Japanese design studio nendo recently partnered with UP TO YOU ANTHOLOGY on a new handbag design called Mai. The Italian online bag shop doesn’t just provide their own designs and design partnerships, they allow anyone to design their own bags, while supporting them through the development, manufacturing, and online distribution. The Mai series of leather bags approaches things in an unusual way, in that each bag is made from a single piece of laser-cut leather that’s been dyed with a plant derived tannin. The nature of the design allows it to be shipped flat inexpensively to the buyer, who then easily assembles it at home with no tools. By pushing a few rivets through the pre-cut holes, the two-dimensional piece of leather becomes a three-dimensional bag.
With a pretty simple manufacturing process, the need to have inventory on hand isn’t necessary, thereby saving money. It also allows for a vast variety of bag sizes, shapes, and colors to be available.
Photos by Akihiro Yoshida.
