Holy CaCO3 Batman!

I recently stumbled upon the coolest eco friendly gift bags at The Container Store. I know what your thinking, recycled paper right? But NO, these bags are made from stone fiber! It's a process using Calcium Carbonate mineral powder, a bit of non-toxic resin and a unique waterless paper making technology. The creation of this "terraskin" involves no chemical bleaching and produces no toxic gas emissions or hazardous waste.

This paper can be used to make gift wrap, to write on, and to make into gift bags. The coolest thing about writing on this treeless paper is the fact that it takes 20-30% less ink than regular paper because it is less porous. The ink doesn't bleed so the images/writing left behind looks crisp and cleaner and the paper is stronger. It doesn't require any additional layers or lamination because it's naturally water and oil resistant! Talk about the ultimate resume paper!

There is less waste and quicker breakdown of this product as well because it is photodegradable. Take this product out back and put into your compost heap or throw it away to let the elements handle because in three to nine months all that will be left of your once structured bag/box/paper will be a pile of mineral powder! How's THAT for Earth friendly?

An average of 4 metric tones of wood chip – or approximately 23 large trees – is utilized to produce a metric ton of traditional wood-pulp paper. Stone paper uses no wood-pulp. As an added bonus you can purchase these babies in all different sizes for less than you can a traditional paper bag. Awesome sauce!

So: No water in creation, only using renewable resources, completely non-toxic, less ink to write and print on, as strong as paper, less waste in the landfill, breaks down in less than nine months, takes no wood at all to make, AND it's cheaper!? No brainer? Yeah, I think so. I'm going to look into this a little further and I'll keep you abreast of the treeless paper and treeless boxes/bags! TTFN!