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Published
by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. CLICK FOR NEWSPAPER DELIVERY
Tuesday, September 11, 2001
Bags of beauty
Rich fabrics, antique jewels and funky, glitter fringe. A local handbag designer is creating accessories of distinction and beautiful bags
By Cassandra Hinojosa
Caller-Times
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Paul Iverson/Caller-Times
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Kim Sharp creates each handbag on her 10-year-old Singer sewing machine.
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After Kim Sharp cut the sleeves off a red silk jacket and turned it into a vest, she didn't want to toss out the leftover material. So she decided to sew it into a handbag. As Sharp carried the clutch around with her, it caught the eye of a friend, who asked Sharp to create one for her.
What started as one request turned into a flurry of inquiries. Nearly one year later, Sharp has made 400 handbags under her label, K. Sharp. Her signature style includes bright colors in rich materials like silk, wool and linen. She also updates vintage purses with broaches, fake furs, fringe and feathers.
"She definitely has a following," said Karen Fregia, owner of Leslie in Lamar Park, which features Sharp's designs. "We have grandmothers buying them for granddaughters, women buying them for themselves and younger girls just love them. My daughter carries one that's (made of) denim and red poplin fabric."
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Paul Iverson/Caller-Times
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Kim Sharp, working under the label K. Sharp, has made more than 400 handbags at her dining room table.
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The purses retail for $50 to $80.
Sharp, a wife and mother, will graduate from Texas A&M University-Kingsville with a degree in fashion and interior merchandising in May 2003. In the meantime, she's looking to expand her market to larger cities such as Houston and Austin. A few stores in San Antonio have begun to sell her designs, too.
"My thing is creating and seeing what happens, not making money," said Sharp, 43. "It's a wonderful feeling when someone wants to buy my stuff."
More than a function
Sharp attributes her success to the trend for personalized accessories.
"People don't use the purses as a function anymore; they're accessories," said Sharp. "Women just don't carry one purse anymore."
Where to find K. Sharp handbags
The Veranda (upstairs at Sister Sue's)
Leslie
Pam's Resale Boutique
Simply Exquisite in Portland
Touches Final, a boutique in San Antonio
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Sharp searches for vintage and unique fabrics in other cities including New York, Dallas and Houston. She makes no more than 10 purses of each design she creates.
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Paul Iverson/Caller-Times
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Antique brooches and funky fringe add bright accents to colorful silk, wool and linen bags by Kim Sharp.
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"Because I don't want to manufacture so many, I only buy a little bit," Sharp said. "This year I've made about five trips (to buy material)."
By staying on top of current trends, Sharp creates portable objects of art, said Janis Van BurenDepartment of Human Sciences chairwoman at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
"It's not just a basic purse," said Van Buren, who owns a small, rounded Sharp bag - red, yellow and blue plaid taffeta with a white background and fabric handles. "What makes them unique is the special touches she adds to them, the finishing touches such as antique jewelry and beadwork that create a unique mood. She almost accessorizes the purses."
For now, Sharp has her own workroom in her home and displays purses in her dining room. Her 12-year-old son Alex usually joins her at the table after school to do his homework.
After Sharp sews the body of the purse with her 10-year-old Singer sewing machine, she adds bead and tassel work by hand.
"Once I have my designs, it takes me 45 minutes to make one purse," Sharp said.
When Sharp asks Alex what he thinks of each purse, he usually replies, "Very nice mom. Very nice."
Staff writer Cassandra Hinojosa can be reached at 886-3617 or hinojosac@caller.com
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