Think Again is a series that provides fun ideas for how to reuse items in your home that you would normally throw out or recycle. Reusing is higher on the “green” food chain than recycling, because getting another use out of an object is always more effective than spending the energy to recycle it. Plus, trying to reuse can force us to be creative!
Since we’ve featured so many plastic bag upcycling designers here on Green Prophet lately (such as Inbal Limor whose work is shown above, Limor Matityahoo, and Tali Gordon Bleicher), we thought you may be itching to learn this technique yourself.
Of course, having no plastic bags lying around your house is ideal. But even the strictest cloth bag carrying environmentalist probably has a few. By fusing them and making them sturdier, you can extend their life and make sure they stay out of the landfill for a longer period of time.
The technique is surprisingly VERY easy. Fusing the plastic bags doesn’t require any special equipment other than an iron and once you’ve fused the bags you have a cloth-like material that you can do pretty much anything with. If you’re struggling for ideas, you could use the fused plastic to make a drawstring bag such as the one we featured on Think Again last week.
For this project you will need:
1. Plastic bags
2. Scissors
3. Paper that is big enough to cover your plastic bags
4. Iron and ironing board
5. Ventilating fan
Seeing is believing, so the best way to learn this technique is with a video tutorial. Thankfully, Etsy has made a great one. Check out the clip below:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNziDXtm1SA[/youtube]
Got any ideas for what to do with your plastic bags once they’re fused? Please share in the comments section below.
Read about other Think Again projects::
Think Again: Strike Up a Matchbox Inspired Recycled Notebook
Think Again: What to Do With That Old Pair of Jeans
Think Again: Fill All Those Empty Glass Jars with Light
Author: Karen Chernick
Much to the disappointment of her Moroccan grandmother, Karen became a vegetarian at the age of seven because of a heartfelt respect for other forms of life. She also began her journey to understand her surroundings and her impact on the environment. She even starting an elementary school Ecology Club and an environmental newsletter in the 3rd grade. (The proceeds of the newsletter went to non-profit environmental organizations, of course.) She now studies in New York. Karen can be reached at karen (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
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