The Pangolin Multi Bag- Zuvva Heritage Collection

Category: Accessories

The humble pangolin may be elusive, but across the African continent, rare sightings of clandestine critters are cherished for their indescribable affability. That, however does not change the fact that for many years, our scaled friends have not only been threatened with extinction, but have become the world's most poached animal. The Pangolin Multi Bag is inspiredby the constant need to reinforce wildlife conservation efforts in Zimbabwe and beyond, in order to secureour mammalian friends' livelihoods. The Pangolin family consists of a total of 8 species, 4 of which reside in Africa, making them ultimately our responsibility. The Pangolin Multi Bag was designed as an ode to that responsibility. Inspired by the Zimbabwean Ground Pangolin and the reverence that the people of Zimbabwe have for the animal. This project is in essence a celebration of the Zimbabwean flora and fauna, which is constantly at risk. As a creative, I have always believed in promoting conservation through design, ethical and slow fashion business practices. Through the meduim of cow leather, in 2 tones, I was able to reimagine the pangolin's defensive posture to create the coil shape of the bag's body in a tan leather. The scales of the pangolin were recreated in a chocolate brown leather to trim the top sides of the bag as well as for 1 out of the 3 handle/ strap options for the bag, hence the phrase - Multi Bag, as the carrier of the bag will have a number of options when it comes to carrying the bag. These design elements on the bag represent the pangolin's greatest boon and shortcoming, although in the wild, the coiled, balled up, scaly defense is impregnable to most predators, sadly this posture make the pangolin easy prey for poachers. The Pangolin bag is lined with 100% hand printed Zimbabwean cotton, with the image used for the print being the Zimbabwean national flower- the Flame Lily, a symbol passion, purity and natural perfection. Boosting of 100% cow leather composition and , the Pangolin Multi Bag is designed as a statement piece, in an industry obsessed with quantity, fast fashion and huge profits, instead of quality, ethical, slow fashion and thoughfulness. I trust that this submission is in with Real Leather Africa's tenets.