Uses for Old Clothes

Once your clothes have outworn their use, what should you do with them? In this article are many ideas for reusing old items of clothing such as jeans and t-shirts that can no longer be worn.

Jeans. Old blue jeans have many fun uses. The material is durable and perfect to be made into another clothing item or a project.

Old Jeans Use #1: Shorts. If your blue jeans have holes in the knees, you can cut them off just above the knee and hem for some long shorts. They could also be left unhemmed for a more rugged look, or cut off higher up to make the shorts shorter.

Old Jeans Use #2: Jean Skirt. Use old blue jeans to make a jean skirt. Undo the inseam of your jeans and connect the front and back of each leg with a triangle of additional fabric, either from the legs of another old pair of jeans, or in a fun pattern, to make a skirt. You can cut the jeans off at any length to make a short or long skirt. Hem as desired, or even leave unhemmed.

Old Jeans Use #3: Purse. Cut the legs off your old blue jeans and sew up the opening on the bottom. You can make a purse out of the torso piece. Use spare fabric from the legs to make a strap by sewing a length in half with the right sides in, then turning inside right. Sew a snap or Velcro to the waistband for a closure - to add a zipper if you're really good on the sewing machine.

Old Jeans Use #4: Remove the pockets using a seam ripper and sew onto a canvas tote to add instant pockets. Pockets from old blue jeans can be sewn onto many other projects.

Shirts. Free t-shirts, school t-shirts, torn and stained t-shirts - we all have too many t-shirts. Here are a few ways to get some more use out of those shirts that are hanging in your closet.

Old Shirt Use #1: T-shirt Quilt. If you have a sentimental t-shirt collection, consider making them or, if you can't sew, having them made into a memorable quilt.

Old Shirt Use #2: Rice Bag Warmer. Cut off the sleeve of an old flannel shirt, fill with long grain white rice and sew up the ends. This will make a nice rice warmer for your back after a hard day's work, or your feet on a cold winter night. Just heat in the microwave for a few minutes.

Old Shirt Use #3: Smock. A t-shirt is the perfect size for a child to wear as a smock during art projects. But don't forget to put on an old shirt when doing a project of your own.

Towels. Once your towels have too many holes in them to use as a towel, cut them up into smaller rag or washcloth sizes. Hem the edges, or use a serger, and you have a new collection of rags. This is a great way to reuse your towels and get a lot more use out them.