.m. Nov. 10 and Dec. 1, 8, 15, 22

Tom Bihn's Factory Showroom

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2203 First Ave. S.
Suite 200
Seattle, WA 98134
Phone: 206-652-4123
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DESCRIPTION

Need a Super Ego? How about a Brain Cell? You can buy one at Tom Bihn's retail outlet in Sodo. The local bag designer names some of his messenger bags, backpacks and laptop cases after Freudian and Jungian concepts, and cranial and physiological terms.

When Bihn started his business in 1992, he only sold his well-made bags online. He later moved into the Sodo location, where manufacturing and design operations are also based. It's becoming a rarity to actually manufacture a product right before your eyes, but Bihn does and he encourages gawking. Step into the adjacent production room, where sewing machines hum and skillful workers busily whip up Imagos and Brian Cells. Most bags are made from sturdy, water resistant Cordura or Ballistic nylon with convenient pockets for electronic gadgets.

Bihn has been sewing bags for more than 30 years. He continues to sew all of his own prototypes and often draws a crowd when he's in the sewing room. One of his newest designs, The Archetype, is a laptop carrier made from super-thin sliced cork which is laminated. The water resistant case has added corners to keep your laptop safe from accidental bashing. It comes in four sizes and holds everything from a 12-inch PowerBook to a 17-inch MacBook and sells for $95.

Other recent additions to the collection include the Yang Imago and Yin Imago ($85), roomy bags with shoulder straps in cool color combinations such as cocoa and wasabi, or olive, steel and wasabi. They're great bags to keep in mind.

-- Kathy Schultz
NWsource shopping columnist

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