Banned by New York, immortalised by Telfar: the iconic "Plastic Bags"

Laura Scholz

20-8-2025

Translation: machine translated

The gag of turning shopping bags, chip bags and bin liners into handbags is apparently not yet over. At least the New York brand Telfar is now going for exactly this punch line.

Before I get to Telfar's «Plastic Bags», which aren't really plastic bags at all, let's take a short, random journey through time.

January 2020: Actor Lars Eidinger launches the «LE 1» on the market together with German label PB 0110. A leather version of the diagonally striped plastic bag from grocery discounter Aldi. Cost point: 550 euros.

June 2022: Balenciaga Creative Director Demna Gvasalia is photographed for a whole day with a Lays chip bag under his arm. Turns out: it's all promo. For a leather chip bag, for 1800 US dollars. You can currently buy a new design, the Spicy Chilli «Chips Bag in red», for 1650 francs in the brand's own online shop.

Also summer 2022: After the Lays campaign, Gvasalia sends models down the catwalk with black bin bags. Of course, these are also made of leather and cost 1790 US dollars.

Back in the now. One more to go. And that's at Telfar, the unisex brand founded in New York City in 2005, which is best known for its minimalist faux leather shoppers. The latest bag collection was launched this week without the significant T logo. «It's called Plastic Bag» - inspired by the colourfully printed plastic bags from New York's iconic bodegas, the mini-markets that are open around the clock.

The original Bodega bags were officially banned in New York in 2020 for sustainability reasons. And of course, the eleven Telfar models are not actually made from plastic, but from nylon. You can choose between two sizes and prices: The smaller «Regular» measures 28 × 28 cm and costs 148 US dollars. The larger «Jumbo» measures 43 × 43 cm and costs 195 US dollars. Compared to PB 0110 and Balenciaga, it's practically a gift. And still a heartfelt homage to New York culture.

Would you buy a «Plastic Bag»?

Laura Scholz

Senior Editor

Laura.Scholz@digitecgalaxus.ch

Always in the mood for good hits, great trips and clinking drinks.

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