Bagket lets you wear your shopping home

Canny Scottish shoppers have found a way round the 5p carrier bag charge that was introduced earlier this month - a vest with 22 pockets that can carry up to 7kg in weight.

The Bagket converts from a shoulder bag to a multi-pocketed vest. It was originally designed to allow passengers to travel light on aircraft, allowing them to keep their valuables safe and avoid baggage charges and long waits at the conveyor belt.

In Scotland, though, it's catching on as a way of getting shopping home without having to pay for carrier bags. Glaswegian shopper John Paul Breslin tells the Daily Mail he's been able to cram milk, orange juice and a bottle of bleach into the garment, along with six apples, a loaf of bread and a 500g tub of butter.

A pouch at the back of the jacket can take a box of cereal and a French baguette, while a bunch of bananas hooks onto a strap on the shoulder. Elsewhere, there's room for a tub of drinking chocolate , two loo rolls, a packet of eggs and some chocolate.

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"It was clear as I made my way home with my shopping that I'd gotten the attention of my fellow shoppers," he told the paper. "I could see them smiling in appreciation of my ingenuity as I passed them. I imagine it won't be long before you're all wearing a similar garment."

But is it really worth it? The vest costs a touch under £70, meaning that you'd have to do without a whopping 1,400 carrier bags to get your money back. And if you can remember to take the Bagket with you when you go shopping, why not just take a few bags instead?

Scotland recently started charging shoppers 5p per plastic bag, bringing it in line with Wales, which brought in a charge in 2011, and Northern Ireland, which followed suit last year. Since then, the number of bags used has fallen by 79% and 71% respectively. A similar charge is set to be introduced in England in October next year by larger retailers.

Unfortunately, though, Scottish shoppers are finding other ways round the charge. Zero Waste Scotland says it's receiving reports that shoppers are taking the stores' wire baskets home with them instead - a "criminal and irresponsible" action, it says.

"Shoppers can avoid the charge and help reduce the number of bags in circulation by remembering to bring their reusable bags when they pop to the shops after 20th October," says David Barnes, litter programme manager at Zero Waste Scotland.

Read more about carrier bag charges on AOL Money:

UK supermarkets hand out more plastic bags last year

MPs hit at plastic bag tax ruling

5p plastic bag plan 'complete mess'