Today, our first round of olive Working Totes is being stitched. A bag’s stitches are one of the most immediate markers of quality, so our artisans are careful here to keep everything even and exact. Since the Working Tote is unlined, its stitches are visible both inside and out, so making both sides look their best is a must.

After each row of stitches is completed, they’re measured to guarantee that they’re all in alignment. We’d never send out a bag that has even one misplaced stitch! Our artisans don’t use guides—all stitching is done freehand and by memory—so although a rarity, errors are entirely possible and it’s important to check for them with a ruler and a keen eye. 

Then, there are the knots: when stitching is finished on a piece of any bag, a hand-tied knot gets cauterized and pushed back into its hole with a bone folder while still hot. (Because we use nylon thread rather than cotton, the thread melts and seals itself permanently inside the leather rather than burning away.) Every bag contains at least 48 of these knots in addition to five-thread, hand-wrapped edges and countless backstitches into parts of the piece likely to experience strain. With that, these gorgeous green totes will be one step closer to being finished.

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