Ripstop text
Durable fabric resists tearing, which duh, but really durable fabric is engineered to resist tearing. In high-pressure environments like sailing or mountaineering, fabrics have been engineered to keep rips from turning into something that will ruin a mission or endanger lives. Threads of alternating heft are woven in, sometimes at an angle, and this is called ripstop fabric, because when a rip hits one of these bits on the fabric, it… stops.
Perhaps the most famous ripstop fabric right now is called X-Pac, so named because its diamond weave evokes a grid of the same letter. You see X-Pac in backpacks, wallets, laptop sleeves, slings. You see ripoff X-Pac that is not quite at the right angle. There are different grades of X-Pac that offer different tradeoffs between weight, durability, and flexibility. There are very over-the-top forms of X-Pac, and very not.
X-Pac as manifested ruggedization trend. X-Pac as unconscious mission. X-Pac as luxury. I spoke recently of X-Pac on a wallet that had premium Italian leather and unconventional form. The X-Pac is not at all necessary. The wallet’s corners will wear where they want to wear. Nothing will spread, because nothing will tear. The X-Pac, here, is ornamentation, and everyone knows it.
Other brands have picked up on this. For example: a messenger tote, half of a stack, with X-Pac that is actually useful & functional. Combining X-Pac with premium fancy leather is a vibe. On the one hand, good leather is meant to be durable. On the other, nobody who buys this bag is going to wear it hard. Durability of this sort is usually wasted on those who live softly, who glide through space, who want the idea of a life adventure without the challenge of it.