Heather Belle Co

The minute we laid eyes on Heather Belle handbags we were smitten. They are not only original and thought out but classic and timeless. When we stopped by her offices we were prepared to see some amazing bags but what we weren’t prepared for was how inspirational she is. A proponent for strong women everywhere, she’s creating beautiful jewelry and bags that also have meaning (Did we mention vegan and made in the USA?) They are meant to remind us to have strength, courage and to trust our instincts. We sat done and chatted with her about her gorgeous bags and left feeling uplifted and inspired.

Tell us how you got started?

I wrote a book on how to manage the exes in your life, I was also a painter and had been doing a lot of art. I felt like I needed a reminder to stop obsessing about the things in my life that didn’t work. I tried to figure out what reminder I could carry when I needed strength. So I created a stop sign, which is the shape of an octagon and did a collection of post-its because I felt like inspirational jewelry was not inspiring to me at all. Hope and all those kinds of words, what do they really mean? Hope for what? So my words were like: stop obsessing, stop feeling sorry for yourself, help, smile (and I never smile), on the edge, yes, no. I think the most affordable fashion statement you could make is to sort of smile with your heart. So each one of them has meaning to me. It all came from a lot of different parts of my life kind of merging together. Then we ended up doing the Tombstone Bay collection, which is embossed with quotes from people who I feel like inspired the world out of nothing. What was their inspiration and what made them do great things when You Tube wasn’t around?

Is that how the Octagon become so prominent in your designs? 

Yes. And now the Octagon is the shape of our company. I like the octagon shape because to me, it’s a much more balanced sort of spiritual thought. I think it’s such a pretty shape and more interesting. I find designs off of it and it’s never really used.

How long have you been doing it?

The company has been around for about 2 years.

Tell us about your new collection? 

The new collection is an ego-friendly collection so no animal products are in it. The skin is imported from a family owned company in Spain. They hand cast every piece and paint it nine times to get the texture to look organically like animal skin. We take shape and pattern into account when making them and I intentionally have no hardware so they’re light and easy to carry. Each one is made by hand right here in the U.S. I think that’s also an important aspect to everything I do.

Where do you currently sell your products? Where can people buy them?

Right now we sell it on Fred Segal and Arm Candy in Santa Monica, CA. and on our website.

Where do you see Heather Belle going in the future?

Ideally, I would love to be in Barneys and Co-ops. I have to believe that you’re going to be able to keep this for 10 years, pull it out of your closet and wear it season after season. I’m hoping to create a classic in that mid-range price, not something cheap, but something you can actually have forever because of the production value and the design element to it. I’m not going for trend. I think most people who are really into fashion will spend more on the classics because it’s an investment in your wardrobe.

 Heather Belle Co 

11973 San Vicente Blvd. Suite 201
Los Angeles, CA 90049
1-866-614-1036

info@heatherbelleco.com