In our blogs to celebrate women artisans for International Women’s Month The Local Artisan Guide continues with notable handbag and accessory designers you may not know but should. We have included in our list women designers from all around the world and different cultures specializing in handbags and accessories who have managed to carve out a name for themselves in their particular niche. Most are small brands but pack a punch.

These women have brought unique design prospectives to their products whist introducing sustainability and giving back to their community whether on a micro or macro level. We featured women designers who come from all walks of life and design for all price ranges. We took excepts from their website “about” pages so their can tell their stories on how their brands were created and evolved along the way.

LINDA PAGAN - The Hat Shop NYC

The Hat Shop founded by Linda Pagan combines the wide selection found in department stores with the custom service of a millinery shop. The shop's collection features its own label as well as the work of up to 15 local milliners.

Linda started out working in assurance then bartering at the iconic and now closed Temple Bar to finding her calling in life as a milliner. Linda makes sure to provide personal attention and is sensitive to the concerns of both the first time hat buyer and the self-confessed "hat addict". The hats can be ordered in a variety of colors and trim and are made to each customer's size.  When matching you with the perfect hat she takes into account your facial type, life style and occasion.

The Hat Shop's 25 years of business experience is based on 5 principles: a quality product, product expertise, honesty, outstanding customer service and a deep passion for hats!

FIONA KEMPTON - Kempton and Co.

Fiona Kempton, designer and owner of Kempton & Co., was born in 1977 and raised in a house by the sea in the countryside of southwest England, setting the stage for a unique childhood and a lifetime connected to the ocean--and horse riding.

Fiona studied fashion design in London's Kingston University and moved to New York after graduation, spending the next ten years designing for major fashion companies. In 2009, she started to design on her own, creating a tech-friendly bag with a built-in protective sleeve for a laptop. Well-received, she launched her own business. Kempton & Co. was born in Brooklyn in 2010.

Fiona’s heritage is an inspiration. She designs bags with gorgeous soft leathers and textiles, combining the utility of equestrian hardware. She prides herself in always maintaining an artistic approach to function; it is a philosophy that the company strives to maintain with every bag.

JESSICA PARK - Ampersand as Apostrophe

A native of Detroit and now New York City-based designer, Jessica Park was inspired to make her first bag out of sheer captivation of an "as-chance-would-have-it" material possessing quality appeal, history, and the look of something conventional dying to be transformed in a truly unconventional way (Park's longstanding mantra). Soon after, AMPERSAND AS APOSTROPHE, a high-end line of handbags that double as clutches (and triple as anything else you may feel like), was launched. Park’s background in architecture has made her vision and approach to handbag design unique combining all her passions together to create a singular brand.

MARY JAEGER - Design in Textiles

Mary Jaeger creates her work in her Brooklyn Atelier, from design conception through production. Foremost concerns include beauty in our everyday lives, design functionality and innovation. Her passions include historical designs and embellishing techniques, tactile combinations of fabrics and motifs, and circular fashion being eco-conscious and sustainable. Jaeger re-imagine post-production materials and vintage garments and accessories, infusing them with a sense of individual personalization, extending their lives and saving them from landfill sites. She strives to help make our world a more hopeful and enjoyable place to live by preserving and offering the art of one-of-a-kind and limited edition handmade accessories, clothing and interior textile objects.

ELIF AKAYDIN - Patent of Heart

Elif Akaydin, an Istanbul native, had entered the fashion world as a belt designer for Calvin Klein and St. John brands. In 2005, Elif has decided to pursue her utmost passion for accessories and handbags under her own brand and created a handbag line under the name “elif NY”. After having gained experience in Fashion Accessories industry, Elif has come to launch her hand-crafted and exquisite Fashion Accessories brand “Patent of Heart” in 2014. Elif works to make her product as sustainable as possible whilst contributing back to the community, especially educating young girls. She is excited to introduce her newest collection which was created by female Lebanese artisans working with iconic cultural symbols and long passed down artisanal skills and craft forms.

BIANCA ELGAR

Bianca Elgar is a British based designer and print maker. Her classic designs are inspired by modern art using ethically sourced eco-friendly materials.  Since launching in 2012, Bianca’s vision was to create beautiful and functional products using quality fabrics and bold prints that would be timeless and long lasting.

All Bianca Elgar collections focus on high quality, versatility and sustainability, using small batch production.  Each piece is made by skilled artisans from start to finish for high quality and minimal excess waste.    All collections are seasonless and designed to last a lifetime.  A true representation of sustainable living.  All Bianca Elgar collections are designed and made in Britain.

CLARE VIVIER - CLARE V

Designer Clare Vivier has created a beautiful play on classic shapes, modern detail & Parisian charm, the Clare V. line continues to evolve with each new collection. Though she started with laptop cases, Clare now produces a full range of bags & accessories, including tech, travel, small leather accessories, men's, tees & shoes. While the brand has continued to grow, the line continues to be made primarily in Los Angeles since 2008.

ASATA MAISE

Asata Maisé considers herself an unconventional modern day couturier (a designer that produces high quality handcrafted clothing). For the past 13 years, Maisé has been committed to expressing her personal experiences, values, philosophies, and inspirations through the mediums of fashion and style. In the earlier days of her relationship with garment construction, she solely produced clothing for herself and loved ones. Maisé has seemed to always be in the right place at the right time, landing hands on experience in the fashion industry long before making a name for herself. Since 2009, she’s experimented with custom pieces, Depop sales, and, more recently, highly anticipated drops of undoubtedly recognizable clothing and accessories. Admirers flock to the online shop with hopes of being a select few to own an Asata Maisé piece. Each piece is carefully conceptualized, handcrafted, and packaged by the designer in her quaint studio currently based in her hometown. Maisé is constantly fine tuning herself, her work, and her approach, creating her own space in the fashion industry. Asata Maisé garments are just a reflection of the designer’s passionate commitment to personal development, inspiring others, and preserving a tradition that has become overlooked with the rise of fast fashion.

CORAL CHUNG & WENDY WEN- Senreve

Coral Chung and Wendy Wen had built successful careers in business consulting and investment banking, respectively. When they both ended up doing some work with storied luxury fashion brands (Chung with Prada, and Wen with Chanel), the Stanford business school grads identified the same big problem: Nobody was taking a digital-first approach to serving professional millennial women — so they decided to try. Chung and Wen created Senreve, a direct-to-consumer luxury fashion brand, and launched their first product in 2016.

YLIANA YEPEZ

Parisian born, and Venezuelan raised, Yliana Yépez launched her eponymous New York City based luxury handbag brand in 2013. As a model in her teenage years, Yliana was inspired by the international design community and stylish locales where she traveled for work. This had a significant impact on her and began to inform her own personal style and eye for design. At the age of 23, she co-founded one of the first successful Venezuelan based accessory brands, BLUES by kyky. Over 18 years, the brand amassed a huge national following, became a household name and included eight free-standing retail shops.

Now, with her high fashion sensibility and global minded soul, Yliana brings her signature design approach to the YLIANA YEPEZ brand. Centered around exquisite craftsmanship and luxury materials, the collection’s iconic styles range from day bags to minaudieres, and encompass a joie de vivre through bold and vibrant colors and imaginative design details.

TERESSA FOGLIA - Magia

Teressa Foglia is a hat designer and maker, a modern milliner. An avid hat lover her entire life, for years she dreamt of starting her own collection.

After she experienced heartbreak, she booked a one-way ticket to Europe and stayed for a year. During her time, she discovered a millinery course in the South of France and three days later she was in the studio learning how to make hats with a renowned milliner from London. She continued designing and making hats in Berlin, London and Los Angeles but it wasn't until she settled into her home state of New York that her first collection was established.

With an enticing and recognizable aesthetic, Teressa's creative direction, design and energy has transformed the way someone feels when they wear a hat. She brings a modern and compelling edge into millinery. Every order is handmade in New York City with hopes to inspire the human spirit one hat at a time.

ALESSANDRA DE OSMA & MOIRA LAPORTA - Moi&Sass

Founded in 2018 by Latin American duo, Moira Laporta, and Alessandra de Osma, they decided to embark on the creation of a handbag brand, seeking for high-quality bags that could be functional, carrying a day’s worth of belongings.

MOI&SASS is collection of timeless – minimalistic staples with a clean design and aesthetic, with excellence in material and craftsmanship. MOI&SASS strives to create beauty via absolute respect for form and function. Our focus has been the challenge of creating the most with the least, resulting into something versatile that can serve any occasion. Each piece is handmade in Spain, created in leathers and suede sourced by the finest tanneries.

The Local Artisan Guide hopes to inspire you to not only follow and support these woman designers but the female owned brands and businesses in your area. Click onto the links in the captions to be lead to their sites and check out their other amazing products.

By Natalie Rivera