Nicholas Daley Neck Bag – Black

The neck pouch is one of the oldest carrying solutions there is and it has been rediscovered every generation since. Worn on a cord at the chest, it keeps a small number of essential objects in the one place on the body you can reach without breaking stride and cannot easily be separated from. Every travelling culture has arrived at a version of it.

Daley’s is hand-knitted in cotton and jute rather than sewn from leather or nylon, which changes what it is. Knitted, it is soft against the chest and takes the shape of what is inside it. In jute, it is a fibre almost nobody uses in clothing, coarse, plant-derived, and historically the material of sacking and rope. The strap is leather, which is the only conventional bag material anywhere on the object, and at the base hangs a small weighted detail that keeps the pouch pulling straight rather than riding up. It is a piece of thinking, not a piece of decoration.

Why we selected it

We took this because it is the smallest hand-worked piece Daley makes and because it does a real job. Most small bags are a shrunken version of a large one. This is a different object entirely.

Hand knitting and jute both recur across Nicholas Daley’s accessories, and the neck bag is the smallest and most direct expression of the pair.

Materials and construction

Cotton, jute, and leather. We do not hold the proportions. Hand knitted in England. Leather strap, with a small weighted detail at the base. Colour: Black.

Sizing and how it is worn

Worn at the chest on the strap, over a shirt or a jacket. It is small by design, sized for a phone, a wallet, keys, and not much else. Unstructured, so it lies flat when empty. We do not hold dimensions for it, and rather than guess we would sooner measure the one in the store for you.

Styling

Over the Waffle Crew Neck or the Hooded Pullover, where a strap across the chest reads as intended. Black will go with everything he makes, which is not true of the Messenger Bag.

Care

Spot clean the knitted body with cool water and a soft cloth, and treat the leather strap separately with a leather conditioner rather than anything water-based. Never put it in a machine. Dry flat away from heat. Our fabric care guidance covers the rest.

Related pieces

The Messenger Bag is the larger hand-knitted bag and the Sling Printed Tote Bag the cotton tote. The Hand-Crocheted Bucket Hats carry the same jute yarn, and the Knitted Vest in light blue is the hand-worked garment. Everything we carry from Nicholas Daley is listed together.