New Baginnings grandmother entrepreneur turns old leather sofas into £200 handbags

By Jill Dando News

Now take a seat and listen to this incredible story.

A out of the box businesswoman has come up with a clever way to turn old leather sofas into stylish accessories.

Lisa Crick has pre-loved couches donated to her for free and uses their material to make brilliant items such as handbags, totes, messenger bags and luggage.

FULL STORY: https://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/23330994.new-baginnings-turns-old-leather-sofas-200-handbags/

Lisa, 53, makes bags from all kinds of materials and has created products from a hot air balloon and carpets.

The grandmother gets all her fabric and materials donated or given to her by charity shops for free and sells her bags on for anywhere between £25 to £200.

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Lisa told the Swindon Advertiser: “I think everyone can relate to a sofa as we’ve all sat on one.

“I turn them into beautiful bags. The sofa bags are flying off the shelves. I see people with my bags I get such a sense of pride.”

Lisa tried her hand at sewing in 2018 when her 60-year-old husband, Dave, asked what she was going to do with the waste material from the curtains they had changed.

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The ex-fitness instructor had more time to explore her sewing skills when the pandemic hit – and by the time lockdown had ended, she had decided to pursue her bags as a business.

She first sewed with leather when she got her hands on some waste material from her local Clarks.

She sells her bags from a starting price of £25 for a one-off unique bag and charges £65 for a upcycled leather sofa messenger bag or £75 for a tote.

She estimates she has saved 20 sofas from landfill since October 2022 and sews six to 10 leather bags a week.

“It’s not about the money for me. Each bag comes with a label to tell you what it was in its previous life.

“I really enjoy what I do. I’m so proud of the bags I produce.”

For more stories from Jill Dando News visit http://www.goodnewspost.co.uk