Learning about other ways of living has given me a chance to be able to decide for myself, to be able to see what’s best for me to do and to be involved in.
My country of origin has definitely made a mark. Italians are world famous for their flare and passion for living. The eastern part of our planet as taught me about coolness of emotions and introspection. Europe has taught me about differences and exchange. North America has taught me about individuality and self achievement.
I look at ourselves as a constantly changing species of animals with the potential of changing ourselves and the capability of disassociating for our primordial instincts.
I do my job to allow people to adapt to their environment in a unique way, by providing the accessories and garments which will help the day to day living in style.
Andrea Mangiarotti
Random Facts About You?1) I like learning something new everyday.
2) I always wear an hat, a specific hat, which really reminds me about where I come from.
3) One day I will purchase a round the world ticket and I will take a year off to go visit my friends, in their countries, in their houses, in their reality, no matter where they are.
4) The person I admire the most is my mother, she's cool
What got you started crafting?
My background (Andrea) isn't necessarily related to crafting. I am a software engineer by trade. Leather work is a skill I picked up from my best friend Gianluca, while on a visit to Spain. Since 2001, I have been producing and selling handmade leather goods in various parts of the world including Italy (where we are from), Spain, United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Australia, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Singapore, France, Ireland, New Zealand and more.
At the time I have started learning about leather crafting, I was on a quest to find a way to express myself and use my hands; working on computers and software development had driven me totally nut, I couldn't stand it anymore, I had to get out of it...
To begin with, I was mostly selling my crafts in markets, festivals and 5 years ago, I have decided to go fully on the internet.
What is your source of inspiration?
My inspiration comes from seeing different ways of living, by travelling and sharing with people their simple or complicated lifestyles.
Learning about other ways of living has given me a chance to be able to decide for myself, to be able to see what's best for me to do and to be involved in.
My country of origin has definitely made a mark. Italians are world famous for their flare and passion for living. The eastern part of our planet as taught me about coolness of emotions and introspection. Europe has taught me about differences and exchange. North America has taught me about individuality and self achievement.
I look at ourselves as a constantly changing specie of animals with the potential of changing ourselves and the capability of disassociating for our primordial instincts.
I do my job to allow people to adapt to their environment in a unique way, by providing the accessories and garnments which will help the day to day living in style.
What have you made recently?
The very last project I worked on is a bag for a fellow crafter. She really liked one of my designs and I have custom made it for her. The challenge has been to come up with a balanced, strong and highly usable leather bag for everyday use. The result still have to come to life on the website but you can see a picture of it as one of the photographs on this page.
The design process is the one I most like, dreams turn into creativity, trials and errors and eventually the "perfect" design and prototype comes out, just out of the blue. I have posted the bag a couple of days ago and, as you might understand, I am really looking forward to the feedback; there's nothing I like more than a customers saying, I have managed to capture their dream and turned it into something that will stay with them ... it's just great.
Where do you sell your crafts presently?
My crafts can be primarily found at Chiwit Design online shop, but I also sell some of the items on Etsy, eBay, Dawanda and a few more sites.
Our online shop has been operational since 2006 with great success. We are proud to say that "We are a truly 100% internet company"
Our products cannot be found anywhere else but the Internet.
Why are handmade crafts important to you?
As much as many people in the industry might think we are crazy to still work by hand, we believe in the traditional craft and the resulting products cannot be compared to similar machine made items. Each purse has its own individuality, its own distinctive style.
Find Me
LocationAll over the Internet
Email Address
Andrea Mangiarotti
Personal Website
http://www.chiwitdesign.com
Store Website
http://www.chiwitdesign.com
@chiwitdesign
http://www.facebook.com/chiwitdesign
