Moddanio

Vegan Cork Handbags, Wallet & Shoes

About Us

A unique British brand that inspires elegance with nature.

Moddanio offers a wide range of certified vegan cork handbags and fashion cork accessories for men and women.We are conscious about the environment which is why we are so proud to be working with this amazing material known as cork. We aim to provide our customers with a great alternative to leather which is designed to last, durable, Eco-friendly and sustainable. Our products are carefully handcrafted, using the best quality cork.

​Our aim is to be a market leader and provide our customers with a wide range of genuine cork products which are all handmade and designed with passion and attention to detail. We plan to expand our product range to ensure that our customers have the best selection of natural products available to them.

​Our experience and knowledge reflects in what we do, we are passionate about our work, our products and customers. We pride ourselves in excellent customer service and provide premium quality products, ensuring our clients get the best value for money.

Our Story

Our story began in 2014 when we were introduced to a lovely family who not only were close friends with relatives of ours but also the owners of a cork manufacturing factory.

​We went on an exclusive tour and saw the benefits of this extraordinary material known as cork.

We wanted to be original, start something that was new and innovative, something that wasn’t common but needed to remain ecological and ethical, yet stylish and trendy. Fortunately, the characteristics of cork made us feel more and more confident because not only is cork versatile, eco-friendly and sustainable, it’s also sophisticated, super lightweight, waterproof and incredibly durable – which meant that we were onto a winner!

We became more and more excited about introducing our stunning range of vegan fashion accessories which were all handmade from genuine cork, not only was this a genius concept it was also ethical. We love and respect nature which is why we chose a way of working that respects it’s harmony and preservation. We saw this as our opportunity to start producing an exclusive range of custom designed fashion cork accessories…our own “one of a kind” British brand.

Our passion for cork, is more than most can imagine. It lead us to create the Moddanio brand in the early part of 2015. Our plan is to grow our brand globally and ensure that we exceed all expectations.

One of our missions is to contribute positively to a better environment, by promoting the use of cork and unlike leather it is cruelty free.

Our pieces are carefully handcrafted focusing on, quality, elegance, design and innovation.

Facts About Cork

By choosing Moddanio handbags & accessories you’re making an environmentally friendly choice that is Vegan and Cruelty-Free, read further to find out interesting Facts About Cork Material.

It’s estimated that Oak trees would need to be around 25 to 30 years old before producing cork and that the first two cycles of cork produced are likely to be poorer quality. These cycles take place every nine years, although the trees are estimated to live up to an outstanding 300 years of age.

Using cork to make cork fashion products does absolutely no harm to the environment. In fact, during the harvesting process, no trees are actually cut down or damaged. The Oak trees bark is simply stripped and removed allowing the Oak tree to remain. Over time a new layer of cork regrows, thus making cork a renewable resource and an environmentally friendly material.

Versatile and unique

Cork is from the bark of the cork oak tree. It is a 100% natural plant tissue consisting of a hive of microscopic cells which contains a gas similar to air, it’s mainly coated with suberin and lignin. Surprisingly, it has vast a range of attributes that no technology has yet managed to emulate, match or exceed.

It’s 100% natural

Cork is a 100% natural raw material which is not something you see every day, It is 100% reusable and 100% recyclable, extracted from cork oaks without harming or damaging the tree. The extracted cork is 100% harnessed. Once processed, into stoppers for example, cork can also re-enter the production process.

Wear resistance

Cork is resistant to wear, thanks to its honeycomb structure, which makes it less affected by impact or friction than other hard surfaces.

Lightweight

An outstanding figure of just over 50% of its volume is air, which makes it very light in weight. It so light that it can actually float.

Impermeable to liquids and gases

It is totally impermeable to liquids and practically impermeable to gases, thanks to the suberin and cerin present in the composition of cork cells. Its resistance to moisture allows it to grow old without deteriorating.

Elastic and compressible

It can be compressed to around half its thickness without losing any flexibility, and it decompresses, recovering into its initial shape and volume. This flexibility is due to its airtight cells containing a gas mixture similar to air. It is the only solid that when compressed on one side does not increase in volume on the other axis. It is able to adapt to variations in temperature and pressure without suffering variations, due to its elasticity.

Excellent thermal and acoustic insulator

Due to the fact that there are around 40 million cells in each cubic centimetre of cork, they act as real decibel absorbers, making it an outstanding sound and vibration insulator. Its molecular structure allows it to absorb heat and retain it for a long period of time.

Slow burning

Cork has a relatively high tolerance level towards heat. Its slow combustion makes it a natural fire retardant which acts as a barrier against fires. Cork tends to burn without a flame and does not emit toxic gases during combustion.

Anti-static and anti-allergic

Fortunately, cork does not absorb any dust, which is one of the main reasons why mites start appearing, therefore it contributes to the protection against allergies and is therefore hypoallergenic.

Chemical structure

Cork cells tend to have a pentagonal and/or hexagonal prism shape. The height of one of these tiny prisms is generally around 40 to 50 micrometres (thousandths of a millimetre). The smallest cells measure between 10 to 20 micrometres, with an average of around 40 million cells in each cubic centimetre of cork. To put it into perspective, there’s approximately 795 million cells in a single cork stopper.