Otaat: L.A.-Crafted Bags from a Harvard-Trained Architect

OTAAT Bags

OTAAT Drum Clutch, Toby Bag and Toto Box

L.A.’s Albert Chu isn’t the first guy you’d expect to go into the fashion world. He studied architecture (at Harvard, no less) and his grandfather was the mathematician who proved the Gauss-Bonnet Theorem in 1944 in just a few pages. Chu takes that mindset — paring things down to nothing but the necessities — and integrates it right into his line of bags, Otaat. Short for “One Thing at a Time,” the Los Angeles-crafted bags are the perfect mashup of craftsmanship and cerebral design.

Otaat Topher Backpack

Otaat Topher Backpack

The unisex collection of bags, pouches and backpacks are all designed with the discipline of an architect, taking away extraneous embellishment and only adding when completely necessary.

“After all, why do something in a zillion steps when you can do it in a sentence?” Chu told the New York Times. “It may be harder, but to me, the end result is so much more satisfying and beautiful.”

That end result is a collection of daily necessities, including a pared-down backpack (the accessory of the moment for guys and girls alike), the foldable and packable Ninja Pouch, which boasts multiple zippers and configurations for carrying and the Box Bag, which has two sets of handles so that you can carry it horizontally or vertically without losing any function.

Otaat Drum Clutch

Otaat Drum Clutch

Smaller pieces such as card holders and wallets are pared down to the bare minimum, eschewing slit pockets and zippers — each one’s crafted from a single piece of leather and uses the minimum number of stitches possible. It might sound brainy, but the resulting collection of small leather goods is more whimsical than philosophical, especially when its crafted in bright, cheerful colors. Another sign that Chu’s not all business? Otaat offers party hats made of the same high-quality leather as its bags.

For more information, visit www.otaat.com.

Tags: , , , , , ,

Author:Fashion Trends Daily Staff

Fashion Trends Daily Editors deliver the scoop on fashion, beauty, celebrity and runway trends.