The Obama Bag
I am giddy to report the the Obama Bag will be installed in the permanent collection of the Barack Obama Presidential Center Museum in Chicago.
My studio in 2008
In 2007 I started making things and selling them. Etsy was new and liberating. Some of my popular items were handbags made with acrylic handles, satin linings, and a clear, vinyl, outer shell with layers of fringe, made from laminated circles cut from magazine pages. The conceit was that they were Designer Handbags; I’d cull images from luxury brand ads in fashion magazines and make a pattern from them: Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and the like. My pop homages were a fraction of the cost of a true It Bag and I only received one Cease and Desist.
Prada Bag
At about this time, I was hawking these wares and other meta wearables at a craft fair when I was approached by Sharon Hoffman who asked if I would be willing and able to make just such a bag using a photograph of Barack Obama and if I could have a sample for her within 48 hours. My kit was in another state but I convinced Kinkos to let me use their laminator, a friend to let me use her sewing machine, and I hit up the Home Depot for some cable ties and was able to deliver on time.
Chanel Bag
Other than her name, I had no idea who this woman was but took a chance on my hustle being worth the expense. Two years later we had sold 250 of the bags (I hand made every one and 40% of the gross went to the campaign) and the fabulous people sporting them included Oprah Winfrey, Judith Jamison, and Jaques D’Amboise. The formidable woman leading me through this process wore one of our Obama Bags to a private lunch she had with President Obama himself, after he’d won the election. She reported that he did a double take as she sat down with it and said, “Hey, that’s me!” She told me that he loved it. Mr. President asked that I make one for Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Obama asked that I make one to be entered into the National Archive.
Obama Bag
I am giddy to report that I received a call last week from the Barack Obama Presidential Center to let me know that the Obama Bag I fashioned 17ish years ago will be installed in the permanent collection of the center’s museum when it opens in Chicago in 2026. To celebrate this honor I’m making a few more that can be found in the shop on my website. I can’t wait to wear one to the museum myself!