We recently caught up with Dana Harvey, who created the original seatbelt bag back in 1997 along with his wife Melanie. Their line, Harveys, has become an iconic brand and has expanded since its inception to include over thirty different handbag and accessory styles. Each piece is made in the U.S.A. and comes with a lifetime guarantee.

What inspires your work? Iconic design. The Eames lounge, Chuck Taylors, Levis 501's, Airstream, 1932 Ford Roadster, etc ... The true test of good design is time. Can something look just as good 50 to 100 years later and still be reliant? Design shouldn't be relevant for one season or one year. I have a vintage pair of Levi's from the 40's that I paid $500 for. Now that's good design.

Who are your favorite designers? The Americans: Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Marc Jacobs, Calvin Klein, Isaac Mizrahi. I like how practical and wearable their designs are. It's about consistency for me. It's not easy to keep things fresh yet the same. I like it when you know who the designer is without looking at the label.



What are your top fashion, beauty, accessory or art must-haves? My Tool belt, my iPhone, anything from ZIRH, Limited edition artist toys.

Any advice you would give to aspiring designers? When you're just starting out, work hard and cheaply. Get experience and work with others. Collaborate with your competition. Do it because you love doing it, not because you want to be rich and famous. I'd do a really cool project for free over a well paid gig that I wasn't that into.

Where can people find your work? At Shopflick.com and many others places!

Anything else you would like to add? Broaden your horizons. Fashion is great but there are so many other areas of design that can inspire you like furniture, architecture, history, art, photography, etc ...

You can check out all of the Harveys handbag styles at their website.

We love all of the amazing independent designers out there and we wanted to find out more about what makes these creative types tick. If you do too, check out more of our Indie Designer Interviews.