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“Dumpster Couture” Handbags

By Johanna Laracuente, Wardrobe Stylist & Fashion Expert

I’m a self-proclaimed accessory whore, hands down! Being a bigger than life fashionista, finding my favorite trends in my size can sometimes be a challenge but accessories have NO size tag, the possibilities are endless!  You can take a simple outfit to the next level with the right combination of jewelry, belts, shoes and my favorite, an amazing bag.  Everyday we get up and carry the weight of the world on our shoulders, literally, so why not do it in style while helping the environment in the process? After all every little contribution we make has a huge impact.

“Dumpster couture” as I like to call it, is the use of items otherwise considered garbage to make beautiful fashion.  If anyone knows something about turning trash into fierceness it’s designer Olga Abadi of Nahui Ollin. Her stylish line of handbags is made from assorted wrappers and labels, rescued before going into landfills in Mexico. Artisans, using the ancient Mayan technique of binding, take up to 4 days and 4,000 wrappers to make your one-of- a-kind bag. You can choose from 20 colors or design unique patterns. Not only will you do your part for the environment by buying a bag but also help support a whole community of artisans. Doesn’t that make you feel warm and fuzzy inside?

Landfill trash is not the only recyclable material getting play these days; just ask the Harvey’s, founders of Treecycle bags. While fixing up his 1950’s Buick, Dana Harvey had an idea to make a bag for his wife Melanie with the leftover seatbelt webbing. Out of their garage and ten years in the making, this handbag line carries totes, satchels, messengers, and computer bags. They are hand-made from reclaimed seatbelts from a variety of auto and airline manufacturers and woven into beautiful basket weave patterns. Ultimately, each bag saves space in our over-crowded landfills. Practical AND pretty?  Perfect!!

Remember last week we talked about vintage shopping and how you could recycle a dress and use the fabric for something else? Well, the ladies behind Soto & Torres wrote the book on that trend. Their fab pieces are made from vintage clothing; a dress, a skirt, perhaps, a shirt that lived in the 60´s, 70´s or 80´s and probably took a spin under a disco ball somewhere. This is why each handbag of the collection Vintage Remake is absolutely unique and has its own story to tell. “Everything that has been made with love and dedication gets better with age, because the experience has taught it the mechanics of the world” shares the Latina fashionistas. Wise words from Venezuela with LOVE!

These trendsetters sure put a different spin on the phrase “One woman’s trash is another’s treasure.” Don’t you think? From now on you will look at trash with a whole new way. Let’s save the planet one handbag at a time!