Paula Votteler, a fashion design student at Kunsthochschule Berlin Weißensee, makes bags out of things nobody else picks up. Reflectors, fishing lures, and oyster shells all become bags in her hands. Her first degree was in packaging technology, and the crochet she learned from her mother at five has since found its way into bags. She buys no new materials and works only with what already exists, a stubborn practice. A single bag takes at least 50 hours to complete.
On vacation in Brittany this summer she made a bag from fishing lures found at a flea market. She also made one from rose quartz she had bought in Calgary earlier this year. There is an oyster shell bag built from shells donated by the oyster bar at Berlin's KaDeWe department store. After years of mussel and abalone shells she says she has entered her oyster era, with a matching oyster dress in the works. Discarded materials are reborn as fashion in her hands.
Embroidery, crochet, weaving, and sewing are all done by hand. It is a delicate process that happens only at her fingertips, without machines. The time spent gathering materials, preparing them, and weaving them into a single bag exceeds 50 hours. She has chosen meaning over efficiency. Her bags are not produced quickly.
Her background in packaging technology meets her current practice. Packaging is about wrapping and protecting something, and bags serve the same purpose. The crochet she learned as a child still lives and moves in her hands today. Skills do not disappear, they only shift in form and carry on. Fashion and craft, art and function, become one body in her hands.
What discarded material would you want to turn into a bag?
On vacation in Brittany this summer she made a bag from fishing lures found at a flea market. She also made one from rose quartz she had bought in Calgary earlier this year. There is an oyster shell bag built from shells donated by the oyster bar at Berlin's KaDeWe department store. After years of mussel and abalone shells she says she has entered her oyster era, with a matching oyster dress in the works. Discarded materials are reborn as fashion in her hands.
Embroidery, crochet, weaving, and sewing are all done by hand. It is a delicate process that happens only at her fingertips, without machines. The time spent gathering materials, preparing them, and weaving them into a single bag exceeds 50 hours. She has chosen meaning over efficiency. Her bags are not produced quickly.
Her background in packaging technology meets her current practice. Packaging is about wrapping and protecting something, and bags serve the same purpose. The crochet she learned as a child still lives and moves in her hands today. Skills do not disappear, they only shift in form and carry on. Fashion and craft, art and function, become one body in her hands.
What discarded material would you want to turn into a bag?
FAQ
What materials does Paula Boettler use to make her bags?
Paula Boettler crafts bags from discarded materials others overlook: reflectors, fishing lures, oyster shells, mussel shells, abalone shells, and rose quartz. She never buys new materials, sourcing everything from Brittany flea markets and the oyster bar at Berlin's KaDeWe department store.
How are Paula Boettler bags made?
Paula Boettler hand-embroiders, crochets, weaves, and sews every piece, taking at least 50 hours per bag. She uses crochet techniques learned from her mother at age five, and her first degree in packaging technology informs her bag design approach.
Where is Paula Boettler studying?
Paula Boettler is studying fashion design at Kunsthochschule Berlin Weißensee. Her first degree was in packaging technology, and she now focuses on sustainable fashion and handcrafted bag-making.
