# Get rid of those plastic bags forever!



## babysteps (Sep 11, 2005)

Several years ago my mother was complaining about the plastic bags from grocery stores were just horrible. I'm sure you'll agree with her in so many ways. Most of us are environmentally concerned and donât like the clutter that those bags create. When she complained I got online to find a place I could find her reusable grocery bags that were a lot like the old paper bags. I found and found the perfect bag for her www.reusablebags.com. When she started using them she immediately loved them. She has been using them for the last two years and has even had the Kroger manager ask her where she got them because customers had begun asking for them. 

In the fall I was fed up too with plastic bags (even though I found 100's of ways to use them again) and found some nice canvas bags at Wal-Mart that I started to use. My husband even started taking them when he knew he would be shopping and I wouldn't. Well Wal-Mart and Kroger have both started to sell reusable plastic bags but they are flimsy and don't look near as nice as the ones at reusablebags. 

Well mom bought me some for my birthday at reasusablebags. Now both my husband and I have our own stash of reusable bags. I highly recommend these bags. They are only about $9.00 a piece. A great price for the number of times you will use them and the long life they will have. They fold down beautifully for easy storage in your car and/or your own purse/bag. If you don't want to spend that kind of money find some strong canvas bags or go to: http://sewing.about.com/od/bagstotespurseproject/ss/grocerybag.htm 
and get the pattern for making them. I think old jeans would work really well. Here are some tips on using your reusable bags:

1. Keep them with your purse/keys/cell phone and make sure they go out the door with you every time you think you might shop. OR put them back in the car right after they are emptied. 

2. Store them folded into 1/4's on top of one another. They are easy to carry that way. 

3. Stick them right in the "baby seat" of the grocery cart so you'll see them at check out. Mom says there is nothing worse than piling all your groceries on top of the bags in the basket then you get up to the check out and they start using those plastic things before you can say "I've got my own bags." Make them take them out and use yours. 

4. Put your bags on the check out counter first before you put any food up there. You will also probably have to say "those are my bags, please use them for the groceries."

5. Offer to help bag. After all because they don't have your bags on those little holders they do have to open them up and there might not be space their for them to easily work with them. 

6. Tell them to stuff as much as they can into to bags from www.reasuablebags.com. Mom says the are incredible strong. 

7. If you run out of bags see if you and the clerk can rearrange your food stuff so that boxes of cereal and other large items are just free in your cart. That will make more room and those things you can just put easy in the car with them not being lost when you drive around and then unload. Milk shouldn't go in. It goes easy in the car loose. 

Keep taking those baby steps, Christine :walk:

This has been crossposted on my blog at www.homesteadblogger.com/poplarhill


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## NWoods_Hippie (Nov 16, 2006)

I made my own bags for FREE out of old and gifted tee-shirts that I couldn't use, see the following thread:

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=233937

True recycling, as I just couldn't see spending money on the canvas bags my local store sells.

All good ideas you have there though Babysteps!

Peace,
Margie


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## CJ (May 10, 2002)

I have some nice patterns for making grocery bags. It's on my list of projects!

For plain simpel ones, KwikSew 4191 is great.


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## nehimama (Jun 18, 2005)

I find the reusable bags at thrift shops all the time, for a quarter or a dime apiece. However, I could make good use of your tips, babysteps, and REMEMBER TO TAKE THEM WITH ME. 

NeHi


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## Guest (Feb 23, 2008)

My mother found some upholstery material reduced to $1/yd. It's tan with a beautiful textured design in it. She got the entire amount that was on the bolt.

She got some tan cotton fabric also for $1/yd to use for a liner. There wasn't quite enough of that, so she got some green cotton material ($1/yd, of course), for the rest of the lining.

She ordered 100 yards of eggshell-colored webbing from Nancy's Notions. (It came out very cheap by getting the 100 yard roll). That was for making strong handles that wrap around the bottoms of the bags to give extra strength.

She opened a paper grocery bag to use for a pattern. Then she made 19 lined grocery shopping bags. They were inexpensive to make, and are sturdy, heavy, and beautiful.

The supermarket I shop at describes themselves as a gourmet and whole health store. They are VERY green oriented, and you see a lot of customers with their own reusable shopping bags (YAY!). The sack boys know exactly how to pack them efficiently.

I hope this trend continues growing.


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## Charleen (May 12, 2002)

AGES ago, I made my own cloth bags from a large remnant of cotton pillow ticking (blue & white stripes). This was back when plastic bags were the newest craze and the cashiers would roll their eyes at you when you handed them your own bag. The pillow ticking is easy to wash and very strong. I'm still using those same bags today. 

Yes, it's sometimes difficult to remember to take them back to the store.

ETA -Really good photo gallery on the website you listed. Thanks.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

I made bags the size of paper grocery bags, but with handles, out of some heavy tapestry fabric that I had used as curtains. I like them, but I only got two large and two small bags out of the amount I had. I've also bought the Walmart blue bags and I like them, but I can see they won't last as long as the ones I made.


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## babysteps (Sep 11, 2005)

Anything to get rid of those darn plastic things. I forgot mine today...first time in along time :grump:.

I think the all of you-all ideas are wonderful! I'm just getting around to hemming by dd10's pants after she has worn them for 6 months! Sit and make bags for me right now my brain couldn't do, but I'm so glad someone is recycling all that stuff in to a great thing! One of our local homesteady friends made all hers out of all kinds of stuf. 

:walk:


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## fransean (Dec 21, 2002)

I have spent about the past half hour on the reusablebags.com site! Which bags were you referring to at $9.00 a piece? Would I be better off getting one of the sets to start out with?
Although I have a sewing machine nobody would want to be within 100 yards of me if I were to attempt to use it.

TIA
Bev


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

My local WinCo is selling good, strong cloth bags with handles for only .88 each and they credit you with .06 back each time you use them. I have 4 now, and think I'm going to buy a few more. Not just for the groceries, but they are a perfect size to put my library books in, too - we get a lot of library books.  They hold a LOT of groceries, too.


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## Guest (Mar 20, 2008)

manygoatsnmore said:


> My local WinCo is selling good, strong cloth bags with handles for only .88 each and they credit you with .06 back each time you use them. I have 4 now, and think I'm going to buy a few more. Not just for the groceries, but they are a perfect size to put my library books in, too - we get a lot of library books.  They hold a LOT of groceries, too.


Our supermarket only credits 5 cents for cloth sacks.

It will take a while at that rate to pay for them... lol


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## manygoatsnmore (Feb 12, 2005)

I figure at .88 a bag, I'll pay for them in 11 trips to the store.  Not too shabby. I don't think I could sew them for that price, and I'm a terrible seamstress, lol!


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## babysteps (Sep 11, 2005)

Got to tell you I've been collecting bags to use along with my bags from www.reusablebags.com. I have been amazed at the bags we've had around the house! I have discovered also that if I fold them up and put them all in one of the bags that they are easier to deal with (I don't loose them, I get them to the store). I must now have 12 bags! Only three did I purchace. Others just were acquired from any number of places. Keep thinking reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink, Christine


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## Honeybee (Oct 16, 2002)

One year for Christmas I bought decorative denim and made reusable grocery bags for my mom and mom in-law. They are so easy to make it's crazy! My MIL used them all the time and the stores gave her 5 cents per bag she used at the store. At the end of the year she filled my Christmas stocking with all the change she'd accumulated from using them and asked me to make more. The worst part about them is that they wander off when you end out using them for other things.


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## Sumer (May 24, 2003)

Here is what I did when I had too many plastic bags. I made a bag out of the bags.
I call it my bag bag LOL


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## coachgeo (Jun 3, 2008)

Sumer said:


> Here is what I did when I had too many plastic bags. I made a bag out of the bags....]


?????? not sure your point here? You recyceled the old plastic bags into yarn and made that bag out of it?


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## Lynn Bodoni (Feb 10, 2008)

Sumer, I love it!

We've been using sturdy reusable cloth bags for some years now. I keep spreading the word about them. We also use thermal bags, they're great for ice cream and other cold stuff in the summer. I keep a couple of string bags in my glove box, in case I decide to shop somewhere.

Half Price Books, a used book store chain in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, sells some pretty nice bags for only 99 cents. They're good for groceries as well as books. I can't make bags that cheaply, so I've stocked up. I have one designated as my library book bag, one as my book shopping book bag, and several others serve other purposes.

Also, when I know I'm going to sell a book, I put it in my book shopping book bag. That way I don't have to search the house for all the books I want to sell back.


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## Watcher48 (Aug 30, 2007)

WHy can't I buy pillow cases (new or used) and sew a drawstring in them. Ain't like they gotta be pretty to roll around in the truck. Most people need at least about 10. Your talkin a hunert dollars at 9 a peice.


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## Sumer (May 24, 2003)

Wow I forgot about this thread. sorry. I guess I didnt explain that much did I.
Ya I had too many plastic bags laying around the house so I cut them up and crocheted a bag out of them. So its my Bag bag - get it?... Ok ya that was pretty bad.
I usually use it to go to Save-a-lot where they dont supply bags unless ya buy them. Its actually pretty huge and strong enought to carry a lot of can goods home in and it almost stands up by itself in the car.
Its come in handy so many times for so many things I think I need to make another one soon.


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## babysteps (Sep 11, 2005)

WOW is right! Sumer I think you could sell those things! What a eye catcher that could get people talking about using alternative bags. It could be a real educational tool. I'd love to have one. If your willing to make one I'll be willing to pay or barter. I like the way the red and black shows up. 

WATCHER I have had the very same thought also! It's too bad I thought of it before I collected all the bags I currently have.

:walk:


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## Sumer (May 24, 2003)

Thanks for the complement Babysteps. This thing took me most of a summer to make. Unfortunately I just dont have the time to do much of anything now. I did find the instructions of how to make the "yarn" here on HT somewhere.
Ill try to explain it ... 
Take a plastic bag and flaten it out on a table. With the bag laying with the bottom facing you, you cut strips horizontally so you end up with a bunch of plastc loops. You dont use the very bottom cause it wont be a looop, or the handles. (I think I got around 5-6 for each plastic bag I cut)
The width of the loops will determine how thick the "yarn" will be. 
After you get a bunch of loops you put them together by.., well the only way I can think to explain it is how I used to chain rubberbands into long strings when I was a kid.
So then you just roll it up into a ball to use as yarn.
I know that is terrible instructions. Ill try to find a link somewhere that has pictures.

http://www.needlepointers.com/displ...g-plastic-bags-creating-recycled-plastic-yarn


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## babysteps (Sep 11, 2005)

Sumer, 

Thanks so much. So if I make my own thread I think I can find someone to make me one. It really is a neat idea. I hope your gets lots of complements when you out in public and that you can encourage people to ditch the things forever. 

:walk:


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## Sumer (May 24, 2003)

It was simple to make but time consuming. Plastic just dosent slide the same as yarn. No real pattern. I made the bottom oval (sorta like a braided rug) Then when it got big enough I did single crochet with no fancy stuff all the way to the top. On the handles I just did a chain stitch as long as was needed, reatached it to the bag and continued crocheting around again.
I have gotten a few complaments on it. It dosent really look like plastic bags unless you look at it close.


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## Junkman (Dec 17, 2005)

When I was growing up our neighbors made small rugs for the doorways from plastic bread bags. (Guess you could use any plastic bag.) They were great to catch mud, grass and dirt. After they became so dirty, on the burn pile they went. They were crocheted. Directions are on one of the rugmaking sites. I save my bread bags to put bones or other things in them that might get smelly until garbage day.Jklady


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## freegal (Mar 4, 2005)

On reusablebags.com they have sturdy nylon bags shaped like the plastic grocery bags, too. They are on my Christmas wish list and I may buy some for gifts for others as well. I did buy a couple of the insulated reusable bags from Jewel - they are shaped like the paper bags with a zip close top. They work really well and hold a lot. I have carried heavy loads in them and they are sturdy.

Sumer - I love the bag bag! No pink bags around here though.


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## Craftyone (Jun 30, 2008)

I have some material that I'm going to make some bags for myself and my kids for Christmas gifts ..


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## Lynn Bodoni (Feb 10, 2008)

We have a few of the insulated bags, as well as the open totes. I have to say, it's NICE to bring frozen foods home in the summer time and have them still frozen! We're in Texas, and it's been quite hot here lately, and it's only gonna get worse.


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## aaronwesley94 (May 23, 2008)

I like the plastic bags. They make great trash bags for the smaller trash cans in my bathrooms and laundry rooms. They're also great for carrying dead gold-fish from an aquarium upstairs to the trash can downstairs....lol  (don't ask...)


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## Lynn Bodoni (Feb 10, 2008)

I've cut up a few plastic bags (in a long spiral) and I'm going to try using them on my knitting loom. THIS should be interesting. Our kitten loves anything plastic and crinkly.


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## Lynn Bodoni (Feb 10, 2008)

Update: Charlie the kitten found the plastic strips fascinating. I found that they didn't work on the loom at all.


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