Esmé™ | Handmade Soft Traveler Bag

The whole coastline rolled up and came with you

This barrel-style duffle is built around a full coastal scene worked in quilting, appliqué, and dimensional embroidery. The lower body is pieced in sandy cream cotton; above it, layered chevron waves rise in four tones — pale sky blue, soft chambray, mid-ocean blue, and deep navy — each wave ridge outlined by the quilting stitch itself. Scattered across the scene are raised orange starfish, a red-and-white striped scallop shell, smaller ivory and coral shells, sea-grass sprigs in teal, and what appears to be a small crab near the upper right. A brown leather-look patch at the center front carries the word BEACH in sky-blue appliqué letters. Rolled canvas handles in warm linen finish the top. Claire and Riley found this piece for the shop they've kept going in Cape May since their mother Margaret opened its doors in 1978 — and it fits this town like it was made for the boardwalk end of Washington Street.

• Layered Wave Construction — Four distinct chevron-cut fabric bands — from pale sky to deep navy — are pieced and quilted so the ocean actually looks like it's moving across the bag.
• Details — 19" × 9" × 9", roomy enough for a long weekend and soft enough to squash into a car boot.
• Raised Coastal Appliqué — Starfish, shells, and sea-grass are applied with enough dimension that you can feel the texture when you run a hand across the front panel.
• Rolled Linen Handles — The thick, tightly rolled canvas handles sit comfortably in the crook of your arm even when the bag is full for a weekend away.
• The Last of This Run — We took what the workshop had left. Once these are gone we will not be getting them again.
• Looking After Her — Spot clean with a soft damp cloth and let her air dry. No tumble dryer — it flattens the quilting.

You lift it off the baggage carousel in Atlantic City, and the woman next to you immediately asks where you got the bag with the starfish on it.

⚠ Because every bag is made by hand, small differences in colour, stitching and placement will happen. That is not a fault — it is the proof a person made it.

This is a handmade bag, and the price reflects the time and skill that goes into every quilted wave and appliquéd shell — it is not the least expensive duffle you will find. It's for the woman who packs with intention and wants to carry something that looks as good walking into a beach cottage as it does in an airport terminal.

“We carried it into the shop and it hasn't stopped turning heads since” — Claire & Riley, Cape May