LUCIELA TASCHEN: This Czech brand makes handbags out of pineapple leaves!
The secret of success is in waste
The fashion and ecological secret of the collection of LT vegan pineapple handbags is in an innovative material made from the fibres of the lower leaves of the pineapple plant – in Piñatex. After the fruit is harvested the lower leaves of the pineapple plant, which are basically waste, undergo the so-called process of decortification during which the individual fibres are separated and processed further. This unusual material means that the deluxe LT vegan collection of handbags is sustainable, natural, hardwearing, light, flexible, water resistant, zero waste and also stylish.
Luciela Taschen offers deluxe vegan handbags in five colours – black, gold, red, cream and chocolate brown. What did the designer herself have to say about her deluxe collection?
How did you go from classic products made from leather to the innovative Piňatex material?
I originally made my products from leather, then I tried cork, which was a product somewhere between classic and ecological production, and then I encountered Piňatex about a year and a half ago. I think that I was the first Czech to order Piňatex in greater volumes. The best thing is that it is made from waste and no other resources such as water, soil, fertilisers or pesticides, are needed to make it.
What led you to create an unusual collection from a material made from pineapple leaves?
I am interested in new materials and people’s ecological footprints. I began with cork and then I encountered Piňatex by chance. I asked for a sample and I liked it. However, this doesn’t mean that I have stopped making products from leather.
Will we be able to see another Piňatex collection? Are you planning on working with other new ecological materials?
Probably not a new collection, but I will be adding new designs to the existing one. I also plan on making a bomber jacket out of Piňatex. With regard to new materials, there are various alternatives, such as coconut leather or leather made from mushrooms, but these have not undergone long-term testing yet. I want something that has been tried and tested and that I know will work.
Are Czech or foreign clients more interested in Piňatex handbags?
I would say that it is half and half. Piňatex has become better known over the last two years, but a lot of people are still not familiar with it physically. German and French people frequently stop and say “Áááá Piňatex, let me see, I haven’t seen it yet.”
How much more complicated is working with Piňatex than with cow leather?
You need to use different methods to work with Piňatex, but it has a lot of the properties of leather. Piňatex ages and also acquires “wrinkles”. So it is a good idea to apply beeswax to cream handbags and provide the appropriate maintenance.
Do you have a favourite handbag? Can you reveal which one?
My favourite is the gold shopper and the small red handbag with the chain.
Piňatex: 21st century material?
The original raw material for vegan Piňatex comes from the Philippines and the surface treatment is applied in Spain. Piňatex may be a specific alternative to deluxe cow leather as it is made from the waste lower leaves of the pineapple plant. Ecological procedures are used to make 1 m2 of this innovative material from 16 plants.
You can use Piňatex to make fashionable items and stylish furniture
Carmen Hijosa is the author of this material and has devoted seven years to development of Piňatex. Even though she worked in the leather industry originally, she subsequently started to consider potential alternatives. She submersed herself fully into development of such a material during her doctoral studies at the Royal College of Art in London. Piňatex is currently used not only to make deluxe ecological fashion items, but also to upholster furniture.
