DIY Yarn Tote

Have y'all ever seen those awesome yarn bags, with the holes to feed the yarn through, so you can crochet / knit without having to unpack your stuff?  They are super cool & I have always wanted one, but they tend to be on the expensive side for my budget.  A while back, AC Moore had these large, canvas tote bags on sale for, like $5 - definitely more in my budget range.  Pink is my signature color, and I love anything with my initials on it, so I scooped up this awesome bag:

It's sturdy, it's machine washable, and it's huge - it hold 10 large skeins of yarn, standing up, and more if you're just piling them in there.  I've been using it to carry around my current afghan project, and it's working well.  But, I keep wishing I could just pick my work back up without having to essentially unpack each time.  So, I decided to convert my tote to a yarn bag, using a DIY grommet kit.  I got mine at AC Moore for $4.99, but you can grab one online here.  Wherever you pick yours up, it will come with pairs of grommets, a small anvil, and a grommet tool:

If you've never done this before, it can be a little intimidating, but seriously?  The process is so simple & easy, it's kinda amazing.  Once you decide where you want your holes, you trace the inside of one of the grommets, and cut it out using scissors.  You insert the top piece into the hole from the outside of the bag, then put the other half of it on the back side, so that they fit into each other.  Then you place the grommet on the little anvil thingy that came in the kit, insert the tool into the top piece, and gently hammer them together.  The center of the grommet splits, to lock the two pieces together.  And that's all there is to it - hole to grommet in less than 60 seconds ;)

I wanted to have 4 yarn holes, so I did two on each side.  Right now, they're just extras, but if I wanted to do some C2C or tapestry crocheting, they would be incredibly helpful in keeping the yarn from tangling together.  And now, I have a yarn tote I can conveniently bring with me anywhere I go.  Here it is in action:

The yarn feeds smoothly while in use...

And tucks right back in when it's time to go ;)