Developed as part of a graduate thesis by a Chilean based designer the Geurrero Mantis project uses dyed cigarette butts picked from bars, streets, and restaurants.
Cigarette butts present a threat to wildlife. Cigarette filters have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine creatures who mistake them for food ... Composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic, cigarette butts can persist in the environment as long as other forms of plastic.
Not only do these cigarette butts invade nearly every public space imaginable but inevitably they are washed away to local water sources where they leach toxic chemicals from the act of smoking into the waterways. Mantis project gleans some of this waste, cleans the filters, and combined with wool to be spun into articles of clothing from hats, gloves, and jackets.
Roughly 10% of the mass of the clothing is made from recycled cigarette filters with the remaining 90% incorporating natural fibers.
Cigarette filters are claimed to be the most litter object world wide with up to 1 trillion disposed of worldwide every year. To learn more about this check out CigaretteLitter.org and to check out the Mantis Project check out VeoVerde.
