Skip to main content

Waste Not

Shifting from a buy-it-cheap attitude to thrift-everything-possible has taken me a couple of years, but in that time I've been discovering just how much we waste, especially when it comes to textiles and yarns. I've been able to thrift things that are new with tags that tell me I would have paid ten or twenty times what I did if I bought it retail, and that's always a thrill -- until I think about what a drop in the recycling bucket my own thrifted purchases are.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate being able to obtain yarn, fabric and other materials for my projects at super low prices. I'm also glad I can thrift clothes and shoes in new condition for far less than I'd pay at stores. Helping the cause by using them instead of having them end up in a landfill makes me happy, too. But there is just so much out there that gets wasted that I feel sick sometimes.

Last month I considered going to JoAnn to get a dozen green fabric fat quarters for a quilting project I want to do this summer, but instead I thrifted 15 lbs. of fabric that had a lot of green pieces in it. I paid less for that 45 yards of fabric than I would have for the fat quarters I needed, but that's not the point. Reusing, recycling, thifting and doing what I can to stop textile and yarn waste means the world to me. I want to live in a no-waste world, even if it's just my own.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Better than Fried

I cut some chives from the kitchen garden to make garlic-chive baked fries for dinner. This is a great side dish for veggie burgers. Click here for the recipe from Taste of Home.com.
Post a Comment
Read more

Stuff

After finding this Caron one pound skein of lovely peach yarn in my thrifted lot I raided my stash for two cakes of Mandala in Pegasus, which matches it perfectly. For practice and hand therapy I'm going to make another Worth Street Afghan with this free pattern , but this time I'll use the yarn that was recommended for it plus the one pound skein. I'm not quite ready to do the vintage/recycled linen quilt I had planned (still a bit too nervous about the idea), so I'm going to use some color therapy and make a quilt from these thrifted green fat quarters. I considered doing another Yellow Brick road patchwork pattern, but I might go with a split rail fence like this one.
Post a Comment
Read more

Make It Yourself

As we head into December, here are ten ideas for easy handmade gifts: Cookie Exchange: If you live close to your friends invite them over for a cookie exchange. Basically everyone bakes a set amount of their favorite cookies, and these are exchanged at the gathering by lottery, sharing a little from each batch with everyone, or however you want to do it. You can also exchange recipes, too. My neighbor did this once and it was wonderful. Favorite Recipe Cookbook : For my favorite person I found a copy of my favorite cookbook from a vintage bookseller (yes, I am that old) and went through it making notes on all the recipes I used, how I tweaked them, etc. Ornament: There are probably a million free tutorials on how to make your own holiday ornaments, so do some research online. I like to make hanging pomanders , which smell heavenly and are biodegradable after the holidays. Mug Rugs: If you sew, making up a set of mug rugs is simple and easy; I add these every year to my ...
Post a Comment
Read more