Anya’s World – Trip To Riga & Cesis Castle

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anya sushko bespoke handbag expert, Anya Sushko London, Cesis Castle Latvia, Latvia, Riga, Trip to Riga

As London is getting into the mood for spring, our founder Anna has just returned from her trip to Riga, Latvia where the weather shows no mercy! “In Riga it is still cold, still snowing in April! After living in London for the last 14 years, I can’t get used to the Eastern European climate each time I go back home!” she told us.

Apart from spending time with family, Anna made some time to enjoy architectural sites such as the magnificent Cesis Castle in the small town of Cesis.

Cesis Castle

The ancient Cesis Castle, with its impressive ruins is considered to be one of the best in the Baltic States. Built in the early 13th century, it has survived numerous wars and rebuilt many times. A popular tourist destination in Latvia because of its extensive history, you can see from the photographs how certain aspects of the castle are still intact where others have been subjected to ruin.

The small town of Cesis has a an old legend, which always makes it a little bit more special.  It tells us of an old man who would walk around with his lantern, wishing everyone good night and to stay safe. Nowadays all lanterns that are seen are reminders of this keeper and how “it’s light will always show the right way not only for the Old man, but also for your good thoughts, dreams and intentions…” This is how the lantern came to be the symbol of the town.  This story has been passed down the generations in Cesis and legend has it that if you see an old man in Cesis walking with a lantern, you should stop and polish it so that the light will shine bright to show the way.

Lanterns Inspired By The Towns Legend

Not far from Cesis Castle, there is a museum with impressive artifacts including innovative art pieces made by local children and some interesting jewellery pieces worn by the Latvian people in the 12th & 13th Century.

Artwork in the Museum made by Local Children

Jewellery Worn By Latvian People in the 12th – 13th Century

The cold weather made the trip to Cesis even more romantic, on the last day we were mesmerised by the beautiful sky above the train station. We could not resist taking a shot of our Chic City Tote Bag (this was the bag made exclusively for the Dorchester Boutique)  in an unusual setting.  Here are some more images of our Chic City Tote in an around Downtown Cesis. We wanted to share some of the snaps with you. You can also see more on our social media, Twitter, Facebook & Instagram.

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Project Anya – Making A Bespoke Handbag – Mood Board Inspiration & Leather Swatches

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After our fabulous trip to the Lineapelle Leather Show in Bologna, we wanted to harness our positivity from the show and move onto our next project, creating a bespoke bag for a special client.

Today, we are meeting with our client Lenka Gourdie from Sale Servant to discuss final designs & leather swatches for her bespoke Karolina handbag.  Anna our founder and designer has been busy in the studio compiling images that Lenka was inspired by into a mood board. A very stylish theme with a classic business lady vibe, perfect inspiration for our new Karolina handbag.

Our client Lenka loved our Karolina handbag so much she wanted one made to her specifications, choosing the colour, handle size, pocket size and positioning, leather type as well as having an input into the final design of the handbag. Anna is the bespoke handbag expert and takes real pride and joy in understanding her clients vision, great time is spent ensuring the client is happy. Preparations are now underway to present Lenka with our final ideas for the bag and firm up any last-minute changes, here is our founder and designer Anna making some changes to the Karolina design to pitch to Lenka.

Making a bespoke handbag for someone is so very special and personal, it becomes more than just an ‘Anya Sushko London’ design, but one that has meaning, feeling and unique craftmanship that no one else will have.  Anna collaborates with the client to create their vision, ensuring that their vision translates through her design.  The next stage is to take a selection of leather swatches to Lenka along with the sketches to finalise the colours that will be used.

We are now ready to meet our fabulous client Lenka and firm up the final details of her bespoke Karolina Handbag.

If you are interested in having your own bespoke handbag created by ‘Anya Sushko London’, we have a special offer for Mother’s Day where we will be giving 20% off all of our handbags (excluding Python and New Arrivals) just simply enter ‘LoveBespoke’ at the checkout.