I was talking to a group of ladies at a local sewing group and they told me all about how women used to repurpose flour sacks into dresses and clothes in the 1930’s during the great depression, when money was very tight.
The flour companies heard this was going on so they decided to start printing the flour sacks with patterns so that the clothing looked pretty. Some of them even came printed with instructions which would then wash out. You can read more about this and see images here.
When the clothes wore out, the fabric was reused again by being cut up and used for quilts. When the 2nd world war began cotton was rationed for soldier’s uniforms so flour was packaged in paper bags and still is today.
At Impact Trading and Cotton Roots, we manufacture aprons and we have made them for customers from coffee sacks. Another great way to upcycle waste fabric. You can order coffee sack aprons from here.
