RISING FROM WASTES: UP-CYCLING OF POLYTHENE BAGS AND SACHET WASTES INTO FASHIONABLE JEWELLERY, USING CROCHETING TECHNIQUES IN TEXTILE ART

Abstract

Most of the municipal solid wastes in Nigeria are from polythene bags and sachets which are used to package water and other items. These sachet water factories treat and package water in small polythene sachets which are quite handy and cheap. After use, empty sachets and polythene bags could be found littered everywhere in the environment. They do not decay thus burning or sending them to the landfill is a very big problem. This study is predicated on the fact that apart from not being able to decay because of its components, they cause the environment to look dirty and unkempt. This has become a problem for society and needs to be solved. This paper aims to collect some used empty sachets of pure water and polythene bags, wash, sanitize, dry, and utilise them to crotchet some items which could be used to fabricate some fashionable items. Studio exploration is the research design used, while the instrument used to collect data are observations and photographs. It was discovered after the studio experiment that some durable and re-useful items in form of jewellery could be produced by up-cycling some empty polythene bags instead of burning or sending them to landfills which poses some threats to human lives. It recommends that polythene wastes should not be burnt or buried rather they should be utilised, up-cycled, or re-cycled to produce other reusable items.

Keywords: Up-Cycling, Polythene Bags, Polythene Pure Water Sachets, Wastes, Acrylic Yarns, Jewellery