I’ve been using the crochet whale pattern I developed for a while with real yarn, making presents for family and friends, and occasionally selling whale keychains to donate the profits to charity. The keychains were sold at a local café and were a surprise hit, selling out completely and making over $300. The whales make great ornaments too!

Then in college, I was struck with inspiration for a way to reduce waste. I decided to make a whale out of plarn. Plarn is the concept of plastic-yarn, made by cutting plastic bags into strips and knotting the strips together. The yarn can then be crocheted with in a project. Because Covid-19 restrictions have caused restaurants to resort to take-out, plastic takeout bags have made a resurgence. I asked around my dorm for some bags, and made my own plarn. I used a sharpie to color the plarn black, creating a recycled crochet orca. WordPress won’t let me display the video directly on this website unless I pay for a plan, so I’m linking it here through Youtube. Please excuse the black background on the sides, since the video wasn’t in the correct format!