Never again be caught without your bag at the checkout (Envirosax)

Member Name: SusanLesley

Product:	Envirosax
Date:	12/05/09 (151 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Looks good, strong

Disadvantages: A bit expensive I suppose

After reading the saving squirrel blog (I will be doing a review as soon as Dooyoo have set up the category) I discovered Envirosax.

What on earth is Envirosax I hear you ask? You did ask didn't you?

Well this is one of those inventions that will make you think - what a simple idea, why didn't I think of that?

The basic principle of Envirosax is to provide an eco friendly carrier bag which, when empty, is so small it will fit in the bottom of your handbag. This means that you will never again stand at the supermarket checkout thinking - blast, the carrier bags are still in the back of the car, or worse, still on the kitchen table! We have all done it haven't we?

Now I know that plastic carriers are still available and that some people will just carry on using them and throwing them away. The few that I do receive get recycled at home as rubbish bags but the fact remains that I just do not want to keep having plastic bags. I actually want to help the environment as much as I possibly can.

So let's investigate the Envirosax.

The website to use to look at the details of the bags is http://www.envirosax.com.au/ ; the blog does actually direct you to the American site but they don't deliver to the UK from the US site so you have to use the Australian site, although hopefully as their popularity grows in the UK they will start selling directly in this country.

When you take a look at the site you will find that these pretty bags come in a wide variety of colours and designs to suit all tastes. There are floral designs, geometric designs, organic designs and more. If you are in America and can order from the American site there are also animal designs. I really wanted the design with the cat on it but, sadly they don't do that one for the UK market!

There are five individual designs in each range and they can be purchased individually or as the full set of 5 contained in a little pouch.

When rolled up the bag measures just 10cms by 4.5cms diameter and a pouch containing 5 rolled up bags measures 23cms by 15cms. The bag itself when opened out measures 50cms by 42cms or for those of us who still think in feet and inches it's 9.5 inches by 6.5 inches, so that's a decent size for your shopping.

The bags are made from durable, waterproof, lightweight polyester which is both tough and strong. You can carry your bag in your hand in the conventional way but you can also put it over your shoulder if that is easier for you as the holes in the handles are large enough to get an arm through.

You can carry heavy fruit and vegetables in the bag with no problem whatsoever and of course any marks or dirt that you get on it will just wipe off or the bag can be hand washed, but please don't try ironing it.

My bag even came with a little diagram to show me how to fold and roll it back up when I have finished using it so that it only takes up a tiny bit of space in my handbag.

If you decide to order from the website one bag plus postage currently costs about £12.50 including postage and a pouch of five would cost about £21.50. I use the word 'about' as I have converted the price in Australian Dollars to the price in British Pounds using a currency conversion site.

I appreciate that this does make the bags quite expensive, but if they do begin to market them over here the price should be more competitive as the postage costs would be substantially reduced.

Having said all this the bags are also available directly from UK suppliers for around £6 each - just Goggle Envirosax for details of stockists. My idea is that you use the Envirosax website to find out all about these lovely bags and then buy them from a UK stockist to get the best price.

I have now been informed that they are sold for as little as £4.99 in John Lewis and Fenwicks.

Of course, if shops do begin to charge us for having plastic carrier bags then the cost of any shopping bags we purchase will soon be recouped in savings made by not having to buy the bags in the shop.

In conclusion I am really pleased with my pretty green shopping bag, I chose the Flora 5 design, which is the one shown at the top of this review if you are remotely interested, and it is great to know that it is always there in the bottom of my handbag just waiting to be filled with my shopping.

Summary: A great way to carry your shopping!