Erenee: The Intricate Handbag

A lot of skill and patience goes into the crafting of one Northloom bag. The abel, the handwoven textile making up the body of the Erenee bag pictured above, takes a month to weave a 50-yard roll. The enormous time investment is one of the reasons why abel weaving is a slowly dying art, even among the Ilocanos for whom it is a treasured tradition. There aren’t too many young people willing to learn the intricacies of the loom when they could earn bigger, faster, from a more modern career.

If my Miguee backpack is my de facto travel body, the Erenee I’ve come to think of as my Grown-Up Affairs handbag. I first used it to settle some stuff at the bank. I’ve brought it twice to the lawyer’s office. And most recently I carried it to a dinner with college friends, where two of our topics were “during our time…” and “kids these days.” Haha!

I like that it’s a bag that says “serious” and “unconventional” at the same time. It’s not your everyday monogrammed “secretary bag” — though I should be so lucky to even afford what they’re calling bags for secretaries these days — but it has a certain dignity to it. And of course I love the fact that the fabric is made by a dwindling number of traditional weavers, then assembled into the finished product by underprivileged women. For me, Northloom is not just a brand but a cause, and I’m very proud to be supporting and promoting it.

You can buy the Erenee handbag and other Northloom bags through Lazada or you can order directly through the Northloom Facebook page. If you just want a quick look at the other Northloom products first, you can see them here. And if you’re looking for a travel backpack, check out my review of the Miguee backpack.

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“Erenee: The Intricate Handbag” was created by LSS for travel site Small-Town Girls, Midnight Trains. All rights reserved.