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The best designers you’ve never heard of.

Fringe Benefits
A favorite of red-carpet walkers, Hilary Lawson’s vibrant, trim-embellished bags are helping to raise money for charity.

Name: Hilary Lawson
Age: 33
Business: Sweet Charity Boutique/Lottie Dottie Handbags (LottieDottie.com)
Location: Los Angeles

Were you interested in fashion as a child?
Yes. I had to be the first kid to wear the latest trends, and as I got older and more secure with myself, I started creating my own trends. I was also a theater major in college, and I was always so impressed by the clothes the costume designers would create for my characters.

When did you to start designing and selling handbags?
I started designing handbags as a creative outlet when I was living in Miami. I tried to sell them a few times to local stores, but each time they were rejected. One day, I decided to take them to a new store, and much to my surprise, the owners bought the bags. It felt so good to get paid for something I loved to do that I quickly created a dozen more bags and sold those to one of my favorite boutiques in Delray Beach. I never aspired to become a handbag designer, but I’m so happy that I did. Seven years later, I’ve learned so much about business, life, people, and myself.

You graduated from Tulane University with a theater degree, but you decided to focus on fashion instead.
Yes, after I graduated from Tulane, I went to L.A. with my SAG card in hand, and I still couldn’t get a job. So in my quest to get onto a set, I was like, “I’m doing wardrobe!” My first job was wrapping out a trailer, which basically means doing all the dirty work: cleaning it out and returning clothes to the costume houses. But still, I was so excited to be working on the Universal Studios lot—not taking the tour but working. That excitement lasted for about six years, until one day I realized that I just had to get out of L.A. My family was in Florida, so that’s where I moved, and I started the Lottie Dottie handbag line out of my mom’s garage. I would be on the phone with clients, and the washer and dryer would be rumbling in the background.

Do you have any favorite designers?
I love, love, love Dolce & Gabbana. Their designs are so imaginative, the fit is amazing, and the fabrics are so lush. In fact, one of my biggest purchases ever was a D&G dress. After I bought it, I saw Madonna wearing it, which made me feel so sexy and confident.

Your new shop in Los Angeles is called Sweet Charity, and a portion of the proceeds goes toward the customer’s charity of choice. What prompted you to launch this program?
Seven years ago, in a Loehmann’s dressing room in Miami, I met Stephanie Graniero, a Miami designer and boutique owner who later sold my Lottie Dottie line, as well as her own fitnesswear line, Oh My Bod! We became fast friends, and in addition to the fact that we both love fashion, we’re very focused on giving back and helping people in need. About a year ago, Stephanie and I decided to launch Sweet Charity together, featuring emerging designers from all over the country and six charities every six months, donating 10 percent of every sale to the charity of the customer’s choice. Right now, the charities we’re showcasing include Project Angel Food; the ASPCA; the Breast Cancer Research Foundation; Habitat for Humanity, to help rebuild New Orleans; Compassion, which helps orphans in Africa and Asia; and Project A.L.S., an organization my cousin founded to fight Lou Gehrig’s disease.

You have several celebrity clients, including Britney Spears and Kyra Sedgwick, and your bags have been featured on The Sopranos, Will & Grace, Sex and the City, and more. What’s it like seeing your designs on the red carpet and prime-time TV shows?
I never got a guest-star part on Will & Grace, but my bags did, so that’s good enough for me!

The large pink-and-orange Showgirl bag ($180).

Photo Credits: Courtesy of subject

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