For a quick refresher, Miscellaneous Adventures is a UK-based creative operation by designer and illustrator Andrew Groves and his talented wife Emma Highes. Together the two make modest bits of camp gear inspired by Scandinavian and Japanese outdoor culture. (Read our Q&A here.) The latest product to wear the MA patch was not made by hand in the couple’s Sussex workshop, but north in the Lake District by sustainable bag maker Millican.
The collaboration Blank Canvas Rucksack uses a fully waterproof fabric made from 40 recycled plastic bottles and is named as such to inspire creativity and encourage users to consider new use cases for the pack. Compression straps allow for external load carrying—an axe, sleeping pad, or bivy, for instance. A custom leather patch designed by MA specifically for the project cleanly blends in with the blue bag’s other leather lash-on accents. The interior is lined with more recycled fabric in a bright yellow to ease in the finding of items, and each pack comes with a limited edition woven patch and illustrated nature card. Pretty sweet.
And though MA would like to encourage unplugged exploring, they also understand is 2016 and most of us are never not working, so a padded, waterproof laptop sleeve was added to the design. It also works nicely in protecting trail maps and books. The rolltop design increases versatility in load carrying capacity, making it as useful as a daily commuter as it is for hauling gear on hikes.
Get a glimpse at the MA team and see the pack in action in this slick short film.
