Recycled Silk Shopping Bag

 Well, I hauled a quart of milk in this and it worked perfectly fine, so here’s the pattern:

Shopping Bag

1 ball Darn Good Yarn recycled silk “Spice Market”
1 ball Plymouth Encore
Circular needles in sizes 10 and 6
6 stitch markers, 1 distinct from the rest

CO 60 stitches in Darn Good Yarn on size 10 needles. Place marker and join. Thereafter, work the following until you run out of the Darn Good Yarn:

Round 1: Knit around
Round 2: Knit around, wrapping the yarn 4 times for each stitch
Round 3: Knit around, dropping the 3 extra wraps off the needle at each stitch

Switch to Plymouth yarn and the smaller needles at the same time, knitting 2 stitches in each existing stitch on your first row with the Plymouth and placing a marker every 20 stitches. You should have 120 stitches at the end of this row, divided evenly in 6 chunks.

Thereafter, work the following until you have 12 stitches remaining:

Round 1: ssk, knit until 2 stitches remain before next marker, k2tog. Repeat around.
Round 2: Knit around

Break yarn, thread through open loops and pull taut.

For the strap, pick up 12 stitches anywhere along the top edge of your bag using the smaller needles. Using the Plymouth yarn, knit 2 stitches in each of the stitches you picked up (work with right side facing the outside of the bag).
Next row and all WS rows: purl across
Row 3: K1, K2tog, K1, K2tog, K12, SSK, K1, SSK, K1
Row 5: K1, K2tog, K1, K2tog, K8, SSK, K1, SSK, K1

work in stockinette stitch until strap reaches desired length, then:

Next RS row: K1, K1F&B, K1, K1F&B, K8, K1F&B, K1, K1F&B, K1
Following RS row: K1, K1F&B, K1, K1F&B, K12, K1F&B, K1, K1F&B, K1

Pick up 12 sts from the top edge of the bag opposite where you picked up the first 12. Alternating between knitting one stitch from the strap and knitting the next stitch off the strap together with the next stitch off the bag. Bind off.

Line the bottom of the bag and the strap with scraps from old jeans or something of similar sturdiness