Fashion / A Chat With Handbag Designer, Sneha Varma

A Chat With Handbag Designer, Sneha Varma

Fashion May 15, 2013

by Anokhi Admin

Proving that chasing your dreams is well worth it!

A quintessential staple to a woman's wardrobe are her accessories. It adds a finishing touch to a carefully thought-out look. While it's obvious to covet a well-known luxury brand, the gems are the ones you least expect and rival those heavy hitting designers.

This would be Sneha Varma, after years working as a senior accountant for a local accounting firm, Varma decided to pursue a passion which she's held near and dear. As a child growing up Sneha recalls her connection to the arts. "I've been sketching my whole life," says Varma. "My aunt's an artist and growing up she always gave us gifts like canvasses, paint, and sketching tools. So I was always naturally drawn to the arts."

As a self-professed handbag junkie, that would purchase handbags not for everyday use, but to keep in her collection as works of art. It was natural the next journey to embark in her career, was to start her own handbag line. "When I started to re-evaluate my career, I thought maybe, I can consider doing something like this professionally." says Varma. "I was already sketching bags just for fun, so it kind of started from there and the rest is history."

In 2012, Varma started her independent namesake label with a focus on creating quality leather handbags with custom finishes. Her brand struck a balance between style and function for the modern, sophisticated woman with a hint of edge. Her first collection of handbags featured a mellow caramel Monaco weekender for the savvy traveller, a lustrous black Sydney tote for an afternoon of shopping and an understated elegant golden cognac NYC mini satchel for a woman with street style. "I was inspired to use shades and tones that were more on the neutral scale, explains Varma. "You see a lot of black, crème and cognac. Cognac is more on the neutral side [and] I think it looks great with a lot of things, [so] I wanted to reintroduce it."

For her second collection, Varma pulled inspiration from the runways, for Spring/Summer 2013, featuring colour blocking hues in pops of colour. A few key highlights are the vibrant chilli clutch, a fuchsia cross-body mini and an emerald mini tote. All moderately priced for the budget conscious consumer, "I thought it would be nice to deliver a product that falls within a certain price range, says Varma. "I think it's important, because growing up I wasn't able to afford all the really high end designer handbags that you see out there."

Looking to the future the mother of two boys has aspirations in continuing to grow the Sneha Varma brand. "I want to become a globally recognized accessory brand," Varma explains. "Down the line it would be great to expand, into accessories whether it is jewellery, belts, or sunglasses." For all the bag lovers out there, we're sure you'll be keeping an eye on the budding designer.

You can shop for Sneha Varma online at www.snehavarma.com

^{BY TESSA JOHNSON}