Reusable Bags are All the Rage

I recently made a personal commitment to myself, my children, and my environment to forgo the plastic bags and start toting my reusable shopping bags at Ralphs, Riteaid, etc. No more trips to Ralphs taking home 16 plastic bags with only 3 contents of groceries per bag (God forbid if they should fill them up!) And no more trips to Riteaid for one tube of toothpaste in a plastic bag that will end up in either the ocean or a landfill for the next 25 years. I'm jumping on the reusable shopping bag bandwagon and going full force to do so in style. I just came across the most stylish reusable bags that even my husband might be seen toting - it's the Envirosax bags which come in an assorted set of 5 retro prints; easy to roll up and keep in the car for those spontaneous trips to CVS. Another fave and classic is the mesh shopper that you can just throw in your everyday bag and always have on hand. They're a staple for a true organic farmer's market kind of gal, but I remember my Mom using these back in the 70's so they're a classic. Unless you've been under a rock the last few months, we've all heard of the Anya Hindmarch "This is Not a Plastic Bag" bag phenomenon - sold out in seconds at Whole Foods in NYC for $15 and future promotions in Asia canceled for fear of trampling. Crazy! My model even bought one on Ebay recently where they're fetching for up to $300 (nice markup!) I actually just snagged one myself on Ebay for 50 bucks (my first time bidding on Ebay- yippee!) I think the hype is less about helping the environment and more about snagging a designer bag for under $500. I know that's why I bought it. I have no intentions of ruining my new designer tote bag by putting raw food in it! I'd much rather tote it on my next beach excursion or trip to yoga. I'll save the grocery hauling for my $1.99 reusable Green Whole Foods bags - just bought 6 for my next trip to Ralphs!