DIYer shares incredible video after recreating iconic accessory using shopping bags: 'Top notch'

A particularly crafty Redditor exercised serious imagination with their latest creation.

"I made a sewing pattern for a Fjällräven backpack dupe, and someone suggested it would look good made from an Ikea bag," Becky Stern wrote, sharing a picture of the result as well as a link to her website.

"Free tutorial and pattern is available," added Stern, a New York-based maker and content creator who also shared a YouTube video of the process. "I used just one bag, plus a little bit more webbing from a second bag (one long handle's worth, leaving the short handle functional)."

Ikea would likely approve of such sustainable thinking. The company has engaged in major solar power projects, created tiny homes to help address a housing crisis, and is making major energy-efficiency investments in its stores.

Upcycling used items — such as a canvas shopping bag — is a great way to save a few bucks on buying something new, and there are loads of other benefits as well.

Preventing an Ikea bag from going to a landfill means fewer microplastics leaching into soil and oceans. That process can cause plastics to accumulate in the fish we catch and eventually end up on our dinner plates. Once ingested, microplastics pose all sorts of immune, endocrine, and reproductive health risks.

Upcycling an innocent bag has plenty of upstream benefits too. By preventing the need for another backpack to be made, you're helping to avoid all sorts of pollution inherent in the textile industry.

Old Ikea bags aren't the only things that can benefit from reuse. Many companies have built their business models around finding second lives for all sorts of old stuff.

Commenters were blown away by Stern's creativity.

"This is the Swedish mashup that no one knew we always wanted," one said.

"Your tutorial is top notch as well. I have zero experience in sewing and I think I could pull this off based on your instructions," another wrote.

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