Our Story

My story began when I was five years old.

My mom taught me how to create things with my hands. By the age of six, I had already learned how to knit and embroider. Every evening, my whole family — my father, my sisters, and my grandmother — would sit together knitting and crafting. Creating was not just a hobby in our home. It was part of who we were.

When I was six years old, I started my very first business.

After my mom finished knitting orders for her customers, I used the leftover yarn to make baby booties. My mom asked her friend to sell them in her hair salon to women who had children or grandchildren. And they sold.

That was the moment I realized something special — I could create something with love, and people would value it.

Crafting has followed me through my entire life.

When I moved from Ukraine to Poland, I decided to find work as a seamstress — even though I had no formal education in sewing. I learned everything from the very beginning. I didn’t even know how to turn on a sewing machine at first. But I was determined.

I worked in a furniture factory sewing leather covers. There were always scraps and leftover pieces of beautiful fabric. One day, I needed a backpack for work — so I made one for myself.

The girls at work loved it.

So I made another one. And another. Soon I was making backpacks for friends and family. I enjoyed the process deeply — turning leftover materials into something beautiful and useful.

A few years later, life brought another big change. I moved to Canada.

Two emigrations meant learning new languages, adapting to new cultures, and building my life again from zero. In 2024, I started working as a Continuous Improvement Administrator in a company that also has a sewing department.

And once again — there were scraps.

High-quality leftover materials that deserved a second life.

That’s when my story took a new turn.

I began creating bags and backpacks from these materials and selling them at local markets. The response motivated me to keep going — to create more, to design better, to share my passion with more people.

And that’s how this store was born.

The name of my brand, DaLi, comes from the first letters of my children's names, Daniel & Liza, and also honors my favorite artist, Salvadore DaLi. It was inspired by a memorable day when we visited the Dali Museum in Spain together - a moment that blends my love for my children and my passion for creativity.

Every bag I make carries my story - from childhood evenings filled with knitting, to starting over in new countries, to turning small pieces of leftover fabric into something meaningful.

For me, this is not just about bags.

It’s about resilience.
It’s about creativity.
It’s about giving materials — and dreams — a second life.

Thank you for being here and supporting handmade craftsmanship.
When you carry one of my bags, you carry a piece of my journey with you.

-Nataliia