Japanese studio Nendo has designed a collection of handbags from single sheets of laser-cut leather that the buyer can assemble at home.

Created for Italian online platform Up To You Anthology, each bag in the Mai collection was designed as a single laser-cut sheet of leather, in a net-style format.

The bags are distributed to their buyers in a completely flat form. Once received, the customer can fold and assemble the bag into its three-dimensional form.

The assembly doesn't require any tools – the bag can be assembled by simply joining a few rivets through the holes of the bag.

This straightforward design has also allowed Up To You Anthology to simplify the manufacturing process as well as minimise the inventory and shipping costs.

Due to its composition, the bag has been named after the Japanese word "ichi-mai", which translates to "one sheet".

The Mai bag is available in a range of different sizes and colours, including mustard yellow, dark brown, khaki and teal, achieved by dying the leather with a plant-derived tannin.

Launched in December 2019, Up To You Anthology is a startup e-commerce platform that allows visitors to design their own bag or to buy one made by various well-known designers.

"The brand is unique in that it is not limited to professional designers and is open to design proposals from anyone, and provides total support from product development to manufacturing management and online distribution," said Nendo founder Oki Sato about the company.

This is not the first time Nendo has ventured into bag design. Previously the Japanese studio created a bag for luxury accessories brand Tod's which is specifically suited to architects.

The bag can change shape to accommodate different sizes of drawings held inside. In its extended form, the bag can hold a full-size A3 drawing, but a more compact shape can be created using poppers at the corners to fold the bag in half.

Photography is by Akihiro Yoshida.