Ten Ways to Reuse Old Clothing

by reuserecycle.net 

Most of us have closets full of clothing we will likely never wear again. The obvious thing to do with old clothing is to donate it to charity - but chances are a lot of it might not meet standards for resale and will wind up in a landfill if the charity can't accept it. Anything with tears or stains will fall into this category. So how can you reuse old clothing? There are lots of uses for even the stained or torn pieces!

1. Dress-up fun for little ones! That wine stain doesn't make an old cocktail dress any less fun for your little girl to play at being Cinderella headed for the ball. A torn or stained old jacket makes a fun hobo costume come Halloween. Many pieces you may have though useless can be used for costumes.

2. Make a memory quilt from old baby clothes. All those spit-up stains may make your baby's outfits unfit to be hand me downs, but those special pieces can be cut up and sewn together to make a quilt to cherish.

3. Painting smocks for the kids. Your old shirts make perfect cover-ups for kids to use when painting or other messy fun. Button down men's dress shirts work best because they are easy to get off when covered in paint!

4. Wrap up valuables for safe storage. Cut strips of cloth to use as padding for breakable items being boxed up for storage.

5. Create fun wall art! Cut logos and images out of t-shirts and frame them. You can sew them into a collage or frame and hang them separately. Do a series of concert t-shirts or fun designs for a kid's room.

6. Make scented sachets. Cut out pieces of fabric and fill them with dried flowers, then place the in drawers and closets to keep clothes smelling lovely.

7. Use them as rags for various cleaning duties. Soft cotton t-shirts make great dust cloths. Old towels are perfect for washing the car.

8. Have a new addition on the way? Sew strips of fabric from old clothes together to make burp cloths for baby. Cut your favourite old t-shirt into a swaddling blanket - but wear it first! The bonus is it will smell just like you, a comforting smell for a new baby.

9. Use old clothes to save news ones! Cut pieces of fabric from old clothes to patch holes in newer ones. Denim is great for this purpose, especially if your kids have a habit of tearing holes in the knees of their jeans.

10. Dress up dolls and stuffed animals. Use old clothing to make doll clothes or a little outfit for a favourite teddy bear.

With a little thought you'll discover those old clothes aren't anywhere near the end of their useful life. There are plenty of great ways to reuse old clothes rather than throwing them in the trash.