Methods of Making Plarn

I started crocheting with plarn last November 2010 when I stopped working as a teacher to become a full-time housewife. Some of my projects were not pretty, but others showed a lot of potential. After almost a year of crocheting plarn on a daily basis I have learned quite a lot and I thought it might be great to share them in case someone wants to crochet plarn too.

In this article I am going to compare the two ways I know of making yarn from plastic bags. I will not go into the details of how to actually prepare plarn because there's a lot of tutorials for those and I will link you to my favorites. My objective for writing this article is to provide a comparison and show the advantages and disadvantages of each method.

The double-strand method is the most common way of making plarn. It involves:

• folding plastic bag lengthwise usually up to 3x
• marking the desired width of strips
• cutting up into strips
• joining the strips into a long plarn

For me, the most important thing to remember when making plarn this way is to make the knots as tight as possible. To achieve this, just before making a knot, crumple the part of the strip that will be knotted. A tight knot will be invisible in a crocheted piece, giving the illusion that it does not exist.

Advantages

• tying strips is a great family/group activity
• suitable for any type of pattern
• easy to change color because the end is looped

Disadvantages

• takes too long if done alone
• can cause problems is plarn is not cut and/or tied evenly

The single-strand method is usually used when making tarn (yarn derived from old t-shirts). However, it can be used to make plarn as well. This method includes:

• folding the plastic bag lengthwise up to 3x but leaves a part that will not be cut yet called "spine"
• marking the desired width of the strips
• cutting the plarn into strips except the "spine"
• unfolding the cut-up plastic bag
• cutting the "spine" diagonally to create one long strip

When I first tried this, I found the last part most challenging. Soon I realized that if I place a flat surface in the unfolded cut-up plastic bag, it will be easier to cut the "spine". At first I used books, but later, I found out that lightweight objects such as a DVD cover are more effective.
A problem also occurs when joining two strips. I join them by tying a knot and leaving at least 2 in of tail which I will hide after finishing an item. This will only work with compact patterns and nor for lacy ones. The knot will be visible for a more "open" work.

Advantages

• faster to make
• the strips are always even

Disadvantages

• not appropriate for "open" patterns

Just recently, I discovered the video below showing how to make plarn with plastic bag that is not a tube but a flat sheet instead.

I have to try this method first before I can write its pros and cons.

I used to make my plarn using the double-strand method. When I tried the single-strand method, I became a convert immediately. I do my plarn alone, I don't usually do lacy crochet, and I don't change color a lot.

What's important, though, is that we reuse plastic bags since they're gonna be here long after we're gone.