Bags

Recycle, reuse, repurpose .....words to live by?
Well, when you grow up the way I did, it was a way of life. Clothes were handed down or when they became tattered or torn, they became something else. Treasured pieces of a quilt perhaps? Old tires became supports for tomatoes. Cleaning out the corrals or the chicken house insured fertilizer for the gardens and lawns. String from flour sacks was wrapped into balls to be used later for other things. Yarn in old sweaters was ripped out and reused in afghans etc. A few years ago, friends brought back from the west coast some almonds and walnuts to be shelled and they were in a canvas-type bag. I could not bring myself to throw the dirty, stained bag away. It was sturdy with no rips or tears. So I washed it, packed it away and have hauled it around with my other "valuables". I use these kinds of bags for my quilting or groceries or needlework so I decided to take the bag and re-work it. There are still a few stains here and there, but I love the graphic! On one side is a velcro closed water bottle pocket and on the front, a pocket for my cell phone or billfold when I go shopping.
The other bag is leftover crazy square pieces with various examples of "practice" needle work, and ribbon work. The handles on this piece, unlike the feed sack are stitched from one side to the other rather than both being stitched on the same side. Not as easy to access, but a little more secure perhaps. Either way, they are both large bags with flat bottoms, reinforced with a flat piece of lightweight hardboard.

"Opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss." ~ Andy Rooney