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" Carrie Sommer Sommer Designs P.O. Box 2553 Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274 310-480-9198  sommerdesigns.com  Carrie Sommer, the owner of Sommer Designs, graduated from UCLA in 1984, began her career in advertising, and later became a paralegal. Soon marriage and motherhood followed (three boys, including twins!). In 1996, with her children growing, Carrie decided she needed a creative outlet and began freelance writing, then designing newsletters, brochures, and finally Websites. Sommer Designs was launched in 1999 as a Web design studio. The business grew over several years, but in 2003, with the market saturated with Web design firms and business slowing, Carrie began to look for another channel for her creativity. On a lark, Carrie made a diaper bag for a pregnant friend. One thing led to another, more bags were requested, business cards changed hands, and the orders started coming in. Carrie realized this was the opportunity to switch gears, and relaunched Sommer Designs as a handmade handbag line with five styles named after the area where she is based, the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Southern California. In 2006, Sommer Designs branched out and added housewares to the line, including hostess aprons and lavender-filled fabric drawer liners. These quickly became best-sellers. Eye-catching fabrics have become her trademark, and the combinations of patterns add a touch of whimsy. All of her products are sold on her Website, sommerdesigns.com, and at local events. Carrie believes in following your heart and going where life leads you. &amp;quot;The wonderful thing about growing your own business is the flexibility,&amp;quot; says Carrie, &amp;quot;and that your direction can change over the years to accommodate your needs and changing lifestyle.&amp;quot;  OTHER 2007 HONOREES   Shari May of Cottage Farm Soap   Erin Fouberg &amp;amp;amp; Kelly Coyne of Maggie Delaney   Rebecca Yuhasz Smith of Rebecca Ray Design   Nancy Barry, Patricia Houle, and Ann Romano of Village Mixes   Emily Franz of Hootin Annies   Mary Mertens of Ticche &amp;amp;amp; Bea   Teri VanBerkum of Vintage Ltd.   Anne Reeves of Subscribe to Delight "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.countryliving.com/life/a1976/carrie-sommer-pyp-1107/>