| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| Bugs |
What to make of leftover trousersas most of my trousers are jeans-alike, and mostly go from office wear to home wear to garden wear, anything that continues to fit tends to reach a point of indecency before I am prepared to get rid of them. I now have at least two pairs of black ones and one pair of blue jeans plus a couple of scraps; the black ones have some lycra through the cotton so I couldn't compost them even if I wanted to.Any bright ideas for a way of using them up, rather than putting them in the cloth recycling thing (if it's still there...that's how often I throw away clothes). I'm tempted to have a go at some sort of rug...would one like in Mochyn's footstool article be appropriate or would there be a better use? |
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| sean |
Could you wash them thoroughly then filter sloe gin through them? | ||
| Bugs |
That's a really disturbing image... | ||
| Bernie66 |
Most old clothes in my house(within reason) get used as rags, dishcloths and for mopping/cleaning until they really need to be composted or chucked. My daughters do protest if the "wrong" old clothes are being used to mop the floor if their friends are due around to visit. 
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| Cathryn |
I have seen some fantastic bags made of recycled jeans. Not sure my sewing machine is tough enough to sew through them but plan to try sometime. All the good bits cut out and patched together - pockets making pockets and that sort of thing. | ||
| Róisín |
My favourite use for old clothes and bits of cloth that are gone too far to even clean with, is to cut them up in strips and use them for stuffing. For cushions, pillows, soft toys etc etc.
As for rugs, if you could cut the legs of the trousers up into strips, blanket stitch the edges, then make a woven rug with the strips, that might be nice. You could use the waist area of the trousers to edge the corners maybe. |
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| sally_in_wales |
Bags made out of the top part of the rousers have aready been mentioned.
Another one is to use sections of the legs with added elastic to top and bottom of the resulting tube to make storage for carrier bags (even when I'm refusing them at shops I still seem to acquire a fair few), or dispensers for string, or somewhere to stash the odd sock pile. What about a forage bag? Cut one leg off a dead pair of trousers, sew up the bottom, add a long cord that will reach the top edge then just keep rolled up in a coat pocket. When you come across something like that perfect crab apple or nut tree you have a long, strong bag that can be slung across your back to carry home all that forage (no good for squashy forage I suspect though) Or,stuff leg sections with odds and ends of rags, stuffing or whatever, then cover with a prettier fabric and you have little bolster type cushions. What about making 'over legs' to wear out into the garden? Think something cut a bit like medieval single leg hose/cowboy chaps, so basically you are cutting away most of the top ofte trouser on a slant so you still get one belt loop on a section, you pop those over rather better trousers for doing cold or grubby work. |
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| Lozzie |
These are all superb ideas for which I am most grateful, as I have two pairs of trousers that have reached the same state, as well as a t-shirt nightie thing that I am thinking of turning into a hanging bag for ... something.
I was going to sew the shoulders onto a coat hanger, sew up the bottom bit, and leave the neck bit open to put ... things ... in. A word of caution about rag banks. If you are going to use them please make sure your clothes really ARE rags, unless they are Marks and Spencer hardly-ever-worn-only-bought-last-year numbers. Reason being: Many charities send wearable but unsellable clothing to developing countries. These cheap imports of second-hand clothes from the Northern Hemisphere are culturally insensitive to the point of insult in many countries, and furthermore do a lot of harm to the indigenous textile indursties in those countries. OK rant over - please forgive thread hi-jack ... ! 
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| culpepper |
ooh great idea that forage bag!I might do that one myself 
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| tawny owl |
Carrier bags? Two birds with one stone then ... |
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| Lozzie |
Bingo! | ||
| 2steps |
I am making a rag rug from old clothes | ||
| Bugs |
Actually I was looking for something else, but having availed myself of a sewing machine, I recently turned some old black jeans type trouser legs in to potato sacks, which are working very well to keep the light out but let the spudlets breathe. That's two down and another half dozen to go
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| wellington womble |
I have a pair of jeans somewhere that I plan to make an apron out of - having never found one that fits, anywhere.
I wonder where they are? |
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| cab |
Bugs, I'd love to see a picture of your trouser sacks, that sounds great.
And I can't believe I just typed that sentence. |
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| hedgewitch |
It's Friday night. Your in Cambridge. Seems kind of... a given to me... 
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| contadina |
You could make a good sized satchel bag.
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=214008.0 I've just made a couple of newborn hats (the ones that have two pointy bits on top that you tie together) out of a cute Tshirt that no longer fits me. They only took about five minutes to make each and the new mum loves them. http://www.rookiemoms.com/sew-a-quick-newborn-hat-from-a-t-shirt/ |