Bling it on!

I've recently added these blingy beauties to my store. Both are clutch bags made from stunning vintage Japanese obi fabrics. The obi is the 'belt' that goes around the kimono and often comes in bright colours and is heavily woven, which lends itself perfectly to creating unique clutch bags and evening purses. Because these are vintage fabrics, you are unlikely to find anything similar to this anywhere else.

This clutch bag is made from the same fabric as the tote bag in my store. It's a vibrant combination of multi colour and metallic gold.

I used a bright red cotton fabric for the lining and a flap closure, held closed with a magnetic snap.

The clutch bags are a different style to each other.

This clutch bag is a simple envelope design. It's made from a stunning red, black and gold decorative Japanese vintage fabric.

It also has a bright red cotton lining, and a snap closure at the top of the bag to keep things safe.

You can find them both in my store here.

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday to all. What a fabulously sunny day it was yesterday! I spent the day with family, having scrumptious food in the garden and going for a sunny walk along the river at Richmond.

I also managed to do a spot of Cheeky Leopard creating and here is my most recent creation. It's a necklace made from vintage Japanese kimono fabric and you can find it in my store here!

The flowers on many of the kimonos I have are so pretty and really need to be shown off on their own. This one uses a red and white stylised floral which I have carefully cut out.

I then bond the kimono fabric onto a leather base to give it strength and structure.

This necklace would make the perfect accompaniment to a summer outfit and you can find more like this in my store here.

A clutch of clutches

Here's a little clutch of clutches that I made at the weekend. The colours are more subdued than normal, but I love them!

I will be adding them to my Etsy store over the next few days.

One is just a clutch, two have short detachable chain handles, and one has a long detachable handle.

I love the simplicity of this black, red and cream kimono fabric. It fits across the body or over the shoulder.

This kimono fabric has a stunning stork motif. I gave it a mustard yellow kimono lining for a shot of colour.

I've used this pretty kimono fabric a few times and love it! I gave it a terracotta lining to match the blossom.

This one is a beautiful chrysanthemum design that was featured in a Fave Fabric Friday post a few weeks ago.

Fave fabric Friday

 It's that time of week again and this Friday I've decided to highlight a Japanese obi fabric that has been in my collection for a while. I am so scared to cut it up, but I know that it would make a stunning clutch bag or two. It is a dramatic piece in red and black with a stylised image of flying storks on it - an iconic Japanese image. I'm thinking of making it into an envelope clutch with a stunning red lining.

Watch this space!

Fave fabric Friday (except it's Saturday!)

I'm afraid I'm a day late with fave fabric Friday!

This week I wanted to talk about some of the Japanese kasuri fabrics I have. This is the Japanese word used for ikat-style fabrics where the design of the fabric has been dyed onto the fibres before the fabric has been woven. This creates a blurred effect when made up. I find it amazing that the pattern can come anywhere close to looking like a proper pattern and love the finished effect.

I chose a selection of some of my antique kimonos and decided to link them together in colour feel. I love the bottom chrysanthemum design which will be made up into a clutch soon!

Scottie dogs

Here's a little something sweet to keep your sunnies in! 

You can find it here.

Mini me

I recently created two more mini clutches for my collection and realised that they were actually 'mini me' versions of some larger ones I made a while ago. Now you have the choice of the mother or the baby! Either way, they make a stunning statement.

You can find the large ones here and the small ones here.

Red and black

I often find that a trip away reignites the creative juices and India was no exception. I came back feeling inspired and rejuvenated and got sewing straight away! This is the latest addition to my Etsy store, a vibrant red, black and gold number made from a Japanese obi (the sash that goes around the kimono). I added a red cotton lining for a flash of colour.

You can find it in my Etsy store here.