Contain the Clutter: Plastic Bag Storage

This is the time of year when teachers like you are thinking about setting up their classrooms, and unless you’ve won the lottery or struck gold, you’re probably trying to do it on a budget. Here’s one way I found to create a little cuteness by upcycling a container that would have been tossed into a plastic bag storage solution.

Every time I go grocery shopping, I get more plastic bags. When I was in the classroom, I used to take a handful to school every week or two.

There are lots of reasons why I kept the bags around. Sometimes, I needed to bag up an art project. Sometimes, I needed to bag up wet clothes. I’ve even given them to kids to wear over their new shoes outside on muddy days.

Whatever the reasons for keeping them, they easily get out of control, and I needed a good plastic bag storage solution.

So, I came up with a cute way to store my bags that would keep them accessible while hiding their ugliness. It started as an empty wet wipes container. The label peeled right off.

First, I hot-glued a ribbon around the top and bottom. Next, I added a bow to the top.

Finally, I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out the word “Bags” in black vinyl. I stuck the vinyl on, and it was ready to go. I just shoved a bunch of plastic bags into the container so that I could grab a bag whenever the need arose.

Looking for more classroom organization ideas? Check out these teacher checklists, these tips for classroom centers, or these ideas for center storage.