Plastic Bag Wallet
March 20th, 2006
To follow up on the last post: after hearing about Karin Carter’s SLiK textile last summer, I set out to make some myself. Ironing plastic bags together required careful control of the iron temperature – also, laying the plastic between two layers of paper helped transfer the heat more evenly. The result was a paper-like material similar to Tyvek, made by DuPont, which could either be sewn or melted to form seams.
Tyvek and similar materials have been use in a range of products – one that comes to mind is American Apparel’s Tyvek jacket. It’s very lightweight, and is more like fabric than paper.
Tyvek is not accepted at most recycling programs – however DuPont runs a Tyvek recycling program in the US.
Popularity: 37% [?]
March 20th, 2006 at 10:30 pm
Nice idea, but duct tape makes way better wallets.
March 20th, 2006 at 10:40 pm
Oh, 3M Canada has an online tutorial.
But I guess that’s not as cool as a plastic bag wallet.
March 21st, 2006 at 7:45 am
I like the patterns on the plastic bags – it almost looks like some kind of expensive paper. Also, duct tape gets gummed up, you know? But yeah, especially with colored duct tapes it can be very cool also.
March 22nd, 2006 at 2:21 pm
Could you post more detailed instructions on how you made the fabric? Stuff like number of layers of plastic bags, iron temperature, etc. I would love to try this myself…
March 22nd, 2006 at 8:35 pm
yeah… that’d be really cool if you could make some sort of tutorial… I don’t mind doing trial and error… but if you have the info… why not just share… right?
March 22nd, 2006 at 9:57 pm
I’ve posted a howto for this kind of project here on my webpage.
March 23rd, 2006 at 11:56 am
Thanks – that’s a great guide!
April 3rd, 2006 at 2:51 pm
Does anyone know if ironing cellophane would be a good idea? If so, would it be as transparent as the original? I’ve been trying to find a way to seal things that I want to make magnets out of (with adhesive magnetic strips) but the objects and images that I’m working with are too small to use epoxy resin as the required molds are far too large. I read this article and have a bunch of cellophane from flower bouquets that are lying around, but am not sure whether it’s a good idea to iron those. Thanks.
April 14th, 2006 at 5:55 am
has anyone seen the jimi wallet? http://www.thejimi.com.
July 31st, 2006 at 10:26 am
[...] Related Posts: Plastic Bag Wallet, MAU Tyvek Clothing, American Apparel Tyvek Jacket [...]
December 26th, 2006 at 6:09 am
[...] “Baby, I Got Your Money…” Vestal Design blog provides a great way to make your own wallet using old plastic bags From Jeffrey Warren. This time the bags are actually ironed together, making a Tyvek-like substance, according to the review. I really like the final look of the wallets. [...]
January 13th, 2007 at 4:47 am
Great thing to do with plastic bags! Just as an idea – maybe instead of a safeway bag you could get your hands on a gucci or armani plastic bag and create a designer version.
Dont even know if gucci uses plastic bags. Good luck.
Karen
February 15th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
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March 20th, 2007 at 6:26 pm
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March 22nd, 2007 at 2:07 am
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January 30th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
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April 24th, 2008 at 1:26 am
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May 20th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Listen. Do not have an opinion while you listen because frankly, your opinion doesn?t hold much water outside of Your Universe. Just listen. Listen until their brain has been twisted like a dripping towel and what they have to say is all over the floor.
May 22nd, 2008 at 11:54 am
Wow! This post really excited me. I can’t wait to try it out. I must be very careful with the iron though.
May 29th, 2008 at 4:22 pm
its really cool what you have done, love the consept
chile:)
May 29th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
i just tried it,.. and it fucking burned all the time.. like it got stuck to the paper and when i pulled it of it got all fucked up and stifff.. how do you do this thing?
June 11th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
i just love items made from recycled things.
September 10th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
they’re cute but leather wallets are more durable
January 5th, 2010 at 12:44 am
I like this design, but is is too old now.
January 9th, 2010 at 6:40 pm
After searching for this information, I will have to say most people agree with you on this topic.