Walk under a trellis
of purple clematis, into a yard of roses and flowering fruit trees. Go past a fountain where a faerie spills water into a conch shell, and up the stairs lined with rhododendron bushes and hanging flower baskets. You are entering the home and studio of Sue Ieronemo, designer and owner of Gypsy Camp Creations. It is here inside this quaint little cottage, located in Portland, Oregon, where Sue hand makes her wares and purses created out of exquisite tapestry fabric called Boodle Bags, and whimsical polymer clay buttons.

As long as I can remember,
says Sue, drawing, painting and working with my hands was a passion of mine. I've made everything from bread dough baskets to large macramé wall hangings. Sewing came quite by accident. At age 19, astonished with the gift of a sewing machine from my new boyfriend, who several years later became my husband, I never stopped sewing, especially over the years for our three little girls. When my youngest daughter was a senior in high school, she and I decided to sell our handmade jewelry and my purses at a local craft fair. I was hooked. In 1991, my business Gypsy Camp Creations was born, and as she went off to college, I continued to design my bags and create buttons and trinkets from polymer clay. Still loving the gypsy-style outdoor life, you will find me selling weekends from March through December, at the Portland Saturday Market, as well as numerous other art fairs throughout the year.