In early 2009, Çuval’s founder, Ayşe Özgüneş, began spending her weekends in a small studio with a friend, crafting pillows from scrap fabrics and designing burlap bags for their packaging.

The burlap material — called “çuval” in Turkish — soon inspired the name of the brand.

After showcasing their creations at local summer bazaars — including Paz-Art in Cihangir, one of the pioneers of the time — the bags quickly gained attention for their distinctive design aesthetic and use of color. Encouraged by this response, Ayşe shifted her focus to designing only bags.

Alongside burlap, she introduced canvas and denim, developing a collection of bags — photographed in a studio but never produced — in 2010, titled “The Gypsy in Love with Punk.” Soon after, she launched “Letters to Sailor,” Çuval’s first collection, presented and sold exclusively at Midnight Express Bebek.

After returning to her hometown, Istanbul, in 2012, Ayşe brought her dream collection to life.

Inspired by an ice cream parlour in Philadelphia, Çuval’s S//S 2012 collection “Scoop de Ville” introduced Turkish vegetable-tanned leather, paired with linens and striped fabrics reminiscent of the French Riviera.

The first official collection became a great success in Istanbul and soon reached international markets.

 

Building on the success of the previous season, Çuval’s A//W 2012 collection, “Gun Powder,” retained two signature models from “Scoop de Ville.” This collection explored the misty, sooty atmosphere of the rainforest, guiding Ayşe toward discovering more refined and experimental materials.

The rubbery, fluid textures of the fabrics reflected water resistance, while wool and velvet added depth and elegance. Accents of silver metallics brought a touch of modernity to the collection’s organic sensibility.

 

 

 

In the summer of 2013, inspired by the Aztec culture’s belief in the power of the sun, Çuval’s S//S 2013 collection “Delta Sun” embodied a playful summer spirit, extending its signature models embellished with light-reflective materials, neon contrasts, and rose gold accents on the hardware.

 

 

To reinterpret the contemporary aesthetic that seeks to imitate the precious traditions of the past, Çuval’s A//W 2013–14 collection replaced natural fibers with basket-weave plastic. Designed with durability and seasonal weather in mind, the material was shaped around vegetable-tanned leather, a Çuval classic, and reinforced with antique silver-plated hardware — intentionally left to age gracefully over time.

 

 

Inspired by the serene elegance of whitewashed villas, pastel tennis courts, and sunlit palm trees, Çuval’s S//S 2014 collection, “Villa Blanca,” captured the essence of a refined summer escape. Stepping into a world of understated luxury, the collection introduced classically shaped beach bags, multi-functional bucket bags, and sleek leather accessories in fresh seasonal hues. The color palette reflected renewal and vibrance, while neon linings and metallic details added a fresh, modern touch.

 

 

Blending fabric and vegetable-tanned leather found new ways of expression in Çuval’s designs, incorporating coated canvas, outdoor mesh, and waterproof linings throughout these collections.

Until 2015, these experimental collections were sold in Beymen stores, as well as in selective boutiques around the world. Below is a glimpse of the Sale Points and Press Features, both local and international, from that period:

 

 

POP UP SHOP, 2015, Karaköy

 

Çuval had long been craving a space of its own, and by 2015, Karaköy had become an up-and-coming neighborhood popular among tourists. To sell overstock and samples from recent collections, a pop-up shop seemed like the perfect idea.

Ayşe discovered a hidden, almost underground guerrilla-style location in the area and, using her artistic vision, transformed it into a conceptual installation space.

For summer, it became a "Fantasy Island" as a tropical beach — with natural sand carried from a nearby Istanbul shore, framed by white rocks, handwoven burlap fishnets as display pieces, and tall Yucca plants completing the scene.

For winter, the space turned into "Mountain Cabin", hosting warm Christmas and New Year’s events.

 

 

&things store, Karaköy 2016

 

Following the temporary pop-up experience, a local jewelry brand proposed opening a collaborative store in the same neighborhood, Karaköy. We celebrated the opening with an art exhibition, where our dear friends' Boa Studio showcased pieces from their discontinued apparel collection. Alongside them, Çuval presented colorful leather-strapped canvas bags from the Limited Edition Art Series collaboration with local artists, together with the current collection of that time.

 

ÇUVAL STORE / SHOWROOM

 

Çuval’s first store, functioning also as a showroom, opened its doors in November 2016. Establishing this space had been Ayşe’s primary goal before creating a new collection. Once the store was complete, she began developing an all-leather upscale line designed for all weather conditions.

 

 

NEU LAND

 

 

NEU LAND collection was born in 2017 with the idea of repositioning the brand as “affordable luxury”.

  

Çuval’s 2017 “NEU LAND” collection marked the brand’s first all-leather line. Featuring signature Çuval models, the collection celebrated old-school craftsmanship, blending vintage tones, traditional techniques, and modern silhouettes with a contemporary sensibility.

Designed for all weather conditions, the pieces were crafted from water-repellent nubuck, characterized by clean, raw cuts and native-inspired forms such as sacks, buckets, and pouches — all finished with Çuval’s classic vegetable-tanned leather. Each bag included either an inner or detachable outer zipper pocket, designed to double as a separate accessory.

 

 

Unortunately, this became Çuval’s final all-leather collection.

The samples were produced for both summer and winter editions, photographed professionally to create lookbooks intended for international buyers. Just as the materials were ready to be sent out, due to economic imbalances of the country, the main supplier for Çuval has been working for years, shut down their factory .

Refusing to give up, and determined to bring her vision to life, Ayşe rebuilt her entire supply chain by persuading another factory owner to produce two colors of the nubuck leather she needed to produce her collection. Sacrificing some color options, she focused on deeper winter tones and prepared a large production run for the U.S. market, where she was preparing to launch Çuval’s website through a new partnership.

However, things didn’t unfold as planned. Every production brought its own challenges, and every partnership its own lessons — ultimately marking the end of an era for Çuval’s leather bag production.

 

INSTORE POP UP, Brooklyn, NEW YORK 

 

 

In 2019, while getting ready to launch NEU LAND Ayşe had a trip to USA to present her products at local shops and craft fairs such as Renegade Craft Fair in New York and in Washington DC. 

 

 

KANJI PRINT SERIES

In 2020, when the pandemic hit, Çuval had to temporarily close its shop.

Staying at home, Ayşe found a new creative outlet — revisiting fabrics from previous collections and experimenting with hand-printed silk-screen techniques. Collaborating with a local artisan near the Çuval Shop in Arnavutköy, she produced a small batch of tote bags under the project “Kanji Print Series.”

 

Inspired by Kanji — the Japanese writing system that uses Chinese characters — each symbol in the series represented one of the five elements: Earth, Water, Sky, Light, and Tree.

(Picture showcasing an updated version of the basic line from  2022 Chinese New Year — the Year of the Tiger) 

This period marked a return to Çuval’s roots — working once again with burlap materials, hand-printed and crafted by Ayşe herself.

 

THE JOURNEY, 2022 - now