There are many reasons that the store Bella, one of the hippest designer stores in Buffalo, reminds me of shopping in Soho. Part of it is the beautiful interior, featuring large windows, eclectic furniture, sleek white walls, & highly polished hardwood floors. Another reason is the finely edited and unbelievable mix of Italian & American designer evening and sportswear that is featured there.
But to me, Soho also means chic meets quirky, and this is exactly how I would describe a great line of handbags that are exclusively carried at Bella.
Brown Paper Bags (Gone Wild) is an amazing collection of handmade bags of all shapes & sizes, designed by Buffalo expatriate, Joyce Robinson. I met her a while back at Bellais grand opening event and she was nice enough to take some time to tell me a bit about herself and her beautiful collection.
Currently living in Atlanta, Joyce was a Buffalo resident for 29 years. As a music teacher, she began an outreach program, the Ebony Encore Series with the Buffalo Philharmonic. Always dedicated to community activism along with her attitude of iwith passion, anything can work,i she began the seeds of her Brown Paper Bags business when asked to create special igoody bagsi for fundraising events.
Loving the process and materials with which she was working, she threw herself into exploring the concept of using recycled paper bags to create the incredible one of a kind pieces you see here. In a way, Joyce went, well, WILD!
These are NOT fragile fussy pieces that are going to dissolve in a rainstorm! Joyce uses the recycled bag (brown paper liquor store bags are her current favorite as the are VERY strong!) as a base for the shape of the bag. Then, through her imagici process (which is patent pending), she creates these extraordinary one of a kind pieces of art that make up the Brown Paper Bag Collection.
These are all one of a kind, signed and numbered bags with names such as the iBurchfield Bagi reflecting its arts & crafts design and the iLangston Hughes Dream Bag.i
These bags are the perfect gift for anyone with an appreciation of art & fashion. Because of their uniqueness, they really must be seen in person to be fully appreciated.
Stop into Bella and treat yourself to a great new fall outfit and complete your look with one of Joyce Robinsonis Brown Paper Bags!
Bella
1451 Hertel Ave atNorwalk
716.832.4640
Brown Paper Bags Gone Wild
joycejgr@aol.com