A folded Melipsa beeswax-lined bread bag in green, printed with the Daily Bread sunburst design

First release

Beeswax bread bags, set of two

Two beeswax-lined cotton bags — one green, one grey — with a full-width zip, a buckle carry handle and a printed Mediterranean recipe book, in a gift carton. Designed for the loaf you took two days to make.

Buy on Amazon

Current price, postage and dispatch times are shown on the Amazon listing

Both Melipsa bread bags folded beside the Breads of the Mediterranean recipe book

The set

Two bags — one green, one grey — printed on both sides, with a buckle handle and a full-width zip.

A round sourdough loaf inside an open Melipsa bread bag

Room for a real loaf

Cut for a sourdough boule, a large tin loaf or a bloomer — not for a supermarket sandwich pack.

Boxed to give

A printed presentation carton and a ten-recipe book — the set arrives ready to wrap.

Specification

The details

In the box	2 beeswax-lined bread bags (1 green, 1 grey) · Breads of the Mediterranean recipe book · printed gift carton
Lining	Natural beeswax — not TPU or polyurethane film
Outer	Cotton, printed both sides
Bag size (flat)	43 × 33 cm
Fits	A round sourdough boule, a large tin loaf, a bloomer, or a stack of flatbreads
Closure	Full-width zip, plus an adjustable strap with a side-release buckle
Recipe book	Ten Mediterranean bread recipes, plus storage, care and leftovers pages
Carton	180 × 225 × 35 mm, printed
Care	Wipe clean only. Do not machine wash, tumble dry, or place near direct heat
Origin	Designed and created in the United Kingdom

All sizes are approximate due to manufacturing tolerances.

Buy on Amazon

The complete Melipsa set: printed gift carton, two bread bags and the Breads of the Mediterranean recipe book

Close-up of the zip and the golden beeswax lining inside a Melipsa bread bag

Crafted from the inside out

You can see the wax

Open a Melipsa bag and the inside is warm gold — the colour of natural beeswax on cotton. Plenty of bags sold as “beeswax” are lined with TPU, a clear polyurethane film that is cheap to apply and looks like nothing at all. If you cannot see a colour and you cannot smell anything, you are probably holding plastic.

Breathes, but slowly. Wax slows moisture loss without sealing it in — the balance plastic and paper each miss.
Full-width zip. The bag opens all the way across, so a boule goes in flat instead of being posted through a slot.
Buckle handle. Clips shut and carries — for the bakery run, the picnic, or the loaf you are giving away.

How to spot real beeswax

An honest word about the scent

A new Melipsa bag smells faintly of honey. That is what genuine beeswax smells like, and it fades over the first week or two of ordinary use. It does not pass into the bread. We mention it here rather than let it be a surprise — a bread bag that smells of absolutely nothing on the day it arrives is usually one that has no wax in it at all.

In the box

Breads of the Mediterranean

Every set includes a printed recipe book: ten straightforward Mediterranean breads — Turkish pide, fougasse, focaccia, koulouri, flatbreads and more — written for a normal kitchen and a normal oven.

At the back, the pages nobody else prints: how to keep a loaf properly, how to bring a firm one back with a few minutes in a hot oven, how to look after the wax lining, and five things worth cooking with yesterday’s bread.

Look inside the book

The Breads of the Mediterranean recipe book open at the Turkish Pide and Fougasse recipes

Using it well

The Melipsa habit

Three habits that make the difference between a good loaf on day two and a disappointing one.

Cool it completely

Bread that goes in warm steams itself. Wait until the loaf is properly cold — an hour or two for a boule.
Cut-side down

Store a cut loaf resting on its cut face. The crust does the sealing and the crumb stays soft.
Never the fridge

Cold staling is faster than room-temperature staling. The worktop beats the fridge every time.

To clean: shake out the crumbs and wipe the lining with a damp cloth. Wipe clean only — no machine wash, no tumble dry, and nothing near direct heat, all of which strip the wax.

The full care guide

Good to know

Questions, answered

Will a sourdough boule actually fit?

Yes — the bags are cut for real home baking, not for a supermarket sandwich loaf. Laid flat they measure 43 × 33 cm, and the zip runs the full width so a round loaf goes in without being squeezed. If you routinely bake anything larger than a 1 kg boule, check the dimensions against your tin first.

Is the lining real beeswax, or plastic?

Real beeswax. You can see it — the inside of the bag is warm gold rather than clear — and you can smell it faintly when it is new. Many bags sold under the same description are lined with TPU, a polyurethane film. We wrote a guide to telling them apart.

Can I put it in the washing machine?

No — and neither can you tumble dry it or leave it near a radiator or oven. Heat and detergent both strip wax. Shake out the crumbs, wipe the lining with a damp cloth and let it air dry. Treated that way a bag is good for years; put through a hot wash once, it is a plain cotton bag afterwards.

How long will bread keep in it?

Longer than in paper, and with a far better crust than in plastic — but how much longer depends on the loaf, the kitchen and the season. A crusty sourdough does best. Enriched breads made with milk or egg, such as brioche or plait, are best eaten within a day or two whatever you keep them in. For longer than that, slice and freeze, then toast from frozen.

Why two bags?

Because one is always in use. A second bag means you can wipe one out and let it dry properly while the other holds today’s loaf — and because a great many sets are bought as presents, where two colourways make a better-looking gift than one.

Is it suitable for anything other than bread?

It is designed around bread, and that is what we test it on. People do use beeswax-lined bags for pastries, scones and flatbreads with good results. We would not use one for anything wet, oily or raw.

How do I buy it?

Through Amazon, which handles payment and delivery. See the listing on Amazon for the current price and dispatch times.

Two bags, a recipe book, one box

Beeswax-lined, generously sized, and boxed ready to give.

Buy on Amazon Secure checkout and delivery handled by Amazon