How To Make A Mat Out Of Old Plastic Bags

One easy project appropriate for ages six to adult is weaving a doormat from left over bags.

How to make a mat out of old plastic bags.

A word of forewarning when putting out the call to action for collecting plastic bags be prepared for an avalanche of plastic bags. John the apostle catholic church to create their own mats using about 700 plastic bags apiece. Younger children can help turn the bags into a plastic yarn known as plarn the sturdy plarn can also be used to make placemats market bags and coasters. It also makes a great addition to any camping trip.

While the blue or yellow bags can be mostly sorted together the white bags tend to have accent colors that can come out in the finished rug. Crafters from the nanaimo harbour city seniors are turning plastic grocery bags into sleeping mats for the homeless. Regardless of who uses it it s a great way to recycle. Instead of becoming landfill plastic bags can be used for fun craft projects.

Flatten the plastic bag to best you can and straighten any of the bags creases. Remember to push each bag up to make the weave as tight as it can be. Kids should then weave the bag in and out of the frame adding new bags as they go. Parents can teach about recycling in the house and how plastic bags take years to decompose.

The bag ladies as they call themselves also specialize in making large tote bags out of the plastic. When the kids get to the end of the frame ensure the last plastic bag is secured and prepare to remove the mat from the frame. To make creating the colored rings in the rug easier i took my bags of bags and sorted the various bags into separate colors. 500 700 plastic shopping bags for a person sized mat but can vary depending on what you re using the mat for 10mm or larger crochet hook.

So far they have spent at least 100 hours on the project producing 18 mats that have been handed out to the homeless and there are many more to come. Meanwhile in norwalk iowa the mighty mat makers meet once a week at st. If you don t want your rug to follow a pattern you can skip sorting. How to make plarn.