The precursors: the developing countries

From time immemorial, artists in the developing countries, Africa in particular, have been skilled in giving new life to the most banal of objects. Recovering things that are no longer of any use, adding value to handmade objects, recycling or reprocessing materials from waste … There are many examples of artists, associations and communities which have incorporated upcycling into their everyday lives and have brought their local and traditional know-how to the fore.

Handbags from disposable bags

In Accra, the capital of Ghana, the streets are littered with small plastic bags, like everywhere in Africa. These bags, sold in shops or peddled in the street, are used as containers for drinking water. Very cheap and practical, they are thrown away as soon as they are used.
An English entrepreneur, Stuart Gold, had the idea of founding an NGO with the view of clearing these bags from the streets, trees and waterways and at the same time creating jobs for the population. This was how “Trashy bags” came to be, today manufacturing 350 models of handbags, purses, raincoats, etc., produced from the 20 million or so bags collected. Trashy Bags encourage citizens to bring in used bags, at an average price of 2£ per 1,000 bags. The bags are washed, dried, flattened, cut up and finally assembled by some sixty workers to turn them into the final product: trendy, unique and colourful fashion accessories. Trashy Bags are now exporting their products to Japan, Germany and Denmark.

Plastic and hot sand

Florie Salnot, winner of the Coca Cola sustainable design competition in 2010, has been working for two years on a promising technique.
Florie has been busy: collecting plastic bottles and using hot sand and simple techniques with a human and social vocation in order to produce jewels, handbags and carpets. For her project to see the light of day, Florie set off for the Algerian desert to make use of materials available on the spot: old plastic bottles and hot sand.
There, groups of Sahrawi women weave fine strips of plastic, cut from the bottles, to produce all sorts of geometrical shapes. They are then plunged into burning sand where the plastic melts and then sets. The jewel is then virtually ready to be worn..

Her objective has been attained: creating value and reviving the craft traditions of a forgotten people in an extremely arid part of the world.

Luxury and NGO hand in hand

Yves Saint Laurent have been collaborating with women from the “Gafreh” association in Burkina Faso. An eco-responsible initiative which combines the fine leatherwork know-how of Yves Saint Laurent with the craft skills of the women in the association. They have developed a unique technique allowing a textile to be produced from old plastic bags and woven cotton.
From this happy marriage of two universes far apart, a beautiful bag has been born, the “Muse Two Artisanal Recycled” bag. Produced in a limited run of 60, it will only be available to a fortunate few…

MORE INFORMATION

www.trashybags.org
http://floriesalnot.com/
http://fillesdufacteur.typepad.com/
http://www.gafreh.org/