Green disposal of threadbare clothes

**Chipper** · 12-11-2009, 01:13 PM

I usually wear clothes down to the nub. Is there a good way to dispose of them without just throwing in the trash? Giving to somebody else is not an option because they're pretty much unusable.

**mauimagic** · 12-11-2009, 01:25 PM

How about making rags for around the house out of them - and I know from experience you can only use so many rags too!!

Take off all the buttons, zippers, etc.

Cut into strips for an authentic rag rug.

Looking forward to seeing the ideas that this interesting quest brings forth - good for you - mahalo.

**zakity** · 12-11-2009, 04:00 PM

Yep, I was going to say rags. DH hasn't bought rags for the shop forever. Well, he did buy a few because they were larger (specific brand/size), but his regular red rags he doesn't buy any more. I cut up old undies and clothes that are past their prime and he uses those.

**savvy_sniper** · 12-11-2009, 04:08 PM

We use hubby's old t-shirts as rags. I offer his old falling apart blue jeans on freecycle. People are glad to get them. They cut them up and make other things with them.

**RetiredVeryEarly** · 12-14-2009, 08:47 PM

We compost cotton clothing. Eventually you may find a seam of polyester thread the next year someplace, but jeans and things do compost eventually. We also use old socks, shirts, and underwear as rags, of course.

**Judi Dial** · 12-15-2009, 11:50 AM

I'm making rugs from old blue jeans. Otherwise, I use the fabrics for rags although I will add that there are some of my favorite clothese that have been saved to be made into pillows at some point!

Judi

**mrsfoamy** · 12-15-2009, 11:54 AM

I donate mine to a thrift shop that uses the money in turn to run a soup kitchen. I saw a bit on CNN a long time ago about a company that grinds up old clothes and presses them into the insulating matting that goes underneath the carpet in your car. Have a look at it sometime....you be able to see all the colored flecks of cloth!