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Produce bags you don’t throw out

In our quest to throw less out and use less plastic, I am always on the lookout for reusable ideas.  It seems a bit weird to me when I go and buy organic broccoli and then put it in those plastic bags.  They are a big waste because what do you do with them afterward?  The only thing I have come up with was pick up dog poop and we have biodegradable bags for that.  I mean really, do I need to encase dog poop in plastic so it is preserved for future generations?

So I saw this idea on a website awhile back and thought it was awesome.  Do you think I saved the link?  Nooo.  So I have been on the look out and when I find it I will attach since I don’t want you thinking I am taking credit for someone else’s brillance.

We start out with flour sack cloth which is light and thin almost like a muslin.  You can get this in many forms but for ease on this project I bought them in towel form from Target.  The reason is they have already hemed the edges with a pocket we will use later for the draw string, lest our lemons going rolling out onto the floor.

So we start by folding in half with the pocket edges together at both ends.  We will then cut down the middle to produce two bags. ( I also cut some off-center so I would have one big bag and one small one.)

The pocket edges are at the top and bottom here

Next we make sure the fabric is inside out (so when we are finished we will turn right side out and all the edges will be hidden).  Line up the edges of the fabric so they are even on all four sides.  Flour sack is stretchable so if you are not a straight cutter (me!) you can fudge it.  Of your four sides you have: one folded, one with the pocket edges and two that need to be sewn together.

But wait, did I say sew?  Deep breaths – you do not have to get out the machine, if you even have one.  The wonder product called Stitch Witchery is our friend here.  (*It’s not a green product but we are saving plastic bags so I’m calling it even).  It is a fusable material that comes on a roll like tape.  What this means to you is its a glue to sew the seems without the machine, it creates a straight line with your hem so you look good and it’s not messy so it won’t get all over.

You will lay it in between the edges of the fabric, cover with a damp tea towel and hold the iron on it for 10-15 seconds.  Repeat damp tea towel ironing on the other side of the fabric.  Done.

After you have fused together both of the open sides you can turn it inside out.  Make sure you push out the corners from the inside so they are flat and not bunchy.  Then iron all the way around so the edges look smooth.

(Part 2 continues on the next post since I can’t seem to get it all on one post.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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