The Half-Moon Bag - "Holy Cow!"

"HOLY COW! I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT I AM SEEING!" That's right, you are looking at a mighty fine good lookin' handbag ladies. In modern English, the word "cow" is the general term used for the domestic bovine, however, "ox" is the word used to represent this creature in scripture, although "ox" is rarely used in this general sense today. In Chrisian art of the Nativity, the ox and ass are present at Christ's birth, confirming that the Christ child was the promised Messiah (Isa. 1:3, Hab, 3:2). In early patristic writings, the ox was an alternative to the sacrificial lamb, and was symbolic of Christ's sacrifice. The scripture verse chosen to accompany this handbag comes not from the gospels, but from the book of Isaiah 11:7, under the pericope The Peaceful Kingdom : "The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox." We all look forward to that peaceful kingdom, but until then, carry a handbag that represents it......and look good too! Alva William Steffler, Symbols of the Christian Faith (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2002), 30, Wikipedia.

Appropriatly named, this bag has a very laid back, casual feel of having been a long time resident of the mid-west. The faux leather is very soft and supple, and ages just like the real thing. I have a wing back chair that I recovered in this fabric 5 years ago. It has endured three rambunctious children, a cat, and my husband with his weekend newspapers, and it looks fabulous, old, rustic, and loved.







The half-moon shape fits quite nicely under the arm, and is a very comfortable bag to carry.











The profile is very sexy. I spared no expense to detail...even the shoulder strap looks fantastic. All of the hardware is galvanized steel.










Staying true to all my work, even the lining of my bags look terrific. "Holy Cow!" is what your friends are going to say when they go for a peek inside! The pockets share my signature "cascade" of fabric. Pockets on both sides have a skinny slot for your pens, nail files, or lip liners, and the larger pockets can comfortably hold Blackberry's, checkbooks, and great big sunglasses. The half-moon style is also equipt with my classic side compartments, so to keep things very organized. Enjoy!

The Half-Moon Bag - "The Dove"

The dove is the primary symbol of the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit was present as a dove at the baptism of Christ (Matt. 3:16). This lovely avian represents many differnet things throughout history. It has its presence in Christian art, Medieval art, Russian and Greek Orthodox icons, as well as associations with the seven gifts of the Spirit, peace, the Annunciation, the Trinity, life, and death. The scripture verse chosen for this handbag comes from Matthew 3:16-17 "And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."" This said, I am pleased to present to you "The Dove." Alva William Steffler, Symbols of the Christian Faith (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2002), 40.
The colors on this handbag represent different shades of water, reflecting on the baptism of Christ. The fabrics consist of tweed, quilted poly blend, linen, suiting, cotton blends.









One of the things I like best about this bag is that the profile looks glorious! How pretty is the flower on the shoulder strap. It adds a lovely feminine touch to your neckline.










The flower is made up of tweed, chenille, velvet, corduroy, denim, satin ribbon, and a fabulous 1930's button replica.






As always, Scarlet Clover bags are just as pretty on the inside, as they are out. The pockets are made in my signature "cascade" of fabrics style. Pockets on both sides have a slot for your writing pens and nail files (or perhaps lip liners), and the larger pocket is big enough for sunglasses, Blackberry's, checkbooks, and phones. The Half Moon bag also has my signature side compartments so to keep things very organized. Enjoy!

Scarlet Clover on Facebook

If you would like to see more photos of Scarlet Clover bags, please follow this link, and click on 'view photos of me.' Facebook me!

Mr. Lane, The Hewsons, and me

Today I made a trip to the USPS to mail a ONE Bag to David Lane, President and CEO of the ONE Campaign. I also mailed a handbag to Bono and his wife Ali earlier this month, on the 4th. It is my hopes that these handbags, along with my letters, land in their hands, and they can see first hand how important this cause is to me.

The Tote -- "All Dogs Go To Heaven"

About two weeks ago, my dear friend, Meegan, told me that she had been talking with several of her friends about my handbags. Whilst in converstaion, Meegan and her friends decided that they, all of whom are Ibizan Hound owners/lovers, needed a fabulous tote with the silouette of an Ibizan Hound on it to take with them to dog shows, and asked me if I would be interested in working with them.





I have, on occaision, accepted commissions to craft bags to a person's requests. As a designer of bespoke handbags, I am pleased to meet with clients to design a bag that is an external expression of their internal interests and passions. Accepting this posed quite a challenge for me, for the dog is looked upon quite unfavorably in Scripture. I didn't want to use a negative scripture verse to accompany my handbags. After plowing through just about every reference to the dog in the Bible, I finally found a passage that was just right. Ecclesiastes, I found, sheds a different light on this animal, by not giving in to despair, but finding hope in those that are lost. "But whoever is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion." (Eccl. 9:4) For this reason alone, I chose the theme "All Dogs Go To Heaven". God's grace and boundless love is open to all, even the dogs in this world.

This bag measures 12"h x 12"w x 5" d. I chose fabrics that made me think of 'hounds' and the 'highlands', so I went with Scottish Wool Herringbone, Gray Flannel, Wool Check, Corduroy, as well as a Gray Cotton blend that I quilted. The bottom of the bag is quite sturdy, and will not give in. The handles are double layer Corduroy. By clicking on the photo, you can get a much closer look at the fabrics.







The inside is simple, but functional. The pocket is actually a double pocket. The larger pocket is in the back, and a smaller pocket is in front of it, with a place to put your writing pen.





The D-ring is to hang additional leads on, or keys, if you please.