Stella McCartney's groundbreaking Mylo-based bag goes on sale in July

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
May 24, 2022

Stella Mccartney will take a key step forward in the use of vegan leather on July 1 with the label set to launch the Frayme Mylo bag at retail on that day.

The bag — which is made of ‘leather’ created from mushrooms — was first unveiled at the summer 2022 runway show. Its arrival on store shelves will be a major development as more high-end labels embrace material solutions not based on animal skins and technological developments make such solutions more eco-friendly than the plastic-based options of the past.

McCartney is known for her anti-animal-cruelty stance and has been a pioneer in seeking solutions to fashion’s cruelty and eco issues.

The launch will be the first time a bag created from mycelium (the root-like structure of fungi) will be sold commercially. 

The designer has had a long-term partnership with Mylo creator Bolt Threads since 2017 and “has been part of the Mylo journey since its inception, combining deep science with high-fashion design”.

The new bag “showcases the capabilities of this next-generation material and is the first of future commercial offerings”.

The bag has been made in Italy by artisans trained to work with the new material. The design was inspired by the label’s Falabella tote, including an oversized recyclable aluminium chain strap that runs around the bag, as well as a zamac statement medallion. It comes as a limited edition, with bags numbered 1 to 100.

The commercial launch of the Frayme Mylo forms part of the brand’s wider summer 2022 campaign called 'Fashion Fungi', “which takes a psychedelic trip into nature. Grounded in the notion that mushrooms connect us all, it is inspired by these incredible organism's transformative and transcendental qualities as seen in Fantastic Fungi documentary”.