Something To Hold On To
Every bag holds a story, but this one holds two.
In the eighteenth century, a mother leaving her baby at London's Foundling Hospital would often leave something else behind too: a coin, a ribbon, a scrap of fabric. These small objects, known as tokens, were kept so that if circumstances ever allowed, she might one day return and prove her child was hers. For most mothers, that day never came.
Today, around 400 of those tokens survive in the collection of the Foundling Museum. Each one is simple. Each one is deeply moving. And each one speaks of a mother's love, hope and impossible choice.
We are proud to share our collaboration with the Foundling Museum, and the three pieces we have created together.
Two stories, one belief
In 1739, Thomas Coram established the Foundling Hospital in London to care for babies at risk of abandonment. Over the next two centuries it looked after around 25,000 children, and its work continues today through the children's charity Coram. The Foundling Museum now stands on the site of the original hospital, preserving and sharing those stories.
Thousands of miles away, Sreepur Village in rural Bangladesh supports single mothers and their children, helping families stay together and build a secure future. The women who make every Hold Everything bag are part of that community.
When we first visited the museum, the connection felt immediate. Different centuries, different continents, but the same belief: that every child deserves safety, care and the chance to flourish.
Bringing Superman was a Foundling to life
The collaboration began with a tote bag featuring Superman was a Foundling, the powerful work created for the museum by Lemn Sissay, who grew up in care himself. His words speak to identity, belonging and resilience in a way that resonates far beyond the museum's walls.
The design had appeared on a bag before, so together with the museum we brought it back to life, carefully refining the artwork and updating the logo to create a new edition on sturdy monochrome canvas, complete with an inside pocket.
Simple, practical and full of meaning. Just how we like our bags.
The token bag
Alongside the Superman tote, we created a second design inspired by the museum's collection of tokens.
The story behind the tokens felt naturally woven into our own. Centuries ago, they were left by mothers holding on to hope for their children's futures. Today, our bags are stitched by mothers working to build those futures for their own families. Different lives, different circumstances, but part of the same human fabric.
Between the 1740s and 1760s, mothers leaving their babies at the Foundling Hospital would leave a small object behind: a coin, a scrap of fabric, a ribbon, in the hope of one day returning to claim their child. Around 400 of these tokens survive in the museum's collection, and every one of them is a mother's love in miniature.
To have women in Sreepur Village, many of them single mothers themselves, stitching a bag inspired by those tokens feels like a thread running across nearly three centuries.
A bag made by mothers, in honour of mothers.
And a tea towel too
We also created a Superman was a Foundling tea towel, bringing Lemn Sissay's words into everyday life beyond the museum gallery.
Because some stories deserve to be seen often.
Made by hand, made with care
Like everything we make, each piece is cut, stitched and finished by hand by the women of Sreepur Village in safe and dignified conditions and for a fair wage. As proud members of the World Fair Trade Organisation, we can tell you exactly where every item came from and who made it.
We are a Fair-Trade social enterprise, and every purchase helps create opportunities for women to support their families and shape their own futures.
Where to find them
The Superman tote, token bag and tea towel are all available in the Foundling Museum shop in Bloomsbury, with the tote and tea towel also available online HERE.
If you have never visited the museum, we cannot recommend it highly enough. The tokens stay with you long after you leave.
And whichever piece you choose, you carry two stories at once: the story of the children remembered by the Foundling Museum, and the story of the mothers of Sreepur Village who are writing a new chapter for their own families.
Thank you to everyone at the Foundling Museum for believing in us.
When you carry fair, you carry Hold Everything.