Tucson's TimberTote Purses turned a distillery into a runway last month, staging a fashion show fundraiser at Whiskey Del Bac to help cover a trip to New York Fashion Week next month.

TimberTote is a collaboration between Jason Robinson, owner of Sport Class Customs, and Chelsea Adler, owner of Desert Mariposa Boutique, who each ran their own businesses before joining forces. Though their crafts come from opposite sides of the industry, their combined expertise birthed the signature wooden purse.

TimberTote plans to announce how much money it raised during the Aug. 14 fashion show and whether it met its goal.

"After tonight, we'll see how close we are. Our goal was $10,000," Adler said. "We've paid back one small loan … and we were able to start paying back the other one."

Whiskey Del Bac's Experiences Manager, Jessica Hennessy, said hosting the fashion show was an easy decision, given the distillery's longstanding relationship with Robinson.

"Jason is clearly kind of an institution here, but the way that I know Jason was because of these mesquite boxes," Hennessy said. "We use mesquite to infuse into our barley and have done business with him for a while. When they said they wanted to do this fashion show, we had already bought some TimberTotes, we were 100% in."

Adler handpicked her friends in business to participate in the show, all powerful female entrepreneurs.

Amber Navarette of Navarrette Leather said it was Adler and TimberTote's vision that led her to model in the show.

"Chelsea is actually a personal friend … and we also do vendor shows together," Navarrette said. "TimberTote in general, to be able to feature artists inside their purses, to be able to express their art, not only to carry them as the individual artist, but also make this broad for other businesses as well to assist for advertising and marketable from that."

The event also featured a market with local vendors selling crafts and artistry, with all the businesses having some personal connection to TimberTote.

Models wore jewelry from Made by Amy Jo, with creator Amy Jo Klauber also vending at the event.

"When I got the chance to meet Chelsea, she just enjoyed my jewelry and gave me the opportunity to design the pieces to match her purses in the show tonight," Klauber said. "But this is actually my first day I've come to a market, so I'm really excited to be a part of the Tucson community and to get my stuff out there."

Before the show, Adler and Robinson screened the mini-documentary they produced, telling the story of their meeting, their method for creating wooden purses, the application process for New York Fashion Week and the overall journey toward their goal.

Applause boomed throughout the distillery as the credits rolled, with the pair participating in a post-screening Q&A about Adler's inspiration for the theme.

She explained the theme's meaning, based on the word "balance" and her Greek mythology influences.

"My inspiration was the content of the stories of the dark goddesses and how all female characters have a similar story, kind of being pushed into a corner and then works to find her strength," Adler said. "She's expected to be this soft and gentle creature and instead she chooses to change it."

After the Q&A, the music came to life and models lined up at the distillery's entrance. Their dresses ranged from hot pink and purple to white and beige, with wooden corsets serving as the centerpiece of each design.

Each model wore a TimberTote purse matching the color of their wooden corset, stopping at the end of the runway to reveal the artwork inside the purse.

The audience cheered as the models walked the runway before retreating to their waiting room, with Robinson toasting the guests as he closed out the night.

TimberTote will announce when preorders will be available for its NYFW collection. Other designs can be found on Instagram and at timbertotepurse.com.

Katlyn Vargas is a University of Arizona student and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact her at katlynvargas@arizona.edu.

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