LOEWE launches the ‘The surplus project’ with the release of a series of Woven basket bags handcrafted from surplus leather

‘The surplus project’ is a display in how to re-use, re-think and re-create something beautiful from the surplus leather of previous collections, in themselves highest quality and lowest impact materials. The new project sees the two most iconic of LOEWE’s leathers —a smooth, classic calfskin, and a finely textured, softgrained calfskin—transformed into Woven basket bags and Crab charms. The design process sees surplus leather cut into narrow strips of various hues; some of their colours are bold and vibrant, others are softer and more muted, and then braided together in a lattice formation to create a mosaic of colour and texture.

The Woven basket bag rst appeared in Jonathan Anderson’s LOEWE debut, the Spring Summer 2015 collection, and quickly became a design classic for the house. The surplus leather Woven basket bag is available in a small size, and carries the original spirit of being an artisanal piece with a very human touch. Inspired by the challenge of creating something beautiful whilst preserving precious resources, a two-tone charm in the shape of a crab with claws and pincers made from intricately folded surplus leather, complements the Woven basket bag’s colourways and embodies the creativity inherent to the new initiative.

‘The surplus project’ follows the recent Eye/LOEWE/Nature collection created using a variety of recycled, upcycled and organic textiles, and sees LOEWE take another step in its journey to becoming a more sustainable company. In practice this means constantly exploring how to combine knowledge of craft with new research and ideas to lessen impact on the planet.

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