What is a net or string market bag?

An open-mesh carrying bag, traditionally knotted from cotton string, that folds to pocket size and expands to hold far more than its size suggests. It originated in Europe — the czech síťovka and the French filet are the classic forms — and was everyday shopping equipment for most of the twentieth century.

Why are net bags fashionable again?

Three reasons converged: the plastic-bag backlash made a foldable reusable bag genuinely useful, the visible-contents look photographed well, and fashion embraced the honesty of utilitarian objects. The net bag ticks all three while costing little — and the metal version upgrades the same idea into jewellery.

Is a brass mesh bag practical for shopping?

Yes — the knitted structure spreads weight across the whole mesh, so it carries groceries, bottles and books comfortably. Unlike string, brass wire holds a soft shape when set down, will not mildew, and wipes clean. It is heavier than cotton string but still light: fine wire is mostly air.

mesh & net market bags

A hundred years of the see-through bag, from spoii.world.

Before the tote there was the net. Light, strong, folds to nothing, shows exactly what it carries — the string market bag is one of the great pieces of everyday design, and the knitted brass bag is its direct descendant, upgraded from cotton to metal.

Where the net bag comes from

The knotted string bag was everyday equipment across twentieth- century Europe — the Czech síťovka, the French filet, the avoska carried "just in case" across the Soviet bloc. It lived in a coat pocket, expanded to hold a week's vegetables, and asked for no credit. Utility was the whole design.

How it became a fashion object

The revival began when the plastic carrier bag fell from grace and the humble foldable net suddenly looked like the smartest object in the kitchen drawer. Then fashion noticed what cooks already knew: visible contents are charming. A lemon, a baguette and a paperback in an open mesh photograph better than any logo. The look spread from market stalls to street-style feeds, and the net bag became shorthand for a certain unforced, continental way of dressing.

The metal upgrade

The wire-mesh bag — the wire-mesh bag — takes the net bag's honesty and rebuilds it in brass. Same open knit, same fold-flat lightness, same see-through candour about what you carry; but the material now catches light like jewellery, holds a gentle shape when set down, never mildews, and ages into a patina instead of wearing out. The full lineage is in our metal mesh history.

Living with the sheerness

The one practical adjustment: an open mesh keeps no secrets. The settled convention — let the good-looking ordinary things show, and keep keys, cards and anything private in one small pouch. Styling ideas for making the sheerness work are in the styling guide.

Ours

Tonsiba (£95) is a market bag in the full sense — knitted from fine brass wire, 22 × 22 cm, twin riveted handles, happy to carry the week's vegetables. Made to order, dispatched within 14 days, free UK delivery.

Last reviewed: 2026-07-16