Couple unites industrial scraps with fashion in Chemical Wedding handbag line

Jon and Tracy Haaland marry post industrial scraps and imaginative design to create one-of-a-kind handbags. The artistic local couple aims to create wearable art, and they've done it, just as the name Chemical Wedding suggests. Jon Haaland explains that the line Chemical Wedding is based on the alchemist theory of transmutation of form. "Like lead into gold, we use and rearrange manufacturer's castoffs and turn them into handbags."

The Haalands take leather scraps, "fur" scraps (cowhide), rivets, plywood and hardware and transform the materials into shoulder bags embellished with leather appliqués and contrast stitching, furry purses, clutches with wood closures, and wristlets with hand-welded copper bracelets. Some of the leather is screen-printed, complementing the organic elements with an industrial aesthetic. Working together, Tracy hammers and assembles components and Jon stitches them up.

These discards turned distinctive accessories range in price from $100 to $300. Various styles are available at Andaluz, Clementine, Les Amis and Synapse206. They can also be ordered through their blog.

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