Designer Uses Plastic Bags as Kites

There’s nothing we love more than a good reuse idea, especially when it’s for a material that is not only abundant, but is also sometimes hard to recycle.

Han Fushan, a 71-year-old retired engineer from Beijing, has been collecting plastic bags for nine years to use as  innovative (not to mention extremely cost-effective) materials for colorful kites. Believed to be invented in China more than 2,000 years ago, kites were traditionally made from rice paper, silk and plant fibers.

But Han says plastic bags are the perfect material for kites, and different types of bags allow for variation of wind strength. The kites take an average of two days to complete and only cost about 15 cents each. According to Reuters, Han’s kites have made him somewhat of a local celebrity as the creations feature wildlife, sports stars and Beijing Opera figures.

While the Chinese government has banned the usage of super-thin plastic bags, state-owned Xinhua news agency reports that China still tosses out 300 tons of plastic bags daily. In the U.S., about 89 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are used each year, and about 12 percent of plastic bags were recycled in 2007, according to the EPA.