Recycling Fun

**This tutorial is intended for personal use only.**

You're either going to think that I am very resourceful or have simply gone off the deep end. I doubt that there is any middle ground on this one. I will explain.

I save discarded blue jeans in hopes of repurposing them into other useful items. I assume that some may think that this is just a waste of time and energy. Maybe it is, but it works for me and makes me feel good about sending that much less to the landfill. Each time that denim is needed for a project, I remove a pair from the recycling pile and cut away the hems, zipper, waist band, and the bulky seams that run the length of each leg. With much hesitation, I toss the useless scraps into the trash can. I then proceed to cut my pattern from the larger, more usable pieces.


This weekend, in an effort to condense and eliminate clutter in my sewing room, I decided to cut into the entire stack of jeans. I am now left with a much smaller and more manageable stack of denim pieces.


It has long been a hope of mine to find a way to utilize all parts of the jeans. The pieces that intrigue me the most are the hems and the long thick seams that run the length of each leg. I have no real idea why, but maybe it's just the way it feels when I have it in my hand. I love it's weight and thickness. I've played around with it in the past but was never able to come up with a good use for them until today. Now a "good use" to me may not be a worthwhile effort to you. This is what I mean by saying that you may believe that I have truly gone off the deep end with this one.





I used this today and it worked out great. It has a good weighty feel to it and is thick and absorbent and wonderful for catching the condensation from drinking glasses. It also makes a very nice mug rug for hot coffee or tea. Make it larger and it will make a wonderful and durable trivet for a hot pot to sit on.


Add a pretty trim to the outside of your mug rug and glue a felt round to the bottom or just leave it plain. Either way, you have a very useful piece to enjoy for years to come.


I recommend that you use fabric glue to hold these together especially if you will be using them as trivets for hot pots. Hot glue may melt from the heat and may cause your trivet to fall apart. You could also sew these together like they do in coiled basketry, but hey, this is supposed to be a quick and easy project made from a throwaway piece of fabric so I say, glue to your hearts content!

I guess the lesson that we can all take away from this is that we should give more thought to everything that we perceive to be rubbish before we toss it into the trash can. Even the most unlikely tidbits can sometimes be turned into something useful and fun.

Now, I realize that there is a thin line that separates sanity and madness. Have I crossed over? Muhahahahahahaha......

Take care!

Aloha!