About a month ago, I had the pleasure of bumping into a very inspiring individual by the name of Ms. Carol Ann at the Pennsy Flea Market. For over 30 years she has specialized in one of a kind leather craft making by hand. From keychains to wallets, bags to book covers and all sorts of things in between. Intrigued by her creativity, I immediately went to the Bargain Thrift Store ( Germantown & Stenton ave.)  with a mission and purpose.  A Purpose to Create… 

We talked for atleast 40 minutes on everything under the sun. From her previous life before leather making, how she got started and her spiritual beliefs. She also blessed me with a few hidden gems and locations throughout the city to find good material for next to nothing prices. 

Couldn’t leave without showing love and support. 

I went in to this project with the mindset of creating 30 all original and one of kind pins which was kinda a big thing for me. Specially since this is the first “official” pin collection. 

Finding material is the easy part of thrift shopping. Finding useable material is an entirely separate blog post. I usually search for items that first catch my eyes then ask the question, can I use it & how?

I hate wasting material so kids clothes and small bags are clutch.

Couldn’t forget the flannel…. Maybe out of season, but never out of style.

I would say these are the most creative pieces out of the bunch. 

Here’s a few of my favorites from the collection:

“Cat Fight” 1of1 hrt pin

“Camo, Leather & Jeans” 1of1 hrt pin

“Unbuttoned and Barley Zippered” 1of1 hrt pin

“Gold Zippers & Pink Lips” 1of1 hrt pin

My favorite of them all “Thriller”… Unfortunately, this one isnt for sale! lol

Head over to the SHOP to check out the collection in it entirety.

-e/\zy