The downstream consequences of new laws can be difficult to predict. Legislation around the world to limit plastic shopping bag use has been triumphant in its stated aim. In Britain, which introduced a charge on plastic bags in 2015, there has been a 97% reduction in their use. But there has been another, less predictable consequence of these new laws: the Great Tote Bag Explosion. These are canvas or cotton bags, stronger than plastic and ripe for re-use. The history is somewhat murky. While bags made from natural fibers have been in use since medieval times, the tote got its name in the US in the 1940s, after L.L. Bean released a range of “Boat” and “Tote” bags, with the latter in the now-familiar boxy shape. This story is from Kinfolk Issue Forty-Eight Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 49 Object Matters A spotlight on commonplace books. Arts & Culture Issue 46 Object Matters An unperfumed history of the scented candle. Arts & Culture Issue 45 Object Matters A curious history of novelty objects. Arts & Culture Issue 43 Object Matters A fuzzy history of the carpet. Arts & Culture Issue 42 Object Matters A modest history of the codpiece. Arts & Culture Issue 41 Object Matters The strange, hermitic history of the garden gnome.
