I am a freelance handbag designer based in Melbourne, Australia. My expertise is in the creative thinking process, problem solving with the intent to make highly functional yet beautiful bag designs.
I am passionate about making a difference in the industry, with a focus on sustainability, notably; slow fashion, sustainable materials, ethical + environmentally friendly practices in the supply chain, and women’s empowerment through work opportunity + fair working conditions.
I work with small and established brands to design and develop their bag collections either in my Brunswick atelier, or offshore. I have extensive experience with; ranging a collection, designing to a target cost and with relevant trends in mind, liaising with suppliers, designing with various materials like leather, polyurethane, canvases made from cotton, hemp, nylon, vegan leathers like Pinatex, Cactus leather and alike. My process involves working with the client to understand their customer needs and wants, brand handwriting and ethos, and develop collections their customers will love.
A quick summary of my background >
I studied Fashion Design at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, and completed the Bachelor in 2011. I also completed a course in Bag Making, also at RMIT, in 2012.
From 2012 to 2016 my passion for handbags flourished at Melbourne accessories brand, Mimco, where I grew to design the full Smalls category; inclusive of Pouches, Wallets, Technology Accessories, Keyrings.
Since July 2016 I have been freelancing in Melbourne with local brands such as Crumpler, Buzz Products, Busyman Bicycles, King Kong Apparel and Sans Beast to design and develop the bags ranges within their teams.
In 2017 & 2018 I also designed and tutored a Bag Design + Making elective and co-designed and tutored a studio course to the Bachelor of Design (Fashion) program at RMIT.
In 2019 I launched my own accessories brand, Simétrie, where I design & produce the collections with other freelance craftspeople in my Brunswick based studio.
In 2020 I opened up my Brunswick atelier to produce leather goods for small brands.
In 2021 I managed a production team of 7 craftspeople to produce a small leather goods collection for brand R.M Williams in my Brunswick based atelier. We manufactured 1700 units across 10 SKUs in 3 months.