Creating plaid using recycled plastic bags has been on my to-do list for quite some time. This last week I finally set out on what I call my plaid plarn project. I wanted to keep it simple and small as I found making a plaid design with recycled plastic bags very challenging. It was a trial and error project which needed to be tackled on a small item until I could prefect my process. Needless to say, I got a bit frustrated but finally came up with this little wallet as my finished product.

Crocheting the surface chaining is a bit challenging to get the stripes straight. I had to work a few stitches a bit off to get my vertical stripe to look somewhat straight. Below is my piece once I was finished. It’s not perfect but that is the beauty of working with recycled crafts, it doesn’t have to be perfect. You are creating something new from trash so there is always beauty is each finished product. Hope you enjoy this plaid plarn project and remember it doesn’t have to be perfect for you to enjoy your wallet.

Plaid Plarn Wallet Pattern

Materials needed:
One ball of white plastic bags cut into plarn about 3/4 inch wide
Small amount of salmon pink newspaper bags cut into plarn about 3/4 inch wide
Here is my link for plarn making tutorials for newspaper and retail plastic bags.
1) 1/2 inch button

Hooks:
J (6 mm) size metal crochet hook
H (5 mm) size metal crochet hook for button loop

Description: Plaid plastic wallet
Wallet measures 5 inches wide and 9-1/2 inches tall
with 2 inch long flap

Directions:
Using J hook with white plarn, Ch 17.

Row 1
Sc in the 2nd st from chain and in each st. (15 sts)

Row 2-5
Ch 1, turn and Sc in ea st. slip hook out st at end of row 5. Don’t FO white and leave st so you can come back to insert hook after pink row is completed.

Row 6
Don’t turn but attach pink plarn at beg of row on the same side as you just finished row 5. Sc in 1st st and in ea st down to end. FO pink plarn at end of row.

Row 7-11
Slip hook back into loop of st where row 5 ended. Ch 1, turn and Sc in ea st.

At the end of row 11, slip hook out st at end of row. Leave st so you can come back to insert hook after pink row is completed.

Row 12
Again don’tt turn but just attach pink plarn at beginning of row where you just finished. Sc in 1st st and in ea st down to end. FO pink plarn at end of row.

Repeat rows 7-12 three more times.

Next row With white plarn. Ch 1 and turn, work 4 rows of sc in each st with white. FO white plarn.

Last row Don’t turn but attach pink plarn at start of row. Work Sc in ea st down to end. FO pink.

Plaid vertical striping:
Measure across to run 2 lines of pink surface chaining along the top of right side of wallet. My stripes were about 1-1/4″ from the sides and about 2″ apart at the center of wallet. Measure and adjust your stripes so that they are evenly spaced on your wallet.

Attach pink plarn at lower edge of wallet where first stripe will start with sl st. Surface chain is worked on the RS of wallet by inserting the hook from the right side to wrong side into the next st, yarn over and draw up loop through st and repeat across to create a vertical stripe. FO at end.

Repeat other stripe working up from the bottom using pink plarn for your surface chain.

Button loop:
Using H hook, attach plarn for loop between the plaid stripes just inside pink st. Ch 4, attach with sl st to other side just inside pink st at front. Ch 1, turn and work 5 Sc around chain. FO with sl st back at beginning.

Fold over about 3-1/2″ for wallet sides. Check your flap to make sure the last pink row lies between the white rows so the stripes are all even at front of wallet. The last pink row is your flap front edge. Sl st up sides to close wallet sides.

Sew button on end under buttonhole loop.

If you have any questions or find discrepancies in this pattern, please email me using contact tab above.

Abbreviations:
Ch – Chain
Ea – Each
FO – Finish Off
Plarn – Plastic Bag Yarn
Rnd – Round
RS – Right Side
Sc – Single Crochet
Sl St – Slip Stitch
Sk – Skip
St – Stitch

This pattern is copyrighted by Cindy of My Recycled Bags {dot com} and may only be used for private individual use. No commercial sales or use of my patterns or photos are permitted. Links to this pattern are acceptable and appreciated. ©2011

****Please do not copy my patterns on your blog site or post my patterns on Internet sites. I do not allow my patterns to be republished without expressed written permission. Posting of my patterns, without written permission is in violation of my copyrights and is content theft.