If you haven’t already, please enter to win a gorgeous vegetable-tanned leather tote by eco-friendly handbag designer, Beth Springer. And below, learn a little more about Beth, how her company is environmentally friendly, and what she does to “create a little less waste.”
- Can you explain a little exactly HOW your bags/business practices are eco-friendly?
My ethos: Do no harm. I am big believer in environmental sustainability, so my bags are made with nature in mind. Because I want to tread lightly on the earth, I employ the principles of reduce, reuse, recycle to every aspect of my business. The goal is to get as close to zero waste as possible. To that end, Beth Springer Handbags:
- uses no extraneous hardware. Metal feet are absent on the bottom of my bags because 1) those little metal feet use our precious natural resources, require a highly toxic process to coat, and do not biodegrade 2) feet are redundant on my bags because the leather I use can sustain long years of use without wearing through.
- uses all remnants. I endeavor to use the entire hide. You can find note cards, ribbon cuffs, and one of a kind purses at my studio in Venice- all made with waste materials. Come on by!
- uses no filler- most leather bags today use a thinner leather to save money, and then back that leather with vinyl. It is a hidden environmental disaster. Most Beth Springer bags “stand on their own”.
- uses organic linings – adding 100% organic hemp/cotton linings to several styles starting with the Spring 2008 collection. Check out my /Ecovertible /the trim is reclaimed leather – that means the leather has been saved from the land fill and made into something beautiful for your pleasure. Ecovertible is also lined with organic hemp linen.
- works with vegetable dyed leathers. Vegetable dying uses plants to color the leather. Very earth friendly. All our leather is by-product as well, and the suede is organic pig.
- are produced 100% in America. That reduces the carbon foot print of production and delivery to you!
- uses tags that are made from recycled paper, attached with organic hemp cord and printed with soy ink. My company uses CFL lighting, and goes carless one business day each week. Our paper is all 100% post consumer. I ship in reused boxes whenever possible, so the boxes are ugly but the world remains beautiful. Please recycle or reuse them. I do! (I reuse stuffing and packing too)
- Why is it important to you to make your company & bags as environmentally friendly as possible?
The planet we live on is so beautiful and there is only one of it! I want to be a source of additional beauty and added enjoyment in this world, but not at the expense of this world or its creatures.
- What challenges have you faced in this endeavor?
There are many less vegetable tanned leathers than those tanned with chrome, so I have fewer materials to work with than traditional designers.
- What bag are you carrying today?
I am carrying the Market Tote in natural (the giveaway bag!). Inside I have Snatch for my make-up, and a Lashed (new item) for my wallet. Tonight when I go out I will carry a Slim in Medici
Market Bag: $715
- What are your best sellers? Which are your personal favorite bags in your collection?
The best selling large pieces include styles Copra, Soft-T, Market Tote. The small pieces include Clam Shell, Wrist Slip, Snatch.
Snatch: $114
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Clamshell: $145
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- For the giveaway, I asked each entrant to tell me something they’d do to “create a little more love and a little less waste in the world.” I was inspired by your desire to do this through the design & creation of your handbags, but what else do you do to create a little more love and a little less waste?
I like this question! I have really tried to create ‘a little less waste’ on a daily basis. Of course I recycle everything and I compost. I reuse food containers instead of buying saran wrap or new containers. I use handkerchiefs instead of Kleenex…2 days a week are ‘car free’; I don’t buy trash bags… 5 minute showers…unplug unused appliances…CDF lighting…Some day, I would really love to own a ‘green’ home…Until then, I will just keep doing what I can.
To enter the giveaway for Beth’s Market Bag in Natural, please visit the original post. Giveaway ends 6/20/2009. Also, use code GreenGrechen for 25% off Beth’s handbags through 6/20/2009.
Beth Springer is one of my favorite eco-friendly handbag designers, and in case you haven’t noticed, she’s also sponsoring this month’s giveaway!! Beth is offering one of her huge & versatile market bags (a $715 value) to one lucky winner chosen randomly. Visit this post for details and to enter to win.
She’s also offered Green Grechen visitors an exclusive 25% off coupon code: GreenGrechen, valid until June 20. Use it to get your own vegetable tanned leather, or vegan handbag (pictured below, in the middle) just in time for Summer vacations.
I’ve loved Beth Springer since I first laid eyes on her “Ecovertible” bag (and then received my own) and learned about her commitment to environmental sustainability. Beth strives for zero waste production (she uses remnants for notecards, cuffs & one-of-a-kind purses), uses vegetable tanned leathers, and lines some bags in organic hemp/cotton. Recently, she also added a gorgeous vegan bag as well as a really lovely tyvek bag to her already fabulous lineup!
Beth is truly doing her part to create a little less waste and a little more love (through beautiful and lovingly crafted handbags!) in this world, and I’m so excited that she’s sponsoring this giveaway for her market bag.
The Prize
Beth Springer Market bag in “natural” (valued at $715) made from vegetable tanned leather & love in Venice, California:
(how insanely adorable is that picture of the baby in the bag?)
How to Enter
The minimum you have to do to be entered to win is leave a comment on this post telling me something you’d like to do to “create a little less waste and a little more love” in this world!
Ways to get multiple entries:
Go to BethSpringer.com and find your favorite handbag, then come back here and leave a comment telling us what you like about it!
Tweet about the contest on twitter with a link to the contest page. Come back here and leave a comment with a link to your tweet so I can add your extra entry. (you can tweet the contest more than once…but you’ll max out at 5 extra entries for tweets…and that will also count as an extra entry – just remember to leave a comment back here every time you do)
Follow me on twitter! Come back and post a comment here with your twitter name so I can verify – and follow you back!
Post about the contest on your facebook page then come back here and leave a comment for your extra entry.
Post about the contest on your blog – please post back here with a link in case I don’t get a pingback…
Contest will end on June 20 and the winner will be chosen at random. Please make sure you leave a valid e-mail address (won’t be shared or visible) with your comment so you’ll receive notification if you’re the winner!!
Bonus!
For the duration of the contest (through 6/20), use coupon code “GreenGrechen” at Beth Springer for 25% off!
Good luck everyone!! And stay tuned all month for new weekly features including an interview with Beth, and more!
Never mind the high fuel prices, here in Atlanta, we can’t even buy it if we want to!! Luckily, I drive a Honda Civic, which gets fabulous gas mileage, and I can walk nearly everywhere I need to. But all this walking lately, has made me appreciate my messenger bags more; I love being “hands-free,” and carrying a bag messenger style is much more comfortable than carrying a bag on my shoulder.
Eco-friendly designers have risen to the challenge and produced a great selection of messenger bags made from materials such as recycled billboards, tractor inner tubes, and some that include solar panels for recharging electronic equipment. They’re not all vegan, but they are all made as environmentally-friendly as possible, and several are handmade by female artisans in countries like Madagascar and Afghanistan providing them a unique opportunity to participate in the global economy and earn money to support their families.
Happy Shopping!!
- Beth Springer Eco-Vertible Bag
$517
I have this bag in olive and it’s been my go-to messenger bag lately. It is not vegan, but the leather trim is reclaimed, and it is lined with organic hemp linen. And Beth Springer as a company is making an effort to be as environmentally friendly as possible, by moving closer and closer to “zero-waste.” Take 15% off your order at Beth Springer with code “GrechensGirl.”
- Malcom Fontier “The Director” – PU-coated canvas, vegetarian, non-leather messenger bag.
$250
- Noon Solar “Logan” – These bags are amazing – they not only hold everything you need for your day, they can recharge your electronic equipment while you commute, or eat lunch in the park.
$452
Bavarian, chrome-free, vegetable tanned and dyed, full-grain cowhide leather, hand dyed hemp/cotton fabric with natural pigments, and organic hemp/cotton lining. Includes lithium-ion battery and cables/adapters for recharging.
- Amy Kathryn Satin/Cotton Fresia Bag
– a much more “girly” design/style, yet still functional. All of Amy’s designs are animal-friendly, and the custom printed satin is hand washable.
$110
- Passchal Messenger Bag – made from recycled tractor inner tubes and eco-friendly leather trim. I’m intrigued by these, I love the idea that the company has recycled 20 tons of inner tubes thus far (wow!), and I appreciate the simple/utilitarian styling, but I think inner-tube-as-bag will have to grow on me a bit!
$235
- Sarah Donagan Tulip Bag – hand dyed eco-kind hessian (“plain woven cloth of flat yarns, usually jute”). I LOVE this bag for wearing with pretty dresses and skirts. It has a unique, romantic vibe, and is great for creative types to tote everything around in easily and hands free.
$170
- Billboard Messenger Bag – made primarily from discarded NYC Billboards, these are pretty much indestructible, and I love the unique, individual design. Take 20% off your order at BTC Elements with code “grechen.”
$65
- Mad Imports – Sisal & Suede Messenger Bag handmade by artists in Madagascar & Kenya. Mad Imports enables families to gain economic independence and promotes environmental conservation by marketing handmade fashion accessories. This is a simple, no-nonsense, ethnic style messenger bag great for quick trips or leisurely strolls.
$69
- Leather Cell Phone/Camera Case – handmade by artisans in Afghanistan for Artizan Sarai, whose mission is to empower women by creating opportunities for artisans in economically disadvantaged areas of the world to advance and sell their products internationally. This is tiny, but great for carrying a small camera and then slipping into a larger bag when necessary.
$36
- Escama Masha bag – made from 1600 recycled aluminum pull-tabs! This is so cool…it’s very lightweight, and small enough to not be intrusive. The company works with women’s cooperatives located in economically depressed “satellite cities” of Brasilia, Brazil and donates 3% of gross annual sales back to the cooperatives. Take 20% off your order at Equita with code “grechen20.”
$180
Another fabulous new eco-friendly designer is Sustainable Collective by Convoy Apparel. Sustainable produces more “avant garde” pieces than many other earth-friendly designers, and I think there is a definite need for that; they appeal to the more fashion-forward “environista” with their unique take on the hoodie, versatile vests, rocker-chic tees, and much more. I was in love with these two pieces the moment I took them out of the box:
On the left is the Heron dress and the right, the Canary Dress. Honestly, for me, these are too short to wear as dresses, they’re more tunic-length on me (I’m actually thinking of getting the Heron dress hemmed a little shorter so it’s a true tunic). They are both made out of organic cotton tissue jersey, so the material is pretty thin, but soft. The tank dress I’m wearing a t-shirt under because it was a bit too revealing alone, but I didn’t think it was necessary to wear anything under the Heron dress (besides a bra, of course). I wore the Heron dress over Gap Essential jeans out to dinner one night last week and felt a little like I was on a chic island vacation – I always pictured wearing a patterned tunic over jeans out to dinner in some exotic location, so it was kind of fun to pretend at home! Since they’re both made from tissue-weight jersey cotton, each dress is thin enough to not be too hot even in 95 degree heat. Actually the tank would be a great bathing suit cover-up…
I’m wearing each top with Gap Essential Jeans, Matt Bernson Love Sandal
, and in the left, Beth Springer Ecovertible Bag and on the right, Jerome Dreyfuss large Billy Bag.
Besides the fabulous clothes, another reason why I love Sustainable Collective so much is their mission. They call it S.E.A.D.S, which stands for
- Sustainable: they use organic & sustainable fabrics, like Hemp, organic wool and Ahimsa silk. And each season, they custom make a new dye made entirely without toxic chemicals – from teas, roots, etc.
- Ethical: all labor is warily paid, and everything is made in the USA.
- Authentic: They make an effort to research and certify all their sources
- Directional: “forward-thinking fashion for eco-fashionistas”
- Social: they participate in social products and charities like 1% for the Planet.
Buy online through their website, or find other places online that sell Sustainable Collective.
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