Patterns: Totes
Tote bags, market bags, beach bags and messenger bags made to carry real loads, most of them crocheted from plastic grocery bags (plarn) and some from denim or yarn.
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This week I present a dual handled plarn tote bag. A reader recently asked if I had a free pattern for not only a shoulder strap but also a bag with handles to grip with your hands. So I got busy and crocheted this tote bag for her. It’s like the best of both worlds — You can throw this jumbo tote bag over your shoulder or grasp it by the smaller handles.
This is another over-sized tote bag project that is similar to my jumbo plarn beach bag which features one long shoulder strap that has a pull through front closure. I think this tote bag would make an excellent farmer’s market bag as you have so much room inside and the two different ways to carry it around.
So whether you want one long strap or dual handles on your plarn tote bag, you can mix and match these two free crochet patterns that I am posting at my blog. Best wishes and happy crafting to all!
Free Jumbo Dual Handled Tote Bag Pattern
Materials needed:
One very large ball of plastic bag yarn Plarn
Approx. 80 white plastic grocery bags for main bag and
16 orange plastic bags for stripes
Hook: N (9 mm) U.S. size metal hook
Description: Dual Handled Plarn Tote Bag
Bag measures 16 inches wide and 20 inches long with 30 inch shoulder strap and 9 inch handles
Directions:
Ch 34
I’ve had this idea in my head for awhile on how to create a tote bag that fades from black to white using recycled plastic bags or plarn. Here is what I came up with. I used recycled black plastic bags to start and then grey bags to the dirty-white colored bags and ended with white plastic bags.
I used the ultimate plarn tote bag pattern to crochet the bag with just some minor changes. On round 3 at the curve of the ends, I crocheted 2 Half Double Crochets (Hdc) in the first stitch at the curve. Then I worked just 1 Hdc in next stitch and 2 Hdc in the stitch at the other part of the curve. Repeat for the other side’s end.
For round 4 curve, you want to identify the 4 stitches on the curve of each end. Crochet 2 Hdc in the first stitch, then 1 Hdc in each of the next 2 stitches and 2 Hdc in the next stitch. Repeat for the other end. This should give you a nice rounded corner on each side of your bag.
Now follow the original pattern directions, changing colors as follows:
I love felting and here is my latest crocheted tote bag. It is crocheted with 100% wool yarn and then felted on the hottest setting in my washer for about 18 minutes. It really sunk from the original size before felting which was 17″ wide x 18″ long to the finished size of 11″ wide x 12″ long. I added a felted flower to the flap along with a magnetic closure.
Click to super-size any of these photos
Closeup of the tote bottom
Here is a photo of the wide bottom of my tote bag. By adding the increase stitches as you crochet the beginning of bag, the bottom is able to extend and have a flatter surface. After you felt the bag, make sure to form the bottom so it dries in the correct shape so that your tote bag can stand up on the flat bottom. Enjoy the free pattern!
Felted Flower Tote Bag Pattern
Materials needed:
8 ozs Lion Brand Dark Teal 100% Wool Yarn (3 oz skeins)
1.7 ozs Caron Variegated Adobe 100% Wool Yarn
1 Magnetic button closure
Hook: H (5 mm) U.S. size metal hook
Description: Felted Blue Striped Tote Bag with Flower Closure
After felting bag measures 11 inches wide and 12 inches long with 27 inch straps
Directions:
Ch 55
It’s a Flower Power Plarn Tote Bag!
As I have stated before, white plastic bags are about all I can get on a consistent basis so here is my latest idea to bring more color and charm to my recycled tote bags. I added several colorful flowers that have been crocheted from recycled plastic bags. Since each flower takes only about one plastic bag, it is easy to add some bright and pretty flowers to a otherwise plain tote bag. To view the finished details of the above tote, just click on the photo to supersize it. I also added some ribbon and a bow tie at the center front of my recycled tote to complete the project.
Below you will find another addition to my library of plarn patterns that I offer here free. Here is the link to see a complete list of all my free patterns.
Free Crocheted Flower Power Tote Bag Pattern
Materials needed:
One large ball of plastic bag yarn aka Plarn approx. 40-45 bags
A few plastic bags of several different colors for flowers
Small amount of ribbon for bow tie if desired
Hooks:
Q USA size plastic hook
N USA size metal hook for handles and J hook for flowers
Description: Large Plarn Tote Bag
Bag measures 13 inches wide and 14 inches long
Directions:
Using Q hook, Ch 20.
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, here is a cute recycled plastic Valentine’s heart bag that you can crochet. It’s made from recycled plastic grocery bags into a handy bag that can hold Valentine cards. When I designed this recycled bag, I had a little girl in mind and thought she could use it to take all her Valentines to school in.
It would also make a cute gift bag for Valentine’s Day. You could fill it with candy and a card and give it to your favorite Valentine. A bonus of course is that this plarn bag could be used as a little purse all year long.
Here is the free crochet pattern so you too can create this fun little Valentine’s Day heart bag!
Free Pattern for Crocheted Valentine Heart Bag
Materials needed: One ball of plastic bag yarn aka Plarn
(Approx. 12 plastic grocery bags)
2 yards of red fun fur yarn
Small scrap piece of red felt
Red thread for sewing on heart
Hook: J (6 mm) size metal crochet hook
Description: Plastic Valentine’s Bag
Bag measures 7 inches wide and 6-1/2 inches long
Directions:
Ch 20
Crochet yourself a plastic bag “plarn” recycled tote bag! This bag is crocheted using recycled plastic grocery bags and one roll of fun fur I purchased from the dollar store. Total cost of the project is $1.00. You can’t beat this project as it’s frugal and eco-friendly. As more and more people are going green, crafting with recycled materials is growing in popularity. With the holiday season growing near, consider green crafting as a wonderful alternative this year.
As always, below you will find the free pattern for your personal use.
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Free Pattern for Crocheted Plarn Fun Fur Tote Bag
Materials needed:
One large ball of plastic bag yarn aka Plarn (approx. 50-60 bags)
One 50 gm ball of Fun Fur (Pastels shown)
Hook: N size U. S. metal hook
Description: Tote Bag
Bag measures 12 inches wide and 12 inches long with 10 inch handles
Directions:
Ch 27 with just white plarn alone.
I shared in a recent post about weaving the strap handle for this recycled tote bag. I made the strap using a spool knitter and variegated the plastic bag strips with grey and pink loops to form the woven strap. Then I crocheted the body of the bag using an open netting type stitch for the project. Here is the completed recycled tote bag.
Here is a closeup of the strap and top edge of the bag.
Below you will find the complete pattern to crochet the recycled tote bag. I hope you enjoy the pattern and don’t hesitate to contact me should you have any questions as you work this pattern or any of my other free patterns.
Grey and Pink Recycled Plastic Tote Bag Pattern
Materials:
Plastic bags cut into 1 inch strips – approx. 30+ bags
Hook: Metal J (6 mm) crochet hook
Description:
Recycled Plastic Tote bag: 10 inches by 12-1/2 inches long with 25 inches strap
All crochet directions are in US terms.
Round 1
With grey plarn, Ch 30, Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in ea st and then working around the backside of chain, Sc in ea st along the other side of original chain.
Japanese Knot Bags are very handy and feature two handles. One handle is shorter than the other so you can pull the longer handle through the shorter as a quick and unique closure for the bag. I thought a Japanese Knot would be a cool idea for a recycled tote bag.
I used mainly recycled grey Walmart plastic bags to crochet the tote bag with 4 blue plastic bags for the stripe. It took about 50 plastic bags cut 1 inch wide and made into plarn (plastic bag yarn) to crochet my Japanese knot tote bag. I loved how the blue really helped set off the bag to give it a nice look to an otherwise boring grey bag. Overall I am very happy with the results of my latest crocheted reusable bag.
Here is a closeup of the top with the Japanese knot used for the plastic bag tote closure.
As always, here is the free crochet pattern so everyone can crochet their own recycled Japanese knot tote bag.
Japanese Knot Plarn Tote Pattern
Hook: N (9mm) size metal crochet hook
All directions are in US crochet terms.
Description:
Bag measures 14″ wide flat across the front, 12″ tall, 9-1/2″ round bottom with one handle 10″ long and the other 15″ long.
Directions:
Ch 3 and join with a Sl St to form a ring.
I present the jumbo plarn beach bag. This is the largest recycled plastic bag that I have ever crocheted. It measures 16 inches wide by 20 inches tall. It features a 30 inch long strap that you pull through the front opening to secure your beach bag closed. Then because the strap is long, you can throw it over your shoulder and off you can go.
So if you need a jumbo beach bag or maybe you want an extra large grocery tote, this plastic bag pattern will definitely fill your needs. It also allows you to use several different colors of recycled plastic bags for the stripes. The colorful stripes add a nice touch to the otherwise plain white bags that are so abundant.
Free Jumbo Plarn Beach Bag Pattern
Materials needed:
One very large ball of plastic bag yarn or Plarn
Approx. 80 white plastic grocery bags for main bag
15 grey and 8 pink plastic bags for stripes
Hook: N (9 mm) U.S. size metal hook
Description: Jumbo Plarn Beach Bag
Bag measures 16 inches wide and 20 inches long with 30 inch strap
Directions:
Ch 34
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