Happy Earth Day, everyone!I've mentioned before that I'm terrible at remembering to recycle, or going the extra mile to make sure the Earth is taken care of. I'd love to switch to the new lightbulbs they have out, but they give me migraines. I'm pretty good at not using styrofoam, though. You get the drift - I just haven't found anything that makes me excited about recycling.
Until now.
This week's Want-It Wednesday will teach you how to take those bad-for-the-Earth plastic bags and turn them into something functional. Worst-case scenario: you have a new discussion piece that can be used to tell people more about your craft, recycling, the environment, what have you.
Below are some great links to help you get started. I apologize to my knitter friends out there, as most of these projects are for crochet. That said, once you get the yarn-making down, you can do anything with it that you do with regular yarn.
- Plasticbagbag.com: Very cool photo tutorial on how to make plastic bag yarn.
- Needlepointers.com: More of how to make plastic bag yarn and tons of links to projects for it!
- lovetoknow.com: Different ways of cutting plastic bags to create yarn and more.
- Cassette Tape Crochet: Here's one I had never thought of before, but pretty awesome. I could see this working for projects that need to look more delicate, like perhaps jewelry. Speaking of jewelry:
- Plastic Bag Crochet Necklace: Who knew?
- Recycle Plastic Carry-All: This one is super cute. Now, if only I shopped at more stores with different-colored plastic bags!
- Plastic Bag Crochet Shoes: Well, still not sure about this one, but why not? Could be cool for some light gardening or just for walking around by the pool.
- Recycled Plastic Easter Basket: Now that Easter is over, why not get a head start on next year? Haha. This is a cute idea, though, and could be used for other holidays, too. You could even make some outdoor bowls with this pattern or something.
Well, I've been saving all of our plastic bags for the past month or so and have a rather larger ball of "yarn" wound and ready to go. I can't wait to try some of these projects I found and start helping out in my own special way.
Have you guys ever knit or crocheted with plastic bags? Or other recycled materials?
2 comments:
There is a MUCH easier way to make plarn than the "loop" method. A cool way to fold a bag and then cut it so it quickly ends up in one very, very, very long, continuous strand of plarn. Check out my blog at: www.UrbanSustainableSociety.blogspot.com
There is a how-to links section, with several links to others' instructions on this method. I still think I can show how to do it better than the linked sites, but I haven't made a YouTube video yet. Working on it!
Thanks for checking out my blog and learning an easier way to make plastic bag crochet PLARN.
Ooo, thanks so much for the tip :) I'll be sure to check it out. The loop method usually works well enough, but my cats get super excited about playing with the loops before I can get them onto the "skein," haha. So this other method might be a bit easier for me.
Thanks again!
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