Under the sea….

We’ve just launched our latest Bledsoe & Bristowe artist-maker collaboration – Ocean Life! More art to wear and art to use. We’re making a range of toiletry bags and our signature Walkabout phone bag featuring Jane Bristowe’s brilliant linocut prints of a sea turtle and whale, swimming in friendly companionship under the sea. There are three sizes of toiletry bags – two medium-sized at £20 … Continue reading Under the sea….

‘I am a citizen of the world…’

‘Everything I did, I saw it through a tropical eye’, said textile designer Althea McNish. ‘I am a citizen of the world and I am multicultural.’ We love the sentiment and are inspired by her work, and we’ve produced a limited edition range using her vibrant patterns that revolutionised postwar design in Britain. McNish (1924-2020) came to the UK from Trinidad in 1950 and became … Continue reading ‘I am a citizen of the world…’

Spring events…and more upcycling action

Read on to find out more about our upcoming in-person events….and to get a feel for the delights of upcycling….. Transformations It’s satisfying to turn a piece of clothing, no longer wanted, into a much-wanted Bledsoe Bag! We find you need to let the piece sit a while until it speaks to you, telling you what kind of bag it wants to be. Or bags! … Continue reading Spring events…and more upcycling action

Welcome to 2022!

Happy New Year to all our friends and supporters! January always brings a blend of remorse and anticipation, we find, and this year even more so given that we’re still, yes still, riding the coronacoaster. Who would have thought Covid-19 would become Covid-22? But there are reasons to be cheerful. Some folks are beginning to feel confident in making plans, hopeful that lockdowns are behind … Continue reading Welcome to 2022!

The Bag Ladies are back!

We’re so excited to be back together after two years….and to be back at the fantastic Chomp & Stomp festival! This Saturday, November 6, 11am to 6pm, in Cabbagetown, Atlanta. Last time we were there was 2019…. We’ve been doing this festival for 8 years, and we missed it when it was Covid cancelled last year. Come and see us and check out our new … Continue reading The Bag Ladies are back!

Wearable art

We’re making wearable art with our two new artist-maker collaborations! The Lobster Series and Tonal Dance Bledsoe Bags has teamed up with linoprint artist Jane Bristowe for a limited-edition collaboration – The Lobster Series. Jane is a Fulham-based artist whose work we’ve featured before in our Dog Walkabout bag and our Curious Cat/Ginger Cat storage basket. We’re making Bledsoe’s signature Walkabout phone bags as well as pencil/glasses cases, gadget … Continue reading Wearable art

Wear and re-use, then repeat

We’ve been having fun repurposing some much-loved pieces of clothing we no longer wear – turning vintage skirts and tops into our signature Walkabout phone bags. It actually takes much longer to take something apart and upcycle it than to make something from a pristine piece of fabric, but it’s worth it! We’ve also used some fabulous vintage ties in storage baskets and gadget bags … Continue reading Wear and re-use, then repeat

Where the Bledsoes come from

We had a great time doing a Bledsoes road trip to the East Midlands recently. We visited the outlet shop of one of our favourite fabric suppliers (thanks, Lesley!)… …and then stopped by for a look at the village of Barton Seagrave in Northamptonshire. This is the village where George Bletsoe was born back in the 17th century….the same George who set sail for Virginia … Continue reading Where the Bledsoes come from

Green garden

‘Take me outside, sit in the green gardenNobody out there, but it’s okay nowBathe in the sunlight, don’t mind if rain fallsTake me outside, sit in the green garden…’ We love Laura Mvula’s ‘Green Garden’, her love song to nature. She has said her 2013 song celebrates the creative influence of her childhood back garden in the suburbs of Birmingham, England:  “When we moved to our … Continue reading Green garden