The Great Cumberland Bag Folk

When we first set up in business here in Cumbria I was making bags under the name of The Great Cumberland Bag Folk. (I really wanted to call it The Cumberland Bag Lady but was dissuaded from using that title.)

These are great bags. They're mostly patchwork, and made from upcycled fabrics, often pieces left over from upholstery or curtain making, or pages from redundant sample books.

Each one is unique, though there's a consistency about the patterns. Most have two shoulder straps, so can be considered as feminine backpacks, if you like.

Anyway, I don't really make many bags these days, apart from one-off projects if I need a container for a particular item. (I made a Kindle case recently, for instance.) There was a boxful of bags hidden away in our storeroom, which has found its way to the top of the pile, and with Christmas on its way, it seemed like a good time to try to find good homes for them.

 The one in the photo above is the last one left from a series made from heavyweight linen fabric, fully lined. This was probably our most popular style.

So I'm in the midst of adding these bags to our website. So far, I've made a page for them, but haven't added all the links from the other pages yet, so now is your chance to grab one before anyone else knows they're there.

Did I mention they make great Christmas presents? Each one is unique!

You can find them by clicking on this link: http://www.marshallmcgurk.com/SitUponShop/shop_bags.htm

Oh, and I forgot to mention - if you live near us, you can save on postage. Just let me know which one you'd like, and I'll put it aside until we see each other.

Cotton cord stools

I used to make a lot of these stools, using the beautifully coloured cotton seating cord that we used to stock, but is no longer made. I still feel sad when I look in the box where I used to store it - odd bits and pieces of gorgeous coloured cord are still there, reminding me of what we once could get. There's probably enough for me to do 2 or 3 more stools, though they might be rather strange colour combinations. There's rather a lot of yellow, I think.

Anyway, two ready-made stools, which I made some time back, have just resurfaced. I really like them. They're both woven in patterns I created myself. I almost want to keep them, but that would be silly.

The one on the left has its frame finished in a cool blue/silver stain, which complements the blue and brown seat rather nicely.

The one on the right has a dark stained and varnished frame.

Please note that colours look different on everyone's computer screen. These photos are just to give you an idea of the colours. They probably look a little different in real life.

If I were making a new one today, the cost would be about £75, but I'm prepared to let these two go to good homes for only £59.99 each (plus postage).

I haven't put them up on the website yet, but if you want to grab one before they go public, just make a comment below and I'll get in touch.