I usually carry a reusable bag when I go shopping, but many times the cashier forgets to put my purchases in the sack or, on occassion, I forget to bring the bag on my shopping trips. This leads me to collecting plastic shopping bags by the dozen– I reuse them as trash bags and to pick up after Beau. I feel kind of weird buying a plastic bag holder (a bag to hold bags seems redundant), so I thought about a clean, handy storage container for them.
A few years ago I spotted someone at a dog show using an old vinegar bottle to hold scrunched up plastic bags. I didn’t have a vinegar bottle, but I did have some empty 1-gallon (3.71 L) pet-stain-and-odor remover bottles. A milk jug would also work well, I think, but these are a little sturdier and don’t have the sour milk smell to them after they’ve been sitting out for a while.*
It’s simple. Mark out the size opening you would like on your baggie holder, then use a very sharp knife to cut out the opening as shown. Make sure you leave the handle in tact. Leaving the cap on is up to you. The handle allows you to clip the dispenser to side of your dog’s crate for easy access when traveling. To use at home you can simply set the jug under the kitchen sink or any other handy place.
The jug will hold about 50 standard-sized shopping bags.
As a plus you are reusing two otherwise junkable** items, always a plus in my book.
*I use an old milk jug as a compost bucket under my sink. When it gets full I take it out to my compost bin in the yard. When I do this I also cut off the cap to the milk jug.
**In the recycling bin, of course.