Want to use less plastic? Feel guilty about plastic produce bags?

Here’s a quick and easy tutorial for how to reduce your plastic consumption a bit.

All you’ll need is…

Supplies:

  • Empty bag from oranges, lemons, avocados, etc.
  • Ribbon/twine/string of some sort
  • Scissors
For this tutorial, I used an empty orange bag. Yes, I know it is still made out of plastic, but this is the only form my grocery store sells clementines in and I love them so I wind up with these bags. Now instead of throwing them away, I can use them to reduce the plastic produce bags I would use at the store.
1. Remove any labels from bag and expand opening if needed by cutting the mesh to create a relatively even opening.
2. Cut a piece of string/twine/ribbon so it is about twice as wide as the bag. The string should be able to go all the way around the opening with a little extra to tie a knot to secure.
3. To create a secure edge, I folded a strip of the mesh over, then weaved the string back and forth through both layers all the way around the opening of the bag. I had the bag inside out when doing this to make it easier to control where the lose edge of the mesh was.
Here’s a closeup to show the twine going through both layers of the mesh.
4. Once the twine is woven all the way around, you can turn the bag right side out (if you had it inside out to weave), making sure the ends of the twine point outward.
5. Position the bag to as large as you’d like it to open, then tie the two strings together in a thick knot to keep the bag secure.
6. When you go to the store, you can place your produce in the bag then tighten the string to pull it shut. To open, simply pull at the opening and retrieve your delicious food.