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Sasaki Bags

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Sasaki Bags

Sasaki Bags are individually designed by me, Barb Sasaki.  I adore making novelty handbags out of unusual materials like my map bag.  If a bag makes you smile my mission is complete!

You will also find exotic evening bags here.  I use the finest silks and other rich fabrics.  These bags are "my girls" and come with their own birthdays and bios.  They actually take on a personality as they evolve. 

I hope you have as much fun toting your Sasaki Bag as I have making them. 

Aloha

Barb Sasaki

About Barb Sasaki

Barb grew up in Montana and Idaho.  In 1994 she made her home in Kona, Hawaii.   While recovering from surgery on both shoulders, Barb began sewing and designing her own line of handbags.  Due to her shoulder injuries, she first designed the small wristlet to avoid carrying a heavy purse.  They became so popular that soon she was getting orders from friends and coworkers. 

She now has several wholesale accounts in Hawaii.  Customer comments are welcome as she strives to  improve and keep up with all her requests. 

MY EXPERIENCE ON A POTATO FARM  (and inspiration for my Haute Potato Bag):

As a young mother I once did a stint sorting seed potatoes on a farm in Idaho.  My husband was out of work and I was offered $4.50 per hour to do a temporary job on a potato farm to help out with groceries.  It was NASTY, miserable work!  My hats off to all of you who may regularly do it for a living!  My memories consist of seeing a huge barn filled to the rafters with potatoes.  There was a conveyor belt that was set up to bring the potatoes down to the sorters.  There was a group of about 6 of us.  Our job was to grab any rotten potatoes or rocks and toss them aside.  Did I mention that motion sickness can be an issue?  Well that was probably the least of it as I was soon to discover.  The potatoes are covered with fine dirt and as they move along the conveyor belt a mist of dust is inhaled unless you are wearing a bandana over your mouth.  The dry dirt turns into MUD once it mixes with the moisture in your lungs and a heaviness settles in your chest!  That night I was coughing up MUD!  My second day, I had a bandana!  And then, it started to snow!  You do realize that means that it had to be less than 32 degrees outside for that to happen, right?  Here we were, standing outdoors in the elements, sorting potatoes  and I only had tennis shoes to cover my feet.   That day I experienced the love my father has for me.  I was home for my lunch break, my feet all red, wet and cold.  My dad had stopped by to say hello and when he saw me, he took the rubber boots off his feet for me to wear!  I will never forget that.  I guess he went home in his wool work socks!  On my third day of this, I developed tendonitis from the motion of picking and tossing potatoes, so severe that when I moved my fingers, you could hear the tendons "squeek" from across the room.   My career as a seed potato sorter was brought to an abrupt end!  But do I eat potatoes?  You bet I do!  Only  I do it with an appreciation of what the workers endure to bring them to our table.  Think about it!