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Category: Plastic Bag Crafts

Red White and Blue Striped Plarn Tote

Cindy8 Comments

I have tons of white plastic bags as many people do. Most people that craft with recycled plastic bags find it difficult to find pretty colorful bags. You can usually find a few unique colors but it’s almost impossible to find enough bags to crochet a complete tote bag. So I’m always on the quest to find new ways to embellish my white tote bags. Here is my latest crocheted recycled plastic bag. It’s a red, white and blue striped reusable tote bag. It uses around 30 white retail bags and only about 3 blue plastic bags and 3 red newspaper bags. As you can see, just a few colorful bags can dress up an otherwise boring white plastic bag tote.

To crochet this recycled tote bag you basically use my Ultimate Grocery Bag pattern and add the stripes using the red and blue plastic bags cut into plarn. I also changed up the handles a bit and will detail the changes below to explain how to crochet this recycled plastic tote bag.

I used a N (9 mm) crochet hook to work this tote bag. The finished size is 13 inches wide and 14 inches long with 9 inch handles.

Following the basic pattern link, crochet with white plastic bag yarn (plarn) for 19 rounds. End at side of bag with a slip stitch.

Crafting with Plastic Bags

Cindy9 Comments

It has been over six years now since I started this recycled bags blog. When I first started out I wanted to share the idea of using plastic bags for craft projects. I wanted to promote the reuse and repurposing of plastic for useful items. Over the years, I have crocheted tote bags, rugs, scrubbies, purses, baby bibs, soap dishes, coasters, baskets, gift bags, water bottle holders and much more using recycled plastic.

You can find all of my crochet free plastic bag patterns here at my site. Over the years I have shared all my patterns free so that everyone could enjoy crafting with recycled plastic materials. I have used every type of recycled plastic such as retails bags, toilet paper packaging, hotdog and hamburger bun packages, frozen vegetable packages, paper towel packaging, bread bags, hashbrown bags, and taco shell bags.


Trash Rug from Recycled Plastic

Recycling plastic to create yarn has endless possibilities. I only named a handful of plastic items you can make plarn from. Plarn (PLastic yARN) is the term my friend Joy coined first over at Crochetville

Crocheted Plarn Soap Dish

Cindy4 Comments

I have been asked to crochet a recycled plastic soap dish holder so this is up I came up with. I crocheted this soap dish using about three recycled plastic bags so it’s a great project if you only have a few bags in a special color.

It’s just the right size if you have a large square bar of soap. Here is my plarn soap dish with a scrubbie also crocheted from recycled plastic bags.

Here is a plarn soap dish pictured with a oval bar of soap along with a crocheted dishcloth to match.

Here is one other crocheted soap dish with white plastic retail bags along with a scrubbie added with a cotton yarn trim. The cotton yarn edging adds a colorful touch to the otherwise boring white bags. You can also use the soap dish crocheted from recycled plastic bags as a scrubbie holder. Just rinse it out in warm water if it gets too soapy or dirty. Either way this recycled soap dish is a handy holder and provides a useful way to reuse those plastic bags you may have stuffed in your kitchen drawers and cabinets.

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Free Crocheted Plarn Soap Dish Pattern

Materials needed:
3 — plastic bags cut into strips 3/4 inches wide and interlocked to create plarn
Here is the link to my plarn-making tutorials should you need it

Hook:
J (6 mm) US size metal crochet hook

Gauge: 3 Sc = 1 inch; 3 rows = 1 inch

Description:
Recycled Plastic Soap Dish – measures 5-1/2 inches long by 3 inches wide

Directions:
Row 1
Ch 13, Sc in the 2nd st from the hook and in each st across.

Recycling Toilet Paper Packaging

Cindy2 Comments

I’m always looking for new ways to recycle and repurpose plastic waste such as this large toilet paper packaging. When I see something like this plastic I just want to find some useful way to reuse it. So I set out to create plastic yarn or plarn from this piece of packaging.

Because this plastic packaging is very large, I cut it into one continuous long strip about 1 inch wide. I started at the one opened end of the packaging to begin cutting. I placed the piece of plastic across my leg and used the scissors to cut around and around. I just kept cutting the strip around the plastic and through the seams. The seams on this packaging are very strong and glued so I believe it will hold for crafting without having to worry about the seams coming apart.

The result is one ball of plarn that netted 45 yards of yarn for crafting.

Crocheted Easter Eggs and Peeps

Cindy5 Comments

With Easter just around the corner, I have been busy crocheting Easter eggs and Peeps for Easter baskets. We are having a Easter CAL (craft a-long) over at our group on Ravelry. A cute Peeps aka marshmallow bunny crochet pattern was shared. This pattern is very quick and easy. Here are several of them that I crocheted. I used black fabric puff paint to add the eyes.

Here are some crocheted eggs I did. Delights shared her free egg pattern on Ravelry where she uses a plastic egg and then crochets the shell around the egg. I had the idea of crocheting the egg and then stuffing it with a recycled plastic bag.