Stella McCartney, the UK fashion brand, has launched a new vegan leather bag. The handbag, showcased at Paris Fashion Week, is made with vegan mushroom leather. The “leather”, known as Mylo, is fabricated by Bolt Threads, and is made from mycelium, the roots of mushrooms.
The Frame Mylo handbag, is the first commercially available product made from the mushroom leather. Stella McCartney displayed a top and trousers made from Mylo earlier this year, but they were not available for sale. The Frame Mylo is inspired by the design of Stella McCartney’s classic Falabella bag. McCartney and Bolt Threads initially collaborated to make a prototype of the new bag back in 2018, but this is the first time it has been available to buy.
Although the fashion house has always paid important attention to ethics, it has increasingly been emphasising on sustainability within the past year. In August, it launched a new version of its Eclypse sneakers made from plant-based and recycled materials. Additionally, the Autumn 2021 collection is its most sustainable yet, featuring materials such as regenerated nylon and recycled old-stock fabrics.
“With good reason, consumers are demanding sustainable material alternatives that also look and feel great,” said Bolt Threads CEO and Founder Dan Widmaier. “The Frayme Mylo bag is a huge milestone for sustainable fashion, making better material options accessible to consumers all around the world.”
“It’s been such a period of transition, and I wanted to project what the future could be like for the house of Stella: a lightness of touch, a slightly more tender approach, still mixing these sporty pieces and the masculine,” said McCartney. Her mushroom bags will be produced in a limited edition of 100 pieces, and—for now—retail at a somewhat higher price point than your average leather bag. “But it’s not killing any animals; it’s not cutting down any trees. It’s the future of fashion if you can get it right, and I think we can,” she explained. “It’s the beginning of something new.”
