Reusable Produce Bag Tutorial

A few months back I'd seen some reusable produce bags and I thought they were such a great idea for those who are trying not to use plastic. They came to mind when my sister-in-law's birthday came up and I thought they would be a great present for her since I know she is trying to be very environmentally-conscious. So I searched around the internet and found a place to order them from, but when I was looking at them I realized that all it was made out of was mesh and a string. Sorry - not paying $10 for mesh. Off I went to get materials to make them myself, and it was so easy! Plus I got to make them in whatever size I wanted. I think in a 2 hour period I made 12 of them.

Materials:

• mesh (from 2 yards I made 10 various size bags) [mesh generally runs around $2 a yard]
  
• thread
• draw strings
• cord stops
  

Instructions:

1. Decide what size bag you want to make. The bag below is a lettuce/celery bag which is 15 inches by 10 inches when finished. Adding a half inch for seam allowances on each side, I cut a piece of mesh 11 inches by 31 inches.

2. I folded over the piece of mesh and sewed up the two sides.


3. At the top, I folded over the top edge about 1/2 inch to make the casing for the drawstring. Sew.
4. Turn your bag right-side-out. Get your cord and inch it through the casing.

5. Pull your ends through the cord stops. And you're done.


Told you it was easy! The great thing about these bags is that you can use them for a lot of different things as well. You can use them for your delicates in the wash, collecting and drying toys in the bathtub, and my dad even said something about using it while you are camping. I made a few different sizes to accommodate different needs - 8x10, 10x12, 12x14. But of course you can do whatever sizes you want to meet your own needs.

I hope this was helpful! Please let me know if you have any questions!