Tough Fabric for Grocery Bags?

Posted by FarmI on January 1, 2009, 11:22 pm

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I was absolutely gobbsmacked to see that the Target site says that it's bags
were created in response to Californian laws and the "reusable shopping bags
have just begun to appear in Target stores on the east coast".

It's the 'just begun' bit that stopped me in my tracks given that these
reusable bags are everywhere in Australia and have been for at least a
decade. All grocer shops have them and they have become almost as prolific
as plastic bags to the extent that most people I know would now be lost
without them.

Each of our cars has at least 10 of them stuffed in the pockets behind the
front seats and it's automatic to drag them out and take them into the
grocery store each time you do a shop.

But I digress. Polypropylene is what you need. I've yet to have any of my
bags wear out and that includes the light weight polyprylene which is what
the Target bags look like it's made from in the cite you provided. I have a
hot pink one designed to hold 6 bottles made out of that light weight stuff
and it's still tough even after carrying bottles for years. (And before you
ask, not booze but bottles of sauce/vinegar etc :-))))

This site shows some variations which might spark some design ideas. I keep
one that zips into a pocket in my handbag and it's extremely handy:
http://www.nonwovenbagsdirect.com.au/?gclid=COvwy8r87pcCFU0upAod2HuVDA

Posted by on January 2, 2009, 12:13 am

I feed seven people every day, and make two lunches, one morning, one
for my daughter who is a nurse working night shift. So we need a lot
of shopping bags. We use fabric shopping bags, and depending where we
bought them, the materials are different. The polypropeline ones are
tough; the canvas ones are fine, and we even have some from a thrift
store made of sheet plastic that are as tough as the fabric ones, and
we've had them for a couple of years. If I were to make them, I'd
probably go with canvas or poplin because it's easy to find, I can use
my one and only sewing machine to sew them. But they're so cheap I
haven't bothered to make them.

Teri

Posted by Joy Beeson on January 2, 2009, 7:56 am

wrote:

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It's only in Target that they are just beginning -- I bought my canvas
bags at a grocery store near Albany, New York, which is pretty close
to the east coast, over ten years ago.

The cheaper non-woven bags are more recent, but I haven't bought any
because I like to run my food bags through hot water and bleach now
and again, and I suspect that something with cardboard in the bottom
isn't machine washable.

Joy Beeson
--
joy beeson at comcast dot net
http://roughsewing.home.comcast.net/ -- sewing
http://n3f.home.comcast.net/ -- Writers' Exchange
The above message is a Usenet post.
I don't recall having given anyone permission to use it on a Web site.

Posted by Olwyn.Mary on January 2, 2009, 8:00 am

Joy Beeson wrote:
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For many years now I have been using the "free" canvas tote bags you get
when you make a donation to a good cause. Most of them live in the back
of my car, and a few in the coat closet, ready for instant use, and
every so often I run them through the washer and dryer.

I am so glad others are catching up to me now, since a lot of grocery
store checkers were extremely resentful about packing cloth bags rather
than plastic. They didn't like packing paper ones, either.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.

Posted by Sunny on January 2, 2009, 9:46 am

Thanks everybody!

I'm hoping to work out some construction designs of my own, and I very
much appreciate the tips for making different totes and for styles
that have worked.

Special thanks to those who recommended specific fabrics and websites
where I can find them. I am going to investigate further: supplex,
cordura, and polypropelene to figure out what's the optimal
combination of durability, "greenness", and wallet-friendliness. :)

I was impressed by quantity of responses, and that so many out there
already make there own! (And it sounds like Australia and the UK may
be well ahead of some of us here in the US, or at least Target stores
and me here in FL!) Many of you may already know about this, but for
those who don't, here's a organization that encourages people to make
their own bags - and to make bags to give away to passersby at the
grocery store - to spread the trend!
http://www.morsbags.com/

Thanks again everyone!
-Susan

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