Hello everyone! I am Alice, the founder of BouSidesign.
Q: What is BouSi?
A: BouSi is a Cantonese word which means Fabric & Time.
Before I started BouSi, I used to collect interesting fabric pieces when travelling and turn them into gifts for family & friends. My aim is to collect precious memories by fabric crafts.
Q: Why Handmade?
A: I quitted my full time fashion design job for it.
I had been working as a Fashion Designer for a long time and my previous company was sort of related to fast fashion. I felt so guilty working at that company and really hoped to find a way out.
In 2018, my Mum’s health turnt bad so I decided to quit the job and start working at home so I can take care of my family.
Sewing is always my passion and I love to collect cute fabric during travel, especially when visiting Japan. Turning the cute cloth into lovely bags or other fabric crafts is my passion and I used to do that for friends.
Q:What’s special about BouSi?
A: I will say…everything is very limited here. I am living in a very small flat with my family in Hong Kong (about 800ft) so space is very limited. I can only purchase 1-2 metre for each fabric. And I carefully select my fabric collection, most of them are high quality Japanese textiles.
Q: Why do you make only pen cases & small bags?
A: Actually I make more than that but I love to focus on pen cases & bags. Firstly, because I am a stationary nerd, I love collecting beautiful letter paper, stickers and pens.
Although I am not a huge fountain pen girl, I love it and so do my friends. One of my friends asked me to make a cute fountain pen pouch for her because she doesn’t like leather cases. That’s how I started. Then, some clients asked me for a vegan version so I am expanding this section.
For bags or bag organiser, I have been making them since I started BouSi. I found that it is the best item to show off the cute illustration on the textile.
Q: Why did you use so many Japanese or animal prints?
A: I am a super fan of Japan (from manga to traditional culture). I decided to take fashion design because of a manga called Paradise Kiss (it’s a story of a group of fashion design students) So you will find a lot of Japan-related patterns here.
And I am also a huge animal lover, so you will see a lot of Cats, Rabbit or even shoebill prints in my products. If you are looking for solid colour design, I am afraid that you are looking in the wrong place.
Q: Can people have tailor made orders here?
A: Yes, I can make tailor made orders. Some clients asked for a specific style of fabric for their pen case or drawstring bag. If I have the right options for them, I will provide them with design options or suggestions.
Q: Why don’t you open an Etsy shop?
A: I had it before and had been a 5 stars seller. Actually I started from Etsy but my shop was suddenly shut down.
In my Etsy shop, I also put my handmade doll outfit for sale, maybe the AI thought it had a copyright issue. I tried an appeal but I couldn’t get it back. So here I am, having my own shop. It won’t stop me.
Thank you for reading and I hope you have a better understanding about BouSi design.
If you have any questions, welcome to email or dm me on Instagram.
Our Goal
Running a business is tough, Running a handmade brand is even harder. As a one girl band handmade shop, I am working hard to have a sustainable business which offers lovely and affordable fabric crafts.
BouSi had a nice growth at Etsy but unfortunately, it was shut down without any warning. We had been very good sellers with lots of 5 stars reviews. I believe that this is a big push for me to go further and start this shop.
Now we are opening at Payhip and plan to expand.
Thank you for reading and let’s grow together!