Christmas made a serious dint in my supply of the large drawstring bags I use in place of wrapping paper. I still had a good supply of small bags but decided I needed to make more medium and large bags. My whole family uses and recycles these bags so I like to keep the supply going - and the making of them is, for me, enjoyable, even therapeutic.
In the past I have purchased vintage sari and kimono pieces for these bags. This time I unpicked a kimono jacket given to me by my daughter. It took a bit of unpicking as it turned out to be made from a huge length of obi-width fabric, folded and tacked ingeniously - as kimonos usually are. Regretably, I didn't take photos of the unpicking and ingenious folds.
The jacket was fully lined. In some cases I used the lining as a lining for a bag. In other cases I made a bag of the lining and a bag of the outer layer.
It made 23 bags of very varied size, from very small to fairly large. I like to let the fabric dictate the shape and size. Flaws and holes get incorporated. I kept as much of the original hand-stitching as I could. Much of it was stitched using two rows of running stitch.
After stitching the bags, I spent a relaxing evening finding matching ribbon or drawstrings of various cords, such as shoelaces. A further hour or so was spent finding stoppers for the cords, using the remains of old earrings, buttons or, in some cases, knots.
I could have done with some more red ribbon, but made do with the strong pink I had at hand.
I really love recycling!
2 comments:
The bags themselves are a lovely gift especially with the beautiful fabric you used.
Thanks Lyn. It’s a practical way to play with lovely fabric!
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