My first adventure

I have finally decided to show my products online. It took me many months to decide, but I realised this would be the easiest way to show friends and family what I have been doing for the last few years, apart from raising children!

I have loved being creative for a long time, but incorporating old Japanese kimono fabrics into everyday, functional things like handbags and aprons helps me keep a nostalgic connection with Japan, my home country. I started out making handbags for myself at home, never with any intention of selling them, and to my surprise, orders suddenly started to flow in.

Every bag I make is a one-off - I handpick the material for each one. This is a part of the process that I love - rescuing musty old kimonos from my mother's wardrobes, or rummaging through boxes of materials at antique shops. With each piece of fabric, I often wonder who wore it many years ago in Japan and what stories she could tell.