Labor day bag, the first vegan bag
The story of the Labor Day tote
The etymology of the tote bag comes from the English ‘to tote’, which means to carry around.
It first appeared in the early 20th century, when it was used by American paper boys (young delivery boys who distributed the papers by bike, throwing them onto people’s front porches) because of its practical features.
Town criers and paper delivery boys in the 40s were the next to raise the popularity of these work bags, then known as ‘newsboy bags’. At the time, mailmen carried letters and parcels in leather musettes or satchels. Then the tote bag came onto the scene – this canvas bag, much lighter, and most importantly allowing very quick access to the contents, became the obvious choice.
The Labor Day Bag: an iconic workwear tote
A tribute to the famous US paper delivery boys’ bags from the early 20th century, this bag is one of the centerpieces of our new collection. Bleu de Chauffe has remade this classic, making it more structured with high-quality, sturdy canvas and adding an elegant touch with distinctive handles and a BLEU DE CHAUFFE silkscreen-printed logo.
A chic and indispensable item for everyday life, this hold-all is also our first ever vegan bag. Its distinctive feature is the 100% organic GOTS-certified hessian material, as sturdy as canvas.
Colors: blue, white, red, camel.
The Labor Day Bag, the very first vegan bag from Bleu de Chauffe
We love our vegetable-tanned leather, but we wanted to respond to some of our clients who had asked us for “vegan leather”. At this point, we would like to clarify that the term “leather” cannot be used for materials that are not of animal origin… After several years of observation and testing, we came to the conclusion that “leather” made from apples, grapes, or pineapple was simply not as resistant as real leather. What is worse, these materials are mostly made using polymers, and therefore based on oil and industrial chemicals – which does not stop many ‘eco-friendly’ brands using these materials to offer products made from “vegan leather”.
Not us. At Bleu de Chauffe, we have addressed this issue in our own way: the natural and ethical way. And so we are celebrating our first vegan item with the Labor Day Bag…made from GOTS-certified organic cotton, naturally!
Bleu de Chauffe is a French leather goods company: every cut, design, and stitch is made at our unique workshop at Saint-Georges-de-Luzençon in the Aveyron region. Since our creation in 2006, we have always chosen 100% French manufacturing in order to reduce our environmental impact and preserve this unique and priceless local savoir-faire.
For the labor day tote, we uses only GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certified organic cotton canvas. This extremely strict standard ensures that all fibers come from farming opera- tions that are 100% organic and natural. It prohibits the use of GMO, chemi- cal fertilizers, and pesticides, favoring natural, plant-based solutions and crop rotation, as well as safe working conditions.
A Bleu de Chauffe bag is a unique piece of French leatherwork that carries the story of the artisan who created it. Each bag is made from A to Z by the same artisan leathersmith, who signs and dates their creation once they have finished.
The canvas used in the Labor Day Tote is strengthened and waterproofed using a vegetable-based coating method that uses beeswax and coconut oil, to avoid the use of pesticides and other pollutants. This waterproofing process ensures effective protection against the rain.
