no more plastic bag, thank you!

Now that I'm a newly "stayathome" woman, and especially that kind whose feels bored watching tv or doing housekeeping, I decide to find every morning a chance to have a walk. My neighbourhood doesn't offer so much, so if I can't take the bus and reach the city center, I simply come out just to buy milk and bread for the day. This means that daily I receive a small plastic bag just to bring two little packages home. I hate plastic bags, and I hate myself because of I always forget to carry on an older one in my handbag. So in a sunny and muggy afternoon, while I was reading this post from the purl bee I discovered this lace pattern right to be used in a nest bag: it's so simply and fast to knit that I've immediately tryed to make my personal "no more plastic bag".

My personal pattern is extremely easy, I used one and a half skein of a natural cotton (remainder from an older project) and a pair of 4.5 mm needles + 3 mm. double pointed needles.

I just casted on 41 stitches and worked in lace pattern until I reached the length desired (mine is 60 cm. circa), then I binded off.

I folded the knitted rectangle up in the middle and sewed each side leaving a 5 cm. opening near the edge.

I knitted two i-cord (mine were 6 stiches wide) 45 cm. long and I sewed them as circular handle to each top of the bag.

This pattern doesn't need particular materials: you can choose every size of needles or every kind of strand you want. If you'd like to have a bigger nest you can simply use a pair of bigger needles, if you'd like to have a smaller size of bag, just cast on and work a less number of stiches and rows. There's no need to gauge or a particular instruction to follow, just your creativity. I found it a good chance to use all the single skein lying alone in the stash basket and a lovely present for everyone (my niece wants a wee one to play as greengrocer).