create your own

Homestead Diva: New Ways To Recycle Plastic Bags

94
rate or flag this page

By Marye Audet

Photo Courtesy of Amanda at Etsy
Photo Courtesy of Amanda at Etsy

Plastic Shopping Bags Last For Centuries

Well, THAT'S not new news. Plastic shopping bags are forever. Well now they can also be a girl's best friend.

We'll get to that in a minute.

Plastic bags are handed out by the millions and billions every day. Every kind of shop from grocers to upscale outfitters have their logos printed on a flimsy plastic bag, which needs to be doubled to carry anything heavier than a dust mite. What do you do with them once you get them home?

Some stores have areas where you can recycle them. I used to do this until one day I happened to catch an employee of the store dumping the recycle bin into the dumpster.

Some people use them as small wastebasket bags, which really only delays the inevitable.

However some people have figured out how to create fashinista nirvana. Yep. Plastic bags are a fashion statement.


Plastic Bag Raincoat by Pen Felt of etsy
Plastic Bag Raincoat by Pen Felt of etsy

Fun Fashions

Take a look at this raincoat. It was created out of plastic shopping bags. I could go for a raincoat like that, in a size 10 please.

Searching around the Internet I have seen everything from plastic bag yarn to plastic bag jewelry to plastic bag fashions. Imagine the joy on a teen girl's face when she was presented with a purse created out of Old Navy shopping bags. Imagine making a grocery tote bag with a combination of Whole Foods, Wild Oats, and Kroger bags, or upscale gourmet shop bags. You could make a dog coat from PetSmart bags or a shower curtain from Bath and Body Works bags.

It's endless. The ideas are mind boggling.


Cathy Kasdan created this 50's ensemble, knit from plastic bags.
Cathy Kasdan created this 50's ensemble, knit from plastic bags.

So How Is It Done?

You will definitely want to visit the tutorials to get a real understanding of this process. Basically you open the bags up at the seams and cut of the bottom so you have a flat piece of plastic. You do the same with another bag.And another. IN fact you need between six and eight layers of plastic.

Now, sandwich the layers in between two pieces of freezer paper, and apply heat from an iron. Keep the iron moving and flip the whole thing after fifteen seconds and repeat on the other side.

Hopefully when you remove the freezer paper you will have a durable plastic fabric that you can use for various crafts.

So Many Bags, So Little TIme

I can all ready think of things to be made around here: tents, horse blankets, wallets. I bet you could even make some pretty weather proof mittens with them, from bags from a sporting goods store.

Imagine the new opportunity on eBay as people clamor for more and more plastic bags to the point that they become either shopping maniacs or trash pickers! Try some of these. I am going to. In fact, the things I have in my mind to do first are:

1. place-mats

2. wallet

3. purse for my granddaughter

4. re-usable grocery bags

So, do you have any ideas? I just think this is an amazing craft!

Video Tutorial

Comments

RSS for comments on this Hub Small RSS Icon

Patty Inglish, MS profile image

Patty Inglish, MS  says:
2 years ago

Fantastic! - a raincoat of plastic bags - that's very smart.

Isabella Snow profile image

Isabella Snow  says:
2 years ago

Wow - very creative!

cgull8m profile image

cgull8m  says:
2 years ago

That is awesome, they find ingenious ways to recycle plastic bags. Well done.

Angela Harris profile image

Angela Harris  says:
2 years ago

This is such a cool idea!

COCO  says:
2 years ago

Sorry.....not cool.......give me cotton anytime

Show Me  says:
2 years ago

Pretyy good use of trash. One mans er...womans trash is anothers treasure. Waste not want no. I have a friend at work who has a bag she keeps her headset and other things in that she uses at the board during work and it's loaded down with stuff and heavy. The bags been holding up for a couple of years with daily wear and tear. Its made from crocheted strips of plastic bags. Waste not want not.

dafla  says:
2 years ago

This is way too cool! I have some great ideas for Christmas gifts now!

Kimberly  says:
2 years ago

Such a neat idea!! And so...GREEN! :)

Marye Audet profile image

Marye Audet  says:
2 years ago

I know..I keep looking at this thinking now, if we could only leanr to buikld solar panels from milk cartons..

LOL!

Marye Audet profile image

Marye Audet  says:
2 years ago


Trix  says:
8 months ago

Wicked ideas and so fun to do!

Patricia  says:
8 months ago

OMG that is really neat!!

Raen  says:
8 months ago

Cool idea, I love finding new ways to recycle, but I wouldn't try it before addressing a couple concerns:


1. What vapors are released by heating these bags with an iron??


2. How do you clean these? Wash them in a sink?


Call me selfish, but the health and safety of myself and my family is my first priority.


midnightbliss profile image

midnightbliss  says:
7 months ago

cool and creative ideas on how to recycle plastic bags.

speedsking  says:
5 months ago

nice hub

Lgali profile image

Lgali  says:
5 months ago

very creative!

50.CAl  says:
4 months ago

Yo people are weird!! Who wld do dat

AnneMH profile image

AnneMH  says:
4 months ago

I have done 4 rugs now by using plastic bags as crochet material with yarn mixed. It is labor intensive and really pushed me to focus on bringing my re-usable bags back to the store. I love my rugs, I gave one to my mom and one to my sister, but I don't have time to recycle them that way right now.

save-cash-online profile image

save-cash-online  says:
3 months ago

I think these things can be made to be really hip...or really tacky. It takes an artist to make them a fashion statement...and I think it's great. I would buy something if it looked trendy and cool....absolutely! Thanks for the really neat hub. cathy@save-cash-online.com

sciencewithme profile image

sciencewithme  says:
3 months ago

That is actually a really cute idea. My daughter has a purse made from juice pouches, and her best friend used plastic shopping bags from her favorite mall stores to "paper" her room walls.

Maya  says:
3 months ago

More info!!! I need it for my science fair project!

Submit a Comment

Members and Guests

Sign in or sign up and post using a hubpages account.


optional


  • No HTML is allowed in comments, but URLs will be hyperlinked
  • Comments are not for promoting your hubs or other sites

working