How the ‘forever tote’ became the It bag du jour

The original cotton totes have a ‘disarmingly short’ life cycle – so demand is high for a more environmentally friendly versionThis year’s It bag isn’t made by any of the usual designers. And if this bag could talk, it wouldn’t say “calf leather” so much as “wash me at 40C”. What’s more, in an ideal world, you would never want to buy another again.The “forever tote” is big business. Usually made from calico, an unbleac