Knit a Bag from Plastic Bags
Plastic bags are starting to be recognized as a major waste of plastic - you get one free with every purchase whether you ask for one or not, and you often see them floating down the street or filling up the cupboard under the sink. Although there are many ways of reusing them, as the link above can show you, this one is a creative way of using lots of bags with a fun and long-lasting result.
Steps
- Take around 40 plastic bags that are clean and 'not' made of degradable plastic. Degradable bags are often marked proudly as such, and will disintegrate after a few months. Cut the seam off the bottom of a bag and remove the handles. Flatten out your bag and cut it in a long spiral from top to bottom, into one long strip 3cm (1in) wide. See this article for more information on preparing the bag prior to knitting.
- Cast on as many stitches as you want with needles around size 3-4mm, until your work is as wide as you want your bag to be.
- Knit until your work is twice as long as you want your bag to be. If you get to the end of a piece of "yarn", tie the end to the end of another piece and continue to knit. (Alternatively, you can knit with two strands for a few inches and then drop the old "yarn" and continue with the new.)
- Cast off and fold your work in half. Sew up the sides of your bag with more strips of plastic. You should use a crochet hook, as it won't make as many holes in the existing strips as a yarn needle will.
- Cast on again, creating enough stitches to knit a narrow strap for your bag. Knit until the strap is long enough to be attached to the bag at both ends with about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} of overlap. Bear in mind that your straps will stretch a little when you have heavier things in the bag.
- Make two of these straps, and sew one to each side of the top inside of your bag with about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} of overlap at each end. Alternatively, there are patterns online for making a bag with fancier handles that are more challenging to knit.
Tips
- Strips of plastic can be hard work to knit with, especially if you naturally make tight stitches. They don't slide very easily over steel needles - try wooden or bamboo needles.
- You can cut your bags thinner to make more yarn, but if you do, your bag won't be nearly as sturdy.
- This pattern is also good for using up broken bags.
- Don't give up if you're having trouble knitting with the plastic. It's a bit of an odd material to work with at first, and it slides differently than yarn. Experiment with different needle materials. Sometimes the best needles for this are made from recycled wooden materials.
- Plastic bags have amazing tensile strength, and the knit stitch makes it stronger and a bit stretchy in all directions. You will be able to carry some bulky, heavy stuff in it if you need to.
- If you want to have a seamless bag, consider knitting it in the round.
- Be creative and add pockets, or use an interesting pattern. You don't need to stick with stripes, either. Try diamonds or waves!
- See the Sources and Citations section below for step-by-step instructions for an alternative way of making yarn. Since the yarn is twice as thick, the knit fabric will be much stronger.
Warnings
- It is a little bit harder to knit with plastic, as it doesn't slide over the needles as smoothly - if only they'd invented thimbles for knitting with.
Things You'll Need
- Knitting needles, 3-4mm
- Plastic bags, about 40
- Large crochet hook
- Scissors
