This woman taught me to spin sari silk waste fibres using a handmade drop spindle. Hardest task I have ever tried to achieve! The yarn produced was insane. I have to say that spinning these waste fibres is an achievement and artistic endeavour in itself, never mind the ethical products you produce with this yarn! Artisans at work. The only way to describe these women. A talented and inspirational group of individuals!

This woman taught me to spin sari silk waste fibres using a handmade drop spindle. Hardest task I have ever tried to achieve! The yarn produced was insane. I have to say that spinning these waste fibres is an achievement and artistic endeavour in itself, never mind the ethical products you produce with this yarn! Artisans at work. The only way to describe these women. A talented and inspirational group of individuals!

DIY crochet bag pattern. 

Wine gift bag with a difference. It is not bought from your local stationary store it is handmade by you! Add a bottle of wine, beer or soft drink and you have an ethical gift bag.

This bag is so easy and takes no time to crochet up! I have also made a few using sari silk ribbon with tassles. Follow the patterns with ribbon, banana yarn or something equally chunky!

Materials: 

6mm (UK) hook

2 x 100g chunky banana yarn, colour of your choice.

Washing Instructions:

Dry Clean/Handwash in a light detergent. 

Note: Due to the inconsistences of this yarn and its handmade nature you may find it can be thick and thin in parts and you may have to add an extra stitch. That is just the nature of these ethical handmade yarns. We also find that there can be an overtwist quite common in sari silk yarns and banana yarns, especially if they are chunky. Personally I find the overtwist and the odd little idiosyncracy and nodule adds to the distinctiveness of your creation!

Abbreviations:

ch - Chain

st - Stitch

bpsc - Back Post Single Crochet (this gives the bag a nice ribbed, textured effect).

sl st - Slip Stitch

Instructions:  

Note: Because of the overtwist keep your yarn loose around the hook and just dangle and untwist if you need to.

Ch 22

Row 1: sc in second chain from hook and sc in each remaining st to the end (21 sts) ch 1 turn.

Row 2. bpsc to the end (21 sts) ch 1 turn.

Row 3 -  20 bpsc ch 1. 

Join:

Keep your hook in the loop and take the bottom of your rectangle and fold it up and join together. Sl st around the edge to make a seam. Sl st to the end approx 31 sts. Cut yarn. Do not weave in ends yet.

Strap:

This is where a little bit of freeform comes in.

Take your yarn form a loop and sc into a ch in the corner of the opening of the main body of the bag. Ch 20 (or however long you want it).

Take the other corner and find an available loop and sl st or sc to join. Ch 1. Pull tight and cut.

Turn the bag inside out. This will give the bag a more rounded effect. Weave in any ends if there are any still revealed or leave them out as grunge.

And there you have the easy peasy wine bag! 

The making of sari silk yarn...

Our sari silk yarns are dyed in great big batts in back gardens of the homes of the women who spin it. 

The sari silk waste fibres are taken and added to these batts with the dye. 

They stir it with a big bamboo stick to assist the dying process and then they slap the silk fibres up onto an old fridge door (now there IS recycling)!

The silk fibres are then hung out to dry on their rooftops. It truly is a magical and recycled experience. Humbling and very hard work in the most intense heat of the Indian sun to produce these artisan yarns. 

It is then spun by the women of the household. 

The DIY crochet pattern for this scarf is free!