I am Donna Webster, the Designer and creator of Kimono Collections.

I have lived in Asia for half of my adult life. My first and most impressionable visit to Asia was to Japan when i was 18. I was mesmerized by its beauty and its diversity to my place of birth - Melbourne, Australia. I returned some years later and lived for two years in a small country town - Ikeda-cho in the Gifu region.

When i left Japan i wanted one beautiful Uchikake Kimono to hang on my wall. It proved impossible to find, despite my extensive contacts. Some years later when I was running a boutique tour company for Japanese Tourists in Noosa Heads, Australia, I was on a marketing trip and stumbled on one gorgeous wedding Kimono. From there I began my treasure hunt. This was ten years ago and i have been collecting ever since.

I have a penchant for stories that need to be told and for creative endeavours. After returning from several years in Borneo and Singapore, I decided that the Uchikake Kimonos needed to have a new life. Although many people admire the full Kimono, few are able to display it and/or care for it, so they ran the risk of being locked away or ending their life in a flea market. I experimented with a few ways of honoring its beauty until i created the 'Kimono Bag'.

My initial creation was rather rough, but dramatic enough for me to understand the impact it had when and where I carried it. The Kimono Bag seemed to have a life of its own. No matter which country I was in, men and women stopped me and wanted to comment on it or ask where i purchased it. After six months or so, i decided to pursue perfecting the quality so that i could re-create the Uchikake into a piece of wearable art that would last a life time.

I wanted to combine truly Australian elements into the Kimono Bag, so i then spent more than a year trying to find the right craftsman who would put the time and energy into creating one of a kind wooden handles to compliment the Kimono Bag. Eventually i found Jamie Bell and he makes every handle one by one from sustainable timber.

I love both the business and the design elements of Kimono Collections. I have a performing arts beginning and an international business cache of experience. In recent years I have re-defined the structure of my approach to life so I am able to spend time truly evolving the essence of what i choose to do, rather than skimming the surface of a corporate life.

Kimono Collections is very boutique, very rare and very much for like minded women. I am excited to know more about each woman's experience of her Kimono Collections handbag, I look forward to hearing from you.

My best wishes,
Donna