Many of us love a beach walk - stomping across the sand, breathing in the fresh air, listening to the sound of the waves - it's rejuvenating and invigorating, whatever the weather.
This simple pleasure has been blighted in recent years by the huge amount of rubbish washed up on our shores. Rubbish that has been discarded in the sea, which can break into smaller pieces but never fully decomposes. In a landfill environment it is estimated to take approximately 500 years for plastics to break down, unfortunately wild sea plastic breaks down within years as the natural sea forces rapidly break them down into smaller and smaller pieces.
Micro plastics - smaller than your fingertip - are eaten by fish, sea creatures and birds. Once inside the fish, the plastic breaks down into even smaller 'nano plastics' - some of which can't even be seen. When we eat the fish, the nano plastics enter our bodies and scientists are still researching what affects this will have on our long term health.
Over the last few years, we have been funding many beach cleans and much marine research through giving to Sea-Changers to better understand and come up with solutions.
Through these connections and working with scientists and volunteers we have found a way to collect tonnes and tonnes of waste plastic from our sea and from the beaches and turn them into coasters.
This project will ensure hundreds of tonnes of plastic are taken out of harms way and will create coasters that are practical, raise awareness and offer a solution. Our Ocean Plastic coasters are from 100% reclaimed ocean waste and sea salt. The salt actually helps the plastic blend in the way that it does, giving it a unique look that virgin plastic cannot replicate.
We have launched this collection with our sea blue colour which is made from discarded fishing crates, nets, water bottle tops, buckets and spades - with a pinch of sea salt.
