Josh Jakus UM bags were developed from two creative challenges: The first, to make use of the unique properties of wool felt – its density, texture, pliability, and strength. And the second, to transform a flat surface using only the simplest of operations.

• When unzipped, UMs lay completely flat for dry cleaning, storage, or travel.
• The UM Tote is as tall as a bottle of wine—as wide as a bundled-up Sunday Times.
• Material: Grey wool felt from factory excess. Design: Josh Jakus 2005.

About Josh Jakus:

Josh Jakus is a Berkeley, California–based designer dedicated to making experiential connections between form and function. When people use one of Josh’s products, they naturally encounter the way it was conceived and developed. Achieving such connections requires a strict material sensibility — using materials in their simplest form so intrinsic qualities show through — and a rigorous design efficiency that strives to get the most impact out of the fewest moves.

Josh founded his design practice in 2005 as a way of continuing his lifelong interest in the nature of structure, space, and materials. Though his design practice is driven more by intellectual curiosity than pragmatism, Josh is still happiest making things that are meant to be used. An architect by training with an M.Arch from UC Berkeley, Josh uses his understanding of the built environment and how it is inhabited to inform his designs, and he hopes his products will help foster a more intuitive understanding of all objects in the people who use them.