Kathy Karadza
Artist | Designer | Maker
Creating with a love for colorful, wearable art that makes others feel happy.
A native New Yorker, Kathy grew up watching her father build, make, cut, create with wood, wires, paint, and power tools, and helped him with small tasks.
She first started making handbags in her downtime while working backstage on Broadway shows. She used leftover fabrics and leather from costumes to learn how to make handbags. It started as a hobby, became a passion, and now a small business.
Kathy was a first-time participating artist in the 2025 Smithsonian Craft Show and currently an Early Career Artist member of the American Craft Council (2025).
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Made in NYC
Each piece is made in New York City, and most are created from reclaimed luxury leather from prestigious fashion brands in Italy and the United States. We also use cactus leather from Mexico and materials sourced locally.
Leather scraps from our handbag production are used to create small accessories for a minimal waste approach.
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Partner with Shatterproof
Katerina NYC is a small business partner with Shatterproof, a nonprofit that supports addiction recovery services. We work with them to raise funding and awareness and donate to the cause annually.
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Past Work
Kathy has worked on costumes and tailoring for Broadway productions including Disney's The Lion King, Hamilton, Phantom of the Opera, Radio City Music Hall's Christmas Spectacular, and with world-renowned music artists at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY; in fashion, for shows of collections from Givenchy, Saint Laurent, and Emmanuel Ungaro; in sports, as the tailor to the players for the U.S. Open tennis tournament; and in costumes for film and television (Bull, Billions, New Amsterdam).
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Where to Find Us
Shop our collection online here, in stores and at local artist markets.
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