Whenever I go shopping I do my best to remember my reusable bags. Even with my good intentions, I sometimes forget and have a growing pile of plastic bags sitting in my pantry. What’s an environmentally conscious girl to do with all that plastic? Weave it, of course!
Plastic bag yarn, more commonly known as “plarn” is made by cutting plastic bags into loops that are joined together to create a long chain. Easy peasy—no spinning wheels or spindles required to make this yarn. Not only is it simple to make, plarn also makes an excellent weft yarn. While plastic bags aren’t terribly sturdy, in their new form as plarn they’re a surprisingly strong yarn that makes durable fabric perfect for making, well, bags!
Photo credit: George Boe
For example, Emily Werner’s Take Two Tote Bag from Easy Weaving with Little Looms 2018 uses plarn and cotton carpet warp yarn to create a bag that’s both environmentally friendly and aesthetically pleasing. Woven on a rigid-heddle loom, the Take Two Tote is an easy introduction to weaving with plarn and a great way to use up any plastic bags you have sitting around. You can weave the project using the same colors as Emily or mix it up and make a bag that’s uniquely yours!
Once you’ve woven the Take Two Tote Bag you might find yourself hooked on weaving with plarn. Fortunately, my guess is you’ve got plenty of friends with ever-growing piles of plastic bags they’d be more than happy to pass along.
Happy Weaving!
Christina
Project at a Glance:
Equipment Needed: rigid-heddle loom, 15” weaving width; 12-dent heddle, 2 stick shuttles.
Yarn: 8/4 carpet warp yarn (Maysville), #45 Aqua Green and #12 Forest; plarn.