Grocery Bags! (an Alter-Sprig blog post)

[aldersprig]

While I was looking up how to, and then proceeding with, washing my reusable shopping bags, or at least the portion of them currently in circulation (they accumulate, like single socks, or shopping trolleys at the bottom of a steep hill…), my husband kindly suggested that the reasonable thing to do would be to make some. 

I grabbed this idea with both hands and both feet and ran with it (sort of a stumbling run, since I was holding onto that idea…)

So, things I want in reusable shopping bags:

* Washability (since that is what started this whole thing) – I want it to be washable and then look decent afterwards.  And I want it to be throw-in-washer washable, not something fussy. 

* Durability – able to stand up to the sort of shopping run where we get 2 bags each of flour, white sugar, brown sugar, & confectioner’s sugar. And then other stuff. 

* Size – not so big as to be unwieldy, either for me or for the cashiers loading the thing, but big enough to hold an 18-pack of eggs without tipping, or a rotisserie chicken, or that flour & sugar mentioned above.

* Nice – Why bother making something like this if I don’t like the way it looks? No more feeling awkward because half my bags advertise either a liquor/wine/beer place or a business I barely remember giving me the bag. 

* Pocket –  super useful for keys when I don’t have a purse or pockets on me.

* Foldable/packable – one of the things I really like about the store-bought reusable bags is how they fold back down into a nice flat package (at least until they get too rumpled or they’re washed or..)  Some of the good ones have the fold line on the sides pressed in & sometimes even sewn in; not sure I’ll go as far as sewing it in, but it would probably help. Maybe I’ll try it on one. 

 

Since none of the patterns were everything I wanted, I drafted my own pattern. 

Webbing handles that go all the way around, doubled on the bottom. 

A double layer of fabric on the bottom, with interfacing in between.

A pocket of something I have around the house sewn in between/under the webbing handles on each side, or at least on one side, depending on fabric scraps. 

The bag itself made from mediumweight cotton duck. 

Now… I need to find a place to mail me canvas where the shipping isn’t as much as the product. 

Please note: The below is a planning pattern that I have not tested yet at all.

The idea is to get two bags on one yard of fabric (or one bag on a 1/2 yard).  There’s some left over,  if it’s the 67″ wide stuff from the place I liked a lot until I read their shipping prices, so I may make a tote to hold the folded bags.

Mirrored from Alder's Grove Fiction.

Comments

[nezchan]

Some stores in my area are discouraging people from using re-useable grocery bags due to COVID-19 concerns. Places that let you bag it yourself are one thing, but the smaller groceries aren't set up for that.

[aldersprig]

I'm curious how that's going to work right now - I've heard that, too, but since today was the deadline for NYS stores to stop using plastic bags altogether, it's going to be, ah, interesting.

That being said, I probably won't get these done for months, knowing me. And then I can always use them for all the stuff that isn't grocery stores. Farmers' markets, that sort of thing? I hope.

The world is weird right now.

[jennickels]

I'm interested in your pattern--it has a bunch of the features I want like the straps that go all the way around to support the bottom and a pocket (I don't carry a purse and often just take a shopping bag when I walk--everything gets mixed in the bottom and it's so annoying).

I was looking at some last night because I read WA is trying to push their plastic bag ban through again (seems like bad timing with stores not wanting you to use reusable because of virus concerns). This is more for after the virus. I'm going to have to use straight quilting fabric, though, so mine won't be for any really heavy stuff.

I'm almost out of yarn and just need something else to do while in isolation. Figured it was time to break out the sewing machine.

[aldersprig]

Neat! Maybe this weekend I'll pull out some stuff from my stash and run a prototype. I think I have some left over bodice fabric.

If you were using quilting fabric, I'd probably line it; I'm avoiding lining mine (Except the one I want to line in picnic-tablecloth fabric) mostly for ease in getting back into shape after washing. Also, so I finish the things >.>

[jennickels]

Yeah, I was definitely going to do a liner with the quilt fabric. And going over all seams at least twice. It's been so long since I've sewn anything really, I'm not even sure what supplies I have. I think I used up all the interfacing I had. I had some duck cloth left from a project but probably not enough to make a bag. Maybe enough to make the bottom of a bag?

I have a lot of fabric but most of it's really cheap stuff that wouldn't stand up to the wear and tear of a grocery bag.