Nature bags!

So, we're going on a hike with a friend of mine on Sunday. As many of you probably know, nature hikes are Bug's favorite thing, so of course he's as excited as I am!

I know, how can someone who's 36 weeks pregnant and waddles be excited to go walk waddle through the wilderness? It's still fun to me, and something new to do. I love hiking!

I know Bug is going to want to collect pinecones and acorns and sticks and leaves like always, he loves bringing this stuff home! So we decided to make nature bags and I thought it'd be nice to document so you guys can, too! :)

*Side Note: You can also use this tutorial to make re-usable trick-or-treat bags for Halloween, since that's coming up pretty fast!*

Materials:

*An old t-shirt you no longer wear/use

*Sharp scissors/fabric scissors

*(Optional) Fabric glue

*(Optional) Fabric paint

Riley is my sister, who also wanted a nature bag haha. Bug had two of those shirts, so it was perfect to cut up since he had another. Plus, what better theme for a nature bag?!

Anyway, you'll want a decent sized flat surface to work on. We used the kitchen table.

Now you're going to take those scissors and start cutting up your shirt!

First, cut off the sleeves. Cut inside the seam (so you're cutting the seam off).

Second, do the same around the neckline. If you don't want a scoop neckline, you can make a triangle or whatever floats your boat. I don't care, s'long as you like it!

Third, cut off the bottom of the shirt, where it's hemmed. Cut right above the seam, just like with the sleeves and neckline. Keep that bottom strip handy!

Now cut some strips through both layers of fabric all along the bottom. I'd suggest about 1/2in-1in wide and 1in-2in long. Longer strips will be easier to tie! I found that out the hard way with Bug's shirt, but it's a 2T shirt so I only had so much to work with haha.

Remember that strip from the bottom of the shirt? Cut that into 4 strips of equal length. I took the picture at an angle so they don't look too even, but trust me, they're pretty even haha.

Now, back to those strips! Tie the front strip to the back one, directly behind it. Repeat with all the strips all the way across the bottom. This is closing the bottom of the bag. If you plan on putting smaller objects in the bag, or heavier objects, you can reinforce the ties by dabbing the knots with fabric glue. Since we're just using ours for pinecones, acorns, leaves, sticks, etc. we didn't reinforce the knots, but who knows - maybe we'll do that when we make Halloween ones!

Now take those 4 equal-sized strips you cut and tie one on the front of each handle and on the back of each handle. This step is totally optional, but I thought it looked cuter and just better in general. Less plain, I guess. The kids liked how it looked, too. If you want to, you can also reinforce these knots with fabric glue. I don't see much of a point, honestly, but I guess with older toddlers/children there's the "risk" (for lack of a better word) of them untying and losing those strips? I dunno. Do what you want with them haha, it's your bag!

And now your nature bag is all finished! If you have fabric paint, you can paint your own designs or whatever, even iron ons if you have them! Decorate your bag however you like!

Now we're all set for Sunday's nature walk :)