Plastic is so over. It’s also largely unnecessary. Even when you travel. And for fervent fashionistas, there’s a bright side to this eco-warrior mode. It’s never been more stylish to be green.
Cold-pressed juices, fair trade coffee, coconut water with a conscience, are now being eclipsed by the latest beverage du jour: water. Sure, it’s calorie-free, gluten-free and sugar-free. But more importantly, it’s free. All you need is your own bottle.
Enter the new age of designer water bottles.
Before you dismiss this as yet another vacuous trend, here are some essential statistics. According to the Plastic Pollution Coalition (a global alliance of individuals, businesses and policy-makers working toward a world free of plastic pollution), Americans alone discard more than 30 million tonnes of plastic a year, out of which only 8% gets recycled. The rest ends up in landfills or becomes ‘litter’.
Single-use plastic is the most problematic. At the rate we are going, PPC reckons there will be more plastic than fish by weight in the oceans by 2050. It contaminates ground water, poisons the food chain and threatens wildlife.
So, think again. Do you really need to buy a bottle of water at the airport, drink one more during the flight and then buy multiple bottles at your destination? Instead, here are some of the world’s most stylish alternatives.
Dopper
The company declares that their goal is not to make a profit, but instead “make a positive impact for a better world”. They emphasise on recycling and recently relaunched their popular Dopper Steel.
Dutch founder Merijn Everaarts was inspired to start the company after seeing a documentary about the huge amount of plastic in our oceans. He says, “I also noticed how many plastic mineral water bottles are thrown away every day, even though in many countries, the best drinking water simply comes from the tap. This certainly made me feel uncomfortable. I just had to do something about it!”
In January 2010, Merijn launched a design competition to find “the perfect reusable bottle for drinking water”. Out of about 100 entries, Delft University of Technology alumnus Rinke van Remortel’s design was chosen. The design enables you to use it as both a bottle and a glass. Colours are fresh and sassy: popsicle red, sunshine yellow and oceanic blue.
Bkr
Miley Cyrus has a red one. There are photos of Charlize Theron flaunting her blue bkr post yoga class. It’s also been spotted in the hands of Reese Witherspoon, Natalie Portman and Gisele Bundchen. So it’s not surprising that this glamorous glass bottle has been marketed as a beauty essential. After all, as their website declares, “Your skin is 90% of your selfie.”
Pronounced ‘beaker’ (in hipster millennial fashion, they’ve dropped half the vowels to create the brand name), it was launched in 2011.
The admittedly bombastic mission statement on their website declares that “bkr has been proving that beauty will change the world, with water bottles so beautiful that drinking from them becomes a joy.” Founded by Tal Winter and Kate Cutler, bkr proclaims it’s the “antidote to cheap, disposable plastic bottles, and the key to skin that glows from the inside”.
The glass bottles have small mouths and bright silicone sleeves inspired by fashion, photography and even contemporary art. With names like Tutu, Lala and Naked, bkr comes in various avatars.
Watch out for the spiked version, reportedly “inspired by a youth spent walking on Melrose Avenue in the 80s, with its blocks of new wave, goth, mod, diehard punk, rockabilly and sleaze — and by rockstar editorials marrying Chanel with spiked latex bodysuits”.
Corkcicle
The brand makes ‘Whiskey Wedge’ glasses that ensure your drinks don’t get watered down, wine chillers and what they call the coolest ‘bottle cap opener ever’. So, not surprisingly, their new Canteen has been a hit.
With triple insulated steel, it promises to keep your drink cool for a whopping 25 hours. Prefer carrying around hot tea? The Corkcicle canteen is designed to keep it warm for up to 12 hours.
Since looks are all-important with these modern handbag accessories, the Canteen comes in a slew of candy bright colours. This includes Hawaiian Blue, Caribbean Green and a mysterious colour called Sea Foam.
There are four sizes, ranging from a teeny 9-ounce version (which is about one glass) to 60 ounces.
An unexpected plus? The 25-ounce is ideal for a bottle of chilled wine. After all, you can’t be expected to live on a diet of water alone. Especially given how tough it is out there on the Instagram battlefield.
The Other Contenders
VitaJuwel ViA Wellness Bottle : Crystal-infused water. Need we say more. The brand even makes stone-sipping practical. Cherry-pick your reason from their menu. There’s Inner Purity, Beauty and Love. As the website says, “All you need is… water. And when you add rose quartz, the quintessential stone of love, anything is possible.” Enough said.
SOL Vitality Fliptop Water Bottle: A pack of three, this brand uses blue glass for colour therapy to enhance the water. The instructions tell you to “Fill your SOL Water bottle and leave it in direct sunlight for 1 to 12 hours to purify your water. Drink, love and enjoy.” They claim it improves emotional health. We like the pretty blue colour.
SKLZ Hydro-Roller: Sometimes, you need to hydrate and work out a cramped muscle at the same time. Hence the SKLZ, which is a water bottle and a foam roller. It ticks all the right boxes of course: stainless steel, BPA-free, and capable of keeping drinks cool for 24 hours. It’s also covered in high-density foam, so you can use it to massage sore muscles between sips.
