Stucco and Tote Bags

I started this new idea today.......... I saw a tote made out of plastic grocery bags quite about 8 weeks ago and tucked the idea away until today! After struggling all day yesterday to salvage an old warp that came with my loom I got it untangled and on the loom. I have been cutting up the bags for a few weeks so I was ready to weave them today. ( I even 'clepped a few from Caleb's and Marsel's when I was nursemaid at their homes. I really miss the pretty blue ones from WalMart but did find one at my daughter's and a nice blue one from FinishLine that Caleb contributed!) The weaving rhythm was a bit different with the plastic 'fiber' but I caught on after a bit. I was able to weave two tote bags on this one warp. Since it takes as long to warp as it does to do the actual weaving you can see the sense in this! And yes, that line in the fabric-it is where I put two warp threads through one slot in the reed but I didn't see it until I was ready to weave and since it was in the middle I could not fix it unless I redid 60+ heddles........and that was not going to happen. Trust me, it is a design feature! The orange comes from the PennySaver that is tossed on the end of our driveway each week, the green is from the produce at our grocery store, the yellow is from SaveALot, white from the new ones at WalMart, the light blue is from the Chilren's Place store..........fun to see the different ones-kind of like finding fabric you recognize in Grandma's quilt!

I ended up with these two pieces of fabric..........

and sewed them into these two tote bags! After sewing the first one with the fringe on the inside, I decided to let it show on the second and really like the way it looks. The bags are really softer than you would think and yet hold their shape nicely! Success! I have one more rescue warp that I will use to make another two bags! As I began the weaving (cleaning, cooking and etc) the stucco men began their work, too. They nailed up screen over black plastic and so entombed the whole new construction of our home! They work quickly and efficiently and have most of the house prepped like this by this evening.