Lucy Hale and Nikki Blonsky Redefine the Swag Bag at the TCAs

As someone who loves looking at photos of celebrities from award shows, I can tell you this: I always skip over the ones of stars scooping up free swag at pre-show gifting suites. It's one thing to look at shiny, happy, well-dressed people on the red carpet; it's another thing entirely to look at them getting gratuitous new gadgets they can afford on their own just so they can be photographed in front of the brand name. Plus, everyone knows they get even more free stuff behind the scenes. Gifting suites are just unnecessary.

This is why it was a breath of fresh air when a release about a new form of celebrity swag bag at last night's Teen Choice Awards rolled across the Tonic transom. Instead of a gift bag that celebs merely scooped up for gracing the award show with their presence, this new bag was a collaboration between the TCAs, some of today's hottest young celebrities, DoSomething.org and Staples.

Staples and Do Something set up a booth on the red carpet where stars including Pretty Little Liars star Lucy Hale (at right), Chuck's Zachary Levi, Huge star Nikki Blonsky and singer JoJo showed off their bag-stuffing skills as part of the third annual Do Something 101 School Supply Drive. Twilight's Nikki Reed is the spokesperson for the campaign, and you can view her PSA encouraging DoSomething.org visitors to start their own school supply drives on the campaign's website. Drake Bell, Kellie Pickler and singer Jason Derulo have also lent their voices and support to the supply drive on StaplesGiveBackPack.com.

At the Staples/Do Something 101 party on the red carpet at the TCA's, the stars stuffed over 500 gift bags full of donated pencils, notebooks, folders, paper and other school supplies to add to the 4,500 additional supply gift bags Staples will donate to the cause. Nikki Blonsky even donated the shoes she wore to the show right off her feet to DoSomething.org! Staples will be donating the bags to the members of the Variety Boys & Girls Club and the Boys & Girls Club of Hollywood.

Staples stores will be collecting school supplies through mid-September, so stop by to create your own swag bag to give to a student who needs it, or start your own supply drive today.

Photos by Mark Davis.