Our Thoughts

WELCOME

At UYEN, our handbags are more than just accessories. They are our Companions--faithful sidekicks to the dragonslayers in all of us. They shelter our most intimate belongings: a mighty pen, a rusty sword, a notebook of random musings, or an old sentimental scarf for wintry days. Our Companions are designed for the man on the go, for the woman in march, and for the champions of our aspiration. They live to accompany you on your journeys and shoulder some of your day-to-day burdens. 

OUR WABI SABI AESTHETIC

Our design philosophy is rooted in the traditional Japanese concept of wabi sabi. Deeply grounded in nature's transience, wabi sabi is the appreciation for the faded and flawed, the wisdom in natural simplicity, and the beauty in all things incomplete, imperfect, and impermanent. Sabi means love for that which can only be organically achieved by an artifact's passage through time.

Guided by wabi sabi, we embrace old-world techniques and natural processes: the ancient art of vegetable tanning with tree barks; saddle-stitching by hand in the equestrian tradition; leaving intact the history of markings and scars on our full-grain leather hides. No two alike, each of our Companions is unique in its quiet beauty, resiliency, and charismatic imperfections.  

Organic, confident, and uncompromising, our Companions bravely stand the test of time. And. Dragons.

OUR PROMISE TO MEND

Even with saddle-stitching and heavy-duty leather, we understand that accompanying dragonslayers can take a toll on your Companion. Guided by the wabi sabi aesthetic and our commitment to sustainable consumption, our Promise to Mend honors the flawed but authentic personality your Companion develops while confronting the elements. For wear and tear acquired in the course of normal usage, we will patch and mend (like they did in the old days) to showcase your Companion’s epic history for years to come.

Our Founder & Designer

Born and raised in Trà Cổ, a small village in southern Vietnam, our founder and designer's creative instinct was organically nurtured by her early environment and upbringing. Wet earth was her first canvas. Freshly-dug clay her trusted medium. The natural world and all its raw materials her artistic playground.

Uyen's life and work embody the wabi sabi spirits. With simple tools and raw materials, her designs are tenderly cultivated by the ingenuity of human hands and sincerity of human touch. Uyen hopes that beyond the workshop and exposed to the elements of life, her works continue to develop their own individuality, retain their functionality, and flourish with dignity and grace.