What to Look for in Eco Friendly Handbags?

Handbags are one of the defining accessories for any woman (or man for that matter), which reveal the fashionista in her and which speak of her attitude as well. Innovative new designers have now made sure that the handbags we buy and flaunt make not just a style statement but an ecological one as well. So what makes for eco friendly handbags?

1. Organic Materials

Organic materials such as organically grown cotton, canvas, are strong and durable but also more easily biodegradable than artificial materials. So look for handbags crafted from cotton, hemp and so on, but also look for bags made from minimally processed materials, using few if any dyes, chemicals and so on.

It isn’t just what raw materials are used, but also how they are sourced. For instance many designers consciously use cork in the manufacture of their handbags; cork that is extracted using the most environment friendly methods of harvesting.

2. Vegan Handbags

These are those that don’t use any materials sourced from animals and use raw materials other than those that are commonly used for handbags. So there is no leather used in the manufacture of these eco friendly bags; rather they are made from PVC free polymer, natural rubber, organic cotton, and so on. Dyes used for vegan products are ideally vegetable dyes which adds to the vegan and eco friendly cache.

3. Recycled or Upcycled Materials

The best use that you can make of garbage is to reuse it! And this is just what a lot of very enterprising designers have gone one to do: candy wrappers, old newspapers or magazines, discarded food packaging, labels from sodas can all become trendy, cool, one of a kind bags: clutches, handbags, purses, anything really!

And it would seem that there is no limit to our ingenuity. There are handbags created from discarded tires, from refashioned automobile upholstery, discarded plastic water bottles, the discarded inner tubes or tractor tires, even recycled boat sails! Even reclaimed leather previously used as bags, upholstery and so on can take a role of a brand new hand bag!

4. Sustainable Materials

Even among natural materials, some materials are more sustainable than others. This is because some materials are fast growing, need less water for cultivation, or require less resource intensive cultivation and harvesting techniques, and so, are more sustainable. Bamboo, a rapid growing grass is fast emerging as one of the most popular sustainable materials. Bamboo as well as other sustainable materials, makes for innovative and attractive eco friendly bags.