The Brown Paper Bag, Reinvented in Color

updated May 1, 2019
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(Image credit: WAAM Industries)

You have to hand it to Minneapolis-based We Are Always Moving Industries (WAAM) for adding a burst of color to the crowded packed-lunch accoutrement scene with brown paper lunch bags that aren’t paper – and most certainly aren’t brown. Made from cotton canvas and coated with a water-resistant beeswax finish, WAAM’s reusable lookalikes are available in a range of over 15 different solid colors, plus one particularly fetching navy ticking stripe option.

(Image credit: WAAM Industries)

There are bright ‘n’ cheery hues aplenty (fuchsia, coral, emerald, etc.), and the more somber, subdued tones — like charcoal, black, and, yes, brown — are perfect for fellas, preternaturally hip children, and low-key days when you don’t necessarily want to announce to the office that you’ve brought lunch from home.

With back-to-school season about to kick into full gear, it’s making us just a wee bit jealous that WAAM and their timeless lunch totes weren’t around when we were kids. A slick canvas lunch sack would have certainly saved us the hassle of hauling around a greasy/lumpy/damp (damned Capri Sun leak!) brown paper bag or sitting down in the cafeteria on the first day of school to discover that everyone else has the same Smurfs lunchbox.

To Buy: Waxed Canvas Lunch Bags, $24 from We Are Always Moving Industries (and check out their killer wooden spin on the plastic milk crate, too).