How to Make Sewable Fabric Out of Plastic Bags

Upcycle plastic bags into sewable fabric to keep them out of the landfill.

You can recycle plastic bags into sewable fabric. Fuse plastic bags together with heat to make fabric to create a variety of items for home and personal use and keep bags out of landfills. Americans throw away 100 billion plastic bags each year, according to the Worldwatch Institute, an independent research organization based in Washington, D.C. Instead of sending bags to the landfill, make sewable fabric out of plastic bags for clothing and accessories, such as an apron, purse, rain hat or poncho. You can also make protective covers for outdoor items, such as a barbecue.

Things You'll Need

• Parchment paper
• Scissors
• Iron
• Ironing board

Instructions

1. Smooth out each bag on a flat surface and cut off the handles and bottom seam. Turn the bags inside out.

2. Stack six or more bags together with the logos or wording facing up on the top of the pile, if desired. Please note that a layer of plastic should cover the printed design to keep the ink from smearing. Use a minimum of six bags for thin fabric and add to the number for thicker fabric.

3. Cover the ironing board with parchment paper and place the stack of bags on top. Cover the bags with parchment paper.

4. Iron the parchment paper on medium-high. Move the iron slowly and evenly across the length and width of the fusing area. Flip the stack over so that the bottom piece of parchment paper is on top and iron the fusing areas on medium-high.

5. Let the bags cool and peel up a corner of the paper to check for complete fusing, as ironing time varies based on the number and thickness of the plastic bags. Re-iron the parchment paper covered bags on both sides to complete the fusing process, if necessary.

6. Peel the paper off both sides of the newly created sewable plastic bag fabric.

Tips & Warnings

• Experiment with heat settings and timing to determine what works best with your iron.

• Overlap and fuse together pieces of plastic bag fabric to create larger pieces.

• Make a reusable shopping bag with sewable plastic bag fabric.

• To protect your iron and ironing board, make sure that no plastic extends outside the edges of the parchment paper.

• Melted plastic is hot and may burn you. Do not peel away the paper until the fabric has cooled.

References

• Worldwatch Institute: Plastic Bags
• Leisure Arts Free Projects: Fused Recycled Bag Tote

Resources

• CraftStylish: Bags to Riches
• CraftStylish: City Bag “Fused Plastic”