Do-It-Yourself: Reusable Market Bags
Today’s sustainable craft is inspired by the seasonal opening of our favourite farmers’ markets! Now that summer is upon us, we can once more enjoy the Trinity Bellwoods Market, the Sorauren Farmers’ Market, and the other stalls across the city bursting with seasonal goods from Ontario growers. Although we are rarely without our trusty juice-pocketed Greenhouse tote bag, in the face of so many fresh strawberries, we often find ourselves needing carry-all reinforcements. With some recycled fabric and string, we’ve fashioned a simple reusable bag—so our days of denying that extra bundle of rhubarb are over.
Materials:
Recycled fabric (roughly 20 x 14 inch pieces per bag)
Twine or string (roughly 21 to 23 inches long)
Scissors
Needle and thread (or sewing machine and thread)
Steps
To create a bag with a size of roughly 10 x 14 inches, we cut a piece of recycled fabric in a rectangle 20 x 14 inches. You can create a bag of any size you like, just be sure one side is about double the width of your finished bag’s opening, that way when you fold it in half, it’s the size you want your final bag to be.
Cut a piece of string or twine to 21 to 23 inches. You want your drawstring to be slightly bigger than the width of you closed bag, so that it has a bit of slack.
Lay out your pre-cut fabric rectangle and place the drawstring along the top edge of the 20-inch side, leaving a bit of string hanging off either end. Fold a bit of fabric (about ¼-inch) over the string and pin it in place, then sew to seal using a needle and thread or a sewing machine.
Once your drawstring is in place, close the bag by folding it in half (keep the seam of your drawstring on the outside), and sew the bottom and side edges together. When closing the length of your bag, be sure to end your seam before the opening of your drawstring. Tie the ends of your drawstring together.
Turn your bag inside out, and voilà, you have a reusable market bag for produce or other goodies!
-Elena Mari and Nathan Legiehn for GHJC
