ZACHIKA BARLEY STORAGE BAGS: natural undyed leather with hand-dyed red & black detail
LHAGANG TSAMPA & CHIRRA* BAGS: (left) Yak-butter-cured goat hide is used to make these matching bags which act as short-trip picnic sacs. Tied together, they can be thrown over the shoulder, and carry two or three days sustenance. Modern uses include using a single bag as a fashionable purse, with a long leather strap added. *Tsampa is roasted barley flour, the staple food of nomads’ diets. Chirra is dried yak milk whey, also a part of the daily diet.
TEA STORAGE BAGS: (right, below left) Handmade from yak-hair and colorful cotton yarn, these simple bags are used to store tea leaves, matches, and other kitchen use items. They are hung for aesthetics and convenience from a wooden post near the fire. They have been used by customers as satchels.
LHAGANG LEATHER BAGS: (left) Made of home-cured (with butter) thick yak-leather, these bags are used to store barley in large quantities. A household will usually keep 8-10 of these bags filled with barley at all times, as a safeguard against hard times, as a habit,and as a sign of household well-being. The bags are stacked in the winter rock house and used as a wall to separate the space into rooms. They are also used in pairs as saddlebags to transport barely from farming areas (where it is bought) to the nomad home areas.