How they work: The maker says Big Joey can hold four shoe boxes and Regular Joey can hold two. That sounds right. The company also says Big Joey can hold 40 pounds. That is conservative because as part of my test, I put three bowling balls in the large bag. Total weight: 46 pounds.

The good: Frankly, I never envisioned writing about these. But they are so strong and so versatile, I was sold the first time I tried one. They are a great travel tool whether on a trip or commuting back and forth to work. Keep one in your briefcase for days when you have extra stuff to carry or need to shop on the way home.

The bad: I’d complain about price, but they really are rather reasonable.

Cost: A set of one large and two regulars is $20, or individually $7 and $5, plus shipping. Some proceeds go to SOS Children’s Villages for orphaned and abandoned children.

Available from: joeytotes.com

–Ross Werland
September 12, 2009

If you’ve ever felt strange taking you Whole Foods reusable shopping bag into Trader Joe’s or found your self not even thinking about taking a reusable grocery bag with you while shopping at West Marine, two Annapolis sailors have come up with a solution for you.
Kate and Chris Charbonneau recommend easily stowable Joey Totes. Working much like windbreakers that are stowable in their own pockets, the lightweight bags come in two sizes (a large can fit four shoeboxes in it; a small, two shoeboxes). Both sizes can hold a couple of totes so that lugginf three reusable bags around only requires one scrunch-able pouch about as long as a dollar bill. With the annoyance of “loud’ logos on grocery bags in mind, the Charbonneaus designed the bags in a quiet slate gray with a small logo.
“Our message is less about convincing people to use reusbale bags and more about getting people who already use them to quit forgetting them,” says Chris, who admits the idea was spawned by the couple going to the grocery store and often leaving their trove of reusabale bags at home. The neutral color and logo should make the bags easier to take in to a clothing or marine store to further cut down plastic bag use.
Joey Totes are made of rip-stop nylon, common in outdoor apparel, durable enough to carry more than 35 pounds each. The rugged material will last for years, ensuring the replacement of thousands of plastic bags in each bag’s lifetime.

Joey Totes come in two sizes. The large bag is spacious enough for several pairs of shoes, or a weeks collection of dirty laundry. The small bag is the perfect size for the kind of stuff you’d carry on a day trip or if you want to carry a spare pair of shoes on an excursion.

As I mentioned in the intro, the bags fold up neatly into themselves, and once folded up, you can actually store two bags inside the pouch of the large bag. When folded up, they can easily fit inside a purse, or even your jacket pocket.

When I took the bags for a spin on a trip this past weekend, I was quite impressed with them. The large bag was roomy enough for several towels and other pool items, and the small bag held dirty laundry for the return trip. The straps on the large bag are long enough to use the bag on your shoulder, and they actually look pretty cool.

Like many green travel products, being environmentally friendly does come at a price – the combination of the large bag with two small bags costs $20 (if you only need one Joey Tote, you can order the large for $8.50 or the small for $7.00).That said – I think it is fairly easy to make a case for the convenience of being able to carry not one, but three handy bags in your luggage, without having to resort to plastic bags or disposable canvas bags.

The Joey Totes are extremely compact when folded up, and they weigh next to nothing. Virtually no bag on the market can replicate this (with the possible exception of plastic grocery bags). The bags can be machine or hand washed, and the double reinforced handles can carry up to 40lbs – perfect if you went a little berserk in the tax free shop.

You’ll find the Joey Totes on the web site of the designer, where you’ll also learn a little bit about the story behind the bags, and how they came up with the cool name. -Scott Carmichael

I will admit, I have numerous bags but forget to use them about 50% of the time. I have bags from all types of stores, companies, colors, etc. I usually realize I left them in the car or at home when I’m checking out. When I do remember, the bulky bags take up a significant part of my prime grocery cart property. How about mall shopping? No way would I want to carry around a bulky tote in case I purchased something while mall shopping.

The inventors of Joey Totes had the same frustrations. So they set about to create a product, which was strong enough to carry what people wanted, washable, built to last, and most importantly (to me!) creating a bag that can collapse into a single management size.

* Each pouch is able to carry more than one bag so you can create your set and store them in a handy place like your handbag or diaper bag.
* High Quality bags which can save thousands of disposable bags over a liftime. Plus, when you are done with your bag, Joey Totes will kindly recycle your old bag.
* Joey Totes are double reinforced and made with a ripstop nylon, a common material used in outdoor apparel and can withstand up to 40 lbs of weight.
* You can hand wash or line dry.
* Feel comfortable using at the grocery store or a high end mall due to their simple yet sleek design.

I thought I would have problems folding these totes back into their pouch. It is quite simple and I don’t think you can mess it up. My favorite part about these totes are they are so compact but yet so expandable. I’m going to keep a set of three in my purse so I have NO excuses not to whip out my reusable bag for even the quickest shopping trip! -Briana

“I want to first thank you for your expedient shipment of my Joey’s for a trip to China.  I threw them into my carry-on bag and used them every day of my trip.  I did not bring a briefcase – had my lapotop in a sleeve in my carry-on, so each day I went from the hotel to the office with one of my smaller Joeys, filled with my laptop, electronics, cords, and notebook. On my shopping day I want to a shopping area in Shanghai armed with my largest Joey.  I filled it with 6 shawls, 3 scarves, Jewelery, a handbag, and there was still plenty of space for other items.   I amazed one of the merchants by taking out the joeytotes and undoing the largest and turning it into a tote.

“Me and my totes are leaving for Italy on Friday…Couldn’t believe when they arrived in just two biz days!! So, I will be using them soon and will post comments accordingly but I am soooo impressed…Big kuddos for customer service Joey Totes!!” -Kathy A.

“I read the article in the Trib (I live in the Chicago area) and bought the 3-pack Joey Totes for an upcoming trip to Spain.  They are great.  We used all 3.  We bought a few heavy things and didn’t want to ship them.  We discarded the plastic bags we were given at the shops as they tore almost immediately and carried a heavy platter and several bulky things in the bags throughout Spain and on three planes for the return trip with no problems whatsoever.  I also kept one in my purse as we toured and it took up no space and was very easy to repack. Thanks.  I will definitely recommend them to my friends.” -Lillian W.

“I love the Joey Totes – just put my kids lunch in one this morning.” – Stephanie E.

“… I did order the three Joey Totes and they have recently been to London and Paris. One of the smaller ones worked very well to hold our mini computer – easy to put out for airport security…also worked perfectly whe…n we bought a few souvenirs…easy to carry in a backpack or purse and open up when needed. Now we have “well traveled” joey totes.”- Marlene S.

“We bought them for carrying groceries but we now use them for everything. Very compact, lightweight and easily washable!” – Laurie S.

“I LOVE my Joey Totes- the best reusable bag I have ever used!” – Jessica P.

” I am loving my Joey Totes! Thanks for such a nice bag!” – Jody H.