Sunday, September 16, 2007

Recycled Cassette Coin Purse


In an age of mp3s, DVDs, and CD-RWs, you may wonder “where have all the cassette tapes gone?” Following the reuse-and-recycle design trend, these clever little coin purses pose one solution, turning old tapes into usable vessels for all your stray pennies. Hand-made and one-of-a-kind, the cassette tapes are available from Marcella Foschi, Italy.
Considering most change purses cost only a few bucks, these are still a bit pricey, but what a great idea.


$39 on Design Boom.

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Saturday, September 15, 2007

Recycled Swimsuits


Aaron Chang jumps head first into eco-fashion with recycled swim suites. Who is Aarong Chang and how did he get involved in developing womens swim wear? Well-known in the photography world, his work has appeared on over 100 covers, on coffee table books, on countless ads for companies like, Nike, Yamaha, Polaris and Levis, not to mention a number of photos in Surfer and Surfing magazine. As an avid and legendary surfer, nature has always been in the forefront of his mind and he had a desire to incorporate his personal values with his professional work.

Thus, a great concept was formed to merge photography with fashion with swimwear. While the first few suits were not eco-friendly, this spring Aaron Chang will debut two new swimsuit lines that are made from 100% recycled plastic soda bottles. The response has already been so positive that Aaron Chang plans to make all summer swimsuit lines from 100% recycled plastic and eco-friendly.

The swimwear incorporates the direct photographs or small pieces from the photographs are used to design a logo that is used on the swim wear. Themes on the swimsuits incorporate elements of the natural world, such as waves, sunsets, flowers, elephants and indigenous designs from Panama. All swimsuits use bright colors, such as hot pints, greens, reds. The swimsuits are reversible, thus allowing for two suits for the price of one; A great concept.

Currently all cover-ups (shorts, tops and dress covers) are made from 100% organic cotton. Detailing on the clothes and suits is made from wooden beads, thus no plastic parts on the clothing or suits.

But why stop with the swimsuits or the cover-ups – Aaron Chang has made sure that all items related to the clothing are also environmental. Marketing materials and papers are all recycled and certified by the Rain forest Alliance to not come from virgin rain forest trees. Catalogs, hangtags and press kits are all made from recycled paper.

Aaron Chang

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