Green Bags

Tired of bringing home all those plastic bags every time I went to the grocery store, I decided to make my own green grocery bag. It really is green, and I made it with 100 percent cotton thread that was actually grown in this country.
With a size H/8, 5.oo MM crochet hook, I chained 45 and worked several rounds in single crochet to form the base of my bag.
I added two rows of pink as I worked the rows of single crochet for a splash of contrast.

Once the base of the bag was finished, I started working a series of chain-5 mesh rows.

Thinking ahead to those big heads of leaf lettuce I love to buy at the market in the summer, I wanted a fairly deep bag so continued working the rows of mesh until that section was about 12" deep.

Next I worked several rows of single crochet to give stability to the top of the bag, again adding in a couple of rows of pink for contrast.

I wanted a sturdy strap that was long enough to wear over my shoulder when carrying groceries, so attached the main-color to the center of the bag top and worked 12 single crochet stitches. Continuing to work in single crochet back and forth, I chained one extra stitch each time I turned my work until the strap was 36 inches in length.

Once the strap was long enough, I joined it to the center of the other side of the bag by single crochet.

With the contrasting color, I worked one row of single crochet as edging around the top of the bag and on both sides of the carrying strap.

To test out my bag, I went to the store and did my shopping!

And now, so it hangs, ready to shop again!

You, too, can help save our environment by getting some green shopping bags of your own!