A type of rough fabric bag made from hessian, jute or hemp for carrying soft items and foodstuffs. Flour sacks, hop sacks, grain sacks, and coffee sacks sacks can be recycled into smart furnishings within a deliberately rustic look for an urban setting or in any warehouse style, country or shabby chic environment.
Sacks vary from approx 35 – 55 cm ( 14″ – 22″ ) wide and 80 – 140 cm ( 32″ – 56″ ) in length.
Vintage, hand woven hemp and linen sacks are so relatively inexpensive compared to the time taken to make them originally, and the lovely natural colourings that they come in. They are worth buying to re-use. I always think we should treat them with a good deal of respect for the work that has gone into them – they are the last of their ilk – we won’t see these again. The seams are stitched by hand with very tiny stitches so that no flour or grain can escape. Unpicking the seams takes a while but it’s worth it to get the resulting long lengths that can be joined to others, cut into or used as they are. Most of the sacks for sale are in very good condition with little or no wear, but if there are small holes or worn areas, just cut around them. Use for chic chairs and sofas, cushions, small upholstery, curtaining, etc.
As complete sacks filled with pillows they make very accommodating and comfortable garden cushions, bed cushions and bedheads. One sack cut in half makes two perfectly good cushions for the work of one seam and two closures…
New sacks are a different proposition – these too work extremely well in for home and garden furnishings, although nothing compares with the softness of the vintage hemp, and not all of them are soft enough for seating or cushions. Many come from the Indian continent and whilst some are hand woven, most are machine made and still being made- they aren’t so precious, so we can use them for curtaining and walling, cut them up to fit small upholstery and even lampshades.