As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m going to only ask for environmentally friendly things this year for Christmas. That should make shopping a learning experience for my family. My mom bragged to me the other day that she was going “green” because she recycles her empty cigarette packages….doh!
Onto something funner…check out these gorgeous purses made by Etsy crafter interrobang. Based out of Australia, interrobang literally means question mark, exclamation point (?!). I just thought that was an interesting/weird little tidbit! She lists recycled seatbelts as one of her favorite materials to work with and recommends that you order with plenty of time left for shipping if you’re in the U.S./Canada.
Both the purse and matching wallet are, obviously, made from recycled seatbelts. Tons of cars are sent to the wreckers every year with the metal being recycled. The seat belts were previously just garbage but have been ingeniously repurposed into these amazing purses and wallets. The nature of the seatbelt itself is meant to be extremely strong and durable. This leads to extremely strong and durable products made out of the junked belts!
I absolutely love the look of the belts sewn together and then having melted seams to make it even stronger. The shiny stripes make a beautiful and completely unexpected striped appearance to the bag. I’m certain that many people wouldn’t even recognize the material as being a seatbelt but I’d love to fill them in on the huge range of benefits of upcycling!
There are a few different styles of purses and wallets available as well as laptop sleeves and messenger bags. She even has an interesting bag made from upcycled billboards! Definitely worth checking out this seller as you try to get your Christmas shopping done!!
