Virgin Atlantic turns old seats into handbags

Is airline fabric the next denim? Well, jet-setter, you decide. In one of the oddest recycling gestures in recent memory, Virgin Atlantic Airways is converting old seats into handbags. That’s right, you could carry about 14E forever.

The airline is teaming up with Worn Again, a British design company that specializes in recycled materials. It all plays into the airline’s goal of becoming “the world’s most sustainable airline,” including plans to reduce materials sent to landfills by 50% by the year 2012.

“By rescuing these onboard products and reusing them for other purposes, we’re aligning ourselves with ideals that are synonymous with the Virgin brand,” the airline’s promotional material says.

Wonder what they do with all that nice Sprite-stained carpet. Oh, well, if this sort of memorabilia appeals to you, move fast. Worn Again will produce 2,000 limited-edition pieces made from about 1,000 seats.

Cost: Toiletry bags sell for $40. Handbags for around $100.

For info: Worn Again

– Chris Erskine, deputy Travel editor

[Photo: Worn Again bags, made from recycled seats by Virgin Atlantic; wornagain.co.uk]

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This entry was posted on Friday, October 24, 2008 at 3:50 pm by Chris Erskine and is filed under Airline travel, News, Tips & Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.