Having originally come from an apparel background, I have always loved clothes, but I have a special passion for bags—there was even a time when I spent almost my entire salary on them. My collection was wide and varied, ranging from vintage and outdoor gear to handmade bags like those from Freight Baggage. Lately, I had started to become drawn to bags made from lightweight, high-tech materials, as I realized that the UL (Ultralight) philosophy—the idea that traveling light allows you to go further—is also well-suited for cycling.
However, after discovering this brand, that mindset was completely overturned.
Blind Chic.
This bag brand was started in the summer of 2011 in Budapest, Hungary, by fashion designer and cyclist Julia and graphic designer Neza, who met during a road trip from Ljubljana, Slovenia, to Budapest. The two of them, Blind Chic., are based in a corner of an art studio building called ART QUARTER BUDAPEST (AQB), which provides a space for various artists to express their work.
They love handmade crafts, and they create their products with the desire to expand the bicycle community in their home city through the bags they make. While these bags, beautifully sewn by female hands, are somewhat "low-tech" in their construction, they feature a unique design unlike any bags I have used before, intentionally combining water-repellent, warm-feeling cotton canvas and carefully tanned leather with contrasting water-resistant zippers.
And I believe that their passion for the bicycle community has crossed the ocean and reached Japan as well. The fact that we started carrying their products after Julia herself came to visit Circles is the best proof of that history. I truly feel that these bags, infused with their passion, pass from person to person and spread through the bicycle communities of each place they reach.