This is by far the best response to use of plastic bags so far. I have seen the ideas propose for use of Plarn, but no techniques has inspired me as much as the one that you introduced. Thanks!!!
I found this videoed project to be a really good one. Anything you show us that is actually useful (and not just a toy) is really appreciated. What I loved about this one was that you could really turn all those plastic bags into any number of things by sewing them together, once they're 8-plyed, and it's artsy. Thanks for posting.
This is AWESOME!!! You've given me a great idea to make some waterproof lining for sleeping bags that will be distributed to the homeless! Thank you so much!!! You've solved my dilemma!
I really LOVE the idea of using a seat belt buckle, that is genius! Also with the idea of fusing plastic! I ride my bike to school because it's 3 miles, but I have a bike basket, so I'm going to skip out on the buckle.
I made this with my friend and I have to say, this is awesome!!We have made 1 bag, 2 wallets, and 1 coin purse!! Just make sure that you iron it for long enough and always but the bag inside out, whether it has ink or not, cuz it will stick to the wax paper if u dont
yup, it is really functional, AND waterproof! one plastic bag takes about 500 years to fall apart, and here we have 8 bags fused together, so it will last and last and last :D
I absolutely love this video and saved it and will try to get my Gal Pals interested in this project for our winter stay in Florida. I love recycling. Look in your local GoodWill stores or Salvation Army for other great recycling ideas.
Hey, just FYI, the wax melts and creates pits and bubbles in the plastic. It's better to use freezer paper which won't melt all over your project. ALSO, my iron doesn't come with a polyester setting so I keep it right on Rayon and it works fine. Also-also...it helps to start ironing from the middle and work your way outward every time you smooth over it. That's what works for us. This is a great family project. The handles you cut off make good handles for your new bag when you make it.
It's called "reuse" he's taking harmful plastic bags and creating a really useful bike bag, in doing so he was giving an idea of what to use for buckles. He used an old car seat belt buckle from a junkyard, but for most of us, a crappy little cheap backpack has buckles we can all find at a Good Will. The end product, a larger sturdier messenger bags out of trash bags and used buckles. That's GENIUS!
I'm wondering if I could take 4 bags and put them on top of each other to make the recommended 8 layers instead of folding a single bag, or do different plastics react differently with each other? I can't wait to get started on mine!
This a a great idea, and I have done this myself but I would keep in mind that people started making this durable material to reduce the amount of waste they were producing. Please keep in mind that going to Goodwill and purchasing a perfectly good backpack only to cut off the buckles and throw the rest out is not the best idea. Dumpster diving for the products you need is a better alternative.
SWEEEET!!! Finally something a pack rat like me likes, JUSTIFICATION for all the crap we save! Until an injury, I ride a bike for everything myself. I've been looking into pannier bags, but they're more than I really can afford, I may try this with some of the plans I've found for pannier bags online. Thanks!!!
I really needed a messenger bag the other day, and had to settle. I would like to make one of these. I just need to figure out a pattern and how to sew. I fail at sewing. I keep watching this video because Anda is adorable.
Wow I was wondering how i could melt them, didn't even consider iron with layers of wax paper! You guys rock! Have you tried sandwiching cheese cloth in the center to make a duct tape kinda of layer in the middle?
Really Cool Idea #2 OK, we have been trying for some time to put text and images on the plastic and my wife (Amanda) finally found an excellent solution. Simple iron-on t-shirt transfers work great! You can use an inkjet printer to transfer your image to the transfer paper and iron that image onto the plastic. You will need to let the iron-on cool more than normal after being applied, but it works great! Have Fun! Brad
I have a question, can the bag hold heavy stuff, perhaps books? I doubt it, but I sitll wonder. If not, can you add like a thicker coat of fabric and make the bag stronger?
im doing this right now without sewing, instead im fusing the plastic together were you would sew, its coming out pretty nice, i think im gonna spray paint it in the end though, a nice blue or black. cause its beige right now and looks kinda dumb. ill probably finnish it up next weekend.
hey bre prettes iv always been a fan of your videos its the end of the school year and my art teacher showed our class some of your videos than she said she was freinds with you so i though that was pretty cool
Fantastic. A great way to recyle your plastic bags. How do you come up with this stuff, great. In the wise words of the Joker "Where does he get those wonderful toys".
Wax paper is usually available at any Super Market. Check in the section (aisle) where they have trash bags, plastic wrap, plastic bags, aluminum foil, etc.
if u wanna test the strength try stacking 8 bags in one another an put ur foot inside an try pullin it apart, being fused with the iron should strengthen it considerably more
An unrelated question to your video, but I just wanted to ask it anyways. The guy wearing the plaid shirt, where did he get his shirt from? I've been searching for that kind of shirt for the longest time. Would be a big help. Thanks
I also agree that there is a -lot- of trial and error in iron settings. I tried the recommended setting and eventually ended up having it on the wool setting which is much higher.
keeravivian: The point is to heat the bags so the layers of plastic polymers fuse, fumes are produced during combustion of plastic which is not what you are trying to do. If the bags are burning or giving off fumes that means you aren't using wax paper layers or your iron is too hot.
There are [very few] that don't. Most household binliners don't, but most black bags do. Simple, if you use black bags, don't put food in there. Put anything else in there and its kept waterproof, odourless, and sanitary. Where as fabric bags cling on to to odours. But you're right about the food part, you shouldn't put food in them.
like the project, bit of a waste to get a perfectly good backpack from goodwill that some kid could use just to rip the buckles off of it. If you want buckles use old belts (my dad has a ton he never wears). if the strap part of the belt is too worn down, make a strap with plastic bags again and sow it onto an old belt buckle. don't forget to poke holes on the other end of the strap. This is also a good way to make your own belt if your pants are falling down.
either reduce heat or take more care on how long the iron remains in any one space. Also you probably don't need to press down too fimly on the material to make this work.
I certainly know about this. My ex-gf and I used to make women handbag out of Caprisun bags via the same method (they're thicker and more durable than the trash bag shown here). They were selling like hotcakes! But the good thing about our project is that it doesn't use new resources. We just drink the stuff and use it instead of sending it to the trash.
This is by far the best response to use of plastic bags so far. I have seen the ideas propose for use of Plarn, but no techniques has inspired me as much as the one that you introduced. Thanks!!!
I found this videoed project to be a really good one. Anything you show us that is actually useful (and not just a toy) is really appreciated. What I loved about this one was that you could really turn all those plastic bags into any number of things by sewing them together, once they're 8-plyed, and it's artsy. Thanks for posting.
This is AWESOME!!! You've given me a great idea to make some waterproof lining for sleeping bags that will be distributed to the homeless! Thank you so much!!! You've solved my dilemma!
I really LOVE the idea of using a seat belt buckle, that is genius!
Also with the idea of fusing plastic!
I ride my bike to school because it's 3 miles, but I have a bike basket, so I'm going to skip out on the buckle.
This is amazing! If I was competent with an iron--or sewing, for that matter--I would so do this!
This is such a great tutorial! I love the fused plastic, and your bag turned out great! Sweet you guys!
This is great. What an awesome way to do something with plastic bags instead of throwing them away! A+
I made this with my friend and I have to say, this is awesome!!We have made 1 bag, 2 wallets, and 1 coin purse!!
Just make sure that you iron it for long enough and always but the bag inside out, whether it has ink or not, cuz it will stick to the wax paper if u dont
wow, that was super nifty! :D
i never would have thought of it! and the buckle looked awesome
This is really cool. Why for Christmas I did this out of some trash bags i had and made a nice messenger bag for my brother! He loved it
oh yay! As a fibers major i can't wait to play around with this idea. Rocks. Hard. Thanx for it. :)
I love recycling upcycling. This is a great video!
this is one of the ways to protect environment by recycling plastic bags.
i loved the concept!
What a great new way to recycle! I love it. Thanks for sharing that!
I still can't believe I had this guy as a teacher one time and I never knew he had this other life.
yup, it is really functional, AND waterproof!
one plastic bag takes about 500 years to fall apart, and here we have 8 bags fused together, so it will last and last and last :D
Those bags are 10x awesome since their homemade 5/5 man your videos are cool.
I absolutely love this video and saved it and will try to get my Gal Pals interested in this project for our winter stay in Florida. I love recycling. Look in your local GoodWill stores or Salvation Army for other great recycling ideas.
this is such as cool video. i started on my first plastic bag project today...and it really does work!
loved it!!!!!!!!! can't wait to try it ;)
what a great way also to educate people on the importance of recycling! amazing. thank you!!!!!!
Hey, just FYI, the wax melts and creates pits and bubbles in the plastic. It's better to use freezer paper which won't melt all over your project.
ALSO, my iron doesn't come with a polyester setting so I keep it right on Rayon and it works fine.
Also-also...it helps to start ironing from the middle and work your way outward every time you smooth over it. That's what works for us. This is a great family project. The handles you cut off make good handles for your new bag when you make it.
It has the potential to look awesome. I know what you're saying - but I think if we are to be a free people we need to be resourceful like this.
It's called "reuse" he's taking harmful plastic bags and creating a really useful bike bag, in doing so he was giving an idea of what to use for buckles. He used an old car seat belt buckle from a junkyard, but for most of us, a crappy little cheap backpack has buckles we can all find at a Good Will. The end product, a larger sturdier messenger bags out of trash bags and used buckles. That's GENIUS!
Fusing plastic is an awesome idea. Good video.
Bre... You're the best at this.
wow! I didn't know you could fuse plastic bags- great idea!
I'm wondering if I could take 4 bags and put them on top of each other to make the recommended 8 layers instead of folding a single bag, or do different plastics react differently with each other?
I can't wait to get started on mine!
wow, that's pretty cool..love the idea of reusing and making things right at home..
My Darling Damsel, Makemagazine,
Your video is outstanding! E.Jean hopes to be as crafty as you one day.
Ravishing Regards,
E.Jean
This a a great idea, and I have done this myself but I would keep in mind that people started making this durable material to reduce the amount of waste they were producing. Please keep in mind that going to Goodwill and purchasing a perfectly good backpack only to cut off the buckles and throw the rest out is not the best idea. Dumpster diving for the products you need is a better alternative.
SWEEEET!!! Finally something a pack rat like me likes, JUSTIFICATION for all the crap we save! Until an injury, I ride a bike for everything myself. I've been looking into pannier bags, but they're more than I really can afford, I may try this with some of the plans I've found for pannier bags online. Thanks!!!
I really needed a messenger bag the other day, and had to settle. I would like to make one of these. I just need to figure out a pattern and how to sew. I fail at sewing.
I keep watching this video because Anda is adorable.
Wow I was wondering how i could melt them, didn't even consider iron with layers of wax paper! You guys rock!
Have you tried sandwiching cheese cloth in the center to make a duct tape kinda of layer in the middle?
Great idea, thanks so much! What kind of sewing machine are u using?
Really Cool Idea #2 OK, we have been trying for some time to put text and images on the plastic and my wife (Amanda) finally found an excellent solution. Simple iron-on t-shirt transfers work great! You can use an inkjet printer to transfer your image to the transfer paper and iron that image onto the plastic. You will need to let the iron-on cool more than normal after being applied, but it works great! Have Fun! Brad
I became excited just watching this! I just might create my own someday.
I have a question, can the bag hold heavy stuff, perhaps books? I doubt it, but I sitll wonder. If not, can you add like a thicker coat of fabric and make the bag stronger?
im doing this right now without sewing, instead im fusing the plastic together were you would sew, its coming out pretty nice, i think im gonna spray paint it in the end though, a nice blue or black. cause its beige right now and looks kinda dumb. ill probably finnish it up next weekend.
Can you also use bakingpaper to fuse the plastic together?
that's totally awesome!!! im soo impressed!!
gotta make one!!!
Are you kidding me?!?!? YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!! THANKS!
These videos are awesome!
bre! saw you at the powertools race and rally in seattle yesterday! woulda stopped but the petting zoo was just so mesmerizing... -a fan
hey bre prettes iv always been a fan of your videos its the end of the school year and my art teacher showed our class some of your videos than she said she was freinds with you so i though that was pretty cool
would you be able to use Bio-degradable carrier bags? Would they degrade over time even after melting them together?
rockin bag. no problem with the plastic fumes?
@twineno1 i think it was because there were like 5 buckles on the bag..and yea i kind of wanna make one.
Fantastic. A great way to recyle your plastic bags. How do you come up with this stuff, great. In the wise words of the Joker "Where does he get those wonderful toys".
@Brz111 2 possibilities. your iron is way too hot. or you havent let the plastic cool down a bit b4 peeling.
this idea is awsome :D, i tried doing a few but when i fuse 8 layers it has these wrinkles that dont come out, anytips?
LUV LUV LUV great idea never would have thought but I am definitly going to try
thats so cool! someone could start a company that people could donate plastic bags to and then the stuff thats made gets sold for charity!
What do you do with the wax paper afterwards?
Make TP?
@Lawknee did you remember to put the ink on the inside of the fold/
awesome. i have no wax paper, would greasproof paper work?
instead of using wax paper can you use plastic wrap or aluminum foil?
Nice, that was pretty good. Adding to favorites now.
That was totally awesome! I have to go and do that now..
great project! i will definitely try this one PS this is a great podcast.
Wax paper is usually available at any Super Market. Check in the section (aisle) where they have trash bags, plastic wrap, plastic bags, aluminum foil, etc.
if u wanna test the strength try stacking 8 bags in one another an put ur foot inside an try pullin it apart, being fused with the iron should strengthen it considerably more
Wow that rocks! Great idea, I'll try somethin with it, thanks!
dude, you are seriously amazing! i love your videos here. where can i get the pdf for the bag?
this was just really awesome!
An unrelated question to your video, but I just wanted to ask it anyways. The guy wearing the plaid shirt, where did he get his shirt from? I've been searching for that kind of shirt for the longest time. Would be a big help. Thanks
Webos, que buena idea, super ecologica y util, felicidades, muy buen aporte
So you didn't sew on a closure? Wont everything just fall out when your riding you bike if you hit a bump?
love these videos
i'm so interested in doing this!
thanks 4 the inspiration!
i'll try!
when you fuse it, the waxy side of the paper is on the inside, right?
is that very durable?
woah! definitely going to make one of these, super cool!
thanks this really helped because im a bike messenger in newyork and i doant have any money so to a a bag so i made on so thanks for the help!!
That is way cool. I"m going to try that this weekend.
When ever I try to melt them there is always one side that doesn't want to melt on..? Like there are air bubbles in there or something?
I also agree that there is a -lot- of trial and error in iron settings. I tried the recommended setting and eventually ended up having it on the wool setting which is much higher.
Loved it espcially your buckle
hi!.... what type of sewing machine would you recommend?... thanks.
That is genius! Thank you for sharing
Could you fuse the different strips together without having to sew them?
i'm gonna try this one out! (: looks awesome
keeravivian: The point is to heat the bags so the layers of plastic polymers fuse, fumes are produced during combustion of plastic which is not what you are trying to do. If the bags are burning or giving off fumes that means you aren't using wax paper layers or your iron is too hot.
There are [very few] that don't. Most household binliners don't, but most black bags do. Simple, if you use black bags, don't put food in there. Put anything else in there and its kept waterproof, odourless, and sanitary. Where as fabric bags cling on to to odours. But you're right about the food part, you shouldn't put food in them.
really cool! thanks for showing this!
This isn't a bad idea. How long would it last though?
Where to get wax paper? What is the actual uses of the wax paper? Cos I can't find them here in Singapore.
These folks have such intense insight into plastic... far beyond even my own insight into the sexual prowess of sheep. I am inspired.
I feel like I'm Treebeard and these two are Hobbits, constantly looking up at me.
Very cool project. Very cool site.
like the project, bit of a waste to get a perfectly good backpack from goodwill that some kid could use just to rip the buckles off of it. If you want buckles use old belts (my dad has a ton he never wears). if the strap part of the belt is too worn down, make a strap with plastic bags again and sow it onto an old belt buckle. don't forget to poke holes on the other end of the strap. This is also a good way to make your own belt if your pants are falling down.
Simply awesome!!!!
Okay, so I'm trying this out (except I'm making a dress) anyways, my plastic keeps melting and my wax paper keeps sticking to the plastic. Any tips?
super cool!!! i'm gonna try it now.. cool looking bag!! :)
i love , love this idea for reusing those nasty bags, too many ideas for the use of this idea
either reduce heat or take more care on how long the iron remains in any one space. Also you probably don't need to press down too fimly on the material to make this work.
Are there fumes emitted from ironing plastic?
Toxic no?
is there any subtistute for wax paper? i cant seem to get my hands on any
This is just totally awesome...
Is there a way to waterproof the bag?
I certainly know about this. My ex-gf and I used to make women handbag out of Caprisun bags via the same method (they're thicker and more durable than the trash bag shown here). They were selling like hotcakes! But the good thing about our project is that it doesn't use new resources. We just drink the stuff and use it instead of sending it to the trash.