How Elizabeth Stevenson designed her perfect bag
A first run of the De Quai bag will be available for purchase in late November or early December.
For years, artist and architect Elizabeth Stevenson, perhaps best known as a member of the Fisch Haus collective, pondered the perfect bag for her needs.
An avid cyclist, she wanted something she could wear around her waist while riding. She preferred a crossbody style for walking or heading to meetings. Sometimes a handbag was best. Search as she might, the consummate carryall evaded her. So, she designed it.
Her invention, the De Quai bag, is a water-resistant convertible number with straps that can be switched around to make it a belt bag, crossbody, or handbag. She considered many versions, using her architectural skills to create and refine renderings until she arrived at her ideal satchel.
Leather artist Brian Norton at MakeICT made her dream a reality. As she carried the De Quai, people kept asking her where she got it. “It happened all the time and finally I thought, ‘Maybe this is a business.’”
An search led her to Spartan Carry, makers which offer quality bags of all kinds. They loved the design and agreed to manufacture it.
Constructed of ethically sourced leather, the satchel will drop late November or early December in numbered editions of 50. Each edition features a different fly-themed artwork by Stevenson’s partner, artist Patrick Duegaw. His series depicting the diminutive insect is the inspiration for the product name.
“De Quai is a kind of double entendre,” Stevenson said. “In French the word means a place from whence one begins a journey. When pronounced, it sounds like the English word for ‘decay,’ reflecting the concept of the fly's role in the ecosystem.”
You can sign up for a no-commitment waiting list at dequai.com.
— Teri Mott is a writer, actor, and co-founder of The SHOUT.
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