Hunterson Magic Wallet - Practical and full of delight

Dreamt up by Belgian designer Christophe De Smet while he was backpacking around Austrailia, Hunterson Wallets are based on the Jacob's ladder, a children's toy. Christophe started selling them in markets and got to see first hand the delight on people’s faces as they tried to understand how this deceivingly simple design works. You open the magic wallet and put in some notes, then close it, open from the other side and, as if by magic, your money is safely stored behind the elastic straps.

Starting the company this way has meant they have always looked to the customer for feedback on their designs, refining the product based on these interactions to the point where they have one of the best designed wallets I’ve ever come across. Having met him at a couple of design fairs it’s safe to say that his enjoyment of demonstrating his wallets hasn’t waned at all.

Aside from the undoubtedly very clever trick that they do, Hunterson wallets function brilliantly as wallets. They come with RFID protection as standard, to prevent anyone skimming the near field chips in your bank cards. They hold enough cards for day to day use and are suitable for any size of paper currency. These wallets are slightly scaled down from an average sized wallet, meaning they take up less space in your pocket. They come with or without a very compact coin wallet that really doesn’t increase the bulk of the wallet much.

Limiting the number of cards it contains also forces you to streamline what you carry, meaning you’re not routing through multiple storecards, and loyalty cards when you’re trying to pay at the till. Christophe likes to claim that a full magic wallet takes up less space than most empty wallets. 

There is a vegan leather version available that is made from Pinatex - a type of faux leather produced from pineapple leaves. Made from a byproduct of the fruit industry, Pinatex is more sustainable and more environmentally friendly than both leather or PVC and in tests wears almost as well as traditional leather.  

 It should be a given that the objects you surround yourself with work well. a wallet should hold your money and keep your cards safe at a bare minimum. What I love about these wallets is that they also add some magic to the everyday. Is it too grandiose to suggest that they might help to strive for that in other areas of your life? Yeah, probably, however in a world where I for one can often feel like I’m struggling, I’ll take any small moment of delight where I can get it.