A Walk Down Memory Lane - Up-cycled Bleach Bottle Tote

 I have been wanting to do this since I took up crocheting again while watching TV with the folks at night. When I was about 12 or 13, Teri you might remember this, Mom taught a couple of 4-H classes in Joseph, Oregon.

 One of them was using bleach bottles to make totes out of. I couldn't remember how we did them exactly, as far as the stitching count, but I worked it out to where the top is not larger than the bottom in width. After I cut the top off as high as I could go, there's an actual ridge in the bottle you can use as a guide. Scissors work great after getting the hole started, I punched holes around the top edge, leaving about a quarter of an inch border on top. I then did a single crochet stitch in each hole, alternating between one and two stitches per hole. At the end of each row I slip stitched into the first stitch of each row and chained 2 for HDC and 3 for DC stitches, which I alternated rows of.  There's no hard and fast rule on how many rows to make, you decide how you want the tote to look.

I then made a crocheted draw string handle to match as I didn't have ribbon or fabric available. I also added the large crocheted flower and leaves. Can you see the possibilities with this idea? Next time you are thinking of tossing out a laundry detergent or bleach bottle, even a large juice bottle, why not give this a try.