I only ever make one New Year's resolution per year. Sure, there are a million things I probably should resolve to do, but I have found that trying to do them all at once is a recipe for poached brain. Then, more often than not, I don't do any of them. One change that I can dedicate myself to does the trick and I actually stand a chance at altering my behavior.This year, I have resolved to get rid of all the plastic bags that come into the house. Not just the plastic grocery bags mind you, but the ones from other stores as well. I've put a note in the middle of my steering wheel to remind me to bring bags into stores. I have a running total of how many bags actually make it into the house (so far - 4). I should probably have also started a list of how many bags I managed to avoid. It's gotta be around 30 or so by now.
I have an abundance of large cloth grocery bags but I realize that I was still bringing home plastic produce bags. Fortunately, it's an easy thing to sew together reusable produce bags with cheap-o tulle and scrap yarn.
Tools & Bits for 4 Produce Bags
- 1 yard of 54" wide tulle netting in a color of your choice
- 4 pieces of yarn, about 42 inches long
- thread to match your yarn, scissors and a sewing machine
Start by folding the tulle in half so that you have a double thickness 18" long by 54" wide. Cut four strips 13 inches wide. Set your machine to a medium width zig-zag stitch. Leave the fabric folded, as this is the basic shape of the bag.Starting at top of the bag, stitch down the right side. Don't worry if the fabric puckers, just make sure that both layers of fabric are secure. Continue stitching across the bottom of the fabric, then up the other side. You are now in possession of a basic net pouch.
Trim the fabric on the sides to make it look neat, but leave the fabric intact across the bottom.
To finish the bag, fold the top down about 3/4". To save the hassle of snaking the yarn through the finished casing, lay it inside the folded fabric before stitching the tulle down. Use a straight stitch to sew the casing in place. Start stitching the casing at one seam. Leave about a 1/2 inch of space before you begin stitching. This will form the opening for the yarn so the bag can be cinched closed.Tie the two pieces of yarn together so that it doesn't pull out of the casing. Trim the tulle close to the stitching to make it look neat and turn the bag right-side out.
Now go fill it with seasonal fruits and veggies!
4 comments:
Very cool! Like you, I have cloth grocery bags but have an abundance of those produce bags coming home.
And since I still have yards and yards of tulle in my basement (from my days as a wedding coordinator), figured this would be a fun way to make a dent in it. Or, at one yard, it was more of a pinprick...
Coming back here to leave a comment, I noticed you mentioned using a zigzag. Oops. I didn't. I hope my seams don't snap. we'll see...
Also, a question -- you have a fold somewhere and yet you also mention sewing all THREE sides to make a pouch. I assume the fold is along the bottom. Did you sew along the bottom as well for strength? (Or because you're too lazy to backstitch and move to the opposite side? ha ha)
Anyway, I'll probably post about this later this week, so stop by this weekend maybe : )
Haha! Well, my original thought was to reinforce the bottom. Not that most of the fruit and veg that I buy is heavy enough to split the bag (I hope), but the tulle I used is cheap and pretty stretchy.
When I think about it in this light however, the design does sort of follow a path of least resistance (I know - shocking! :) ). The fold makes for one less cut and the continuous stitching means four less threads to clip (always a plus), and no backstitching and restarting a seam. I guess that makes my answer to the bottom fold question a little from column A and a little from column B. The bags are such simple things, why make them harder than they have to be?
Hope your bags serve you well!
I really love this idea! Now we just need a way to eliminate wrapping packaged meat in plastic bags. The baggers don't like to put meat in with the other groceries....any ideas?
Hi Chris-- Just a note here on your blog that I wanted to send you an email but couldn't find your address anywhere. Can you send it? I'm at kmskms at charter dot net. thanx.
Oh, and I got a comment like this once which kinda freaked me out because I wondered what the person wanted. So lest I freak you out, I'm working on some softies for a baby shower and thought you might enjoy helping me brainstorm some stuff for them.
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