Woohoo!!! I love my Whole Foods green bags and other grocery store specific bags (totally with you on using the right bag at the right store, Laurie!)... now if only I could remember to put them back in my car after I bring all my groceries in!

So if you've nearly eliminated the plastic bags do tell how you are handling the feline by-products. It's the by-products that keep us asking for plastic at the grocery store - if I can find an alternative I'll run out and order envirosax immediately!

Even posted this today.

I've never even SEEN a whole foods store. But I think that's great. The grocery store here in my small town is selling green grocery totes for a buck a piece! A BUCK!!!

Oooooh, not only are they Earth-friendly, they're PRETTYYYYYY.

Like cursingmama above, I keep getting plastic bags so I can put the cat poo in them, and I think that they put some kind of voodoo curse on me whenever I do this at Earth Fare. ::hangs head in shame::

Okay, I am SO going to start making Bag Sets for Christmas Presents. Tee Hee! I'm going to Joann's for lunch!

I think of you every time I use my Target reusable bag at another grocery store (or any of the others that I have). I have no qualms about using different bags at different stores and have quite the collection from many different stores . I just can't see buying multiples and then having to use only the right brand at the right store! I'd have 30 bags!

Just bought some of those cool Envirosax! Thanks for the link! I have bags from Costco, TJs and the Food Museum (Whole Foods) but, like you, I have the branded bag issue too.

For the cat waste problem: newspaper. Wrap up the waste burrito-style in a couple of sheets. Toss in trash. Repeat ad infinitum. Cheap, and you get to read the news at the same time!

The one thing I don't like about reusable bags is that when things spill in them - like something always seems to do - you have to wash them. And being single, I don't do laundry that often so sometimes I have to rinse them out to prevent funkiness and then wash them later. Tres Inconvenient.

I'm with cursingmama, the only reason I like the plastic bags is for litter box-related reasons. I'm all for saving the planet one bag at a time, blah blah blah, but plastic has it's uses!

My dad got a free reusable Bakers (Krogers) bag last night when he bought 3 cases of Diet Pepsi. (bag was $3.99 if you didnt buy any Pepsi)

It's bright red, and has "Bakers" printed in white on both sides of the bag.

I think we're going to Target in a couple of days to get one of their grocery bags (not sure if you have to buy a large amount of something to get one, or if you get one free just by buying something...)

If I can find a nice un-branded grocery bag from somewhere, I might use it as a crochet/knitting bag.

It seems like every few years people will get all anti-plastic bag, and stores will give away or sell fabric shopping bags...but then people wont use them, and we're back to the plastic bags. We have a few bags from the late 90's that we havent used since the late 90's.

I think we havent used them because we kept forgettng to put them back in the car, or in some nice location where we'd see the bags and remember to take them to the store with us.

I brought my multi-use shopping bags with me to North Carolina when I moved from the UK, so our bags have the names of shops that don't even have branches in this country.
My husband thinks we ought to buy bags from the supermarkets here. I prefer to think we look exotic.

The cat litter disposal quandry would be of interest to me too, because we're getting cats in a couple of months time. How many plastic bags a week does that typically use?

I have the exact same bags and love them dearly! My husband wasn't really into it when I bought them, but he has become convinced as they hold a LOT and it's great to walk out of the store with 4 full bags, rather than 47 half-filled plastic ones. I keep one in my purse and the rest live in our glove box waiting for our next trip to the store. Hooray for Envirosax!

I <3 my reusable grocery bags. Really, truly. The Whole Foods ones they've been putting out for the past year or so seriously hold 2-3 plastic bags worth of food. It's just insane.

The ONE THING I can't figure out.....if I have no plastic bags, how do I "scoop the poop?" What do you use for litter box duty?? I literally do one regular shopping trip every few weeks to stock up on bags for this. Any tricks?

(Well - besides newspaper...we generally don't get the paper)

I have the green one! My aunt bought the 5 pack a few months ago and gave 4 of them to different people. I am single, and just one is almost always big enough for all I buy (I don't do marathon shopping, but I also live 2 blocks from the grocery). I think they are very pretty, and they are uber light and strong, so putting one in your purse or backpack has 0% inconvenience!

For all you poop-scoopers, I also have 2 cats so daily scooping is a must. But, if you look around you will find that you accumulate lots of other plastic bags - produce that you have to put in bags (because it is very wet or small loose items like peapods for instance) and packaging for other products (tortilla bags (they seal!) cat food, potting soil, newspaper bags when it threatens rains (and if you get one) the outer packaging for the mondo-toilet paper and paper tower packs, etc. etc...basically anything without holes!) I try very hard to minimize plastic bag accumulation, but though I frequently run out of bags for the garbage can since I almost always use the Envirosax, but I am still swimming in smaller bags that are perfect for cat poop!

(Just my 2 cents!)

We're trying to remember to take our reusable bags to the store. It gets a bit easier as time goes on.

Only tangentially related to the topic: today my daughter celebrates her Earth Day birthday.

Okay, I had cats before plastic bags were commonplace and I used brown paper bags for their waste.

I always take my plastic bags to the recycling bin at the grocery store. Is this environmentally friendly or not?

Dumbest question EVAR...but how do you dispose of your cat poop? I shovel it all into my plastic grocery sacks, and then toss those into the trash. If I get rid of the plastic sacks, what do I use then? WWCAPD?

Thanks for the tips on dealing with the cat poo Carrie. Now does anyone have a free, and very easy pattern to knit grocery bags?

Oooh Envirosax rule! Sax-ay! Least of all because they're from Australia :)

NotMartha.org wrote about RuMe bags today, a similar thing but appear to be slightly tougher fabric. Torn between two lovers! http://www.notmartha.org/archives/2008/04/21/giveaway-rume-reusble-shopping-bags-from-delightcom/

Oh bollocks, sorry that link is so big! I should have previewed my comment first!

Holy cow those envirosax are awesome! Thanks for this! I just preordered the mikado set.

Reusable bags are GREAT, of course, but paper bags are actually WORSE for the environment than plastic, so this policy from Whole Foods makes no sense! Both making AND recycling paper bags uses over twice as much energy and releases twice as many toxins into the environment (air and water pollutants).

If you recycle your plastic bags, they're actually the greener choice of the two. That people don't seem to know that really drives me bananas! Google this if you don't believe me, or check out the facts here:

http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php?id=7

By the way, I put our cat poop in old coffee bags I get from Starbucks and other coffee places we frequent. They're just going to toss those bags in the trash anyway, so might as well reuse them for poo!

I have the Whole Foods green bag, but when I stopped at Whole Foods this morning they GAVE me a FREE Whole Foods Insulated bag!!!! It is about the size of a full-size brown grocery bag and has a double zipper on the top flap to close it. What a treat!!! It pays to shop when the store opens; the first 100 customers today received the free bag.

I have the same issue about using branded bags at the wrong store, silly I know. So, this weekend I made myself cloth ones from cute Ikea heavy cotton. Check it out
http://www.flickr.com/photos/katknits/2434672908/
Now I can use them anywhere.

We love our reusable bags, but we realized the other day at the grocery store that one of the seams had given, so it has a hole in it. I'm trying to decide whether to sew it up, or just make sure that one doesn't get any small stuff put in it.

We don't worry about which bag goes to which store - we actually found out some of the cashiers like the Publix bags more, because they have a loop on the side so you can hang them on the plastic bag rack to fill them up!

The Envirosax look great. I just ordered a set. Thanks for the link! :-)

How very cool that so many stores in the LA area are giving away free reusable bags! I finally figured out to leave the reusable bags in the car door pocket. I've been leaving them in the trunk - where I never think to look when going into the store. Also going to check out those darling envirosax!

You'd be amazed how many nice canvas bags you accumulate for free that can be used for grocery bags. I have a few net style ones that are perfect for produce (the stretch in all directions...and boy howdy do they stretch!). And then I have a ton of canvas ones. Most of them have come from free give aways at conferences or from various university's HR departments. So rather than store brands, I use canvas bags with random library conferences and universities on them to carry home my cans of soup and boxes of cereal. :) I even have one from college that my college bookstore gave away to help haul all those textbooks home!

Oh, @Jen-the alien spouse, I do have one store branded bag that my mother gave me. It's from Australia. :) So I get to do the exotic thing too.

As for poop scooping, I have to clean up after my dog or face a $300 fine. I use produce bags (after carefully checking to make sure stems didn't make any holes). When I had a cat (rest in peace fuzzy baby!) I used the produce bags for her poop too!

melanie - if you're on Ravelry search for Market Bag and you will be shown so many knitted grocery bags you won't know where to start.

Still searching for an earth friendly, flushable cat litter my cats won't refuse to use so I can eliminate all plastic....

I work at National Geographic, and we just created a great new viral video featuring Edward Norton encouraging people to "bag the bag." check it out on YouTube:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=gOsmUJABdWw

*Melanie: My mom has a reusable shopping bag that was knitted from plastic shopping bags...way cool! Found a pattern here: http://www.allfreecrafts.com/knitting/bag.shtml

I'd like to commend carrie for all her suggestions on the scooping disposal ideas. Thanks for helping me think outside the catbox!

If you go to www.burdastyle.com they have a great free sewing pattern for a grocery bag (called Charlie) and it has a clever little pocket to fold up into itself. I made one and carry it with me all the time now. It is about the same size as a plastic grocery bag (2 handles), but so much prettier in a william morris cotton print.

Those are *so cool*! Thanks for the info and the link, Laurie! I carry a bunch of reusable bags in the back of my car--the next step is to remember to bring them into the store with me, so these might be just what I need!

Thanks, Laurie, for that link! And thank you to everyone else for their great suggestions for scooping poop!

I have the green Whole Foods bags, too. I'm just getting to where I remember to bring them to the store with me. You know, I don't know about nowadays but back when I was a kid and my family was stationed in Germany in the Air Force, my mom would take us out shopping in the German stores (she was German) and everyone brought their own cloth/net bags. There weren't any plastic/paper bags at the stores. That was a novel concept for me, I thought it was very cool.

I'm all about reducing the use of plastic bags
but what will I scoop cat poop into?
I am hording a bunch og bags.

So, I've been using cloth shopping bags for a while; my sister made me a set a few years back. But, I was so excited a when I recently found reusable produce bags that are see-thru and no heavier than the plastic ones. AND, their handmade. How cool is that!? (http://remarket.etsy.com) Now I can eliminate all the plastic bags from grocery shopping!

Zürich really is the cleanest city. My son & I slept in the airport last summer. Cleanest freaking place we were in Europe. They polished the floors almost all night and never bothered us, even though we were illegally sleeping in their airport.

any free reusable mags in metro Atl? will check with our Kroger so i can go greener. but i recall my grandmother made bags like this in the 80s, and i STILL have one ... it's huge ... she used them for knitting projects but since i don't knit it can become a grocery bag.

We love you, Earth!

um, i mean BAGS not mags

duh

HOw cool are those bags!
Also remember there are TUNS of free patterns out there for crochet & knit "shopper" style bags... so even those who don't want to buy some, you can make some too!

I love my Envirosax. I've been using them for over a year and just ordered a new set of the vintage kitchen print. They say they are hand wash only, but I have machine washed them on the gentle cycle several times and air-dried with good success. There is some fraying of stitches on the handle, but not anything structural. I might still go back and stitch them up.

They hold so much and I love that they can be carried over the shoulder.

How to handle the cat poop? Well, it will only work for the actual poop, not the clumping cat litter but I do have a solution - one found in every home. It's called a toilet. I have a little litter scoop that lives in a plastic bag in the bathroom vanity and when Perry P poops I use the little scoop and transfer the poop from the box (which lives in the bathroom) to the toilet. Amazing, huh?

Clumping cat litter goes into a newspaper (burrito wrap style as someone mentioned above) and is then dumped into the covered (and, sadly, plastic lined) trash can.

I will admit to putting the whole box inside a large black lawn bag and then settling it so the box is inside the liner. Then I put in some newspapers (folded) for padding. The whole thing is then inserted in another plastic bag and the litter is dumped in. That way I only have to change a bag when I have to clean the box - even clumping litter needs a total change out every once in a while...

LOVE my recycled fabric bags - I don't care if they're banded. One store even gives us a $.05 discount per bag when we use them :)

Dammit. It took me exactly 2.5 seconds to spend $43 on them there Envirosax. I have no filter, I swear - I see, I want, I buy. But at least it's for a good cause. Thanks for the heads-up!

I have these same envirosax but in black.
I love the fact that once my groceries have slipped inside these massively roomy bags, other shoppers can only glimpse the top few purchases. Am I the only one who feels the weight of judging stares directed at my food choices?

I just can't make the switch. I use all of my plastic grocery bags for disposal of the litter box goodness. I like to think that at least they are reused for a very good cause...because without daily attention to the litter box, I would likely find myself single.

Thanks for the Whole Foods reminder. I have about 6 of their wonderfully roomy bags with the wonderfully large handles; but I never ever have them in the store with me.

Ok, as one multiple-cat-owner/litter-box-scooper to another. What do you use to contain/transport the, um, refuse to the trash? The only reason I get plastic bags is so that I'll have something to put the poop in. Have you found something biodegradable? If so where? I would love to go completely platicbagless.

I have the set of Eurosax bags too. Mine are the "retro graphic" style. My problem...most of my Eurosax bags are filled with YARN!!!!

In response to the comment about flushing the kitty poop down the toilet. I used to do it until my toilet kept getting stopped up. It seems that little pieces of the clay adhere to the poop and accumulate in the pipe and can cause a major blockage. They had to take the whole toilet off to clear it out. I'm just sayin'...

There was a blip in my newspaper that on Saturday Macy's is giving away free tote bags to the first 100 customers. Why Saturday and not today is beyond me.

Even though I'm craft-impared, I went to my local craft store and bought canvas tote bags for $3.50 each to use for groceries (the kind you're supposed to decorate with paint or beads or other things that are foreign to me). I also keep a regular and insulated bag in my car and my hubby's car for those times that I'm stopping for "just one thing" (ha!) after work. I just wish when I use the self-checkout the baggers would put my groceries in my cloth bags instead of the plastic. And yes, I do repack which really irritates them.

If you feel inspired to knit up a shopping bag, I have a pattern on my blog that you are welcome to.
http://quicklyunravel.blogspot.com/2008/04/celebrate-earth-day.html

My sister designed a crocheted market bag that you don't have to sew to put together. The pattern is free on her blog at http://www.xanga.com/bratsis2

Just thought I'd pass that on to you. They are great market bags.
.

Good suggestions guys on the poop disposal problem. I need to get creative about that. I did get canvas bags in several sizes from Land's End for the groceries -- they are very sturdy for the carrying of the cabernet!

I have been meaning to buy envirosax for MONTHS now but never got around to it. Thanks to your post today, I finally bought some!

I have gotten good at using reusable bags for groceries, and I even got some cotton mesh produce bags. I am still working on remembering to bring bags into non-grocery stores. Getting better! Thank you for all the suggestions up there about catbox scooping receptacles... I was wondering what to do with bread bags and things like that, and I was still getting a plastic grocery bag or two now and then for litterbox duty. Problem solved!

A couple weeks ago, I made a bag out of an old tshirt in about 10 minutes. Cut off the sleeves and collar, and sewed up the bottom. In addition to a straight seam across the bottom, I put little seams perpendicular to the long one on each end, to make the bottom a little boxier (imagine the seams on the bottom looking like an uppercase "I"). It's huge and holds a bunch, but folds up small. It's a way to recycle the free tshirts I get for volunteering at different events, but never wear again.

Ditto on Toni's comments re: flushing cat litter down the toilet. It will DESTROY your plumbing...And with 5 cats, the produce bags are just not strong enough. The wrapping in the newspaper idea sounds like it has potential- but we recycle our newspapers. What to do, what to do? This looks to me like a business opportunity for anybody who can solve the problem.

When I lived in France in 1962 and 1963, there were no such things a plastic bags, and when you bought something, that's all you got--what you bought.

Carrying it home was your problem, so everybody always carried string bags with them.

Practically the first thing I noticed when I arrived was people carrying home a big loaf of French bread. No package, no bag, just bread.

Re: clay litter in the toilet

I have been using "Yesterday's News" litter for years - it's a Canadian product made of recycled newspapers. (In fact, the evil "WM" is now carrying it here in central Mass.) So if any little pellets can't be shaken off the poop they soften up and must "melt away" into the septic tank. I've been here for 20+ years and while we have the tank pumped regularly, we've never had any problem with the plumbing. While Perry P is an only cat, we've had up to 4 at one time - all using box(es) on those days when the younger boys couldn't/wouldn't go out because of the weather.

Laurie, what do you do with your kitty chunks now that you are using Cat Attract? Well know now that we can't flush cat poop. I guess I can buy small plastic garbage can liner bags (seems silly), and use those for my 7 cats' left-overs....and I know that if I put the chunks in a plastic bag (and then that goes inside the big garbage bag in my kitchen), nothing with break down for what, thousands of years?

How about biodegradable "plastic" bags (sort of along the lines of the packing peanuts made of corn starch that you can melt in water). Do those even exist? This IS a problem!

So glad I got my Envirosax before the Aunt Purl Phenomenon hits and the whole world sells out of them! They really are fabulous things - and pretty...

Hey - I totally get what you mean about the Swiss! I'm actually livng/working in Basel right now and was in Zurich over the weekend (got pix from there on my blog...). Anyway, we were just commenting the other day about how cool it was that you have to take your own bags to the grocery stores and how weird it was going to be going back to the US and getting plastic bags everywhere. I think I'm going to get some of these and use them instead - thanks!

Just another thought, my high school son (bless him), works at Ralph's as a bagger. He says the baggers will certainly use your bags, but they really hate them since they don't fit the racks or stand on their own for filling. It takes longer and makes their job a bit harder since they have to hold the bag open with one hand and fill it with the other. So maybe someone clever could design a bag that fits the racks (like the ones at Publix, which we don't have here in CA) or stands up. (Actually I think Whole Foods ones do stand up, if you wanted to use them at other stores)...

Just sayin'

I like the newspaper idea for cat poop disposal, but that doesn't work at our house. The newspaper (which is a freebie delivered once a week) is for the bottom of the bird cage. As we've already had our entire sewage line replaced within the last 5 years following a massive blockage (washcloth from a previous resident), I won't flush litter here. So for now, we're stuck with plastic bag disposal for daily pickups. When I completely clean the boxes, I dump the litter straight into the outside can that gets picked up every Monday.

I use two string bags at one of our local grocery stores. It's a no frills, have to pay for plastic bags, have to bag your own store. The bags are from a store in PA, even though I moved away 11 years ago. I need to get in the habit of using my bags elsewhere, and I have found several knitting patterns for totes and string bags that I'll use when my skills improve.

I used to "collect" tote bags from conferences and annual meetings but I had so many I donated them to Goodwill. I wish I'd kept some of them for grocery purposes now.

The Baker's (Kroger's) bag that we bought last night stands up on it's own. Plus, it's got a little stiff plastic bottom that keeps the bag's shape.

The plastic bottom is removable just in case you need to wash the bag.

Hand knit string bag for shopping
http://tiajudy.com/stringbag.htm

Self-scooping, automatic flushing litter appliance (pricey)
http://www.catgenie.com/

You can buy compostable plastic bags -- maybe that would be a good option for all you cat owners who want to give up plastic grocery bags but don't know how else to manage your cat poo? We use them to collect compost in, and then you can throw the whole bag into the compost bin, and the plastic bag, which is made of corn, will break down.

Here are the ones we use: http://www.ecoproducts.com/Home/home_biobags/home_index_biobags.htm

They sell bags specifically sized for dog poop collection, but you can also get kitchen garbage can sized ones, as well as a variety of other sizes.

I sooooo want one of those self-scooping, automatic flushing litter thingies, though. :)

These sacks are lovely, but I've been on a "made in NOT-china" quest for about two years, ever since I learned more than anybody wants to know about the cat and dog fur trade in China.
The up side - sort of - is that I've saved thousands of dollars on things I didn't buy, but would have, if they hadn't been made in china. Of course, I didn't actually "save" that money, though... ;)

You can buy compostable plastic bags -- maybe that would be a good option for all you cat owners who want to give up plastic grocery bags but don't know how else to manage your cat poo? We use them to collect compost in, and then you can throw the whole bag into the compost bin, and the plastic bag, which is made of corn, will break down.

Here are the ones we use: http://www.ecoproducts.com/Home/home_biobags/home_index_biobags.htm

They sell bags specifically sized for dog poop collection, but you can also get kitchen garbage can sized ones, as well as a variety of other sizes.

I sooooo want one of those self-scooping, automatic flushing litter thingies, though. :)

I am interested in flushing kitty pooh. I have started using crystals for my kitty litter instead of clay. It doesn't clump but doesn't smell. I am wondering if it would be safe to flush? We have a septic tank, so I need to be careful. Anybody out there have any experience with this?

San Francisco recently made it so that grocery stores can only give out paper, no plastic bags.

And for those of you thinking of flushing the kitty poop, remember that it is illegal to do so in California.

I gave the envirosax bags for this last Christmas with a Trader Joe's gift card. It was a really well-received gift and easy to do!

Just a random comment.

I've been reading your blog (off and on) for quite awhile (before THE BOOK). I had a horrible day. At WalMart (where else) I decided to buy myself a mag to have some relax time. On the way to the mags, I noticed your book. I knew that would be a great pick-me-up and got it instead of a mag. Thanks for making crazy not so bad.

Those bags are cute. We've also eliminated most of the plastic bags coming into our house, but some still sneak in, often when we purchase damp produce at the grocery store, where they periodically "mist" it to make us think it's fresh from the rainforest.

I use a few cloth totebags ... I found a few cute designs, and they're easy to wash if they get dirty. Plus, when their useful lives are over, at least they're biodegradable.

As for kitty poo ... sadly my only cat just passed away, but we're planning on getting kittens soon. We used the random plastic bags around our house with the last kitty. But for our future kitties, I'm planning on using wax paper bags ... you can buy them for sandwiches, and at least they're biodegradable too. (Too bad you can't compost kitty poo ... my next eco-friendly step is a compost bin, since we're fruit freaks who toss out way too many orange and banana peels each week.)

It's true that none of our individual changes make THAT much of a difference ... but if we ALL do them, that's definitely something.

And one more Earth Day-ish thing to do ... if you get lots of big catalogs in the mail and don't want them, you can easily opt-out of receiving them with this website:

https://www.catalogchoice.org

Save a few more trees! Even with stores that I shop from online, I rarely have a use for their paper catalogs.

(Although of course buying things online is another eco-issue, with all the extra packaging & delivery fuel required ... Amazon is the worst, with so many of those little plastic pillows taking up space in way-too-big cardboard boxes. I buy local whenever I can, but sometimes you need a specialty thing and it's 11 p.m. and you're in your jammies ... I am cutting down, though.)

i was thinking about Earth day this morning as i was taking my shower and I wanted to share something my family started doing at the start of the year. We bought a washable shower curtain at Target. We used to have to replace our plastic shower curtain every month. now when I notice a bit of grundge on the bottom I throw the shower curtain in with my next load of towels and voila'a nice clean shower curtain. Silly I know but it one of those teeny tiny changes that just makes me happy :-)

I just looked up the one I bought
http://www.target.com/Ricepaper-EVA-Shower-Curtain-White/dp/B000P655R2/sr=1-5/qid=1208915082/ref=sr_1_5/601-2439453-1065746?ie=UTF8&pricerange=&index=target&field-browse=1038576&rh=k%3Ashower%20curtain&page=2
and it's plastic and it said on the package I could machine wash it and I do and it still looks brand new.

I remember I wanted cotton but they didn't have any at my local target so I bought this instead. Cotton is supposed to work well too.

Whole states in Australia have been banning plastic bags lately, as well as some charging 10 cents per plastic bag if you don't bring your own. It's very common here for people to tote around reusable sacks from all sorts of stores, even kitting stores sell their own.

From what I can find online too, many places around the world do this as well: Ireland (among the first), Hong Kong, Melbourne, China, Israel, and several countries in Africa.

http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/02/04/ireland-plastic-bag-usage-way-down/

I don't know if you really can even possibly read the gazillion comments left for you on your blog, or if other posters read al lthe comments either but to the person outraged at paying $1 for a reusable cloth bag I really had to laugh.

Having just moved to Australia from America, I can say Americans have many things much cheaper, more variety, and more easily accessible than many countries. And they probably take it for granted.

I also am in complete agreement with you about Switzerland. Not only do the make great cheese though, they also make Lindt chocolate. I toured the Lindt chocolate factory over there once -YUM! Nothing better than a country that makes great chocolate and cheese. :)

Enjoyed the link to those beautiful Envirosacs, which funnily enough are an Australian Company. :) Cheers!

Hello -

I read your blog every now and then, but hadn't had a chance to pick up your book before today.

Read it straight through, and wanted to leave a note here to tell you I thought it was awesome. :)

E

That site only seems to sell to the US from what I can find. YOu can also find the same bags at Reusable Bags.com. I've shopped there before and had good service (I bought a Reisenthel foldable trolley which is perfect for taking to the Farmer's Market). I live in Canada.

Dang! I just visited the Whole Foods in Palo Alto---mind you, I live in upstate New York, I'm on a business trip---and I saw they were giving away those reusable bags in exchange for 10 plastic bags. Now, at home (in upstate New York), I have approximately 1 million plastic bags from the evil Walmart that is the only place to get halfway decent produce in town, but in my suitcase, I have only two, which I need to keep my shoes from crumbling dirt all over my clothes. No free bag for me. But I got some pretty amazing enchiladas. Life is good.

You can get biodegradeable trash bags and all kinds of green-type stuff at
http://www.greenfeet.com/items.asp?Cc=TRASH%5FBAGS (not affiliated with them in any way). Greenfeet underwrites a hilarious podcast "morehipthanhippie" that will entertain you, as well as inform you about the great green products available. Also beer and chocolate. (Also not affiliated.)

My husband bought the envirosax a while back. I like them a lot!

I am just catching up on my blogs now, after Evan, WHO IS NOW WALKING THANK YOU is asleep...OK, this is too funny, because I blogged about my love of Envirosax today, too! I'm so glad you like them. Every checkout person asks about them - even the guys!

See! It doesn't take much to make a big difference!

I remember when all the grocery stores only had paper bags. Then they started asking "paper or plastic?" Now it's just all plastic. I'm glad to see the transition back.

I live in Europe and bought my Envirosax just after we got here. Almost 2 years later they are holding up very well, being used every weekend on our grocery trips. They are my gift of choice - I love these things!

My hubby has a Whole Foods bag. It is often in his backpack and he uses it on a regular basis. I don't normally bother. If I don't have a ton of stuff, then I just tell them that I will carry it home in my backpack.

The envirosax are cute. I don't care if my bags are branded (much), but I don't like the whole foods bag because it doesn't fold down that small.

Giving up plastic bags was my New Year's resolution, and I made myself two awesome bags (from cotton curtains I didn't want anymore - post-consumer, baby!). Besides the whole environment thing, you can carry way more stuff in one fabric bag than one of those plastic bags, so I find it's easier to carry all my groceries inside. And I still have tons of the plastic ones leftover for cat poop purposes...will deal with that ca.2024. I haven't been 100% perfect (sometimes I forget my bags, & end up with plastic), but I'm at about 80% myself. Such an easy way to make a difference!

Hi Laurie,

I get e-mails from Martha every day and this one came yesterday - great for Salvation Army finds.

http://www.marthastewart.com/good-things/sleeper-of-a-bag?lnc=bf89cf380e1dd010VgnVCM1000005b09a00aRCRD&rsc=top7pop_crafts_crafts_2

could be used for shopping too.

Lois

Amy, I use a fabric shower curtain with a cheap $2.99 plastic liner. The liner can be washed. (unofficially, of course) About once a month, I take it down, dump it in the washing machine, add clothes soap of choice, and instead of putting fabric softener into the cup, I put in white vinegar, which helps to rinse off soap scum. I even put it in the dryer for just a minute or two to get out the water that doesn't leave during the rinse cycle. (But stand there - only 1 or 2 minutes!) This way I keep using my shower curtain until one of the holes gets ripped. Also, spray daily with a water/white vinegar combo which also keeps it from getting too funky too soon.

I'm just catching up with your blog. You sure make me laugh! Are you working on another book? I'm eagerly awaiting it. Thanks for the consistent dose of humor.

The reason I had yet to purchase re-useable bags is that I figured I would always forget them (they are too large for me to store in my purse) and I shop at several grocery stores. (I don't want to have to buy logoed bags for every place I shop. Plus, if I get them I want to use them at places like Target as well - not just grocery stores). These are PERFECT though - compact, lightweight and with NO logos! I have ordered my retro print set and can't wait to get them! Thanks for posting about this!

I shop at Aldis and use their discarded boxes. That's how I roll. I also carry a few of those holey cro-shayed (hookt on fonix!!) bags for produce. It makes me feel tres euro - like I should be strolling down a cobblestone side street in my peasant blouse and skirt, lifting my thin arm and calling, "Bonjour, Jean-Claude! Bonjour!"

We have a collection of bags from conferences and free give-aways, too, and I've been using them for carrying groceries, shoes, magazines, etc. when traveling by car (which we do often) but hadn't thought about taking them to the grocery store - I like the plastic bags for small trash can liners but I guess I could use newspaper on the bottom instead. Now I'm collecting ideas from here for cute bags my 16 year old niece can make for me - for Christmas! We're big on "here's what I want for Christmas" lists and she usually makes me something - every year it's getting better - last year it was an afghan.

I knitted a bag from an easy pattern, it's on the Lion Brand website. Got to use a bunch of leftover cotton and it's convenient and very stretchy. Also, some of the pet supply websites have poop bags that are supposed to biodegrade within 45 days or something. Sorry I don't have exact name, but worth a look.

I still can't believe folks have problems using a differently-branded bag in a store. That blows my mind - and I'm Southern! I love my EarthFare (local organic chain) bag - it's got long handles, so I can carry it easily on the bus. And, Rosie, I do the same thing at Aldi when I forget my bags! I have a collection - EarthFare, Whole Foods, Harris Teeter (another local chain) - and no one's ever looked askance at which bag I use where.

I made a bag this weekend, by ironing a stack of plastic bags together, then sewing - it made like a thick canvas - that's waterproof! Someone sewed for me, I don't know how, but it only took her about five minutes.
http://tinyurl.com/5zpe3v

Okay, so I just about ordered these bags, because the do look fun, but then I remembered that I use the pastic bags for the kitty poop. If you are using these wonderful little bags, what do you put the kitty poop in??

We get 2 daily papers delivered, and they come in the plastic sleeves - PERFECT for scooping out the cat box! Tie a knot if the bottom for extra strength. They'd also be great to take along when walking the dog.

I know, they're not very environmental, but they really are a great size. Also nice to take a few on a trip, for dirty sox/undies, wet shampoo bottles, etc.

Don't know what we'll use if they quit putting the paper in them.

I love my Envirosax too, worth every penny because they roll up so small. They hold a lot of yarn! The Whole Foods bags are nice and cheap too. And I have one of those refrigerator silver bags things with a penguin on it? They are great for the cold stuff.

I hate how they are always giving you 30 bags at the store, I don't mind if the milk and toothpaste are in the same bag!

I love my Envirosax too, worth every penny because they roll up so small. They hold a lot of yarn! The Whole Foods bags are nice and cheap too. And I have one of those refrigerator silver bags things with a penguin on it? They are great for the cold stuff.

I hate how they are always giving you 30 bags at the store, I don't mind if the milk and toothpaste are in the same bag!

I put up a very simple tutorial for making a whole set of bags out of a sheet. They're cute and cheap. I've also got instructions on how to make produce bags out of sheer curtains.

i totally have those! but in a different design. they're the best! they hold WAY more than you would think and roll up soooooo tiny! go laurie! it's your earthday!

Thanks so much for the Envirosax tip and link! I just ordered 2 sets for both our houses. I can never remember to take my store bags with me when I shop and I hate those plastic sacks. These look quite purse friendly.