My name is Cara Taylor and I have been designing and crocheting handbags for several years now. All bags are one of a kind and made from recycled plastic shopping bags. A material that is environmentally hazardous gets transformed into a handbag that is durable, functional, and fashionable.  The shopping bags that I use come from recyclers all over the United States. My friends and family have collection boxes at their places of employment or in their neighborhoods and when they get full I get a package in the mail. It seems like even the people who try to reuse their bags often forget and still end up with a kitchen cabinet that is full of bunched up bags. I love receiving an envelope full of bags from people I don't even know who just want to contribute to something positive and constructive rather than contribute to the landfills. My target audience are people who want to carry a bag that is eco-friendly and stylish at the same time.

Crocheting with plastic began for me when I was a sculpture student in college - I was looking to experiment with material and process. I wanted to use things that were easily accessible and ordinary. I loved the idea of transforming something that was environmentally dangerous into something that had value. My abstract sculptures slowly transformed into functional handbags.  It takes any number between 50 - 75 grocery bags for me to make one of my handbags. The bags have to be cut up and made into balls of yarn before I can even begin. My process is really quite extensive.

While I have become fairly good as guessing what I can get out of a certain size ball of yarn, my biggest nightmare is when I underestimate and run out of a color before I finish a bag. I absolutely cannot get any more of it so I have to really problem solve and be open to new designs.  However, when I think about all of the handbags that I have made and how many shopping bags I have saved from floating down a river or getting caught in a tree, I feel pretty good, like I am doing my small part in making the world a better place.