My name is Nicola and I started selling bags, accessories and homewares from vintage and recycled material on Etsy back in 2007. I started Pouch out of a desire to create unique products which stood out from mass-produced high street offerings.

More recently, I have started selling vintage fabrics and trims. Some of the reasons I love vintage are: it's unique, it has a positive environmental impact, it's good quality, it has a story...you are buying a piece of design history.

I was always creative as a child, my Mum encouraged us to make things all the time and I often watched her sew homemade clothes. I remember my late-father taking me to a toy shop in town and out of all the toys I picked a sewing box. I still use it now! Unfortunately I drifted away from art when I didn’t get the grades I needed to study Art History at university. I started creating items for Pouch about five years ago. I love being back in touch with the creative side of my personality, I neglected it for too long!

A few years ago I discovered online selling and fell in love with the etsy website. Craft fairs just weren’t working for me, you are relying on someone making an impulse buy and very often people do not shop like that. Having a website means that someone can view your products, bookmark it and come back to you later.

I think the advent of ‘fast fashion’ has made us lose sight of how complicated and time consuming sewing is. The same can be said about lots of crafts such as knitting and jewellery making. I think if you choose to "buy handmade" you are supporting a business run by someone who puts a lot of time and effort into each and every item they make.