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Reusable Shopping Bag Catalog
Browse our catalog of reusable shopping bags to find the perfect bag to express your style. Purchasing bags online is easy, using our shopping cart.
All of our reusable shopping bags are made with durable yet lightweight materials. Each bag folds into it's small interior pocket, so you can carry it with you at all times. And best of all, you can be assured that the bag will not break from a heavy grocery load. These are the best reusable shopping bags available.
Sage Diamonds |
Tiny flowers |
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Purple Diamonds |
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Blue Flowers |
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SPECIALS |
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Brown Ripstop |
Teal |
LIMITED EDITION |
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Thoughts about Reusable Shopping Bag
Here are some ideas our founder wants to share with you.
Want to make a transition to Reusable Shopping Bags?It is easy to make the switch, but there are a few strategies to help you make it very natural.
- Carry a reusable shopping bag with you at all times. By always having it on you, it helps to reinforce the habit of using your own bag for shopping. Many purchases are often unplanned, such as a grocery trip after work. By having a reusable bag with you, you are ready with your own bag.
- Put a reusable shopping bag in your purse, laptop bag, or your coat pocket. By keeping it in a place that you remember and use consistently, you always have it on hand. Also, it will reinforce the habit of always using a reusable shopping bag.
- Keep enough reusable shopping bags in your car for those large grocery trips. Our founder, Ania, found that keeping some bags in a glove compartment or the trunk was useful, especially on weekend trips, where you normally would not think of going for a grocery trip.
- Get a reusable shopping bag that you like. This was a big part of why Ania designed My Own Bag. She was not able to find a reusable shopping bag that she liked. Some of her cotton or hemp bags looked very old after just one washing. This was not great, especially when she used it at a shoe boutique or a gift store. Also those bags tended to be heavier and bulkier, making the bags more difficult to carrying every day. A bag that has high quality of good craftsmanship will hold up to frequent use, and look stylish is a good way to go. You'll enjoy using the bag, which again will reinforce you habit of using a reusable shopping bag.
What other uses could there be for reusable shopping bags?
Because of the way we designed them, our bags are versatile. You can use them for more than just grocery shopping. Here is how some of our customers are using our reusable shopping bags:
- Carry papers and books to workshops or classes. Because of the large size and ergonomically designed handles, you can put folders and notepads. With the beautiful fabric, nobody will know that you used the bag for groceries the night before.
- Shopping at department stores and boutiques. The high quality fabric of our reusable shopping bags is chosen so that they are appropriate in any situation.
- Carry on bag while travel or an extra bag when you need it during travel. It's great to have some extra space when you need to put a few things away in bulkhead.
- Running errands is easy. Fill your reusable bag with items for shipping and put the bag away when you are done. Or when you want to run a few errands and need the bag to carry back a few items. In either case you don't have to carry a bulky reusable bag or multiple plastic bags with you. You'll be surprised at the convenience of our reusable shopping bags.
- Grouping baby items. Our reusable shopping bags are so large and sturdy that you can use them for organizing some of your baby items. Anything from the items in the stroller, to toys, and necessities when you are visiting friends and family. They also make great shopping bags when buying formula and little baby jars. These items tend to be heavy when purchased in bulk. Often plastic or paper bags will break. With our reusable bags you can be sure to never loose your groceries.
- Our founder Ania uses the reusable shopping bag as a laptop bag. This is just for a short trip to the local internet cafe. This is not recommended in all situations, since there is no padding, but if you need to carry something heavy, why add extra pounds by carrying it in a heavy bag
Looking for the best reusable shopping bag?
We believe that our shopping bags are the best on the market. There was a lot of research and design effort that went into developing a shape that works for many people. Some of the features we are most proud of are portability, versatility, quality, design for a heavy load, ease of care and capacity. Read more about these features.
What difference can one person really make with reusable shopping bags?
We often ask ourselves this question. Can we really make a difference with this small act of reducing? The answer is absolutely.
I grew up in Eastern Europe, where we always used reusable shopping bags. That was the only option. Moving to a country that gives the bags away seemed like a luxury, until I found myself with hundreds of plastic bags in my house. I even though of getting a shopping bag organizer. I was reluctant to throw away the plastic bags thinking that I would reuse them in some way. These bags could have their uses, but if you live in a place like San Francisco, you really don't need them.
Our garbage in the city is collected in three bins: Recycling, Trash, and Compost. I don't use garbage bags to line any of them. I simply have buckets that I can take to the containers, empty, refill. You get the idea. No need to line the buckets with plastic.
Some people mention that you can use plastic bags for pet litter, but actually, you can use product packaging, such as those from paper towels, tea boxes, bread, etc& Everything is wrapped in plastic. We can't seem to get away from plastic. There is plenty of it to reuse, you don't need the plastic bags.
So I started using reusable shopping bags in the 90's again. It proved to be wonderful. My house is free of plastic and paper shopping bags, I can use these bags also on camping trips, errands, and yes I do carry my laptop in one, but that's only because I have not found a great lightweight laptop bag.
These bags have reduced the trash in my home and best of all, I have become acutely aware of how each purchase and things I use contribute to the pollution. It has made me reduce spending on other things that are rarely used. I make sure that I get a lot of value from the things I do buy. By choosing to use reusable shopping bags I think about the little changes I can make everyday to lead a more sustainable life.
People often strike up a conversation wondering where I got the bags or saying how nice they are. A reusable shopping bag is used more often than many other bags that one owns, so why not make it something that's really special and fun to use. You might as well enjoy your good habits.
So here are some statistics to help you realize at how big of a difference you make when you use your own reusable shopping bag:
- Plastic Bags saved: Over 300
- Paper bags saved: Over 50
- Boutique and Department store bags: Over 12 (and that may be just during the Christmas season)
- Air pollution from manufacturing
- Transportation and fuel costs from delivery to stores
- You'll take comfort in knowing that trees are not being cut down so you can have a shopping bag to take your groceries in. No animal is being killed so that you can use a plastic bag.
You can really make a difference. Not only in your own lifestyle and habits, but you can plant seeds for thought with your family and friends.
How we chose the materials for our reusable shopping bags?
During our research into materials for our reusable shopping bags we took many features into consideration: durability, strength, weight, and ease of care. Here is what we found:
- Hemp was our first consideration. It's a very sustainable alternative and you can compost it instead of throwing it away. The issue we found was that after just one wash the hemp bags and materials looked old and dingy. Many of the stains did not come out. We did not want to be seen with those bags. This made for a very short life span of the product. Considering the energy that goes into growing hemp, processing, and making reusable shopping bags the choice seemed wasteful.
- Cotton can also be composted, providing the thread and other attachments are also made from a compostable fabric. This makes for a sustainable transition of the product, without having long term negative effects. However, we found similar issues with cotton bags and the cotton canvas reusable shopping bags. Many of these bags are distributed for free. Similar to the hemp reusable shopping bags, we found staining and maintaining bag's good appearance was difficult. In addition these canvas bags were bulky and heavy. Making them impractical for carrying everyday. We did not have the bag for that spontaneous grocery purchase at the store on the way from work.
What can we learn from Ireland's shopping bag tax?
When Ireland introduced its bag tax it saved 1 billion plastic bags each year. Just imaging how much can be saved in countries like United States if we had such a tax. It would be even better to reduce the consumption of these bags by choice.
I love it when I use my bag at the checkout. I always get compliments on how beautiful it is and how much it can carry. I can also put it on my shoulder to help carry the large load.
Grocery stores will often give you a $.03 to $.10 credit on your bill for each reusable shopping bag that you use. It's good to talk with cashiers about this issue. They are at the forefront of this and can really make an impact just by being aware and asking the right questions. Such as "Did you bring your own bag today?" instead of the more common "Paper or plastic?". They can also make people more aware of the credits they receive at the store. Most people don't know about them. Even stating that the store supports shoppers who bring their own bags or having discounts on reusable shopping bags makes a difference.
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