Olivia Wilde

LOVE this Marchesa dress worn by Olivia Wilde at the 2011 Golden Globes! To-die-for. This is easily my fave dress of the evening! :)

I think her hair goes perfectly with the dress. Very sparkly, very princess.. love!

Not to mention these hot shoes! I hope to make them mine one day ;) love, love, love!

{Sources for images.}

Hope your weekend was well! :)

xoTL

Handbag Designer 101

Handbag Designer 101 is a place where bag designers from all over the world come together and celebrate their bag lines! I applied to be a part of it all and just got an e-mail back saying that they would love to Showcase me as the Handbag Designer of the Day! Love! How nice is that? Plus, I might be eligible to go to NYC to the 2011 Independent Handbag Designer Awards presented by InStyle and Handbag Designer 101!

I had to fill out a few more questions through e-mail to let people get to know me and my brand a little better. Check them out with my answers! :)

1. Please give an overview about you and your bag and where you are at with your line now.

I'm a Bag & Accessories designer based in Western New York. I"ve always had a huge heart for anything to do with bags! In the fall of 2009 I decided to take some design/sewing classes at The Academy of Art University in San Francisco, CA. Since then I've made almost over 50 bags (that's a lot for one person). Everything I design & make is 100% handmade by me alone. August 2010 is when Tracy Larish the brand was born! I specialize in custom bags, but I am currently working on a line of Baby Bags due Summer 2011, because even Mommas need to be stylish!

2. Please explain how did your line get started & why.

I am new to the business world of bags, so I am currently running my brand out of my home and selling online. In the near future I hope to expand into my own studio and get a couple assitants. Pretty soon I won't be able to keep up on my own!

3. Please mention something interesting about your line that you want people to know about.

As I previously mentioned, each bag is designed and handmade by me. Each bag is original, no two bags are exactly the same. I do have a bunch of bags that are ready made, but I specialize in custom. I think custom is important. This way, you know you're getting exactly what your little heart desires!

4. Please discuss a design nightmare story.

A big nightmare for me would have to be with the first crossbody/messenger bag I made. I was so nervous, because it was my very first order. I literally made the whole bag upside down! Of course, I didn't realize until I was completely done! Basically, I kept that bag as a memory to laugh at and started fresh again! It hasn't happened since!

5. Finally, please share your greatest achievement in this process & the reason why it is all worth it.

My greatest acheivement so far is probably how many bags I have sold. It's tough working with one person and relying on your family and friends to spread the word to really get out there. To me, my family and friends are my greatest motivator. I've had some moments of disbelief of my brand, but then I realized I'm really doing this for myself. This has been a huge dream of mine since I was so young and I am lucky to even be where I am today. I love dreaming up a new design or seeing the faces on my customers when they have a Tracy Larish bag in their hands, just for them. It's a wonderful feeling and I will never give this up! My mother always told me, "You can do anything you want to do and be whatever you want to be!" And I plan on it.

Good, right? ;) This is pretty exciting! I just had to share! Wish me luck! :)

xo TL

Lisa's Bag

Lisa's crossbody bag is here! Check it out from start to finish! :)

Above: Here I have the main body of the bag sewn & the strap. I originally made two straps by accident. Why? -For fun of course.. ;)

Bottom panel of the bag!

Closer look at my label and the fabric.

If you look close, you'll see the nice exterior pocket. This is on the back of the bag.

Bam! :) Simple, yet soo adorable! I melt!

Open!

Nice solid purple interior!

Bag Details:

11" in length x 10" in width x 3" in width (taken from the bottom panel)

Strap (1): 50" in length x 1" in width

Interior Pockets (2):

1st: 9" in length x 7.5" in width

2nd: 4.5" in length x 8.5" in width

Exterior Pocket (1): 7.5" in length x 10" in width

Bag Flap: 9.5" in length x 8.75" in width

Magnetic snap enclosure.

I sure hope Lisa gets much use out of her new bag! :)

Have a wonderful night! ;)

xo TL

Check Please!

Introducing the new Tracy Larish checkbook cover! This one in particular I made for my very good friend, Mandy, for part of her Christmas gift.

Here it is all folded up.

It has a magnetic snap enclosure.

Just to show you what it would look like, I used my checkbook. Good thing I remembered to block out all my information! ;)

These will be on sale at my Etsy Shop! http://www.etsy.com/shop/tracylarishbags

They can be made with any fabric, color, enclosure, no enclosure.. etc. Whatever you want! More styles coming soon.

Hope your weekend was good to you! :)

xo TL

A Little Girl with Big Dreams

Now that the 2010 is coming to a close, it's time to start thinking about the New Year and things to come!

Here's Mr. Larish & I at Christmas.

I've got some major plans & goals for 2011! I cannot wait to get started! I have just a few more custom bag orders to finish up & then I'll be ready to go!

*Just a reminder: If you are interested in an original custom made tracy larish bag, I'm taking those orders until January 15, 2011. So please visit my Etsy Shop for inquires! Also, I'll only be taking orders via Etsy.*

Here are a few goals of mine & things coming to tracy larish to look forward to in the coming year:

January (in just 1 more day! wow!) I'll be starting Project Restyle! This encourages everyone to bring life to unwanted, damaged or unusable vintage or previously used items to "ReStyle" and make it into something you'll love! It can be anything; shoes, clothing, accessories, home decor..etc. I'm really excited about this, because it will also be affordable (because you'll already have these things) and a really great way to become green! Each week you work on a project you would like to create, post it on your blog & post it on the, free to join, Flickr Group! This lasts 52 weeks! Project Restyle is the perfect way to bring in the New Year and start new and fresh! Anyone can join and you'll have fun in the process!

January/February I'll be finishing up my Spring Bag Collection to be on sale in my shop in late March. (Fingers crossed!)

Spring 2011 The designing process will commence for my new baby line of diaper bags and other super cute things, all for momma and baby! More details of this to come.

Summer 2011 Expand my studio/space. This is more of a personal goal. Mr. Larish & I live in a teeny, tiny apartment and I've been sprawling out my bags, fabrics and tools all over our living room. It's a pain to take everything out, put it all away and begin that process all over again when I'm in the mood to create! Therefore, we're looking for our first house! Really, we're starting to look now, but we hope to at least find one by summer/fall of 2011.

Summer/Fall 2011 I truly hope I can make it to some Festivals & Events in 2011. It would be an awesome way to really get out there! Who knows, maybe my sister will join me with her jewlery! ;)

Currently, I'm in the need of a second sewing machine. Bro needs a friend! It will also be so helpful to get a heavy duty machine so I can finally start to expand my designs and really begin to create a REAL collection that I know I'll adore! Can't wait!

So that's just half the year! I hope I'm not biting off more than I can chew! :) I have full confidence I will make everything happen and it all begins... This weekend!

I wish everyone a very Happy and safe New Year!

xo TL