Conscious Curation: Carry Your Eco-Cred in These Sustainable Bags
- Words by Peppermint
above RADICAL YES
Whether you see it as the final touch to the perfect outfit or a functional sack for your crap, sustainable bags are a surefire way to show off your status as a conscious consumer.
To help you carry your belongings – and your eco-cred – in style, we’ve put together this list of cool carry-alls. Which one of these is your bag, baby?
SANS BEAST // READER SATCHEL
Tame your accessory game with this luxe, cruelty-free crossbody bag, made from certified recycled materials – including factory floor waste and plastic bottles.
$229 sansbeast.com
A_C // MONICA PENCIL CLUTCH
Short for Ahimsa Collective – ahimsa is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence – the brand boasts an innovative approach to materials and was the first in Australia to utilise cactus leather in its Desserto collection.
$209 ac-official.com
FJÄLLRÄVEN // SAMLAREN KÅNKEN 2C
Made from leftover fabric from Fjällräven’s mills and factories, the limited edition Samlaren Kånken is perfect for the conscious backpacker, with a spacious main compartment and a handy seat pad inside pocket.
MIMMI TERRA // TOTE
Show off your market bounty in style: the recycled polyethylene totes from Mimmi Terra come in a variety of cute colourways. Each bag is hand-woven in a signature weave for a tight-knit tote that is durable, lightweight and water-resistant
THAMON // INGRID BAG
Leaf it to nature! Made from fallen teak leaves and recycled PU trim, this vegan beauty is hand-dyed and sealed with resin for durability and water resistance.
£85 thamon.co
BY THE SEA // KEIRA CORK HANDBAG
Practical and pretty, this cute satchel is made from flexible, lightweight cork leather and discarded ethylene-vinyl acetate. Pop it on and go!
$249.95 bytheseaco.com
READ MORE – Shine On With These Green Glam Essentials
BRIE LEON // TIE KNOT MINI BAG
Recycled materials – including post and pre-consumer PU waste and cotton canvas – are pulled together in this delightfully soft and compact design.
$189 brieleon.com
IKUNTJI ARTISTS // WATIYA TJUTA CLUTCH
This ethically produced leather clutch is embroidered with the distinctive artwork of Mitjili Napurrula, depicting the Watiya Tjuta tree in her father’s Tjukurrpa (dreaming) in Ilyingaungau Country (Gibson Desert).
$47 ikuntji.com.au
RADICAL YES // TRUE NORTH CLUTCH
Stay the course wearing this rich bronze clutch made from recycled nylon.
$149 radicalyes.com.au
THE BASKET ROOM // BLUE CHECK & FLOWER BUCKET BAG
Bloom through your grocery run with this hand-woven and embroidered sisal beauty.
$225 thebasketroom.com
SIMÉTRIE // M CRESCENT MOON BAG
A minimalist pouch for all your sundries made using Australian, vegetable-tanned kangaroo leather.
$349 simetrie.com.au
THE LOYAL WORKSHOP // ROSA TOTE
Made by women who’ve survived slavery, this WFTO-certified, vegetable-tanned leather tote contains an important detail: the name and signature of the woman who made it.
$465 theloyalworkshop.com
BY AMBER AND ROSE // CROSSBODY BAG
Ethically made in India, these roomy sustainable bags use factory off-cut leather, ensuring each one is unique and a little wild!
£44.95 byamberandrose.etsy.com
KARMME // SOPHIA CLUTCH
Made in Australia using Italian leather, this buttery clutch is lined with cotton hand-dyed in indigo.
$140 karmme.com.au
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“My piece of advice for makers and designers? Run your own race… make sure your key decisions stay anchored in your brand’s core beliefs.”
- Bec Bligh
Quick show of hands: who’s opened a water bottle expecting a refreshing sip… and instead been greeted by the unmistakable whiff of uh-oh?
Because for something that follows us everywhere (desk, car, hikes, yoga…), the humble drink bottle is strangely prone to becoming a science experiment. Hard-to-clean corners and gaskets. Mystery smells. Bec Bligh and her husband Tim know it well. A six-month sailing trip along the Queensland coast left them with a lifetime of memories and one stubborn annoyance: mouldy water bottles they couldn’t properly clean.
So they did something about it.
Enter @EverVessel. Thoughtfully designed borosilicate glass and stainless steel bottles that keep things beautifully simple: durable materials, wide openings, easy-to-clean parts and none of the techy gimmicks that tend to age badly. Turns out simplicity, done well, is pretty powerful stuff. (Their many design awards agree!)
And lately they’ve added a little extra delight: the Artist Series, where creatives like Paola Castro, Ben Miners and Martin Thompson transform these everyday companions into tiny travelling artworks. There are more colabs in the works, too: hydration, but make it joyful! 🎨💧
We chatted with Bec about the sailing trip that started it all, the philosophy behind Ever Vessel, and why the most sustainable product is often just the one you keep using.
Tap the link in our bio to read the full conversation. 🚰
#EverVessel #ReusableWaterBottle
Pull up a chair… there’s room at this table!
For the first time, Feast for Freedom is bringing people together for a spectacular long-table dinner as part of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
A Longer Table is exactly what it sounds like: one beautiful shared table inside the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1), piled with generous dishes inspired by this year’s hero cooks, Noha and Nige.
From 6 to 9pm on Wednesday, 25 March, this is what you can expect:
🍽 A three-course shared feast
🍷 Matched drinks
🎶 Live entertainment
✨ A room full of good humans
Your ticket doesn’t just buy you a delicious dinner. It supports the ASRC’s vital work and helps create a fairer future for people seeking asylum.
Seats are limited, and long tables have a way of filling up quickly – head to @MelbFoodAndWine’s website to book now: feastforfreedom.org.au/mfwf
#FeastForFreedom #MelbourneFoodAndWineFestival #LongTableDinner #FoodForChange
Sew versatile! 🪡
Another great make from Lisa from @SunnySewsEveryday:
My #PeppermintWaratahWrapDress is finished and I’m so proud of it. It has been designed not to flap open and flash your pants in the wind, so I feel confident it will be a great wheelchair or standing dress in English weather.
#PeppermintPatterns #WrapDress #WrapDressPattern
Frame your face with the Peppermint Bucket Hat!
Stay safe and stylish in the sun with your very own self-sewn and self-drafted wide-brimmed bucket hat. This beginner-friendly sew is perfect for a sunny day. Get out your pencils – this pattern is created using equations and maths!
This DIY project was featured in Issue 53 and now you can access it for the lovely low price of only $5.
Sun-safe chic is always in style. ☀️
Find it via the link in our bio!
Photos: @KelleySheenan
#PeppermintPatterns #PeppermintBucketHat #BucketHat #BucketHatPattern #DIY
✨ INSTANT CLASSIC ✨
The Peppermint Myrtle Shift Dress is a beginner-friendly make with a few special details based on the ever-stylish shift shape – the perfect dress you need in your wardrobe right now!
Myrtle cuts above the knee with options to customise the length. Don’t think she’s reserved for hot weather either: try a heavier-weight fabric to turn your Myrtle into a pinafore-style garment for layering.
For our fabrics we chose two from our lovely sewing partner @Karmme_Apparel – the bold Rottnest Stripes in a lightweight, soft-drape cotton, and the quality linen in the handpainted Mexico Collection.
Get making the Myrtle – the only question is, can you stop at just one?
Link in bio 🪡
Fabric: @Karmme_Apparel
Sewist: @Laura_The_Maker
Photos: @KelleySheenan
Models: @SerahSews and @Pins_And_Tonic
Location: @ShareTheDignityAustralia
#PeppermintMyrtleShiftDress #PeppermintPatterns
It’s time to Feast!
Some recipes travel a long way before they land on your table to delight your taste buds. This year’s Feast for Freedom invites us to gather our friends, cook something delectable and raise funds for the incredible work of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (@Asrc1) while we’re at it.
The 2026 Feast features recipes shared by two remarkable cooks: Noha, who brought the flavours of Palestine with her when she arrived in Australia, and Nige, a Sri-Lankan Tamil cook whose journey with food began in the most unexpected of places.
You can host your own Feast up until 30 April – simply register online and get planning! Host a dinner, organise a workplace lunch, or gather your community… However you do it, the idea is simple: cook, connect and celebrate the cultures and stories that shape Australia.
Want to find out more? Head to the link in bio to meet Noha and Nige, learn more about their stories, and discover a delicious recipe to try.
#FeastForFreedom #PeppermintMagazine #FoodForGood #ASRC
