Eco-Bricks

What are they, and why should you care…

We strive our best to be a low impact, zero waste brand. We are also very aware of the harmful impact the textile industry has on the environment. Every year tonnes (literally, tonnes) of fabric and textile scraps find their way into our landfills and oceans.

Every sewist that joins our team is given bottles to place synthetic fabric and thread scraps into.

They are also encouraged to add other non-recyclable plastics and disposable gloves and masks that would otherwise end up hurting mother earth.

These ecobricks are then donated to our selected animal charities, where they are used to build habitats for injured, neglected and homeless animals.

WHAT IS AN ECOBRICK?

An ecobrick is a plastic bottle packed with used plastics and non-recyclables. They serve as reusable building blocks. Ecobricks can be used to produce various items, including furniture, garden walls and other structures.

HOW DO YOU MAKE AN ECOBRICK?

1. Collect your clean and dry household waste. We recommend only waste that you cannot recycle (like dog food bags), but you can EcoBrick anything non-biodegradable and dry.
2. Twist your waste and insert it into a plastic bottle. Compress it as tightly as you can with a stick.
3. Keep doing this until your bottle is as full as possible – make sure your bottle is unsquishable (hard).
4. Think your EcoBrick is done? If you can squeeze it by more than 10% with one hand you should add more waste.
5. No longer squishable? It’s done!

We are based in South Africa, and donate to a number of charities who collect these ecobricks, there are also ecobrick drop off bins at all major Pick ‘n Pay Hyper stores. If you are from another region of the world, and now of a group or charity who collects these, please leave their details in the comments below.

Here are some videos to help you to discover more about ecobricks and building with them