Gloria Scott with some of her Boomerang Bags
They may be called Boomerang Bags, but Cambridge’s Gloria Scott doesn’t do it because she expects anything back.
“I just enjoy the creative process,” she said.
Gloria has been a member of Plastic Free Cambridge for about two years, and in that time, she has handmade and sewn over 3000 Boomerang Bags – community-made reusable bags normally made from recycled cloth or material.
That the most of any individual group member and Gloria has made 20 to 30 bags a week since she joined the group in March 2018.
“I patchwork lots of them, from old pieces of cloth, or material I have around. After about the first two or three weeks of making them I thought I’d better start keeping count of them, so I have.”
To help her keep up the steady pace she works at, Gloria prepares some of the elements it takes to make the bags – including the handles and patches.
The bags the group makes are distributed far and wide in town – with many going to Wholly Cow and FreshChoice among other places to be sold, Gloria said.
Her bags are now identifiable too, after she’d made the first few hundred or so, she decided she would start including a duck logo sewn into each bag she finished.
Gloria’s love of sewing has been life long.
“I first started sewing and making my own clothes when I was about 12.”
The social aspect of being part of Plastic Free Cambridge, which has been meeting every Sunday afternoon at the Health & Community Centre in Taylor St, is what Gloria loves the most.
“It’s a great group, some people come along to the group to sew, but my sewing machine is too big and heavy to bring so I go along to socialise and make most of my bags from home.”
Plastic Free Cambridge spokesperson Kathy Anderson said the group has about 12 members.
She’s in awe of Gloria’s work.
“We couldn’t do what we do without her, it’s as simple as that.”
“We couldn’t do what we do without her, it’s as simple as that.”
The group recently received a grant from Waipā District Council’s waste minimisation fund and such help is invaluable Kathy said, because the supply of fabric group members use to make the bags is either donated, or they purchase it themselves.
For more information about Plastic Free Cambridge, visit the group’s Facebook page.
**This story was penned prior to the country moving to Covid-19 alert level 4**
