Who doesn’t have a drawer-closet-basket chock full of plastic bags just screaming to be recycled and upcycled? Why not combine your plastic bag stash with a community service project to benefit local shelters and the homeless in your area? This is a wonderful project where children and adults of all ages can combine their creativity, talents and labor to provide sleeping mats for individuals and organizations in need to weather the elements all by using plastic yarn made from plastic bags.
Recycle! Reuse! Gather The Plastic Bags
A word of forewarning when putting out the call to action for collecting plastic bags – be prepared for an avalanche of plastic bags. This is a great way to involve your local church group, knitting or crochet group, youth group or scout organization with collecting and sorting the bags. Tips and tricks to hold a plastic drive – plarn drive are available here.
Choose a collection day and drop off location. Have your volunteers ready to sort the bags and prepare the bags to make the plarn as sorting the bags from the beginning will save time later. But wait – plarn? What’s plarn?
How To Make Plarn For A Plarn Project
Plarn is the ‘yarn’ also called plastic yarn that you will use to knit or crochet the plastic mat. Plarn is constructed from the plastic bags and will be used just as one would use yarn in knitting or crocheting. We will go through the steps below to make plarn and then the knitting and crocheting will begin. The gathering and sorting of the bags and making the plarn are perfect projects to involve children in the community service project.
How To Make A Sleeping Mat With Plastic Yarn “Plarn”
I have made a quick tutorial on How to Make Plarn with the step by step directions. It really is easy once you make a few strands!
How To Make Plarn
I’ve also included free plarn projects in my DIY Plarn post which is a very nice resource for eco friendly crafters. Plastic yarn can be used to crochet shopping bags very easily. The basic instructions are above and can be modified to the desired size of bag. You are now ready to begin knitting or crocheting your plarn mat.
Materials To Make A Sleep Mat From Plastic Bags
Plastic bags (500-700 grocery bags)
Knitting needles (size 10 or higher) or crochet needles (O or P recommended)
Scissors
The goal is a 3′ by 6′ size plastic yarn mat. Knitters and crocheters will use their experience to test the gauge which will determine the number of plarn stitches necessary for a 3′ by 6′ mat. I used size 10.5 knitting needles with a gauge of 3.5 stitches per inch, but I am a very loose knitter.
Knit Or Crochet A Test Gauge With Plastic Yarn
Make a swatch to test your gauge to determine the number of stitches. A 3′ by 6′ marks standard size, minimum length is 5′. The thickness of the bag can slightly alter the gauge. I found thinner plastic bags such as ordinary grocery store bags (or my favorite Kroger bags!) were the easiest to knit; plarn looks thin, but actually knits or crochets like bulky yarn.
Tip: Plarn can have a tendency to be sticky on the needle, I found bamboo knitting needles were the easiest to work with plarn. Some plarners report rubbing the needles with wax paper helps the plarn glide easily over the needles. I have tired a few different types of needles from my needle stash and definitely prefer large gauge bamboo needles.
Bamboo knitting needles are inexpensive compared to steel or aluminum needles. The bamboo needles can be purchased in packs with different sizes. If you are unsure of the needle size, the bundle packs have needles up to size 15 which gives alot of latitude to find the needles which suit your gauge and the plarn. The minimum size of knitting needle used is usually 10.
Tip 2: The writing on the plastic bags may transfer to your needles; while this does not matter for the project, but just to be safe I wouldn’t use your favorite go to needles or crochet hooks on this project.
Let the knitting and crocheting begin! As with any new project once you are acclimated to the plarn, the stitches will begin to fly faster after those first few rows. Anything goes with plarn – it is quite flexible and forgiving – if a piece breaks simply tie it back together with a knot and continue where you left off.
Optional Carrying Strap
Depending upon the needs of the organization where you are donating the mats, an optional carrying strap can be included. Check with the organization first to determine their needs for the population they serve; many shelters like to have a few mats in their inventory particularly with cold weather approaching in the north.
The carrying strap is simply a few stitches wide and long enough for a person to carry the rolled up mat cross body or over the shoulder. Roll the mat like a tube, attach one end of the strap and test the length of the mat on a volunteer to gauge the length needed before attaching the second end. Yoga mat straps also make a very practical and useful carrying strap.
Eco Friendly Knit And Crochet Projects
I really enjoyed using plarn for knit and crochet projects which peeked my interest in other eco friendly knit and crochet projects. Amazon has a great selection of books for eco friendly projects. Check them out – sustainability is a good good idea indeed!
Kathy says
Unbelievable!!! What a wonderful idea
Martha DeMeo says
What a wonderful and creative idea for the homeless!!! I’m going to look into this.
tab says
Using plarn for the sleeping mats is very easy to knit or crochet a mat but as with any knit or crochet project it is a “project” 🙂
K. Hamilton says
Does it take 600 bags per mat?
tab says
I found 500-600 per mat with a regular size grocery bag… less if bigger bags are used, but I’d count on a minimum of 500.
Norm Harakas says
How can I get a knitting pdf pattern. I am very interested in making these, but I don’t crochet.
tab says
For knitting the mat, you can knit a swatch to calculate the gauge and then calculate the number of stitches to size desired. Plarn is slightly different so I suggest a swatch to get a feel for the size of needles which works well with plarn and if one knits loosely or tightly.
Angela says
I have recently decided to participate in this in my local community and let me tell you, I am so excited!! I have yet to start actually crocheting but I have collected a few bags and have made about 3 good size plarn balls. I am interested to see how long it will take me to make one because I am a part time student/full time worker/mother! Even with my plate as full as it is, I am just trying to show my children that no matter what you have going on in life, it is so important to give back to the community. Thank you all so much for everything you guys do!
tab says
That is wonderful! What an inspiring attitude – and thank you for your community outreach! Once you start crocheting – the beginning few rows take a little more time due to the consistency of the plarn – but then it flies along. 🙂
carol george says
Do you crochet a piece to tie around the roll?
tab says
You can if desired. Some volunteers use a yoga mat strap/ carrying sling in lieu of making a crochet strap.
Reneemarie Preston says
Where can we donate the mat we make.
Rene’emarie Hauck-Preston
tab says
I suggest contacting local shelters and non profits – those are usually the avenues for distribution.
John says
Are you still making the homeless sleeping mats?
Out city has placed 4×4 boards front to back on the park benches where the homeless sleep to stop them. They need something to sleep on.
If you have any made they really need them. I am too old to make them but could get them to the folks.
I just want to help them out, not through them out 🙁
Kathryn Jakscg says
How long does it usually take to make one bag? This is great!
tab says
Of course it depends on how fast one knits or crochets; after a few of the beginning rows, the project moves along much faster. But! It definitely does take quite a few hours. As you become used to working with the plarn as it obviously has a different texture than yarn, the time decreases.
Monica Youngblood says
Our church is working on a project like this for local homeless people. Would you mind if I shared your collage of the steps with members of our church so they can get an idea of what we are talking about? Thank you.
tab says
Sure. Please share, this is a great project for community service and church groups.
P.C says
What a terrific idea! How big should a crocheted mat be?
It’s been forever since I crocheted anything but I’m going to give it a try.
Wish me Luck☘️!
tab says
Three feet by six feet is a standard size for a sleep mat – good luck 🙂
Marianne Long says
We have been making sleeping mats fro the homeless for 3 years. We need more crocheters or knitters. We are willing to keep on cutting and tieing the balls. Would anyone be interested in them. I live in Burwell, Nebraska So if someone near here would like them let me know
tab says
I will check with my local source of knitter/crocheters and let you know 🙂
Rose says
Lovely idea. It recycles and helps others! And is a craft for free.
Rosemarie says
I have a lot of the skinny plastic bags that wraps the newspaper every morning. They are to little around to make plastic yarn. Is there a way to use these bags?
tab says
Yes, they can be used to make plarn! Just as with a larger plastic bag, follow the directions and can easily make the newspaper bags into plarn.
Jody Swank says
I use those bags. They work fine, just smaller ” circles ” to work with. You just cut and plarn them like the others. I like those newspaper bags as in our area they are a different color than I can normally get. They make nice bits of colors on the mats. I’ve been doing just a few months and am finishing my 6th mat. I do have a couple of friends that are helping me cut and plarn. I also have a drop box out from where people can drop off the bags. It really does help. The main thing is enjoy and make with love in your heart. I put straps on mine and also a tag with a warning label….. Made of 100 recycled plastic bags. Do not place near open flame or heat source.
Jody Swank says
We use those bags, just like the others. The strips will be smaller, and they do take getting used to crocheting with, but we get some great colors from different areas near us, that we don’t get in the plastic bags, so it is great to have the variety. Some even have the inner lining, but we just work it right with the strips. Give it try. You may find that you enjoy working with it and getting the great colors. Have fun.
Erin says
Hi! We are interested in doing this as a high school community service project. Can multiple people work on sections of the sleeping mat and can we then attach the sections together for the finished project? Or is it best if one person works on the one mat? Thanks so much!
tab says
Hi – Theoretically, the mat could be divided into sections and sewn together… but as each individual knits or crochets at a different tension the sections may not be compatible. However if the sections were knit/crocheted in similar tensions and stitches with the same type of bags, it may work. It would be difficult to predict success ahead of time until the actual sections were made. For the mat to be usable, the knit/crochet stitches need to be consistent and of a good tension; otherwise the mat will be very bulky and unmanageable to carry. Perhaps some members could work on the carrying straps and divide out the responsibilities to collect the bags, sort the bags, cut the bags etc. Another option is to seek out members of the knit/crochet community who would be interested in making the mats and your project can be to make the plarn – that is a service project all its own due to the number of bags needed to make a mat 🙂
tab says
I don’t have experience using the rug wrap, but the mat would need to be flexible enough to roll tightly. If you do use rug wrap please let me know how it goes!
Rose Jones says
This is a lovely project for so many groups! Keeping these plastic bags out of the landfill as well as helping the homeless.
Anonymous says
The mats would be good to have as bleacher coushoins for football games or chair coushions.
tab says
Absolutely – !
Amy says
I think this is a beautiful idea to help the homeless. I’m wondering if these can also be used as a beach mat?
tab says
The mat could definitely be used as a beach mat; however heat may be an issue as the temperature of the mat will heat up w prolonged exposure to the sun.
Barbara Moore says
I make these mattress pads butdo notknow where to take them in Columbus, Ohio
I makes these mats but don’t know where to take them in Columbus, O.
would you know?
tab says
Sorry I am not familiar w Columbus. In our area, the non profits/volunteers who distribute the mats are the groups who have a physical presence in the area and are distributing food, clothing, basic needs daily.
Jane Vosky says
This is such a wonderful idea! And the possibilities for community projects make it even better. I shall pass this on to local schools to see if we can start something going here in the West of England.
We were recently in the US for four weeks and used supermarkets. We were horrified at the number of plastic bags that were being used, even though there were permanent use bags on sale at a low price. the servers at the cash registers didn’t ask, they just loaded up the bags as the items were charged. There were recycle bins outside the store for people to bring the bags back, but it would have been much better not to have had them in the first place. In the UK we have to pay for plastic shopping bags now and most people take their own cloth bags when they shop.
But using up the bags that are still around in the way that you outline will get rid of the surplus for a good use and keep them out of landfill sites.
Well done!
Virginia Lowry says
Don’t forget the dogs! Many of the homeless have dogs as traveling companions and they need a place to sleep as well. A smaller version of the mat, say 3×3 or small mat that didn’t get finished, would be perfect. The ground can get very hot or cold to sleep on, and just having a little bit of separation between the wet ground and the body can mean a lot.
The Savvy Age says
You are so right! Perfect for dogs in the smaller size!