Re.Bag.Re.Use started as an experiment—crocheting using an empty bread bag, and making it into something new. Three years on, and the team have successfully repurposed the weight of 5 baby elephants in plastic, and made a difference for their Hout Bay communities!
Hout Bay, South Africa (05 June 2024) — An old hobby revisited during lockdown has transformed into something of a movement in Hout Bay as Re.Bag.Re.Use continues to empower women and repurpose plastic; tackling eco-social headaches head-on!
Founder Regine le Roux’s initial crocheting adventure took a turn for the best when one day, she decided to experiment with an empty bread bag.
“Facebook reminded me earlier [yesterday] that one of the very first Re.Bag.Re.Use meetups took place exactly three years ago at Hout Bay Harbour. At that time, I had started meeting with a group of ladies to share the basics of crocheting. On one of these occasions, for a bit of fun, I showed the ladies my experiment: crocheting with an empty bread bag,” shares Regine.
When I look at that memory shared by Facebook, it feels like I’ve blinked, and my bread bag experiment has snowballed into something extraordinary!”
Over three years, Re.Bag.Re.Use has flourished to the point where the initiative has repurposed over 92,000 empty bread bags into different items from handbags to hats. To emphasise how important this figure is, it is around the weight of five baby elephants. As today is World Environment Day, those looking to make an environmental shift in a big way might be inspired to learn that sometimes, all it takes is some experimenting.
But, this is not just an environmentally-conscious charged effort. It’s also a social effort that helps empower all those involved in the process as well as investing into local communities and charities like the Neighbourhood Old Age Home (NOAH) and the SPCA.
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And, the community project has also earned its stripes in the art world, having been involved in exciting projects including the V&A Waterfront’s Joy for Africa initiative and helping create products for the UPCYCLE exhibition.
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Tapiwa Likona, a day one project participant, says:
“Looking back at our Re.Bag.Re.Use journey, we had no idea how far we would go. Over the past three years, we have met so many wonderful people and achieved significant progress in recycling. Our efforts to save the environment have grown into a large, dedicated group committed to this cause. This initiative has not only benefitted the environment but has also provided crucial support to our families in various ways. The work we do continues to make a positive impact on our community and our planet.”
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