Recycled Reusable Shopping Bag

So yeah, I made my Dad a Christmas gift out of trash :o)

I made him a reusable shopping bag out of recycled plastic shopping bags.

 First, gather as many plastic shopping bags as you can!  I used all white ones for my project.  You will also need parchment paper, webbing for the handles, and a sewing machine.

Cut your bags apart so you have long plastic sheets like this.

Next, gather 8 layers of plastic and place them between two sheets of parchment paper. 

Then, iron them.  This step is tricky.  You need to iron quickly to avoid lots of holes.  A few holes are ok... they add to the character of the bag :o)  I set my iron to the cotton setting.  Check frequently to make sure your bags are fusing together.  Also, flip the bags and iron the back side.

You end up with melty plastic "fabric".

Then, I cut the "fabric" into 5"x5" squares.  You will need 24 squares.  I also cut a 5"x15" rectangle for the base of the bag.

I randomly sewed three squares together so I had eight strips.

Next, I sewed three strips together (twice) to make the front and back of the bag.

You should now have two 15"x15" sides, two 5"x15" sides, and one 5"x15" bottom.

Pin your webbing handles into place.

Sew down each side of the webbing to add stability.

Pin and sew the sides to the front of the bag.

Pin and sew the sides to the back of the bag.

Pin and sew the bottom of the bag.  Make sure to tuck the edges of the webbing under.

There you have it!  I'm not gonna lie... This project is pretty time consuming, a little frustrating, and makes a HUGE mess.  Just a warning :o)  BUT, in the end, you have a super cute reusable bag to show for it!  Mom suggested making one out of all brown bags... I think I might have to try that!

I'm linking this project to all of my usual linky parties!