New use for curtain samples
- A friend passed on swatches of curtain samples to me; they can be used to make tote bags and more.
- —Guest ayesha
Frugality rocks!
- 1) long skinny (or only somewhat skinny) strips are good for string quilting. 2) pages from old phone directories or backs of old cash register receipts (for miniature quilts only) make perfect foundation papers for string quilts. 3) selvages make excellent ties for tomatoes and other vining plants. They're gentler and, as long as the selvages are 100% cotton, you can just compost the whole plant with its ties at the end of the season 4) Scraps that are too tiny to be used and bits of thread can all be composted (natural fibers only!)
- —quiltlady12345
Orphan Blocks
- When we placed my mother in a nursing home and I was cleaning out her house, I found a lot of "orphan blocks". Either they were left over from a quilt or she was practicing a pattern. I have taken these, backed them, folded them in half, sewed the ends together and finished off the top, attached ribbon or heavy yarn to make wheel chair pouches. The residents love them and they are washable. I am sure any nursing home would appreciate them.
- —Guest SuZQ59
old needles
- Old needles can be something dangerous to throw away with normal garbage. I use old needle cases marked "OLD' with a black sharpie pen to dispose of old needles, then I place them in a garbage facility at a doctors office or lab that disposes of used needles.
- —Guest tiamia
Cheap ticket to no-bounce sewing machine
- I got two of the long narrow pads that you are supposed to use as wrist rests at the computer. I put them under my sewing machine and they stop the "bounce" when you are sewing fast on a table top (like when I go to a sewing class). I also got a mouse pad at the same time and I put it under my floor pedal to stop it from walking off from me. I bought both of these items at a thrift store for $ .50 apiece.
- —mdonna922
Disposing needles
- Use pill bottles so they won't poke garbage handlers.
- —Guest Dorothy Goodling
Quilts for Animals
- I glad to know that I'm not the only one who makes quilts for animals and donates them. People tell me I'm wasting my time. I also make coats from yarn and polar fleece for them.
- —Guest Deanna Currie
Use Your Leftover Batting Pieces
- Batting scraps work well on my Swiffer, they pick up threads and fuzz very well.
- —Guest colette
Worn Nursing Scrubs
- Our nursing unit will attempt for the 1st time to create a simple, but unique memory quilt to display for everyone to view. We can no longer wear cheerful scrubs in our hospital anymore, so since we can't wear them, we will just cut them up and make a memory quilt. And each day as we pass our quilt, we will pause, reflect, and remember when. The remaining scrubs will probably be donated to the nurses in Haiti.
- —Guest First-Timer
Use Your Old Jeans
- My family seems to wear out a lot of jeans. I used the old jeans to make seat covers for the back of my car. They dont hold the dog hair and you only have to brush off the dirt. I still had some more so I used the backs of the legs to piece a picnic blanket. Adding a couple of colorful patches gave it a little spark.
- —grandmawest
Using flannel and fleece
- I sew scraps of fleece together to make blankets for pets and use flannel left over for backs, or sometimes cotton pieces, I serge the 2 layers together, very easy and fast. I than donate them to my vet or the local SPCA.
- —Guest Linda
Excess pattern paper
- I save the extra tissue paper from clothes patterns (sometimes a whole sheet is in the envelope) and use these to make some of my own patterns for quilts or other items.
- —Guest Linda
Scraps
- I'm a waitress, and one of older male customers offered me a big box of scrap material that his late wife had. I took them, and there are a lot of vintage pieces of material in there. I have made 2 grandma garden quilts using those scraps, plus am making a second string quilt using small pieces from that box, and there is still plenty more that I can do. It sometimes feels like it's a never ending box! Never turn down scraps from another quilter or someone who sews, one woman's trash is another quilters treasure!
- —MelissaMrock
Leftover Batting Put to Use
- We use leftover batting as replacement filters for the fish pond. We change the filters often, so it's great for the fish - Cheap and effective.
- —marybeamond
Make a Quick Ruler Stand
- We had leftover pieces of wood flooring. The bottom side has grooves. We just enlarged the grooves a little and the scraps work great as a ruler stand.
- —Guest Lennae
