Congratulations Harborough HIT Bags for being our Featured Pod – you’ve made 8682 morsbags to date, so we asked you these questions:
Who is in your pod?
There are about 15 people – all women though we have tried to recruit men. Some have been in the pod since it started some 6 years ago. Originally we were supported by a local council officer but now we are part of a volunteer environment group and we can claim some money from them for expenses – though we try not to. We now have a podlet who meet at a retirement complex locally. In all we have sewn over 8000 bags since we started and we always celebrate every time we hit the thousand. We are already looking forward to the 10,000th celebration.
When/where do you sew bags?
Most people do their sewing at home. We meet once a month on a Monday evening at a local Council Centre but that meeting is mainly to share fabric and information- we have a cupboard there where we can store fabric etc. At the meeting we organise events, see what labels we need and of course eat cake. Some people sew and some cut out bags. Others just chat – it does say sociable on the label!
Where did you first hear about Morsbags?
Most of us have heard about it from seeing the HIT bags stall at local events and then coming along to a meeting to check us out.
Did you think about the use of plastic bags before?
We are all keen to improve the environment and some of us are also volunteer litter pickers and river cleaners so the Morsbags ideas fitted in well.
What type of sewing machines do you use?
All sorts though we have some hand cranked ones that we use on stalls when we are giving demonstrations on how to sew bags and they are always popular with people coming up and reminiscing about their sewing days.
What was the most unusual thing you’ve made a Morsbag out of?
Shirts are good fun. We try to make a variety of bags so that all can have ones they like – men like darker colours, children like smaller ones. Some people like shorter or longer handles. We find that people can be quite fussy about the bags even though they are free.
Who was your first bagging victim?
Most people start with their families especially if they have not sewn for a while. We give them out at local events, fetes, fairs, supermarkets and every so often we go round to local businesses in the town and give them out so that staff can have them on site for lunch time shopping.
What’s your finest Morsbag moment?
Seeing people’s faces when they realise they are free and with no catch is always fun.
How do you get fabric for more bags?
We are always asking for donations of fabric when we give bags out. We have paper tags inside each bag which gives information about us. The local Council offices are willing to receive it on our behalf. We try the local curtain makers and charity shops. We have tried to publicise ourselves on the local radio and the local papers but we always are on the lookout for more. We even have our own Facebook page now. If we can’t use any fabric we are given we try to recycle it to other craft groups, schools etc. so none of it is wasted.
