Our crochet bag range has proved popular this last year – we love combining different texture combinations between the wool stitch texture and the leather for a really unique look! Ultimately ethically handmade, these styles are made between two of our producer groups collaborating together - where the knit pieces are crocheted by women who work at home around their family lives, and then these are combined into the bags with leather straps by the artisans at Nepal Leprosy Trust.
We work with eight women who have learned to crochet these bag panels over the last year. Depending on their capabilities, each woman can usually crochet 2 LALITA bags, or 1 HURI bag in one day – they are speedy with those crochet hooks! Below we have Ujila below on the left and Chandra on the right. Meera and Reena (centre pic) coordinate the women to check the sizes and finish off the pieces.
At the leather workshop, the pieces are combined with a cotton lining that gives the bags their solid structure so they do not stretch with the crochet stitches. We moved away from waterproof linings for a cotton lining that is better for the environment.
