Bag Ladies
Wow! God is so good! Second Baptist Church and the amazing "Bag Ladies" are in awe of the support and outpouring of love shown to this wonderful ministry! Thank you so much for your interest in the mission and hopefully the directions below will be of help in your journey of furthering God's Kingdom!
Get Started
We are so overwhelmed by the enormous amounts of people wanting to get involved, but at this time, we are not accepting anymore donations of plastic bags! Hundreds have contacted the church and "Bag Ladies" wanting to give, and soon we will be overrun by bags! Please take this time to look into starting your own program! Below are step by step directions to making mats! It's a great way to get involved and is so enjoyable for everyone!
Flatten bag
Fold in half lengthwise, then fold in half again lengthwise.
If using regular supermarket bags, cut guide strips 2.5” – 3” in width. For thicker bags cut guide strips 2”-2.5”.
For thinner bags, like dry cleaner uses, cut strips 3.5-4”
Strips used should be strong enough for crochet knot but not so thick to be bulky. Cut them long enough to fit across folded bag.
Cut off handles and bottom seam of bags. Recycle these. Using guides cut folded bag into strips.
Using a rotary cutter with old blades will be easier on hands than scissors. Tie rings of plastic into yarn; we call this PLARN!
1. Pick up two rings.
2. Loop one end through the other.
3. Loop end of the second ring through itself.
4. Pull till tight.
5. Repeat steps adding on to this first string.
6.Roll completed strips into a large ball.
Using a chain stitch make loops to form a chain that is approximately 36” long. Crochet loose rings with generous space between loops. Make one extra turning chain at end of mat.
Using your turning chain as the first stitch of the next row, skip the first loop and begin single crochet in second loop.
Continue this way until you have made a 6 ‘ length mat
Chant as crocheting to remember how to stitch: “Go through, pull through!”
1. Loop around, pull through
2. Crochet from front to back.
Problems that may occur:
Side seam is bumpy, not straight. Could be caused by using yarn that is too thick or by adding/ leaving out a stitch. Not too important how it looks as long as mat is useable.
Crochet 2 rows of single loops to make an 80” strip. Weave 2 ends together with scraps to form a circle.
Donate to groups that go out to feed homeless.
Mats will keep moisture away from body, create heat and be soft to sleep on.