About me

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 I’m Tracy Stewart – the owner, designer and artist of DESIGNS FROM MY DESK. I’m a crafter and I like to make old things usable again. Making them pretty again or giving them a new purpose is much more fun (and better for the environment) than just throwing them in the trash! I’m on a mission to keep clothes and books out of the garbage dumps and give them new life as bags, key fobs pouches, ornaments and so much more.

I’ve been creating things for as long as I remember. My mom and grandma taught me crochet, macramé and embroidery when I was little, and I also learned how to sew and cross-stitch. I later took art and watercolor classes. I’ve always preferred to make my gifts rather than buy them.

I’ve always loved purses and bags, but I’ve never been able to find a bag that I truly loved–so I started playing around with different patterns and teaching myself basic bag making skills. Instead of wasting fabric on my experiments, I used clothes from our donate pile. I really liked how the denim and shirting fabric looked together. Then, I started looking through thrift stores and found great clothes that would make wonderful bags and pouches.

Upcycling: that’s what I discovered I love doing–creating something better from an item that was discarded. My favorite mediums to work in (right now!) are fabric and paper. I love digging through the racks at thrift stores to find that one item that would look great as a bag. Whenever I find great sports coats made from 100% wool, I get really excited and can’t wait to see what I can do with them. Long skirts are always a treasure with lots of fabric that is easy to use.

I live in Morrow, Ohio with my husband and daughter. I’m a mom, wife, crafter and memory keeper.