Craft Tips > Recycled CraftsJuly 11, 2007

Ideas from the ThriftyFun community on what to do with small ends of yard goods after using for crafts.

For The Birds And Other Ideas

Really tiny pieces can be put outside for the birds to make nests out of. If they are of any size, a quilter might want then. You can glue them to the outside of flower pots to decorate them.

By Bojo

Create Artwork From Fabric

There was a show where pictures where "painted" using scraps of fabric. The fabric was pressed into fusing and then clipped into small pieces that where laid out on a small wall-quilt base. Multiple shades were used for the pictures, greens for grass and tree leaves, browns for earth and houses, etc.. Many of the fabric pieces where no bigger than a dime. The pieces after being put in place were then ironed, press down only, into the base wall quilt.

I believe you can find the process on the Home and Garden TV website. I do not recall the show # or name of the project. The instructions above are really all that needed to be done though. Have fun and good luck!

By Kcohenvt

String Quilting

There is string quilting. For this, pieces of fabric are sewn together length-wise, to make stripes. You can sew wider pieces, and then cut them, and use the cut-off parts to make more stripes, until they get too narrow to work with. When you have a lot of fabric sewn together, you can use patterns and cut out vests, placemats, decorative trims, or whatever, or just make it into a quilt top.

You could use even smaller bits for stuffing in other craft projects. For better results, chop up the bits, or cut them in long narrow strips. Sorting them by type also helps produce a better result.

By h_bstowe

Fabric Wreath

Trim the edges of the fabric with pinking shears (4x4 inch squares work best) and push them into a straw or styrofoam wreath, leaving the backside bare for hanging, to make an attractive rag wreath. A Phillips screwdriver can be used to push the fabric into the wreath. For a hanger, form a twist tie into a loop and push the ends into the back of the wreath. If using a Styrofoam wreath, its best to use a dab of glue to hold the fabric in place.

By jdlscott

Donate To Seniors Center

I take mine to the seniors center and they re-cycle them into quilts and other crafts.

By Aldrevlo

Decoupage

You can decoupage using the odds and ends pieces of material. Buy Modpodge at your local craft store (the matte finish). Also buy a few foam brushes. Take a smooth clean surface: lampshade, picture frame, a clear smooth plate (for the plate, you decoupage on the reverse side on top of the fabric), etc. Brush the modpodge on, glue the fabric down every which way, sides touching. When dry, recoat the top of your project with more modpodge and let dry. You can do this with any flat surface. Have fun! For the plate, you can put a picture of a loved one in the middle and modpodge fabric around it. This will not be able to go in the dishwasher, it is for decorative purposes only.

By Pat

Several Ideas For Little Scraps

Wrap a hanger with grocery plastic bags (or not) and using fabric glue, wrap scraps around hanger. Cover cork coasters like a crazy quilt (sew together then wrap or glue each piece on), cover back of frame (3.5x5 inch, like crazy quilt) and mount small pic in center. Got lots of ideas, cause I love fabric! lol lol

By eyelovecats

Do you have any more ideas? Feel free to post them below.

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