I am a 38 year old stay at home mother of two who loves to create things. I’ve always been one to look at something and try to make it before buying it, if it involved fabric. My business, Designs By Jamie, is in its third year and consistently growing.

I use mostly high quality cotton material from some of the most popular fabric designers like Amy Butler, Heather Bailey, Alexander Henry, etc. My customers are the best and many have become good friends. My bags are for anyone because I customize them for each person. They can pick out a fabric that reflects their personality and tastes, so I can create a unique one of a kind purse for them. Each purse is handmade by me with care from start to finish. I am also inspired by my customers who come up with the best fabric combinations when designing their own purse. I have many different styles of bags which are all named after my good friends. The newest style this year is the Alane bag. The most popular bags are the Laure and the Michelle. I also make checkbook covers, eyeglass cases and key fobs. I hope to add aprons this year as well.

I started my business in 2005. I always thought it would be fun to have a booth at a craft show, but I didn’t know exactly what I would want to make. I had made some purses for friends who loved them and who had received great feedback, so I thought I would just go for it. The response was overwhelming and I sold most of my inventory during that one day show. Since that show, it has been nonstop custom orders. In 2006, I started doing purse parties where customers design their own bag and I also started selling on Etsy. Etsy has allowed me to sell to customers from all over the United States.

I guess my biggest nightmare was when I did custom order for someone that wanted a laptop bag. It needed to be a certain size and the customer was not local so everything was via email. I created the bag and of course the laptop did not fit in it. So I had to reorder fabric and try again, thankfully with success the laptop fit. I was really stressed out because I wanted my customer to be happy and it had to be perfect. While I love doing custom orders for people, it is always a bit of a nightmare when there are custom dimensions involved. However, as luck would have it - that has turned into my greatest asset. My greatest achievement is when people call me and say they saw my purses and would like one of their own. Also, to see a purse I made on a ladies arm in town always makes me excited and thankful.