Crafty Bastards Vendor Q&A with Rebound Designs
This interview continues a series of Q&A’s featuring vendors who participated in the 2007 Crafty Bastards fair. Last year, we didn’t get to post all of the Q&As before the festival was upon us, so here they are now!
Rebound Designs is aptly named for its clever reincarnation of old book bindings into arty book purses. Caitlin Phillips, who designs the purses, uses all kinds of books, from the classics to recipe books to your 7th grade Algebra textbook. Funny how book titles have their way with the designs. When bound by the classics, the bags retain a stately, timeless aura, as exemplified in the Shakespeare Tragedies bag. Likewise, the Book of Hymns bag features a more solemn yet glowing rendering in its bright red veneer.
As different as the book covers are, all of the book purses are bound by the crafty acumen of their creator. According to Phillips, sharing her creations is “like little pieces of me traveling around and having a new life, and adding something new to the lives they touch.”
1. How long have you been making things?
Pretty much since I could hold a pair of scissors. My mom is a quilter and crafter extraordinaire, it’s in my blood.
2. What is your earliest/favorite crafting memory?
Well, there’s the obvious macaroni and gold paint with glitter angel for Xmas, or something like that. I think my mom still has all of those that I made. I really can’t remember a time I *didn’t* make things, so picking the earliest might be hard. I remember making Xmas ornaments out of felt, little reindeer and trees and such, and taking them around the neighborhood and selling them. My mom would make me special dresses for the first day of school every year, I had a corduroy jumper with an awesome T-Rex applique patch on it for first grade. I would help her draw out the pattern, and pin it, and I would get to pick my own fabrics. I pretty much grew up in fabric stores, I would look through the pattern books and pick out my favorite outfits, and I loved running my hands over all the different fabrics.
3. Why do you make things?
I don’t know any other way of living, I’ve just always made things. I was a Girl Scout growing up, I’m actually a lifetime member, and we did more crafty things than anything else. There’s something so satisfying about an object that has been created with your own 2 hands. Whether it’s an idea I came up with, or following instructions from a book or a class, doing it myself is infinitely better than buying it, because every time I see the object, or use it, I’m reminded of how I felt while making it, and how good it felt to have made beauty where it didn’t exist before. And I love when my purses or anything else I’ve made goes to someone else, it’s like little pieces of me traveling around and having a new life, and adding something new to the lives they touch.
4. What sort of things do you make?
Right now my main craft is the Book Purse. I make one-of-a-kind purses out of old hardback books, all kinds, from children’s books, to classics, old textbooks, cookbooks, you name it. I love doing custom orders out of books people bring me, it’s amazing the memories that are tied to not just the story inside the book, but from simply the covers. Bibliophiles, don’t fret, I use primarily discarded and damaged books. Most of the books I get are from library discard shelves, thrift stores, and yard sales, your first editions are safe. I save most of the pages, so any local artists who want pages for collage or other projects, just let me know, you’re welcome to whatever I have.
5. Any success stories you’d care to share?
Yes! I just participated in the American Craft Council Show in Baltimore, which is one of the largest professional craft shows in the country. It’s a huge honor to be part of this show, I’ll be exhibiting next to people who have been perfecting their craft for longer than I’ve been alive. Even though I’ve been making things my whole life, I’ve only been a professional crafter for 3 years, so it’s amazing to be included in this show with so many exemplary artists. There was also a bit of drama from the show surrounding my fellow alt/indie crafters who were in the New Wave section, you can read more about it from Rania here on the Crafty Blog, or here from Annie of Imogene.
The outpouring of response from the issue has been great, I’m excited to keep the dialogue going when I get out to San Francisco for the upcoming
6. Inspirations?
My mom and my dad, they really instilled in me a love of learning and making. My father gave me his love of books, and my mom her love of craft, so I feel like this is what I was meant to do.
7. Craft supplies you can’t live without?
Sharp scissors, glue, and a good ruler.
8. Describe your work area.
I have a live/work studio in the Mount Rainier Artist Lofts right over the DC border in MD. My living room doubles as a studio, I have 7 foot tall wire shelves full of fabric, and a whole wall of books. I have big tables that fold down so I can spread out or work small as needed. There’s usually several boxes full of books, often with a cat on top of it. It always smells like books, cats, and glue. (The photos I have attached are of an open studio tour, normally I don’t have big displays of purses up.)
9. Family? Pets? Plants?
I have 3 cats, Dragon, Mithril, and Xander the Amazing Golden Boy. My boyfriend Justin and his cat Flash come over and visit often.
10. Favorite color or pattern?
I mostly wear black, but I love all colors, particularly reds. I have a mild obsession with polka dots and stars, as evidenced by my fabric stash, but I’m also in love with all Art Nouveau and William Morris patterns.
11. Have you been a Crafty Bastard before?
Yup, this is my second time doing the show, and I plan on many more years ahead, it is my favorite show of all.
12. Tell us about other crafters you love and your favorite handmade purchases.
I love Samantha Tate of t8 designs. My boyfriend bought me an amazing necklace just dripping in chains, and then we met her at an etsy party, she’s super sweet. I love the headband I bought from The Candy Thief at Renegade Brooklyn this year. All the crafters from the Craft Mutiny are of course super fantastic. Another favorite is my good friend Erika Rubel of Had Matter, we exhibit at Eastern Market together. I also love Sarah Ogren’s collage work, I have about 5 of her pieces by now. Margaux Lange’s Barbie Doll jewelry never ceases to amaze me, and she’s one of the nicest artists I know.
13. What is one thing everyone should know how to do themselves?
Mix a good stiff drink.
March 26th, 2008 at 3:00 am
wow!… i had never heard of the Mount Rainier Artist Lofts, i’m going to go check it out! sounds marvelous!