Upcycled Tyvek priority mailing envelopes make great clutch purses! Tyvek the fabric of the future circa 1980…waterproof and durable! Devo had it right, Tyvek is fire. This is a great way to re-use shipping materials for stylish accessories.
This was my first time working with purse frames and while frustrating at points it wasn’t that bad in the end. I ended up with a few minor dents on the frame and a lot of super glue on my fingers but it holds together well . The Tyvek due to it’s stiffness was sometimes difficult to work with. Tyvek is not only stiff but also really thin so I had to stabilize it with fusible interfacing and cotton batting.
I really enjoyed this project because I used boring everyday items in new ways. And it is awesome that I can now transform any packaging materials I receive into funky little purses. I love reducing waste. I am such an eco-nerd.
I got the purse frame in a very quick shipment from Bits and Purses on Etsy! Great seller. Also, the instructions that I mashed up and used to create this project came from both U-handblog and Purl Bee.
Will be making more soon for sales on Etsy.
I really love your website!! I wrote about this post here, FYI http://defiantfashion.wordpress.com/2009/10/04/priority-mail-purse-from-shamdoogle/
This blog is great. How did you come up witht he idea? 4 7 3
Actually a while ago ReadyMade did a project making wallets out of FedEx tyvek envelopes I just applied the same concept of tyvek as fabric to purses.