Meet LILL! See why we love it.

For this upcoming holiday season, we know how important it is to find the perfect gift. That mixed with the economy and the state it's in, we know how important to spend wisely and put your earnings towards something you believe in. As you know, you can design the perfect handbag, accessory or pillow with LILL, however there is something more that you are giving when you are giving the gift of LILL. All LILL products are created right here in Chicago. When you buy LILL, you support a local, woman-owned business, employed by team members who also stand behind the LILL product and philosophy.

Your LILL Bag, accessory or pillow is hand-cut, hand-sewn and shipped to you by a special individual. We’d like to introduce you to these dynamic team members that make the LILL product, and company, personal and unique.



Meet Kari, Mandy and Alexandra. (Featured in picture, from left to right) You may recognize these girls as our models from our current home page on our website. Each girl is as sweet and unique as a LILL Bag. Get to know the girls that work to make your LILL experience and product so special.

Meet Kari O, Cutting Team Member
Favorite Style: ANDI
"I love being a part of the LILL team because I love getting to look at pretty fabric all day."

Meet Mandy L., Design Department Director
Favorite Style: ERINN
"I love being a part of the LILL team because I get to work in a collaborative environment with the greatest people."



Meet Alexandra A., Cutting Team Member, Junior Fabric Associate
Favorite Style: HADLEY
"I Love being a part of the LILL team because I am surrounded by creative problem solvers, and I learn something new about my job everyday at work and look forward to expanding my skills of this profession."

Check back often as we will be featuring the lovely people that make LILL the wonderful place it is. Feel good about the gifts you give.

-Lilly S.

Emily's Pick of the Week

Happy Halloween LILL Fans! This week I thought I'd feature some of the new fabrics that we have available online for custom orders or for fabric sales. I love fabric! I love to check out all of the cool colors and textures. Normally I am a big fan of spring/summer fabrics. However, I am really inspired by the new fall/winter fabrics that were recently added to LILL's website. It's so much fun to think about making a new fall bag or designing a new pillow or two with these great new fabrics! I'd like to spotlight some of my personal favorites.


Bangladesh Paisley and Coming Up Daisies are great for a neutral bag with a pop of color! Also both of these fabrics would look great on a custom JASMINE pillow.




Flocked Sesame and Malabar Paisley have beautiful brown and black designs. These fabrics will coordinate with almost any outfit.






Salmon Floral is a bright shiny fabric. This fabric makes me smile.




Central Park Tweed has a green, tan and navy woven together for a hearty fall look.




If you love purple, you will love Sintra Gardens. Sintra Gardens has dark purple, light purple, tan and cream behind black velvet flowers.


If you are looking for inspiration, take a look at our fabric palette. I'm sure you will find something that makes you feel good!
Have a great weekend! Emily

Spook-tober Potluck

Here at LILL HQ we host a monthly themed potluck to celebrate all the team member's birthdays that fall in that month. It also provides a fun way to gather and chat with each other and catch up with each other's lives. The birthday kids get to pick the theme and the rest of us bring the grub.

It was no surprise that our October babies chose a spooky Halloween theme for October's potluck. The spread consisted of delicious sweet bread that took on the shape of brains, mummy hot dogs, and pumpkin shaped PB&J sandwiches. There was also a nice sprinkle of fall foods such as spicy pumpkin bread, apple cider and an amazing apple pie.




Activities included guess how many candy corns are in the jar and a costume contest where team members brought in photos of costumes they wore in past Halloweens.

The candy corn guessing game was won by Bob H., LILL's photographer and brother to owner Jennifer Velarde (I think the "fix" was in).
The costume picture contest was won by Imelda F., LILL's Cutting Manager and Design Associate won with her picture of a her and her husband dressed in a horrific, gory costume.




Jack also made a special appearance as he also celebrates his birthday in October. He enjoyed a delicious cupcake while all the LILL folks sang Happy Birthday to him.









It was a great potluck and we all continued our day with full bellies and happy thoughts of what next month's potluck will bring.




-Lilly S.

SISTERHOOD of the TRAVELING BAG

Our team members, both here at HQ and in the field, are always telling stories about the wonderful experiences they have with customers who came into the store, shop on-line, or host/attend a party. Recently, I started to reach out to some of these customers with emails to thank them for their business and for sharing their stories with us. Hearing back from customers after these emails has quickly become a favorite part of my day. I have been so inspired by the stories I have received and often find similarities between myself and our customers. I received one this past week that I'd love to share with everyone. It reminded me of something my girlfriends and I would do. The "rules" literally had me laughing out loud. It is the story of 4 women from 3 countries who met through work, became fast friends and have bounded over handbags. They started their love of LILL bags with our rep, Amy DeJong, who serves the Detroit, MI area and recently traveled to Chicago to visit our flagship store. Here is the story in their own words:

"We would like to share the story of our Traveling Purse with you and hope you enjoy reading it! We have also attached two pictures of us in front and in your store.Lill Purses have become an addiction of ours for the last 4 months and some of us longer. We are on our third party amongst the four of us and I think our significant others think we may have a bit of a problem (he,he,he). We became friends through work here in Michigan and all come from different backgrounds. Two of us are from Germany and will be returning very soon. One of us is Canadian and living in Michigan and the final woman of our foursome is born and raised here in the United States.

The idea of our traveling purse was inspired by the book/movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.While we're much older than the characters in the movie, we can relate to and appreciate their desire to maintain a special bond across time and distance. We all love the movie and Lill Purses so much that it inspired us to use both concepts to continue our friendship for years to come.

On Saturday October 18th 2008, the adventure began. We took a girls trip to Chicago to visit the original 1154 Lill Purse Studio to design our first traveling purse. When we arrived, it was extremely exciting for all of us and soon we were sitting on the front steps smiling away for a picture we asked a stranger to take. Upon entry into the store, our little grins turned into bright smiles. We all stopped in the doorway overwhelmed and not sure where to go next. We sat our things down on a big table and walked around the store taking in the beautiful colors and the selection of items around us. After about 10-15 minutes of aimless wandering, we finally gathered ourselves together, assigned tasks and began grabbing fabrics for our purse. Surprisingly because we were so acquainted with the fabrics and agreed on a style, it did not take long at all. Our Andi Bag was complete and we were all so pleased with what we had accomplished. In an effort to make sure the bag was not lonely while it traveled from country to country, we added a cute little mirror for the journey.

The Rules of our Traveling Purse:Like the movie, there were rules that the traveling purse had to have. Over many glasses of Prosecco, we all decided on the following rules:

1) A journal must accompany the purse at all times. It must be small enough to fit inside, yet large enough to write down the exciting adventures we experience while carrying our purse. If the pages of the journal run out, it is the responsibility of the person in possession of the purse to purchase a new one.

2) Pictures are a must have in the book and the front page will have the four of us on the front steps of the 1154 Lill Purse Studio where our story began.

3) The mirror was added not only to help put our lip gloss on but also to spark creativity in our writing. Over time we are going to get some grey hair, a few pimples, freckles or wrinkles so whenever we look in the mirror, we have to record what we see in our journal.

4) Whenever anyone Scotch Guards or cleans the purse, it must be noted in the journal so we do not over care for it. We definitely need to maintain the beauty of our fabric.

5) While in Chicago, we were introduced to stamp embossing (while purchasing our journal). It is now one of the many treasured hobbies we share. So, since the purse, journal and the stamps were all purchased in Chicago, when signing off in our journal entry, it must have the signature stamp we all picked out to represent ourselves.

6) Every one will get the purse for 2-3 months and then it will travel to the next person. The time period is still under negotiation :o)

7) Considering patterns and styles change over time, we will have to meet in Chicago at least once again to create a new purse. The time is yet to be determined at this moment."

I read this email yesterday when I arrived at work. It instantly made me want to gather up my own girlfriends for a girl's weekend, or at the very least a girl's dinner. I wanted to laugh with my girls the same way I imagined these 4 friends laughing as they created the "rules." I really connected with their story. It made me proud to have created something that will connect them as they return to their respective homes. At the same time, I am so inspired by their friendship, creativity and humor. Thank you Daniela, Maggie, Larissa, and Daniella!! I hope the story of their "traveling bag" inspires you as well - go gather your girlfriends and celebrate the beauty of friendship! Have a great weekend!

Jen Velarde

Founder - 1154 LILL Studio

Emily's Pick of the Week

Happy Friday LILL Fans! This week, I'd like to feature our custom SUSAN. SUSAN is a great bag to carry for baby essentials, the gym or for work. LILL girl Diana C. created a darling SUSAN online recently. Diana chose the very popular black and cream Moroccan Tiles for the exterior base and pocket. Moroccan Tiles is a vibrant pattern that really catches your eye! Meridian Blue brightens up the trim. The sturdy Black Utility fabric covers the exterior top and strap. Black Utility was a great choice beacause it is a very strong fabric and will hold up very well.

Design your own unique SUSAN or check out our ready-made SUSAN's.

Have a great weekend!

Emily