How to Make a Net Bag: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide
Whether you’re looking to cut down on plastic waste, add a handmade touch to your grocery runs, or simply pick up a satisfying new craft, learning how to make a net bag is one of the most rewarding projects you can take on. Net bags — sometimes called mesh bags or string bags — have been used for centuries across cultures for carrying fruit, vegetables, bread, and all kinds of everyday goods. Today, they’ve made a stylish comeback as an eco-friendly alternative to single-use plastic bags, and the best part is that you can make one yourself with just a few basic materials and a couple of hours of your time.
This guide will walk you through everything you need to know: the materials, the techniques, the patterns, and the finishing touches. Even if you’ve never picked up a crochet hook or touched a piece of macramé cord before, you’ll find this process approachable and genuinely enjoyable.
What Is a Net Bag?
A net bag is any open-weave bag made from knotted, crocheted, woven, or looped cord, yarn, or twine that creates a mesh structure. The holes in the mesh allow the bag to stretch, breathe, and conform to whatever you put inside it, making it ideal for produce, beach items, toys, or even as a stylish tote for a farmers’ market trip.
Net bags can be made using several different techniques, including:
Knotting (macramé-style), which involves tying a series of square knots or half-hitch knots to form the mesh. Crocheting, which uses a hook to pull loops of yarn through each other in a chain-link pattern. Netting with a netting needle, which is a traditional technique used by fishermen and craftspeople for generations. Loom or hand weaving, which creates a woven mesh using a simple frame.
In this guide, we’ll focus primarily on the knotted macramé-style method and the crocheted method, since these are the most accessible for beginners and require the fewest tools.
Materials You Will Need
Before you begin, gather your materials. The good news is that net bag making requires very little in the way of supplies, and what you do need is inexpensive and widely available.
For a knotted net bag:
Cotton macramé cord or jute twine (3mm to 5mm thickness works well for most bags), a wooden dowel or sturdy stick about 12 to 16 inches long, scissors, a measuring tape, a clipboard or S-hook to hold your work while knotting, and optional wooden rings or rope handles.
For a crocheted net bag:
Worsted weight cotton yarn (about 200 to 300 yards for a standard market bag), a crochet hook in size 5mm to 6mm, scissors, a yarn needle for weaving in ends, and optional bamboo handles or macramé cord for straps.
General tips on materials:
Cotton is the most popular choice because it’s strong, washable, and sustainable. Jute gives a more rustic, natural look but can be rougher on the hands during the crafting process. Nylon or polyester cord is a good choice if you want a bag that will get wet regularly, like a beach bag. Avoid very thin thread for your first project — it makes the work harder to see and the knots harder to manage.
Understanding the Basic Techniques
Square Knotting for Net Bags
The square knot is the fundamental building block of a knotted net bag. If you can master this one knot, you can make virtually any macramé net bag pattern you find.
A square knot is made with four cords: two working cords on the outside and two filler cords in the middle. Here’s how it works:
Take the left working cord and cross it over the two filler cords, then under the right working cord. Now take the right working cord, bring it under the two filler cords, and up through the loop created by the left cord. Pull both working cords gently to tighten. That’s the first half of a square knot. Repeat the process in reverse — right cord over filler cords, under left cord; left cord under fillers, up through the loop — and you have a complete square knot.
The mesh pattern in a knotted net bag comes from alternating square knots across rows. In each new row, you shift over by two cords, connecting cords from adjacent knots to create the diamond-shaped holes that give the bag its characteristic look.
Basic Crochet Stitch for Net Bags
For a crocheted net bag, the most common stitch used is the chain stitch combined with single crochet or slip stitch, creating a simple chain-link mesh. Many patterns also use the “mesh stitch,” which alternates chain stitches with single crochets spaced out to create an open grid.
If you know how to chain stitch and single crochet, you already know enough to make a net bag. If you’re brand new to crochet, there are many free video tutorials online that can teach you these two foundational stitches in under 20 minutes.
How to Make a Knotted Macramé Net Bag
This method is excellent for beginners because it requires no special tools beyond scissors and a place to hang your work.
Step 1: Cut Your Cord
For a standard medium-sized net bag, you’ll need about 16 cords, each cut to roughly 4 to 5 feet in length. This will give you enough material to work with after folding each cord in half over your starting point. If you want a larger bag, add more cords and increase the length proportionally. As a general rule, your cord lengths should be about four to five times the desired finished length of your bag.
Step 2: Set Up Your Starting Point
Fold each cord in half and loop it over a wooden dowel, stick, or ring using a lark’s head knot. To make a lark’s head knot, fold the cord in half to form a loop, place the loop over the top of the dowel, then pull the two loose ends down through the loop and tighten. Repeat this for all 16 cords so that you now have 32 working strands hanging from your dowel.
Hang the dowel from a hook, door handle, or clipboard at a comfortable working height. This keeps your work taut and makes knotting much easier.
Step 3: Tie the First Row of Square Knots
Divide your 32 cords into groups of four. Working from left to right, tie a square knot with each group of four cords. You should end up with eight square knots across the first row.
Leave a few inches of space between the dowel and your first row of knots — this will form the top edge of your bag and can later be tied off or decorated.
Step 4: Alternate the Knots for the Mesh Pattern
For the second row, leave the two leftmost and two rightmost cords aside, and work in groups of four using the cords from adjacent first-row knots. This means you drop two cords from one knot and pick up two cords from the neighboring knot to form each new group of four.
Leave a gap between each row — about an inch to an inch and a half works well for a produce or market bag. The gap determines the size of the holes in your mesh. Smaller gaps mean smaller holes, which is better for items like loose herbs or small fruits; larger gaps give a stretchier, more open bag that’s great for large produce or beach items.
Continue alternating rows, maintaining consistent spacing, until your bag reaches the desired depth. For a standard grocery-sized bag, aim for 12 to 14 inches of netting below the top edge.
Step 5: Tie Off the Bottom
Once you’ve reached your desired length, gather all the cords together at the bottom. You can close the bottom of the bag in a few ways. The simplest method is to gather all cords and tie them in one large overhand knot, then trim the ends evenly below the knot to create a tassel. Another approach is to divide the cords into pairs and tie a row of overhand knots close together, then gather and tie again, creating a more secure base. For a flat bottom, you can weave the cords back and forth and secure them with a row of knots before trimming.
Step 6: Create the Handles
The simplest handles are made by braiding or twisting several of the top cords together. Take four to six of the top cords from each side of the bag, braid them for about 10 to 12 inches, then knot them back onto the bag at a point several cords away to form a loop handle. You can also thread a purchased rope handle or wooden ring through the top edge for a more polished look.
Trim all loose ends and your knotted net bag is complete.
How to Make a Crocheted Net Bag
If you prefer working with a hook and yarn, here is a simple method for crocheting your own net bag.
Step 1: Make the Base Ring
Start by chaining 4 and joining with a slip stitch to form a small ring. This will be the very bottom center of your bag if you’re working from the bottom up. Alternatively, many net bag patterns start at the top and work downward.
For a top-down approach, chain enough stitches to form the opening of your bag. For a bag with roughly a 14-inch circumference at the top, chain about 60 stitches and join in a round with a slip stitch, being careful not to twist the chain.
Step 2: Work the Mesh Rows
Row 1: Chain 3, then single crochet into every other stitch around, chaining 1 between each single crochet. Join at the end of the round.
Row 2 and onward: Chain 3 to start, then single crochet into each chain space from the previous round, chaining 1 between each. This creates the offset grid pattern that gives you the mesh look.
Continue working in rounds, maintaining the mesh pattern, until your bag reaches the desired depth. For a market bag, 20 to 25 rounds of mesh usually gives you a good depth of around 12 inches.
Step 3: Close the Bottom
To close the bottom of a crocheted net bag, start decreasing by skipping every other chain space in a round, then work one final round with no chain spaces, single crocheting into each stitch. Cut your yarn leaving a long tail, thread the tail through a yarn needle, and weave it through the remaining stitches. Pull tight to close the hole, then weave in and trim all ends.
Step 4: Add Handles
The easiest way to add handles to a crocheted net bag is to crochet a long chain (about 50 to 60 chains for a shoulder-length strap), join it with slip stitches at two points on the top edge of the bag, and weave in the ends. For sturdier handles, crochet a strip of 4 to 6 stitches wide for the same length and sew or slip-stitch it onto the bag.
You can also sew on bamboo handles or loop macramé cord through the top edge for a different look.
Customization Ideas
One of the most enjoyable parts of making your own net bag is that you can personalize it completely. Here are some ways to make your bag uniquely yours.
Vary the hole size by adjusting the spacing between knots or chain stitches. A tighter mesh is better for smaller items, while a looser mesh stretches beautifully around larger ones. Dye your cord or yarn before you begin for a custom color. Natural fiber cords take dye very well, and you can find botanical dye kits that are eco-friendly and completely safe. Add tassels to the bottom or along the sides using short lengths of leftover cord. Add beads to your knotting cord before tying knots — wooden or ceramic beads look beautiful threaded onto macramé cord and can add an artistic detail to your bag. Make a drawstring closure by threading a long piece of cord through the top mesh holes and tying it into a bow.
Tips for Beginners
Work at a comfortable height. Hanging your project from a hook at chest height rather than hunching over a table will save your back and make your knots more consistent. Keep your tension even. Inconsistent tension is the most common beginner mistake. Try to pull each knot with the same amount of force throughout the project. Practice on a small sample first. Before starting the full bag, tie 10 or 20 practice knots on scrap cord until your fingers find their rhythm. Measure your gaps consistently. Use a ruler or cut a small cardboard spacer to place between rows as you work — this ensures your mesh holes are even throughout. Don’t rush the ends. Taking extra care to properly secure and trim the ends of your cord or yarn will give your finished bag a professional look.
Caring for Your Handmade Net Bag
A well-made net bag will last for years with proper care. For cotton bags, machine washing on a gentle cycle with cold water is usually fine, though hand washing is gentler and will help the bag last longer. Avoid using hot water on jute bags as this can cause the fibers to degrade. Hang your bag to dry rather than putting it in the dryer, as heat can shrink or warp the material. If your bag gets stretched out of shape, wash it and reshape it by hand while still damp, then allow it to dry flat or hanging.
Why Make Your Own Net Bag?
Beyond the practical result, there’s something genuinely satisfying about carrying your groceries in something you made with your own hands. Handmade net bags make thoughtful gifts, they’re a great way to introduce yourself to fiber crafts, and they represent a small but meaningful step toward a less wasteful lifestyle. Each bag you use in place of a plastic bag is one less piece of single-use plastic in circulation.
The craft itself is meditative. Once your hands learn the rhythm of the knots or the crochet stitch, you’ll find yourself relaxing into the repetition. Many people bring their net bag projects to work on during commutes, evenings in front of the television, or lazy weekend afternoons.
Whether you go with the knotted macramé approach or the crocheted version, your first net bag will likely not be perfect — and that’s perfectly fine. The second one will be better, and by the third, you’ll be adding your own variations and experimenting with new patterns. That’s the joy of learning a craft: there’s always somewhere new to go with it.
So gather your cord, find a comfortable spot, and get started. Your handmade net bag is waiting.
