My dear friend Gaynor recently made me this gorgeous nappy bag. I love it and I feel so very swish when it’s on my shoulder. Ok, on the inside it may contain diapers and bum-wipes but, on the outside, it is all about sophisticated. Every girl needs a bit of glamour, even mummies.
I am in awe of Gaynor. She taught herself to sew (something I’ve been wanting to do for years), started making herself handbags, and then turned that into a very successful business, Head in the Clouds Handbags. 
Her handbags are lovely – beautifully made and with all the right details. Take my nappy bag: the fabric is gorgeous, it’s chock full of pockets, the back pocket closes with a beautiful purple ribbon, and the shoulder strap can be tied to any length so I can wear it on my shoulder or hang it on the pushchair handle. Most of all, this bag doesn’t say “baby” — it very much says grown-up mummy.
Gaynor started this business with a confidence and optimism that I envy: an ability to see the possible instead the pitfalls. She went for it and made it work. She’s had to stop working at the moment because she’s soon to give birth, but she’s already discussing her plans to expand her business into baby-things and to start selling over the internet.
Every time I get together with her, she fills me with inspiration. I come away full of ideas and excitement about the things I could make happen in my future. There are things I could do — I just have to build up the courage. I am making moves toward them — small steps, but steps nonetheless — and I hope to turn those into bigger moves sometime fairly soon. I hope to be able to go to Gaynor for support and encouragement when I get frightened.
There’s only one problem with hanging out with Gaynor: everything about her is perfect. Her house is beautiful: fab decor and every detail just so, her garden is an oasis of calm, she cooks wonderful food, and the woman is 9 months pregnant and she hasn’t gained an ounce. *sigh* It could give a girl a complex!
But… I figure that will change soon. There’s a baby coming. Mostly I’m so excited for her and I can’t wait to meet her new baby. But, I am ashamed to admit, there’s a little part of me that can’t wait to see her life in just a little bit of a new-momma mess!
Stumble it!
Dreams can come true “from home”. One of my old childhood friends has her own business called Purple Cow. She has a pretty consistent flow of business. I know you love to knit so maybe her site will give you a few ideas.
http://hyenacart.com/purplecowcustoms/
[...] friend Gaynor, who runs Head in the Clouds Handbags, made me a beautiful nappy bag. A week later, I had to tell her there was a problem with it… it was showing up my handbag [...]