Lest We Forget

It has been a long time since I have added to this blog. I am alive and well, serving the Lord where He would have me. He has given me blessings and contacts for my bags and that has been lots of fun. I have come to know a really neat gal who is beginning the business Retail Me Not. She will, hopefully, be opening a shop in Dallas in August where her products will be reused and repurposed. She will feature an artist each month who meets that criteria. So look for me somewhere down the line! 

I have done 2 events that have gotten my bags "out there" as well. Always fun to meet new people and share!

While in SC, my granddaughter became my bag helper. She connected hundreds of strips for me thus letting me crochet till my fingers about dropped off. What a honey! And brother got in on the job, too. 

So if you need a beach bag, tote bag, big or small let me know. I have also been making clutches that are good sellers. Email: deknits@yahoo.com and let me know. The bag below is the large square one. It is the biggest I make and is a super beach bag!

I have also been introduced to the world of essential oils. Many of you have heard of them or use them, I am sure. How fascinating that God, once again, has provided for our health through what He has created for us to use, things without side effects that can bolster and heal our bodies. We are eating more organically and more raw...Yeah - some say "crunchy" others say "earthy". My daughter says we don't have any FOOD in the house. LOL! I love exploring in this area.

We have been studying in God's Word and are being asked "to remember" what God has done in our lives. 

In Deuteronomy 8:16-19, ¹⁶ who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. ¹⁷ Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ ¹⁸ You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day. ¹⁹ And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish."

Oh yes, all that we are and all that we have are from God. Hallelujah!!! Lest We Forget...

Great Weekend!

The Walk the Light Art Festival was really fun. I received lots of encouragement from kids, women and men about recycling the plastic bags into market bags and totes. That was great. Everyone was so nice. There was awesome food and cupcakes. The cupcake place was across from me and had a steady stream of people in and out. Guess we all have our sweet tooth! :) I have a few bags left from the weekend if anyone is interested. There are some pretty colors in different sizes, some little ones that would make great Easter baskets and then become purses for those little girls.

I did get some ideas for different bags, etc. so if you have any let me know. Also let me know if you have any interesting colors of bags. I have plenty white and brown for right now. We could work out a deal I am sure. :)

My little punkin here likes to "shay". She thinks all the bags I make are for her. Someday she will really be able to do this! Love it! I have another granddaughter who is also itching to try her hand at it.

Sunday was Winter Jam - with temps in the 80s it didn't feel like winter. We volunteered and had a great experience helping where they needed us. A fun and spirit-filled event. It was so exciting to be part of an event that praises the Lord and gives great direction to so many teens. A great night!

Spring - with a BIG smile

Being a person who loves the warmth of spring I am especially excited about the warmth creeping into Texas and the pink buds changing ever so gently into white flowers on the pear trees on our street. There is a red bud across the street in a neighbor's yard that I look forward to seeing every spring. They just don't last long enough...BUT I have new projects going that began over the winter.

I hope you will all set aside March 24 from 5-10pm to come see the artists in Cedar Hill. Here is the link that will bring you to the artists who will be displaying of which I am one! :) A new experience for me. I am really looking forward to the day's events. There is also a link to the Facebook page. Have fun and come and visit Walk the Light!

http://walkthelight.org/march-24-2012-festival-artists.html
https://www.facebook.com/events/387378457940299/

I have been working with new colors
as I collect more bags!

This one is about as purple as it gets!
It was fun to make.

These blue bags came all the way from Ohio.
I think this turned out really pretty.

Let Everything That Has Breathe Praise the Lord!

Well, it has been awhile...summer has come, then gone for a few days and is back again with temps in the 3 digits in Texas. That's ok, we will see what next week is like. The weather man says, "cooler." We have become so used to the heat that when it was in the 80s last week we took our tiny, little plastic pool down and stored it in the closet because we thought it was too cool.

That incident brought out the discussion of how we used to swim out to the 3rd and 4th sandbars in Lake Michigan as kids. We were blue and couldn't feel the cold. But what an accomplishment to get out that far and then be able to touch the ripples of the sandbar with our toes. The water was clean and clear and the sky was bright blue like one of those fat balloons you blow up. Those were the days we went down to the lake and our parents, at home, knew where we were and had confidence we wouldn't do what we weren't supposed to do. We didn't do what we weren't supposed to do. I could hear my dad whistle to come home and boy I had better get home quick! Never thought to do anything else. I am thankful for my childhood and the love I had from parents.

Yes, Let everything that has breathe Praise the Lord for what was, what is, and what is to come. Life doesn't always hand you a bowlful of cherries (or chocolate ice cream in my case) but I never have to doubt that my Father is right there with me each step of the way. Praise the Lord.

In the heat of the summer I worked on perfecting my bags made from plastic grocery bags. I continue to really enjoy making them. I have a couple of orders for Christmas - so if you would like any for gifts, now is a good time to let me know.

I have worked out the sizes and pricing as follows. I think it works good this way and have narrowed it to six different bags at this time - BUT I am always open to suggestions.

- Small/round - 8" diameter x 9" high - $15
- Medium/round - 9" diameter x 10" high - $25
- Large/round - 10.5" diameter x 14" high - $35


- Small/square - 8"wide x 10" high - $15
- Medium/square - 10' wide x 12" high - $25
- Large/square - 12' wide x 15" high - $35


The bags are available in a variety of colors, browns, white/blue, white/red, speckled with different colors. If you have an idea just ask and I will see if I can work it out. Each bag comes with one flower on it - but you don't have to have that if you don't want it. (no price reduction though)


I just finished a medium/square bag in warm browns and creams. I call it my "Latte" bag. It is pictured here. It is really fun - but this is only the second one I have made because there aren't many cream bags. So I guess this one is special. :) It is one of my favorites as well as the "sprinkle" ones with all colors in a white background.

Each bag is unique as the strips are all cut by hand and crocheted by hand. There is lots of texture in each bag because of how the strips are put together.

If interested contact me by email. deknits@yahoo.com I can easily mail them to you.

It's Hot Outside!

While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease. Genesis 8:22


What a promise that verse gives us and when you see that is was written so early in the history of the Bible...I just find that fascinating! AND encouraging. God cares for the world and keeps it in order. How much more does He love me, created in HIS image? He has been caring for the world since creation and knew ME then too. God said to Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations."


We have had a lot of HEAT in Texas in the past weeks. It is definitely summer! I have had fun staying indoors in the AC  working on school with my daughter, other projects AND bags. You see here the inventory I have at home - so if you are interested send me an email at deknits@yahoo.com. I can also take your order for any specifics that you might like - we can give it a try :) Both the messenger bag and the center one below are red and white - I am calling them peppermint. The white and blue one on the far left is the largest I currently make. ($35) It is a GREAT beach bag and the sand washes right off with your hose. The others in this picture are all the medium square at $20. 

One that has turned out really cute is the small square bag (left). I have a friend who's husband says that everything she has has to be either cute or fun. This bag is both and only $15 :). The messenger bag,  below left, is also a new style - $25. My daughter, Abby, helped me to design it.


The bags to the right are all round a large brown and a large white - $30. There is a medium peppermint - $15 and a small white and blue - $10.

A New Week - What a Blessing!

I just came in from eating my lunch out on the back patio. Oh, I love the Texas sunshine! A new week and how is God going to use me and how I am going to use it for God? I have a verse I would like to share that a friend sent to my husband when he mentioned this blog last week. Romans 12:2, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will." I already had that verse all marked up with an orange marker :). As believers we have no choice, no desire to do anything but what this verse calls us to do. The lines are not so blurry today as they might have been years ago. It is much easier to determine what is right and what is wrong. So be transformed, be "repurposed" for God and spread that to others. You will be a blessing to someone this week!

Last week after I started this blog - hoping that some of my market bags would sell, I prayed asking God how I could help to support a friend who is going on a mission trip with her family. Funds are tight as they are with most everyone these days, but I thought, "OK, the next 2 bags that sell will go to support this family." That afternoon I received orders for THREE bags :). Now isn't God good?

My family smiles at me because I get all excited over "new" bags that people bring me to crochet into market bags. They have adapted well to my new projects. On our way to church yesterday all the doors in our neighborhood had purple bags on them for collecting clothes, etc for a local mission. "Hey, honey, look at all those purple bags!" I could just hear the excitement in his voice. :)


I am adding a couple of pictures of bags that I have completed this week. One of my favorites is the medium size of the square one. It is a really nice size and a fun look. You can see the size difference between the large and medium square bags in the photo. They are both very nice sized bags with square, flat bottoms. Large - $30, Medium - $15, plus shipping.You can always contact me at deknits@yahoo.com if you have questions or would like to order one. Each bag has its own individual characteristics because of the different bags.

Ok, so this is my first attempt at blogging. It started because I wanted a way to share my "repurposed" plastic grocery bags. I was looking for a bit of an income to help pay my daughter's homeschool curriculum costs and it has led to this.


I enlisted my family's help in finding a name/title to fit me the best. So...I do use fabric for purses that is repurposed, I am a fervent recycler of anything and right now especially of used plastic grocery bags. 


But as we were thinking...I AM REPURPOSED IN CHRIST. I am not the same. I am a new creature made and perfected through Jesus. Hebrews 10:14 tells me, "For by a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified."


So here you have the Repurposed Woman. Certainly not a woman who has everything together, but through the help of the Lord, I am growing. I look forward to others' input as I share my life growing in the Lord, recycling and creating bags and other things by using repurposed fabrics and bags and who knows what else may come across my path.


I think as a follower of Christ I have a responsibility to care for the earth He has given us. I strive not to be wasteful and to be a good steward of all that has been given me. Perhaps you have ways to live our lives better, using and not wasting. 





 Here are some of the market type bags that I have made from recycled plastic grocery bags. They are samples of what I make. I do sell them so let me know if anyone is interested.