Thursday, August 26, 2010

I hate to buy washcloths!!

These are some of my washcloths...they are all exactly the same size.  They stack nicely on the shelf. 
They are all made by me....because I hate to pay almost as much as for a washcloth that I do for a towel, especially when my son uses them to wash his car, wipe dog poop off his shoes, and clean up spills on the floor. So I can't see paying $4 for a washcloth for those chores!
So when a towel starts to wear out, gets stained or has a hole in it, I recycle it into anywhere from 6-8 washcloths.  First of all I cut off the end where the decorative band is.  It tends to shrink more than the rest of the towel and I don't like how it is puckered.  I use my rotary cutter and ruler and make short work of it all!
I cut 10.5" squares.  Later I will round the corners when I stitch the edges. 
I was able to get 6 squares out of this towel. 
Next I am going to bind the edges with my serger.  If you don't have a serger, you could use an overcast stitch to stitch the edges.  If you use a regular machine, you will need to round the corners prior to stitching.
I start on one corner and serge all around the edge,
rounding the corners as I go.
Here is the finished product...they will be a bit ragged until they are washed a few times.
I love that thread...this was the first time I had used it.  It has a heavier weight feel to it, not quite as thick as quilting thread, but thicker than regular sewing thread.  And it was only 97 cents at JoAnn Fabrics.  Usually I use white thread, once I used a rayon embroidery thread, but it didn't last very long. 
Here they are stacked on the bottom of my washcloth shelf.  I always buy Martha Stewart towels so the well worn towels make nice thick but soft wash cloths! 


43 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey there,

I'm your newest follower from Buzz on by Thursday. Please come by anytime you get a moment for a visit.

Thanks,

Marie
The Things We Find Inside

Tonia Lee Smith said...

I know what you mean about boys using your good washcloths for things such as that. Although i have not made any towels like this; I've taken old towel to cut them up and placed them in a box in his bathroom to let me know these are for those specific things, and not my good towels.

AmericKim said...

Brillian post! Love the recycled towels. Please visit me. I will be posting about how I use my washclothes to make Boo-Boo bunnies for my little fellow (at 16 months he has a lot of boo-boos).

Cheers!
AmericKim

ProcraftinatingPA said...

Great idea! Thanks for sharing!! I can't wait to try it when my towels wear out!

The Autocrat: Haley said...

Just for that reason alone, I need to invest in a serger!! Ahhh I have been wanting one for awhile now. Yeah, I totally agree, the price of wash cloths are ridiculous!

TheCraftInMe said...

Very cool, I've never thought of using towels that way!

Andrea @ Simple Organized Living said...

Wow...I've honestly never thought of this idea before. Such a great way to "reuse" something you already have.

thanks for sharing

Eileen said...

came over from "home sweet farm"...great idea! I need to dust off my serger.

Unknown said...

What a great idea. I love the idea of reusing towels. I stopped by from Home Sweet Farm.

Letti said...

Brilliant! Now I need to get me a serger.

ktquilts said...

Awesome idea! Going to have to do this!!!

Thanks so much!!

Michelle said...

What an excellent idea!

eye_on_sparrow said...

Those wash cloths look very nice. What a nice way to use a worn towel.

Tasha said...

Brilliant!! I am seriously loving this idea. I need new wash clothes right now and I hate buying them too. I really need a serger. love love love this idea. Thank you for sharing it at my link party. Happy Friday to you.

Nina... said...

Great idea! I'll have to try it. Thanks!

Larri said...

That is such a fabulous idea! I have a whole stack of towels sitting in the 'rag' bin. Now I know what to do with them. :o)Stopping by from Sew&Tell. Thanks for sharing. Happy Sewing! :o)

Larri at Seams Inspired

Paulette said...

Great idea!

Haylee said...

What a great idea. Thanks for sharing it with us. I hate buying washcloths too.

Allison Shops said...

What a great idea - love the thread you selected. I am a blue gal!

Also, I wanted to let you know about Atticmag's new linky party - Giveaway Friday! It's a convenient place for bloggers to link their giveaways each week. We've kicked it off with a fantastic giveaway of our own. Five lucky winners will win material to do a backsplash in their home. Hope to see you there!

Allison
Atticmag

p.s.phyllis sews said...

Great idea! I don't buy dishcloths but I crochet those.

Miri said...

Brilliant! I will definitely try this!

trish said...

How clever! :o)

Julia said...

I will try this...great idea!!

~Julia

Megan Gunyan said...

Wow, this is a marvelous idea! I obviously need a surger and someone to show me how to use it! Great idea!!! Thank you for linking up to my Friday link party! It was great to see you there and I hope to see you back next week! Have a great weekend.

Unknown said...

Great idea, I seem to have a surplus of towels from our wedding shower that still have tags on them two years later. I also have a shortage of rags, so I am digging this project. Love the thread, do you know the color?

Melissa said...

I love this idea! I would love if you would come over to Tuesday Tell All and link up this great idea!

Pokey said...

These are the best! Your variegated thread sure makes them fun1

Leslie said...

this is great....i can see why you don't want to pay for them when they are getting used for yucky jobs.

Unknown said...

you're so clever! I've never gone the extra step to finishing the edges of my cut up towels, but it's totally worth it seeing the end result! Partying with you at Tatertots and Jello!

Lorie said...

That is so brilliant! SO brilliant. I don't buy the nice matching wash cloths either because the price is usually ridiculous! Thank you so much for linking up to Show and Tell Saturday!

beachvintage.com said...

You are making me feel like getting crafty now!

Delia said...

Great idea! That multi-colored thread is perfect for spicing up this project.

About Southern Belle said...

What a thrifty idea! Not only are these washcloths cost effective, but you have the satisfaction of knowing you sewed them yourself.

belle
http://beautifulnest.blogspot.com/

Jill said...

Great thrifty and simple idea!! Thanks for linking to A Round Tuit!

Have a great week!

Jill @ Creating my way to Success
http://jembellish.blogspot.com/

Unknown said...

I never thought about using old towels for washcloths. I always use them for washing floors. I like to use crocheted washcloths to wash my face - it always feels like I'm used a mask but it's not "tight".

Thanks for sharing - I'm following YOU now. =D

Tina "The Book Lady"
http://givingnsharing.blogspot.com
http://www.familyliteracyandyou.blogspot.com

Terrell said...

Soooo creative! these look amazing! Thank you so much for linking your wonderful creation up at Frou Frou Decors party! I hope you had a lovely weekend..and I hope you come to the next party!
Hugs,
~Terrell @ Frou Frou Decor~

Kaysi @ Keeping it Simple said...

great idea!!!

FlyAwayHome said...

This is a great idea.. my mother passed this idea on to me. Not wanting to waste she always made washcloths from old towels. I make my daughter bibs - same way. I just cut out the shape of the bib, serge around it and add a bit of velcro to hold it around the neck. Visiting from Keep it Simple.

Unknown said...

FABULOUS AND OH' SO DOMESTIC, LOVE IT. Jen

Amber D said...

This is great! Way to reuse the towels too! This would be a great way to get face washing towels since I switch them out so often. I'm starting a reuse challenge on my blog next week and would like to use this idea if its ok with you let me know. lifelovegreen at gmail dot com

Unknown said...

Hi just visiting from TTA! I'm your newest follower! I love your idea for the bunting across the top of a bed, I would love to do something like that for my daughters bed!
http://kensingtoncottage.blogspot.com

Amy at Ameroonie Designs said...

Great Idea!

Fallan said...

These is a neat idea! So simple! I might have to try that =)