Cannes red carpet gets second life as handbags

After being walked for two weeks by stars from Tom Cruise to Rihanna, the legendary red carpets of the Cannes film festival are set for a second life thanks to an upcycling charity and some environmentally conscious designers.

- BOUCHRA BERKANE

The red carpets were replaced daily at the festival, which ended on May 24, with organisers handing over 1.5 tonnes of fine red material to a non-profit organisation in Marseille.

The carpets now sit on pallets or in black waste bags in a warehouse used by the La Reserve des Arts in the deprived northern suburbs of Marseille where they are being sorted, cleaned and prepared for re-use.

Some of them have small holes — possibly a result of hosting all those towering stilettoes — while others have been marked by footsteps or scuffs.

"By reconditioning them, we're helping to reduce the environmental impact of the event — something the festival is aware of," Jeanne Re, coordinator at La Reserve des Arts, told during a visit on Wednesday.