Create: Potato Bags to the Rescue!

I hate throwing things away, as you can probably tell by now.  So I stopped using disposable sponges that you buy to clean dishes and such a long time ago.  But yet I needed something scratchy to clean my pans with.  I had learned about plarn (plastic yarn) and used it to make one scratchy.  But grease and things got into it and I couldn't get it out. 

Enter my potato bag.  I have developed a brand addiction to this one type of potato.  Can I tell you what it is?  Not really.  Only that it comes in red plastic mesh and is at Fareway.  I tried recently to get potatoes from another store in another type of bag, the plastic type with small holes in it.  I opened up the bag to get a potato a day later and half of them where moldy or getting there.  Being allergic to mold, I was not happy.  I never had any problem with the red mesh except for them growing when I left them alone for too long.

So I decided to cut one up and see if I could make plarn out of it. 

Do you see how the mesh is in rows?  I cut through one row, leave one row intact, and cut through another row.  Sometimes the bags are angled so that I can cut in one continuous line.  Other times, you have to tie the single rows together to form plarn. 

This can be used in any dish cloth pattern. I typically just use a single or double crochet square. 

I'm amazed at how long these last.  They work really well at getting grime off the pans.  It also works really well on soap scum.  When I moved, my mom was leery of using one, but once she used it, she was amazed.  She wants a couple now.  Not only do they work, but they don't scratch what you are cleaning, they leave no residue (once they've been used a couple times.  At first they may leave little bits of red mesh that were cut and trapped.  Easily cleanable.), and are easy on your hands.

I was nervous about sharing this with my mom because I thought she would think I was crazy on my recycling.   But I am proud that I did stand up and say to use these instead of buying disposable sponges.  Now she doesn't think I'm so crazy.

Have fun crafting!