Re-Use A Plastic Bag To Make A Plastic Bag

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Do you ever come a cross a recipe, craft, sewing project that you just can’t wait to do/try and then are disappointed with the final outcome?  This is one of those projects.  When I came across the article on re-using plastic bags to make another plastic bag – I was like oh, yeah!  Since I use my own bags when I go shopping it took me awhile to get enough bags to start this project and of course with the waiting came anticipation…  This project needs 4 – 8 plastic shopping bags, but the one’s from grocery stores are too flimsy so you need to have the nicer bags that you get from clothing, book, etc. stores.  That was even harder since I don’t shop very much – least favorite activity, and I either shop used stores or on-line.  I finally accumulated 6 bags, so this past weekend I took out the ironing board and iron and went to work!

Recycled Plastic Lunch Bag

Items Needed

4 – 8 plastic bags, not grocery plastic bags
Iron & board
Scissors
Parchment paper
Ruler
Clothespins
Velcro (optional)

1. Cut the bags down the side seams with scissors and undo the bottom pleat, you want the bags to lie flat.

2. Layer the bags on top of each other and secure with clothespins.  The clothespins will keep them from shifting while you are ironing them together.  I found that once you started ironing and some of the plastic was fused together you could remove the clothespins.

3. Heat the iron to medium high.  Put a layer of parchment paper over the ironing board.  (The directions that I had said to use parchment or wax paper.  Now common sense told me that wax paper would not work, but I had to try – maybe wax paper and plastic bags don’t melt together?  The wax paper did not work – it fused to some of the plastic, but not all of it – glad I had tried it on the inside part of the bag.) Place another piece of parchment over the section that you are ironing.  Iron from the center out, ironing each section for 30 – 60 seconds.  Let cool, flip and iron the other side.  Let cool and check to see that all the plastic fused – if not iron again.

4. Use scissors to trim the plastic fabric to about 9″ wide and 30″ long.

Note: If you want to iron on any designs – do that step now.  I decided not to iron on any designs.  Just cut out shapes out of the excess of one of the plastic bags (use parchment) and iron on.  You can also do a strap – I thought about it, but chose not to.

5. Fold the bag, but do not match up ends – you want to have a flap.  On the bottom you want to create a pleat or gusset.  The pleat will make for a roomy bag and  allow the bag to stand on its own.

6.  Flatten the crease and shape the bag.  Place a wooden ruler along the edge of the bag about 5/8″ from the edge – this will allow you to fuse the seams and stop the heat from going further along the bag.  Make sure that you use the metal ruler edge.  Placing the parchment under and on top of the bag – fuse the seams.  This will take some ironing on both sides.

Note:  I made my bag with 6 layers.  One of the bags did not make it to each edge.  When I was fusing the seams – I had no problem on the seam that only had 5 layers (10 total), but did have problems with the other seam that had 6 layers (12 total) – No matter how many times I ironed and I even turned the heat up – I could not get the seams to fuse.  So I ended up gluing that side of the bag.

7. You can add some velcro to close the flap

So pack your lunch in your new reusable lunch bag and see what conversation it starts at the lunch table!

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