A NEW PURPOSE FOR OLD INNER TUBES!

The prototype for the inner-tube bag in blue – Singha San painstakingly creates the seams with royal blue piping. It's no easy work, as the inner tubes of tyres aren't soft and supple! But that's exactly the reason why bags sewn from them are so durable – and are especially attractive thanks to the decorations with traditional handicrafts.
Singha San is the specialist for decorating leather, and most recently with old lorry tyre inner tubes!
His hands may be marked from leprosy, but he can use them tirelessly to create wonderful sewing – even the complicated piping to decorate these bags made of tyre inner tubes.
The tubes can be brushed and washed on the roof of the doghouse.
Afterwards, Singha San simply lays them over a fence to dry.

LONG-LASTING AND DURABLE:
OLD TYRE INNER TUBES

Old inner tubes from tyres, preferably from lorries, can be obtained cheaply in Nepal for € 2.50 each. They are ideal for new, trendy re-purposed products. Bags, for example, that must be durable and long-lasting.

Singha San, one of the original Shanti residents, likes these kind of pioneer projects. First, he thoroughly washes them and simply hangs them over the garden fence, which separates the doghouse from the Shanti station courtyard.

Then, the sections for the bags are cut and stitched together. So that it looks nice, Singha San clads the anthracite grey at the seams with colourful piping, and an old embroidery pattern gives colourful decoration to the front side.

He lines the bag with a floss fabric to match the piping colour and adds various, practical compartments.

Marianne Großpietsch is always the first to test whether such ideas work in reality. The test run with the new bag was a complete success – several people commented on her new bag, and they could hardly believe that these were made from old tyre inner tubes. The worry that the bags would smell like rubber turned out not to be the case.

In the meantime, Singha San has already created several artistic pieces, which are practically ripped from Marianne's hands in Germany.

In fact, she's already come up with new ideas for him to re-purpose the old inner tubes into something useful. Singha San cuts the cleaned inner tubes into thin strips, which are then woven into square pillows for stools. They are heat and moisture resistant and don't wear so quickly.

They have also drafted new models for pencil cases, photo albums and tool bags that roll up. These old inner tubes are also good candidates for plant liners.

There are surely many more good ideas to come!