Artisanal, Sustainable, High quality, Custom-made, Slow fashion.
Ethically made. Locally made. Made to order. Minimal waste. Sustainable. Transparent.
At the heart of all InconnuLAB products is the desire to minimize environmental impact.
InconnuLAB is located and manufactured in Melbourne, Victoria.
Who makes your clothes?
Each and every piece is made by me, Nora.
Can you share a little more about your values?
InconnuLAB is a truly ethical and transparent enterprise. Each piece is designed and made to order in Melbourne. I create bags using only materials that are leftovers of industrial production. I also took the decision to manufacture the bags completely by myself which is quite risky today. Due to this decision, I don’t have retail and wholesale prices. I have my prices, and the price of an InconnuLAB bag is the cost of the material + my salary. I could raise the prices to sell my bags in shops but then my prices wouldn’t be competitive anymore. I don’t regret my decision because in return, my company operates transparently and ethically. There is another advantage to sewing my bags myself and that is that my bags are made with the best quality and maximum care. I reply to all my clients personally, and I make their bags according to their needs.
Which particular fabrics do you use?
The bags themselves are made from a super durable waterproof canvas, called Tempotest. I originally, bought this material in a local fabric store in Italy and I brought it with me as part of my luggage when I first came to Australia. This material is used to make sun blinds and leftover canvas rolls are long enough to make several backpacks. The straps are made in a similar way. The leather remnants I buy are too small for any other leather goods manufacturing companies. I cut short leather strips and sew them together with characteristic handmade stitches in order to create long straps. The advantages of the acrylic canvas: lightweight, durable and waterproof. The benefits of leather: hides are usually waste from the food industry that is recycled to produce a long lasting product.
Any extra efforts you make at InconnuLAB that you can share?
Melbournians and Australians are influencing my work in a positive way and I feel inspired again.
So far most of my customers had been from Europe and the USA and were looking for more simple, grey or black bags. In Australia I noticed that people look for, and prefer, something different, and that has allowed me to explore new things, to let my creativity flow.
At the moment I am working on something more “daring” in terms of colours, and decoration. I feel I’m back to something I had neglected a bit and I’m exploring my authentic self and style and enjoying every moment of it. The colourful, crazy world of Australian makers and artists is terribly inspiring to me and I have collaborated with a local artist, Nadia Düsselberg. You can see the bag we made together in one of the tiles below.
Can you share some labels you admire?
Workbelt, Simetrie, Moy Tasmania, Poet Studio, Aumorfia.
Price guide: $50 – 100 up to $300 – 500
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