The initial months of the lockdown period were stifling, Regina le Roux needed a walk to get some fresh air and to get out of the house. It was on this walk; an idea was born.
“On my walk,” Le Roux shares with me over the phone, “I saw a plastic bag stuck amongst some branches of a tree, flapping about in the wind. Then, after seeing the same bag the next day, I grabbed at it in frustration.”
This was the catalyst moment, Le Roux needed to do something about the hundreds of plastic bags blowing about the city and filling up landfill sites.
“Somewhere in the back of my mind, I remembered seeing housekeepers many years ago sitting in the townships crocheting with Checkers bags. So, something told me you know what, just why not go back to that long-standing tradition of crocheting with plastic bags, there must be a way of doing it,” she said.
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The proceeding weeks saw Le Roux scavenging through Hout Bay in search of discarded plastic bags with assorted colours and textures to weave them into attractive reusable carry bags.
With the importance of environmental sustainability being front and centre over the last few years, turning trash into treasure is a growing business around the globe.
Shortly after, Le Roux established ReBag.ReUse, a company that turns plastic bags and packaging into carry bags.
“Lockdown forced many of us to haul out and dust off our hobbies, mine was my crochet pen. I realised just how much plastic was being generated and thrown away every day, so I decided to find a way to repurpose it.
“That first plastic bag was a six-pack beer wrapper, I really battled to cut that thing but, crocheting with plastic worked,” said Le Roux.
After months of experimenting and selling woven bags at markets, Le Roux chanced upon Maureen Plaatjies who changed the way the business gathered its materials.
Not only did Plaatjies want to learn how to crochet, but also, introduced herself to others in Hout Bay that wanted to make the bags.
The idea proved to be quite popular. Sales brought insufficient income to pay the weavers and collectors who hailed from the Harbour and ImizamoYetho, a local township. Every bag sold meant ten or more pieces of plastic were removed from city green spaces, waterways, protected areas and landfill sites.
Le Roux and her band of wonderful weaving women have earned the endearing nickname of ‘the plastic ladies,’ following countless plastic runs in and around their local communities.
“It has started to discipline a lot of people with you asking them to keep the bags for you. It does not go in the bin, and it does not just get thrown outside. We’re asking our community to put it aside because now they know it’s for a purpose,” said Setta Adams, former florist turned plastic weaver.
“I normally show them a pic with the lady standing with their bags and I’ll show them this is the outcome of your thread, your parade packet or whatever plastic you will just throw in the pan so yeah through this project a lot of people are changing their mindsets on what they do with the plastic.”
There are currently eleven ladies on the team; eight crocheters and three ladies who cut the plastic.
Crocheter, Jane Hoffman, is raising her grandchildren and is incredibly proud of her granddaughter who has just passed matric.
“The extra money that I make from ReBag.ReUse is really a blessing since I can buy bread, milk and even electricity. I have also been able to buy data for my granddaughter so that she is now able to apply to nursing colleges so that she can further her education. Furthering her education and becoming independent is especially important,” adds Jane.
Rookshana Davids, Jane’s granddaughter, says, “I am incredibly grateful for my grandmother’s support and all of her sacrifices she has made to get me through matric.
“My grandmother is always going the extra mile for me, for which I am very thankful. She has been able to make ends meet with the money that she makes from crocheting and her pension,” shares Rookshana proudly.
“Your empty bread bag might just be able to put bread on the table for someone,” said Le Roux. For every ReBag.ReUse product that is sold, a portion of the sale goes to the ladies that cut the plastic, the crocheter as well as a local charity.
Le Roux wants to one day see the concept being done in Johannesburg and eventually across South Africa. “Crocheting is a skill that people do when you’re younger and then you kind of forget about it.
What I love about it is you do not need electricity for it. So, during lockdown, or when you are experiencing load shedding, all you need is a bit of natural light, and you can keep creating.”