Hey, it’s Dan

In Today’s Issue:

• I made three scrubbers out of plastic bags

• Then I asked the cursed question: how many bags did this actually take?

• Turns out… way more than expected

• Plus: emotional math, unpaid labor, and surprisingly decent scrubbers

🌎 Our Mission

Eco Hustle is about helping people get paid to save the planet—one plastic project at a time.

We’re building small wins, testing messy experiments, and proving that reuse can be powerful (and surprisingly profitable).

Some weeks, it’s about the product.
Most weeks, it’s about the process.
This week, it’s a little of both—with a calculator.

This Week’s Plastic Problem

I didn’t mean to turn this into a math experiment.

I just wanted to do something good. You know, reuse a few plastic bags, loop them into something functional, and feel like I was saving the planet.

So I made three dish scrubbers out of Vons/Albertsons bags. Felt pretty good about it. Until I looked over at the plastic graveyard on my floor and asked the cursed question:

“How many bags did this actually take?”

And just like that, I was elbows-deep in bag math, loop counts, and existential guilt.

🛠 This Week’s Hustle

Let’s break this down like a bag under pressure:

• 1 Vons bag = ~12 one-inch strips

• Each strip = ~16 inches long (~0.44 yards)

• Each scrubber = 7 loops × 6 rows = 42 strips

• → That’s 18.5 yards of plarn per scrubber

Total: 3 scrubbers = 10 bags = 126 strips = 55.5 yards of emotional processing

Here’s the visual proof:

So yeah. Every one of those scrubbers is holding about 3.3 bags’ worth of regret. And maybe a little pride. But mostly regret.

💡Pro Tip (From a Beginner)

This was my first real test batch using just Vons bags.

They're decent—stretchy, smooth, loop nicely. But here’s the kicker:

I used 1-inch strips because they’re fast to cut. But they’re also chunky. Which means bulkier knots and more wrist strain during looping. So I’m now testing ½-inch strips to see if I can upgrade my output without sacrificing my joints.

Next week might be the Next-Gen Plarn Throwdown. Stay tuned.

You Pick, I Plarn

One Last Tangle

So what’s the takeaway here?

Plastic bags lie. They say “recycle me” like they’re going to a spa. But we both know they’re not.

What I learned this week is that reuse isn’t always pretty. Sometimes it’s math. Sometimes it’s frustration. Sometimes it’s three chunky little scrubbers that used to be someone’s dinner bag.

But they’re real. They work. And they’re proof that a dumb idea + 10 bags = something worth holding onto.

Literally.

P.S. I Read Every Reply

Yes, even the one that told me to “just recycle it.”
I laughed… then kept looping.

I’m still playing with kits and side hustles — but honestly?

This newsletter isn’t about selling stuff.
It’s about figuring out what reuse actually looks like — one bag, one breakdown, one recycled mistake at a time.

If you want more behind-the-scenes chaos (or to be part of the next weird test), reply with “scrub club” and I’ll add you to the inside track.

Until then, stay scrappy.