Look under there. Under where?

Ha-ha, made you say underwear! But can I make you say “underwear in bio-based, wash-away packaging”? We’ll see.

While most men are conditioned to rip open and toss aside the poly bag our new skivvies come in, micro-retailer Devo Underwear thought a more environmentally sensitive approach was necessary. Devo engaged San Francisco-based industrial design and brand strategist Fuseproject to develop a bio-based underwear packaging material that disintegrates in the washing machine.

Devo’s theory, says Fuseproject’s Catherine O’Connor, was: Rather than introduce more packaging into the waste stream, why not wash away the evidence? The solution was a 3-mil, corn-starch-based, semi-rigid plastic foam-like packaging material. The bio wrap is also impregnated with trace amounts of laundry detergent.

The impetus of the project was that sensitive men would buy the underwear and toss the entire package into the washer. Water would dissolve the package.

O’Connor says Devo’s intention was twofold. First, the wrap would simply melt away, eliminating the need to landfill or recycle the packaging. Second, the detergent would soften the cotton undergarment.

Though conceptually a great idea, the “wedgie” in the entire equation is this: The notion of men washing underwear before they wear it is silly.

Perhaps the only saving grace of the endeavor was the package design genius demonstrated by Fuseproject, which created two distinct designs. One is shaped like boxers and the other resembles “tightie-whities.”

By David Luttenberger
From Package Design magazine