Sometimes simple things turn into art, and the spontaneous idea becomes a new fashion brand. This is what happened when “Abyshchitsa” was born. Two girls, Irina and Marisha, began to sew eco-friendly bags, which featured the works of young Ukrainian start-up artists

The young brand is called “Abyshchytsia”. This is an old Ukrainian word, which is now almost not used, and it means “trifle, fool”. Girls started three years ago when they were on Maidan. Impressions transformed into sewing eco-labyrinths, on which a print with a pavement was made. Irina then worked in the cafe, where they started selling them.
In fact, everything went by the principle: “And let’s sew the bags!”. That is, everything happened very spontaneously. But the idea of girls is deep enough: they are fans of environmental friendliness. They sort garbage and do not use polyethylene bags. Actually, one more factor that prompted them to embark on sewing is that they themselves always wore such bags and considered it super-comfortable. The only problem was: Second-hand bags bought in the second hand usually belonged to a certain brand or shop popular in Europe. And they wanted something like their own: their print, their idea, their message.
Something like that when you walk down the street, everyone will notice you and your bag. So there were comfortable wallets with fun drawings, made of natural fabrics, similar to flax – natural bivalve. Earlier such boxes were extremely profitable and cost only 49 UAH. Now the price has increased – 199 UAH. One can understand: the work, materials and percentage that must be paid to the artist. Of course, you can use the works of Van Gogh, especially since there is nobody to raise copyright issues right now. But even in an infinite space, the internet photo also belongs to someone. Several years ago, at the graphite festival, which organized “TBDSh”, they met many talented artists. Some girls still work together. Note that cute dolls with prints from Gapchinska are definitely not their topic. Among the co-authors of the household must have – Zhytomyr artists Ira Lysenko, Masha Koko, Natalia Lapchik, Rivne artist Akei.
Some may also be interested in the production process. Initially, the pictures were applied with usual acrylic paints, but this baby-start period was quickly gone, and the girls switched to applying the prints using thermal transfer paper. A dream for the future – the development of silk-stencil, when the paint saturate the fabric, penetrates into the middle of the fiber. According to the girls themselves, such bags are simply “eternal”. But progress does not slow down, and you can always find something more interesting. For example, use of linseed. At the master class conducted by Dima Krasnyi, you could not only learn how to print, but also get the artistic material for the future: Dima’s paintings will also look good on the wallets.
A simple thing like a sack may also be part of a collection that varies by subject. There is a collection of sacks with photos of the forest, there is a series of book covers – Bukowski, Vonnegut, Salinger, Kafka, and there is a collection of bags with photos from Hubla. Is not it interesting?
Where to look for “Abyshchytsia”? On the social network page, in the online shops of Handmade, Chest, Wardrobe. You can also go to Zhytomyr on the first floor of TsUM, find a shop “Kotylasa kotyka”, where to buy a wonderful and convenient ecotour. There is a lot of interesting things in general, not a store, but a kind of “Narnia”. Recently, girls have received a proposal: to sell their product in Denmark, in Copenhagen, in one of the souvenir shops. Moreover, on the approach, the new collection is just black sacks. And the focus on functionality: the latest sacks are already made with a carabiner and a pocket inside.
Agree: if you wear a lightweight little lightweight bag, wear it with you, you can “take it” for a long time and realize a conscious environmental stance.
And so everyone has the right to “Abyshchytsia”!
Translated by Aliona Matushevich