Which bags have no plastic in the lining, the webbing, the thread or the hardware?
This category is being vetted. Nothing here is a recommendation yet.
Where plastic hides in bags
Canvas and leather bags stay plastic-free until you look inside and underneath. Strap webbing is nylon or polyester unless the page says cotton. Linings are polyester or nylon, sometimes with a polyurethane coating. Heavy-duty thread is bonded nylon or polyester, which is why the seams outlast cotton ones and why they matter. Backpacks pack foam padding and a polyethylene frame sheet into the back panel. Side-release buckles are acetal and zippers are nylon coil. Waxed canvas is fine when the wax is named. Leather straps and trim carry a finish or an edge paint, and brass and steel hardware is fine.
What to check before you buy
- Body: cotton canvas, linen, hemp, wool or leather, or nylon and polyester?
- Lining: cotton or none, or polyester and coated nylon?
- Straps and webbing: cotton, leather or hemp, or nylon and polyester?
- Thread: cotton or linen, or bonded nylon and polyester?
- Zipper and buckles: metal, or nylon coil and acetal side-release plastic?
- Waxed canvas: is the wax named as paraffin or beeswax?
- Padding and leather: wool felt and unfinished leather, or foam, plastic sheet and finished leather?