Buzz
What’s discarded by one person becomes the foundation for another’s eco-conscious creations. These brands have embraced sustainability by transforming recycled materials into products that are practical, fashionable, and kind to the planet.
1. Keen’s Harvest Wallet and Bags
Keen’s Harvest Collections feature bags, totes, and wallets crafted from pre-consumer automobile side airbags. These surplus or outdated airbags are sent from manufacturers to a recycling facility in Salt Lake City for sorting, then shipped to Chico, California. There, the airbags are meticulously cut into patterns—either by hand with rotary knives or using die-cut machines. Artisans then assemble the pieces, with each finished product hand-numbered and signed by its creator.
2. Looptworks Leather iPad Covers
Looptworks has a history of repurposing materials like neoprene wetsuit fabric, cotton jersey, Italian wool, hemp, nylon, vinyl, and recycled polyester. Their latest innovation is these eco-friendly iPad cases, marking their first use of leather. The cases are crafted from surplus shoe leather scraps, often discarded due to natural imperfections. A single factory can produce up to 4500 pounds of such waste daily.
3. Cardboard FM Radio
Constructed primarily from recycled cardboard, this radio is fully recyclable once it reaches the end of its lifespan. Powered by four AAA batteries, it tunes into FM signals via an antenna and also allows you to connect your iPod for personalized music playback. Find it in the mental_floss store.
4. Moving Comfort Activewear
The coffee grounds from your daily brew often end up in landfills, but Moving Comfort has found a better use for them. Their activewear line features S. Cafe fabric, a material made by transforming coffee grounds into yarn through a patented process that removes phenol, ester, and oil. The resulting fabric is naturally odor-resistant, offers UV protection, and dries quickly, all thanks to its coffee-infused origins.
5. Skateback iPhone Back
Skateboard factories generate enough waste weekly to fill a city bus. Grove and Maple xo teamed up to repurpose this discarded post-industrial material into these iPhone backs. Each piece is hand-milled and finished, ensuring uniqueness, and attaches to the phone using a 3M adhesive.
6. Wonderful Wizard of Oz iPad Cover
Bring the charm of classic literature to your iPad with this iPad cover, designed to resemble the first edition of Frank L. Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, available in the mental_floss store. You can also find covers inspired by The Great Gatsby and Pride and Prejudice, all crafted from 30 percent recycled materials.
7. Dakine Men’s Surf Pack
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch highlights the alarming amount of plastic polluting our oceans. That’s why it’s impressive that this wet/dry surf bag, featuring a waterproof wetsuit pocket, is crafted entirely from 100 percent recycled PET fabric derived from plastic bottles. (Dakine also offers packs, duffle bags, totes, iPad bags, and carry-ons made from the same material for both men and women.) Additionally, the company avoids using PVC coating—a harmful environmental toxin—making their products exceptionally eco-friendly.
8. Record Bowls
Vinylux breathes new life into old vinyl records by transforming them into functional bowls. Most of the records they recycle are scratched, warped, or otherwise unusable, so there’s no guilt in repurposing them. The bowls are shaped over custom molds, with labels laminated and spindle holes sealed with clear tape. (If bowls aren’t your thing, the company also creates clocks, ornaments, sketchbooks, bookends, and mirrors.) Every part of the record is utilized: the paper is recycled, and vinyl scraps are sent to a Nashville plant to be turned into new records.
9. Baseball Bat Bottle Openers
While they may come with a hefty price tag, these bottle openers, crafted from bats used by Major League players, are nearly as thrilling as attending a live game (and more affordable when you consider stadium food and drink prices). Each opener is numbered, allowing you to trace the specific game the bat was used in through a database.
10. Pi Kitchen Towels
These Pi towels, available in the mental_floss store, are crafted from cotton flour sacks and printed with eco-friendly ink.
11. Coal Headware Cottonwood Beanie
The Cottonwood Beanie by Coal Headwear is made from cotton yarn, repurposed from manufacturing clippings and scraps. Since the scraps already contain color, the process requires fewer dyes and chemicals to transform them into new yarn.
12. ReCycle Bikes
These bikes are meticulously crafted in Portland, Oregon, using recycled aluminum. The seats are made from sustainable cork, and they feature belts instead of chains for easier maintenance. While not fully there yet, the company aims to eventually produce bikes made entirely from recycled materials.
13. Green Toys
These adorable, vintage-inspired toys are created from recycled plastic milk jugs. Even their packaging is 100 percent recycled (and recyclable)—and, as an added bonus, they’re free from the frustrating twist ties that make opening traditional kids’ toys so difficult.
