Stash busting: Reusable Grocery Bags / OOP McCall's 4851

Back in 2020 when I first made out-of-print (OOP) McCall's 4851, I made five bags and wrote that I didn't think I would revisit the pattern.  I thought that five reusable grocery bags would be enough to get through life.  I was wrong.  I made many more since those initial five bags.  I use them a lot more than I thought and I've even gifted some away.  Not only do I use these for grocery shopping, they are perfect for organizing items in the freezer.  

And then the Stash busting contest over at Pattern Review made me deep dive into my fabric stash and that is how these four reusable bags came to be my next sewing project.   

This is a denim weight fabric.  I purchased it years and years ago at Marshall / Northwest Fabrics and at the time picked up three different cuts.  They were precut pieces.  Back in 2020, I made a pair of white denim jeans out of one of the cuts.  The jeans didn't last very long, as the fabric pilled.  I was told when I picked up these cuts that it was a 100% cotton but I suspect there may be some synthetic fibres in there as well.  I'm not sure as the fabric didn't have a label nor was it on a bolt.  And I didn't feel like going through a burn test to confirm if it is a 100% cotton.  So the remaining piece sat in the stash since I didn't want to put the effort into another pair of jeans that may again pill.  

Since it's a strong fabric, worthy of holding heavy grocery items, OOP McCall's 4851 seems like an appropriate project.  I made the same small change as the last batch of bags, straightening the top edge For the straps, I used a cotton rooster embroidered trim.  I sewed two pieces of the trim together to create the handles.    

Project Details

Seams:  2.6 straight stitch 

Seam finish:  Serged

Fabric:  2.4 metres

Trim:  8 metres

Pattern:  OOP McCall's 4851

Additional Tools & Supplies:  Cutting table, pins, pin cushion, measuring tape, scissors, iron, ironing board, sewing machine, Schmetz leather 90/14 sewing machine needle, walking foot, Jean-a-ma-Jig™, serger, screw driver, tweezers, threads, thread clipper, seam ripper, and some time listening to a sewing podcast.

Stay Safe and Happy Sewing!