My goal is to support your unique sustainable journey by carrying joyful products that are well made and fun to use. An earth friendly journey, no matter how passionately begun, can’t be sustainable if it becomes too difficult to maintain. And that’s where my passion lies: I want to make it more than easy to for you to follow your own personal path towards a more eco friendly lifestyle-
I want to make it FUN!
Who Is Polly Danger?
Polly Danger is me, Ixchel Paloma Lechuga. I’m a pretty good example of the phrase “ni de aquí ni de allá”- Neither from here nor from there. My parents were hippy Xicanx activists and they named their daughters after Mayan and Aztec goddesses- I’m fucking proud of that. My cousins could’t say Ixchel (E-Shell) when they were little, so they called me a short version of my middle name. And so I became Polly. I go by Polly and Ixchel, and sometimes Paloma. I speak messy Spanish but I’ll never give up perfecting my accent and I’m very proud of my culture and my people.
Growing up I wasn’t as confident about stradling two cultures as I am now. I always felt like I was on the wrong side of two cultures, and as I’ve gotten older I have come to see that I’m actually on exactly the right side of two cultures. I am totally comfortable being both a crunchy hippy who composts rabbit poop and also a punk rock Xicana feminista who loves eating Hot Cheetos while watching a juicy Telenovela.
About Polly Danger Products
A short while into my sustainable journey I started to notice a frustrating pattern. I wanted to buy eco friendly products that reflect my love of cheer and color, but I could only find products that came in neutral tones or were obviously mass produced using the very practices that I’m trying to counteract with my sustainable lifestyle. I wanted to use things that were both truly eco friendly and beautiful.
And so I started making my own products. My very first eco friendly make was a crocheted sponge in pink and white yarn. It was ADORABLE! And do you know what? I still have that sponge, ten years later. I made more sponges in happy colors and then moved on to making napkins, un-paper towels , reusable grocery and produce bags from upcycled fabrics that would otherwise end up in a landfill.
When I first started this journey I was an accessories designer and maker. And over time I realized that it only made sense to make room in my design world for the things I had been making for myself and my family. As soon as I started selling my products I realized how hungry people really are for things that are bright and happy and also eco friendly. I realized that people want to feel a part of a movement and not judged for what things they aren’t doing. And that’s how the latest iteration of Polly Danger came about.
What’s next?
Now that our world has once again been turned upside down by Covid 19 it’s time for me to double down on my efforts to give something good and useful and beautiful to the world. In addition to sharing colorful reusable bags and happy cotton sponges, I want to share my DIY knowledge with the world. We now know that we may not always be able to rely on things we once took for granted: window shopping that turns into a mini shopping spree, stopping at the grocery store to pick up dinner a few times a week and not bothering to keep track of food waste. I want to share the things that I know that will make this weird new life a little bit easier while still supporting you on your eco friendly journey.
Want to see more of what I’m doing RIGHT THIS VERY MOMENT?
Follow me on the Instagrams @shop.polly.danger and if you really want to be my friend you can follow my personal account @polly_lechuga
