Growing up I was a total fashion snob. I had more accessories than a high school girl should ever have and made it a (lame) badge of pride that I had never worn jeans to school and always dressed up. Looking back I realize it was my attempt to stand out from the surfer/skater culture I grew up in, but man was it an uncomfortable one. It wasn’t until I started listening to jam bands and eventually found myself not only wearing Birkenstocks but working in my local Birkenstock store that I finally gave up the clothes obsession and relaxed a bit.
And while my tastes have veered away from hemp necklaces and patchwork shirts (my college ID is the only relic of that look, thank goodness), I’ve found myself slowly embracing my old accessories love. I haven’t gone crazy and bought a different pair of shoes for every day or anything, but I have started bookmarking shoes and bags that would work for my everyday life. And I think I’ve found a new bag to add to that list.
Leslie at Swarm is one of my accessories idols because she makes such beautiful things out of found objects. Her last series was made from vintage paintings she turned into shoulder bags and now she’s launched a Dutch Duffle series made from old Dutch post sacks and table rugs. The tradition of table rugs dates back as far as the 1500s and Leslie has used a felting technique to mend the older rugs so they can be used for the bags. I love the way that Leslie combines “home” objects like rugs with something more everyday (a postal bag). To top it off, each bag’s closure is made from a vintage scarf collected from various flea markets in Amsterdam
While these aren’t necessarily an “out to dinner” bag, if you’re like me and like bags to occasionally make a statement, these are definitely something that will start a conversation. How often do you get to wear part of a rug as a bag? Click here to check out Leslie’s full collection and order online. Each bag is unique so if you see one you like be sure to snag it before it’s gone. xo, grace
18 Comments
Those are lovely. I want!
Cheers!!
They are beautyful!!
oh, these bags are so COOL! i love this
How fun is this?! Love it.
LOVE. How unique!
Jam bands. Birkenstocks. Haaa. I just came across a photo of myself from college, the day I bought my beloved jeep, with all my gear on. Bell bottomish jeans. handmade hippie shirt. Giant hemp necklace made by some boy I liked. And though you can’t tell from the photo, I’m certain that I smelled like patchouli. Love these bags, I’d wear one proudly today. Even with my skinny jeans and heels.
What a lot of fun!
I lived in Amsterdam for nearly a decade and still go back regularly. Periodically you run across various permutations of the idea of using the old mailbags. They changed the logo and post office structure a few years back, so there was suddenly a glut of these sturdy, cool bags.
Also on the Dutch front, I love the purses made entirely of woven bicycle inner tubes…
I’m in love with those bags! I love how creative people can be, reinventing old things and giving them new meaning.
HAHA I was the same way in highschool! I look back and recall teetering around my redneck school in a skirt and high heels and I can’t help but face-palm. Perhaps if I’d spent all the time I put into primping sleeping instead, I would have enjoyed the experience a bit more.
katie
you summed up my high school experience perfectly. face-palm, all the way. ;)
grace
Love this idea. Georgeous execution
You just brought back a wave of memories of my own jam band/hippie days. I appreciate the bohemian influence that the patchwork days have had on my own taste and work, though I’m glad to have continued to evolve beyond that phase and to mix in modern and industrial design in recent years. Those earthy roots still influence me a great deal. Thank you Grace for keeping it real and supplying a wide range of inspiration for a variety of design sensibilities.
These bags are great; I’m a sucker for salvaged textiles that contain some sort of text.
I completely agree with Ladybird! I swoon for textiles with type, especially if it has a neat story- like these bags do. What lovely bags!
These are soo awesome! Where do you find all this awesome stuff grace? Love your blog, I check it every morning! Have a great day!
Thanks Madison! These before & afters are from readers like you so you guys get all the credit here :)
Grace
I like the detail of the scarf (as the tie closure) to the bag. Back at our high-school (I’m much older than you, Grace), every girl had the Eitienne Aigner fisherman basket shoulder bag, but we would tie a ribbon or a cool scarf around the handle (to the side) to distinguish whose was whose.
These are so cool! I also like what she’s done with old paintings – what a GREAT idea! And the old paintings on the chairs… This girl is talented.
Hi, you know where can i buy this bag?
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