Today, my little DIY is a storage solution for plastic bags. Now, before I jump into the tutorial, I want to say that I do indeed attempt to take my re-usable cloth shopping bags with me whenever I go shopping. But, and I hope I’m not alone here, there are times when I’m out and unexpectedly find myself making a purchase and I do not have my eco bags at hand. Over the years I’ve ended up with a lot of bags that I reuse for cat litter collection. Our city bylaws require that we double bag used cat litter so I still find myself using plastic bags for this purpose. I was feeling a little overrun with bags recently, and discovered this nifty method of folding bags into tidy little packages. Just a few easy steps, as outlined below.
1. Lay plastic bag out flat.
2. Fold bag in half lengthwise.
3. Fold in half lengthwise again.
4. Beginning at bottom of bag, fold into triangular shape.
5. Continue folding bag into triangles until you reach the top of the bag.
6. Fold the handles of the bag downwards in half.
7. Fold the handles in half again.
8. Tuck the folded handles of the bag into the triangle.
9. There you have it. A neatly folded bag that can be tucked into your purse, car glove box, even a pocket.
10. I may even keep some handy by the back door in this lovely little basket.
And below, a visual that shows just how much space you can save with this handy folding technique.
Pretty significant, yes?
Linking up with:
Jann of Have A Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson for Share Your Cup Thursday
Claire of ClaireJustineoxox
Val Sparkle says
That is a neat idea, if I can take the time to fold up some plastic bags!
Flo says
Pretty clever! I should do this, perhaps I will with any that come in to my door from now on. I'll just use up the mess in the meantime LOL
Shirl says
Excellent organizational tip. I love your thorough directions. Thanks for sharing.
Shirl
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
It goes pretty quickly I found.
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
That makes good sense Flo.
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
Thanks Shirl.
Megan says
Very cool! We keep all of our plastic bags for scooping the litter box, and this would be a great way to keep them tidy 🙂
DJAjewels says
Great idea … thanks for sharing!
Irene
dan says
I wonder if the cats appreciate your folding tecnique!
shopwithpippa.com says
Great idea Sue …. I hate what a mess all the bags make!
pippa
Renae at simple sequins says
OMyGosh! This is a hilarious post. I let out a huge laugh all the way through it. I thought what is this fashion blogger up to now with a dang diy. (ps. I don't do diy stuff hardly ever) so I was really cracking up with the photos of the cats being perplexed. Thank you Sue for the great idea and the great laugh! hahahahahahaha. And …and …glad you loved the turquoise sandals, too. They are wonderful, huh? ya.
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
Ha Ha. I like to think I am a half fashion blogger, not to be confused with a half-***ed fashion blogger. Yes, it makes for a random blog, but that's me! 🙂
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
Probably not, but anything new on the floor is considered of interest to them.
Silhouette de Femme says
I will have to show this post to my MIL as this is what she does when she visits!
p.s.
Alexandra found the Betsy Johnson dress on the “Staff Picks” rack as that is where she heads to when we enter the boutique….I go directly to the “Clearance” section lol
Denise
Anonymous says
I love this idea!
ella
Jann Olson says
Now who on earth was so clever to come up with this idea? I have been tying my bags in a loose knot and that really helps too. Your idea is much more creative! Thanks for sharing with SYC. Definately the cats meow! Hee-hee
hugs,
Jann
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
Ella, thanks for commenting!
Sue @ A Colourful Canvas says
Hey Jann, I felt a bit bad that I could not find the blog where I had seen this months ago. I do remember that it was someone that lived in Hawaii, the post was old, and the blog was retired. Mahalo to whoever you are. Yes, the cats meow for sure, like everything else that ends up on the floor.
Sue xo
Claire Justine says
Great idea they look so tidy too, off to try this with mine 🙂 Thanks for sharing with us at Creative Mondays and thanks so much for the lovely comment 🙂