Published by elizabethhall under Accessories, Designers

Just when you thought you couldn’t get any more out of your Snicker’s candy bar besides a wonderful night of gluttony at the movies, think again! Candy wrappers, soda cans, and old tires are the new fur and leather of hand bags…and it only gets greener.

Ecoist has learned to combine fashion and ingenuity to bring us a line of handbags constructed completely out of candy wrappers, tire rubber, food packaging, and other materials that would otherwise be tossed into our local landfills. In their own words, “We collect waste and turn it into functional, durable and eye-catching handbags that you will simply love to own”.

And they are right. Products range in style, size, and color that fit the needs of even the most hip fashionista out there. The top ten collections Ecoist has to offer are made from some of the most popular and recognizable material out there- Bar code tabs, Coca-Cola labels, Luna Bar wrappers, subway maps, and of course, candy wrappers (affectionately named Confetti).

All across the board there is no doubt that these clever little totes fit the bill when it comes to labeling Ecoist and their products as “green”. However, the company impressively takes their green dreams one step further when it comes to handbag construction. Ecoist has implemented a program in which manufacturing is done in a fair trade setting in countries such as Mexico, Peru, Brazil, and India. By collaborating their efforts with Grupedsac in Mexico, (Group for the Promotion of Education and Sustainable Development), for example, Ecoist not only helps the environment by utilizing sustainable material, but provides job opportunities to citizens living in underprivileged societies. This is a notion that one can truly be fond of. It is easy to forget that being green can mean many things and fall under several categories, including being socially responsible.