seatbelt style

this week my roommate came home after attending a focus group for the company maggie bags, who make a sustainable tote bag made of recycled seat belts. i realize this isn't the most riveting subject matter...but i needed a post, and this seemed to be apropos.

the maggie bags "tote of many colors"

the bags come in a variety of styles i.e. messenger, handbag, bucket tote, or backpack and are durable as well as eco-friendly. an interesting detail my roommate informed me that relates to anyone who associates themselves with UT: the US postal service recently ordered a large number of orange seatbelts but were dissatisfied with the color and decided not to use them (how wasteful is that?). now the company has decided to use this would-be waste product to make a line of UT-inspired bags.

maggie bags repurposes millions of yards of seatbelt fabric each year, after they are rejected by various auto makers for color variation or other "imperfections" to make practical, affordable and durable bags. i think it is extremely important for growing companies (and all companies) to practice policies that divert and prevent perfectly usable materials from going to landfills as well as utilizing resources to their fullest potential as opposed to wasting and abusing a surplus of man-made materials.