Torboon

Torboon was founded over nine years ago by two makers — one a weaver, one a leather craftsman. The name means "weaving good deed" in Thai, which is less a tagline and more an operating principle.

Their atelier sits in Chiang Mai, surrounded by teak-wood plantation. The air is clean, the electricity bill runs about 1,500–2,000 Baht a month — because most of the work is done by human hands, not machines. Cotton yarn arrives from India, gets spun in Bangkok, then comes to Chiang Mai where it's hand-dyed and woven on traditional 4–8 shaft wooden looms. The loom width is 120 cm, which allows for complex patterns that a narrower machine couldn't produce. From there it goes to the leather craftsmen in the same workshop, where each bag is cut, assembled, and finished by hand.

The leather is full-grain genuine nappa — sourced as a by-product from cattle raised for beef, not raised for their hides. Hardware is matte gold. Buckles are reclaimed rosewood. Glue is water-based and certified. Over 85% of every bag is biodegradable.

Torboon holds a Green Production Certificate from Thailand's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment — not a self-declared claim, a government-issued certification. They also hold certifications from their water-based glue supplier and leather tannery.

Each fabric pattern is produced in limited quantity. The weavers who make them are part of an aging community of artisans in Chiang Mai — people for whom this is a skill passed down, not picked up. Torboon exists partly to keep that skill alive, and partly because the bags that come out of it are genuinely unlike anything made by a factory.

Kaluna Tree sources exclusively from Torboon.