The one luxury accessory you need to know about this fashion season: Natural Nuance is bringing a new-generation sustainable piece to elevate your wardrobe

Truth be told, the right accessory does change everything.

If I’ve learned anything about style and fashion, it is that you can live with a small core wardrobe of basics, to which character and personality are added with an original luxury accessory.  

Define original and define luxury accessory? For me it is simple: I associate originality and luxury with craftsmanship, tradition and even innovation. Sometimes they also mean one-of-a-kind. Sometimes or rather often originality speaks to you personally, you feel like you know each other, you trust the history of the product and the brand and it feels like you are in a long-term relationship.

You may be thinking I am a crazy person, but we women do have a personal relationship with our handbags. You can tell a lot about a woman by what’s inside her bag. That’s where she keeps her daily essentials and her “identity”.

Handbags are the most central accessory in a woman’s wardrobe. In the last few years there has been a return to investing in luxury handbags, mainly because they are an enduring option to any wardrobe, plus they are a significant fashion statement. They last through time even when you are not wearing skinny jeans or sequin dresses any more. 

As our society is changing and people are looking for more original ideas and more sustainable ways of living, the idea of luxury bags and accessories is evolving as well. On one side women still value a vintage bag, but they also want to support and invest in something new, innovative, fashion-toward and niche, something that not many people own. 

Today a purchase is not simply seen as an “it-piece”, in vain or functionality. A product in our world is viewed as a whole experience: we want to know who made it, where it was made, who owns the brand, do we like and connect with the brand values and the history of the product.  

Speaking of handbags, we all have watched you tube videos and films about the ethics around making a handbag. The topic has become extremely sensitive and women have started really caring about what’s dangling on their arm ever day, holding their daily essentials.

That’s why finding an ethical brand, making a sustainable product, being transparent and open about the production process is really worth talking about. When I found out about Natural Nuance luxury accessories I didn’t even know what are the sustainable ethical alternatives in the world of luxury accessories. At the me beginning my experience with Natural Nuance was simply sensory. The colours were heavenly mellow, the leather looked authentic, but very soft and ultra fine at touch, the design – nothing funky, rather minimal and discreet but very classy and refined.

The perfect synonym of quiet luxury, I though, that can easily become part of my daily routine. My first choice was the Infinite Handbag Noix. 

And here is how the story unfolds: The Natural Nuance bags are made of vegetable-tanned leather. This means they are following an ancient eco-friendly process in which vegetable and plant-based agents are used. The cow hide soaks in vats of concentrated vegetable tannins for weeks. Natural Nuance uses products made with tannins drawn from the tree bark and pods of abundantly growing, sustainable trees like the Tara and Mimosa trees, or other natural elements, such as the ripe cups of the Valonea oak trees, which like the pods, can be harvested without any damage to the trees.

There are no carcinogenic chemicals used and hence the water can be poured without any damage to the environment. The products are chrome free.

This 6,000 year old way of preparing leather and vegetable tanning takes weeks to complete making it a time and labor commitment with extra associated costs.

In addition, vegetable-tanning requires a great deal of craftsmanship and expertise in production. 

“We exclusively work with natural materials and family-owned artisans based in Europe. We believe that transparency is a key element that strengthens the possibility of customers to know and evaluate their purchases. We are therefore in the process to blockchain-certify our collections. This way our customers will see proof of what we communicate at the time of purchase. In addition, a blockchain certificate can be used in the future, to ensure proper re-use of the material”, says Ase Elvebakk Cofounder and Managing Director of Natural Nuance.

Circular design principles

Another important element in the production of this of the Natural Nuance bags is that they are made following the Circular Design principles. This means the bags can be recycled or up-cycled once the customers decide it’s time to let go. All Natural Nuance products are designed so that material types can easily be separated for recycling. As an example the company uses generous and clear cuts which means that only a few parts have to be cut upon for deconstructing. That means the large leather parts can be easily reused for new products. That also means minimum use of adhesive and glue altogether, making it easier to separate and preserve the leather.

Who is behind the brand

Natural Nuance was founded in 2017 by two women entrepreneurs who saw a need on the market for a sustainable accessory, functional and uncomplicated, but also elegant and fine, made of really high-quality leather that’s durable. Their mission for Natural Nuance is to create a new perception of luxury that is defined by nature’s beauty. 

Lisa Niedermayr is the Head of Design at Natural Nuance. She is a visual artist, designer and lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna.

As a designer she emphasizes a functional, aesthetic and clear design language. Lisa has a long experience in art, design and in the research of natural and durable materials and she sees it as her responsibility to create products that are good for people and for the environment. As a teacher she is passionate about passing on her knowledge and experience to the next generations.

Ase Elvebakk is the Managing Director of Natural Nuance. Swedish-Norwegian by origin she has lived in Vienna, London, Milan and now in Zürich. Ase started her career as a sales and business development leader in the tech industry. As a child Ase could be found at her drawing table creating clothing collections, all well-hidden at the back of her wardrobe. Growing up close to forests and lakes, Ase was always interested in the natural patterns of nature. With Natural Nuance she combined her love for arts and design with the idea to create something completely new and unique.

Ase and Lisa know each other for more than two decades and are good friends as well. 

Future Vision of Natural Nuance 

“We are currently working on several things. At the moment we have three collections: Indigo Mood (clutches and handbags) Infinite (clutches and handbags) and Philosophy (shoppers). This year we plan to launch a Men’s Collection. Furthermore, we are constantly looking for vegan materials that do not contain plastics. If we are successful we can also enter the market for truly vegan products”, says Ase.  

“We have our owned preloved program where offer used bags directly to our community of customers. We take bags back for repair. Luckily we have only had a few cases so far.  We also create second generation art editions upon request.  Our objective is to establish a clear commercial model for a take back program, in order to create our own second generation editions. Our approach to circularity is foremost a systemic one, and not a marketing program. 

We exclusively use certified naturally tanned leather, outside and inside and do not work with leather that has been tanned using chrome. When we are sourcing our materials, we also look at the following criteria: Transparent supplier information, low amount of pollutants, allergy friendly, short transport routes, social standards of producers, colours low on or have no heavy metals”.

Let’s wish them good luck and if you want to find out more about the Natural Nuance products, visit the upcoming event Designer Talk on the 15th of June at Süskind Scheitergasse 10, 8001 Zürich. 

You can find Natural Nuance collection online and in the Old town of Zurich, at   Süskind Scheitergasse 10, 8001 Zürich.