To the City, To the Seaside

If we pull inspiration from the materials around us we tend to tell stories with whatever it is we  have created. Sometimes we force it into the form we’ve imagined and sometimes, the best times, we let the inspiration and the materials lead us.

The Seaside Soiree is a very good example of this in our work. Beautiful leathers in colors and finishes that shimmer and  shine paired with colorful vintage zippers give this clutch great dimension.

Original Seaside Soirèe in Navy and Brights

Above and below is our original Seaside {SOIRÈE} Clutch made with a velvety Navy corduroy, crystal silver leather and bright colorful vintage zippers. Our creation of this later inspired one of our customers to request her own custom colors for this clutch. We offer and encourage customizations of our clutches at any time.

Close-up on The Seaside {Soirèe} Clutch

Featuring all the hottest colors of this season, yet they all remain timeless. Perhaps colors remembered on a drive to the seaside. Light navy, teal, cream, coral and yellow all curve around on this deep navy background.

Custom Seaside {Soirèe} Clutch for our customer, inspired by our original clutch in navy.

This photo shows how we interpreted our client’s wishes for her personalized Soirèe clutch. Smooth pewter leather edged with crystal silver leather.

Get in close!!

Dancing atop the pewter leather are lovely vintage zippers in butter yellow, royal purple, light lilac gray, and black. A perfect clutch for a night out on the town or certainly to a new destination!

 

A Shade of Chevron, part one

We love chevron. No reason to beat around the bush. We just love it. We are so excited that it is making a comeback. And we love that we get to share our little contribution of chevron into the world.

We love to look up into the sky and see it, walking along the beach or in a carton of berries, so whether you call it blue, bleu, blau or azul, here are a few of our favorites:

 

{Starting with the top left, going left to right}

1. Our {ALEXIS} Clutch in Teal Chevron with Emerald Ribbon.

2. Our {ALEXIS} Clutch in Light Blue and Natural Chevron with Lemonade Ribbon.

3. Our {ALEXIS} Clutch in Aqua Chevron with Aqua Ribbon.

4. Our {ALEXIS} Clutch in Gentle Navy Chevron with Tiffany Blue Ribbon.

 

We’ll share some more of our favorite hues soon! Until then, take care!!

 

 

We’re at Bella Bridesmaid!!

 

Photo from MN Bride feature on their website.

 

If you are in the Minneapolis/St.Paul area and you are getting ready to tie the knot, you need to check out Bella Bridesmaid. They opened their Minnesota location shortly before Thanksgiving of 2011 and boast a beautiful variety of dresses in a simple and modern space. Also, you can find our collection there, as well as options to create a custom clutch for your special day!!

Bella Bridesmaid was featured here. You can find more on their Minneapolis location here.

We are very excited and honored to partner up with them to offer handmade beauty to their list of offerings!

 

Thanks for reading!

 

Something Old to Something New, for Two

We’ve been away, or so it seems. So many terrific wedding orders all fall have kept us busy and creating and unfortunately neglecting our blog! We figured this would be a fantastic way to come back, with another look at our Something Old to Something New line. This offering is so fun for us because we never know exactly what will become of it. It is problem-solving time, which is a joy because we love puzzles! And it is collaboration time, because we are taking the past, making a present, and giving it to the future.

A mother sent us a large cut of her wedding dress, asking if we could take the fabric and create two custom clutches, each with similar characteristics yet different, just like her daughters, who would be receiving the finished {ALEXIS} Clutches. We found some gorgeous beadwork  to adorn these clutches. The old and the new. We hope you love them as much as we do!

First Clutch.

 

Second Clutch

Our favorite collections of the season!

Really, we can’t close the book on that statement just yet! There have been so many exciting collections during this years wedding season and we are only half way through! These are our favorites so far……

I've got sunshine....

Just looking at this puts an enormous smile on my face! And how could it not? The rich gold silk of the forefront bridal {BAGUETTE} reaches out and warms the heart. Hand made rosettes add a deeply personal touch, the leaves slowly and thoughtfully cut out of metallic silver leather to match her shoes. Presented on a canvas of pristine white silk. It takes center stage, as it should, but not before the {ALEXIS} bridesmaids clutches can catch your eye. Bright sunshine golden yellow and stark white chevron stripe *POP*! Wrapped and finished with deep grey ribbon. An unforgettable statement indeed.

 

Starlight and flowing tides...

As though manipulated out of metal itself, structurally beautiful, the {KNOT} Clutch in silver is classic without being obviously so. It is strong. It is delicate. It flows with expression that comes from deep within, perhaps as old as the stars themselves. Turquoise silk {ALEXIS} clutches do not take second stage, rather they all stand together in a force of beauty. Wrapped in smooth silver satin ribbon, they perfectly complement the twist of silver silk in the {KNOT}.

 

A rose by any other name....

A collection plucked straight from the garden! A beautiful vintage style floral {BAGUETTE} clutch finding its center with supple grey leather. Ruched details showcase the colors…..apple, blush, crimson, electric blue, navy, butter yellow. A myriad of hues to satisfy each element of the bride. A mixed bridesmaids collection stands by her side, full of individuality. A chevron stripe print as well as a delicate damask, showcased in different clutches, one each for the bridesmaids. The {BANGLE} echoes the {BAGUETTE} with the center strength of grey leather. The {ALEXIS} ties it together with its simplistic envelope design, adding the ease of a beautiful ribbon and bow closure, in complimentary colors. A grey and white chevron stripe {ALEXIS} Clutch stands up front with the Maid of Honor, an apple green length of ribbon drawing lines from bridesmaids to bride.

All so perfect for this summer wedding season. All making statements with these individual women and those that stand beside them on the biggest day of their lives.

The past turns a new leaf.

The beginning.

Breathing new life into a previously loved garment is one of the most memorable aspects of our work. Bridging the past and the future brings us a joy like no other.  This beautifully unconventional gown was sent to us by a soon to be wed daughter wishing to intertwine her mother’s special day with her own upcoming wedding. A lovely sandy taupe that can nod to both lilac and gray, adorned with delicate roses, gathered into pleated ruffles and centered with stark white leather, bringing out the levels of white that create depth in the roses. This {BAGUETTE} Clutch is certainly one of a kind!

Dress, meet Clutch...

Many thanks to the bride for asking us to create a clutch for her very special day!

Put into action!

It rarely happens that we have other people rummaging around our studio space, but in this case, instead of just a fun mess,  it sparked inspiration and then resulted in a very personal, custom bag.

The culprit, was our mother, who is going through a grand and positive change in her life as she and our father enter a new decade of their lives, and all their children grown. In an effort to express her individuality she also wanted to express her idea of femininity. She loves things that sparkle and things that shine, so when she found this great piece of woven fabric with an animal print, let’s just say her excitement was very audible!!

A shimmering, leather rose surrounded by a sea of print.

The variances in the animal print are bold and are accented with fine silver threads that sparkle. She asked that a loose rose be created for a corner piece with a luscious chocolate lambskin leather that has a delicate rose pink shimmer to it. We refer to this bag as a “mini transition”, as it has a lot of the qualities of our satchel like transition, but is slightly more compact to fit her preferences. The interior is a dark and rich peacock print, selected I believe to give her a little joy each time she opens her bag. A reminder perhaps, of the beauty within. A spacious interior complete with separated pockets, one for her cellphone and one for her glasses, two things she feels she is always digging for. A hand ruched strap designed to be conveniently worn as a crossbody or simply draped down the shoulder.

Up front and beautiful.

We are super happy about the outcome, we can only hope that she feels the same and that it is a proper interpretation and a fulfilling expression of her new outlook!

Look at these fun collections!

We found ourselves, once again, on the terrific site of Gibson Events. They had put together two wonderful collections in October and had included us in the mix! So fun to see how we play with others!

Vintage Inspired

And again from Gibson Events…..

go green

Explore their site, they have so many beautiful, fun and inspiring things to look at!

Portfolio gray, all dressed up and everywhere to go..

We find ourselves being approached more and more often with custom projects. Each one is unique to the individual who needs it, and every time our stomachs flutter with that blissful excitement of the challenge.

This project we took on was really exciting in that it allowed us to re-think and re-work an object we have made before, though ever changing, the laptop bag. This time we needed to push it further into it’s new, custom form, as it was to be a pair of portfolio bags for a traveling photographer, {fantastic!!}. She was constantly on the go and needed something substantial and beautiful to present and to carry her promotional items in.

We tailored previous designs to fit her needs and learned a few things on the way. Proper slip pockets on the inside, each with a specific purpose. One for business cards, one for postcards, and one for larger promo materials, while the inside was still roomy enough for her book of work or her laptop.

Into the depths of the portfolio!

We searched and found soft, buttery, vintage style gray leather to adorn the outside. Not polished, but warm and rustic, showing signs of life.  And lined it with smooth, gray velveteen for a lush look and to protect the contents of the interior.

Closer..

There’s always that question, “will it be right?”, looming in the back of our mind whenever we are creating. Knowing full well that it will turn out, sometimes we feel like we can’t grant ourselves that breath of air until the last stitch is placed, the photos are taken, and they are wrapped in soft, white tissue.

Fresh and pressed, they are off, into the world!

Everlasting spring of green.

It isn’t back. It hasn’t left, and I don’t predict that it will step out of the limelight all too soon. The combination of bright apple green and white playing tag on a fabric playground, swooped and surrounded with rich and regal navy blue ribbon is here to stay.

Imagination wins!

It’s classic, it’s modern, it can summer, it can winter. This collection is incredibly versatile while still being unique. The excellent mixture of these prints can say so much as they group together and then flitter off to explore on their own adventures.

That's right, fan out!

Find them here or contact us and request your favorite to fly solo!