Custom Jute & Burlap Tote Bags with Your Logo

Jute, burlap, hessian: the same fiber

Jute is the plant. Burlap and hessian are names for the coarse woven cloth made from it, and in promotional products the three words are used interchangeably. What varies is how finely the yarn is spun and whether the cloth is left raw or given a laminated interior.

Laminated or unlined

Raw jute has a visible open weave, so fine particles pass through it and the inside sheds fiber. Most tote versions here have a laminated inner liner, usually a thin PE film, which stops shedding, adds a little water resistance and gives the bag structure. If you want the fully natural, fully compostable story you need unlined jute, and you accept that it sheds and that a rainy day will mark it.

Printing on an open weave

This is where jute differs from every other fabric in the catalog. The weave is coarse, so fine detail and small text break up. Screen printing sits on top of a textured surface and thin lines drop out between the yarns. Bold logos, solid shapes and type above roughly 14 points reproduce well; a detailed crest or 6-point legal line will not. Color also shifts, because natural jute is a warm tan rather than white, so a light ink prints darker and cooler than the proof suggests. Laminated jute takes full-color printing far better, and cotton-faced blends give you a smooth panel on a jute body.

Handling and storage

Jute holds moisture and can develop a musty smell or mildew if it is stored damp or shrink-wrapped in a humid warehouse. Store the bags dry and unwrap them on arrival if they have travelled by sea. This is worth telling recipients too, because a jute bag left wet in a car is the one complaint this material reliably generates.

Where else to look

For a smoother natural surface that prints finer detail see Cotton & Canvas Totes. For the same reusable shopping job in a synthetic see Grocery & Shopping Totes, and for bottle carriers in jute see Wine & Bottle Totes.