The Wren — Woven Leather Tote Bag in Black

Weaving black leather is harder than it looks, because every strand has to be cut to the same width or the pattern crawls. The Wren in black is the most structured looking bag in the woven range: from three paces it reads as a solid panel, and only up close does the basketweave show.

It comes in two sizes. The small is 11.75″ (30 cm) wide, 9.5″ (24 cm) high and 4.75″ (12 cm) deep, with a 9″ (23 cm) handle drop, and takes up to an 11-inch tablet, no laptop. The regular is 15″ (38 cm) wide, 11″ (28 cm) high and 5.5″ (14 cm) deep, with a 10.25″ (26 cm) handle drop, and takes up to a 13-inch laptop. Pick the size in the menu above; the price changes with it.

Buy it if a plain leather tote feels too plain and a straw bag feels too casual.

The leather

The hide is full grain and aniline dyed, so the color runs through the leather instead of sitting on it as a pigment film. Each strand is cut at a consistent 12mm from the same hide as our flat panel bags and woven over a leather backing, which is the step most woven totes skip. In daylight it reads as very dark brown rather than pure black, which is the giveaway that nothing was sprayed over it.

How it is made

The base is cut as its own reinforced panel, so a full load sits flat instead of on a fold. The seams that carry weight are hand stitched rather than machined, because a handle is what fails first on a tote. Lined in heavy cotton twill with a zip pocket on the back wall and two open pockets facing it. Expect 4 to 6 working days in the workshop before it is boxed and on its way.