I’m sure there are cheaper ways to get reusable mesh produce bags for grocery shopping (mostly online because it’s hard to get them in stores in Malaysia), but I wanted to try “making” my own anyway. 🙂
I say “making” because technically all I did was repurpose mesh laundry bags as produce bags. Easy peasy.
I bought laundry net/ bags from Daiso (RM5.57 each) and choose the smallest rectangle size I could find. These were 24cm x 28cm. I then got some plastic card holders from Popular for RM0.40 each.
I wanted the mesh bags to have a proper place for the price sticker that I can easily remove. Hence the plastic card holders. I was hoping to find synthetic leather fabric or coated fabric for this but couldn’t find any. The next cheapest option was this.
I then hand stitched the card holders onto the front of the bags, leaving the opening free in case I ever want to slot labels in it for other purposes.
Done! 🙂 Simple and now I can reduce using the plastic bags they provide at grocery stores for produce.
I tested it in Jaya Grocer and it worked great. At the weighing station, I put the items directly on the scale without the bag. Once weighed and priced, I then put the items into the bag and ask the worker to place the sticker on the card holder.
I’m happy with how this turned out. I could easily remove the sticker from the plastic card holder, it only left a little glue residue. Without the plastic card holder, it would be hard for the price tag to stick onto the mesh.
Total cost: RM5.57 + RM0.40 = RM5.97 each
The laundry nets are still plastic but at least it’s not single use and from my experience using these when doing my laundry, they are very durable. I can see myself using this for a long long time. Next step is to find some cotton mesh fabric to make more produce bags.
