Make your own Recycled Shopping Bag

Did you know that in Britain we use 150 million plastic carrier bags every week? Just think about how many your family and friends use in a week.

Plastic bags take 500 years to rot away in landfills and go back to the earth, so we all need to find something to replace them with.

Now is the time to stop using plastic carrier bags and to make your own because:

• Plastic bags break easily with lots of shopping
  
• Plastic bag handles hurt your hands when carrying them
  
• Plastic cannot be recycled and is there forever piling up.

By making your own shopping bag you will:

• By reusing old material
  
• Not be throwing it away every week
  
• Have a better stronger bag that can be reused, then recycled

You will need an adult to help you sew, plus a sewing needle and some thick thread (be careful with sharp needles)

• You will need two big rectangles of tough fabric (around 40 centimetres by 30 centimetres) for the bag and two smaller rectangle pieces (around 15 centimetres by 10 centimetres) to make the handles.
  
• With the help of an adult, fold over the edges of the two large rectangle pieces.
  
• Then put pins in the places where you want it to stay.
  
• You then need to sew it together, leaving one of the smaller sides open for the top opening of the bag.
  
• Take the handle fabric and on one of the longer sides, cut a smaller rectangle out of the material big enough to fit your hand.
  
• Do this again to make the second handle.
  
• Pin the fabric in place and sew the handles to the bag.
  
• You have now completed your new recycled shopping bag.
  
• Take your new bag to the shops, and show everyone plastic bags are old news.