Handmade Detroit

Project Crawl: Thanks, Ikea!

The Canton Ikea recently opened here in southeastern Michigan, and I’ll be the first to admit I love it. A LOT. While I waited for 30 minutes to purchase my cocktail shaker, confetti glasses and plastic lamp during my first visit, I saw that they were selling their popular yellow shopping bags in a blue, take-home version. How much did these delights cost? Ninety-nine cents, fools. Not even one dollar! Well, I picked up a few, knowing that if I couldn’t make crafts out of them, I could at least use them to transport bulky items when I move…

Not sure what I wanted to do with the bags, I turned to my trusty friend: the Internet. She didn’t let me down, as you’ll see from this project here. It’s like the World Wide Web knew exactly what I was thinking… Or at least the creative thinkers at Make and their Flickr pool knew…

Ikea Bag Hack
This project was just what I needed for my bags! Phew. Pulled from funkstation, this is really great. The instructions are very easy to follow and there are lots of great pictures on Flickr to check out. If the project looks to challenging to check out, you can have a personalized bag made for you!

Thinking out loud…
Seeing this great finished product after the hack, I’m motivated to take my scissors to my Ikea bags. Here are some of the ideas I have. It’s a challenge kids, so expect to see my finished results very soon. If you have any suggestions or find something cool yourself on the Web, let us know!

• Apron

• Industrial picnic blanket
• Book covers
• Sewing machine cover
• DJ record tote
• Shower caddy

I’ll post my results soon. Until then, keep dreaming about Ikea, fellow Michigan Mittenettes!