Commodity Bags

This 3-piece ensemble features a motorcycle jacket and cropped pants, both made from antique feed sacks, paired with a mud dyed, hemp t-shirt embellished with antique lace. Original typography from the feed sacks is visible on both the pants and jacket. The jacket is also printed with the date “1904”. Though this look’s designer, Mimi Prober, uses a variety of sustainable design practices, she is particularly well known for looks such as this one which preserve and transform antique materials into one-of-a-kind garments. As can be seen in the motorcycle jacket, Prober is especially gifted at juxtaposing modern silhouettes with heritage textiles.

The two bags featured here, both made from upcycled Fresh Direct delivery bags, were started as a pandemic project. Though Fresh Direct generally allows customers to return their delivery bags, this was not the case at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Inspired by the vibrant colors and fruit imagery printed on the bags, designer Shelley Parker began using these as materials to experiment with new designs. In the bag on the left, she embellished its front with the addition of sashiko embroidery and macrame in a contrasting green thread. In the bag on the right, the design was created by cutting a Fresh Direct bag into strips and then weaving it together in a tumbling blocks pattern. The bag’s bottom and handle are made from reclaimed leather.

This wrap dress is created from a large 1930s quilt topper made from two different floral printed feed sacks. It ties around the neck with a 1930s deadstock shoestring. What’s unique about this particular quilt topper is that there were more than a handful of the same floral feed sacks in two different color ways used to create it. It was difficult in the depression era for one household to find multiples of the same printed feed sack. Many households would trade with each other in order to find another matching bag, so they had enough fabric to create a garment or household goods. Though there has been a huge surge in the popularity of feed sack garments in recent years, they tend to be made with textiles featuring the advertisement typography rather than depression era patterns. Finding these whole feed sacks in large enough quantities to create an entire garment is incredibly rare. Many of the patterned feed sacks were already used in the depression era. Due to 3 Women’s designers Crystal Lee Early and Natalie Mumford deep ties to the vintage community, they are often able to access materials that would be difficult to come across otherwise. They’re knowledge of vintage textiles is also a benefit in being able to distinguish authentic feed sacks from other vintage textiles that have been erroneously labeled.