Plastic Bag Holder

My level of craft glee cannot be contained at this moment. Seriously. I know you're thinking, it's a bag and it stores plastic bags. But in reality, it's so much more than that. You see that down there?

That is my printer. Do you see what it is spitting out? My image directly onto fabric. No transfer paper, iron necessary. I am giddy over this. Thanks to Matsutake I learned the easiest way in the world to get an image off my computer and onto fabric. Click on over and discover it for yourself. It'll knock your socks off.

Now that I had an image I needed a project. For what seems like years I've been wanting to make a bag to stuff all our plastic bags in. Since moving here taming the plastic bag monster has become a real challenge since the daily paper is delivered in one. every. single. day. rain or shine.

I realize a vintage chair doesn't necessarily translate into "plastic bag holder that we will use to store all those dang newspaper bags that will then be used to dispose of stinky diapers" but I couldn't find an image that conveyed that. Not that I tried to find this image because I used the "try before you buy" vintage graphic from Olive Rue. You can download a clean, watermark free image to use on any project you like. This week it was this chair. However, I am so pleased with how well the graphic printed (right from my printer!) onto the fabric that I know I'll be searching out more images from her. Plus, now I can enter the DIY Club August Contest.

Quick Directions:

- Cut a piece of fabric approx 15.5 x 15.5

- If you are adding a design/applique to the bag, do it now.

- With right sides of bag together, stitch closed.

- Put elastic on the top and bottom, the bottom one being a bit tighter so the bags don't fall out when it is hung. I did this by ironing down about .5 inch and then stitching around the edge. Leave an opening to pull the elastic through. I attached a safety pin to my elastic and pulled it through the tunnel I had created. I knotted my elastic since it was cord elastic and not very thick. Stitch the opening closed.

- Turn right side out.

- Take a strip of fabric and make a hang tag (or use ribbon). I used fabric and folded my raw edges under and then stitched it closed.

- Attach hang tag at back seam.

A better tutorial will be posted next week. I just wanted to get this up for you.