Shopping Bag

This is the “zen project” that I worked on while doing the Tree of Life Afghan

I love getting lost in crocheting, letting my hands create “stuff” while my brain can just relax and focus on (for the most part) just one task.

The Tree of Life Afghan took all of my concentration – counting stitches, transposing the pattern from right to left, switching colours, etc… so there was no time for “zen-ing”. And so, I took some breaks and worked on this bag that I plan on using for transporting shopping items.

I followed a plan for the base of the bag and, oh my goodness, this baby is HUGE – a lot larger than I had imagined.
When I got to the handles, I planned it out (wrongly, apparently) the first time and didn’t like the end results (for one reason, they weren’t square to any of the sides). And so, I took them out for a “do over”.

This attempt has the handles on the ends – which I like. I started working on a second round for the straps and changed my mind. They may look “weak” in comparison to the humungous bag but I’m sure they are sturdy enough and I was going for practicality, not fashionista. (I did put triple “double crochets” on each corner of the handles to add strength to the stress points.)
If ever they seem like they aren’t strong enough, I can go back and add another row or two then.

(And thanks to Rick for being my shoulder model!)