My
cleaning rags were looking a bit dismal.
Most of them had holes in them and several had paint stains from using
them last year on some of our projects.
I'd used up a few when we stained and painted and tossed those when we
were done so what was left wasn't much to brag about. Not that one really brags about their
collection of rags. LOL
When
I was going through our things for the 30
Bags In 30 Days challenge we did last month I came across a stack of hand
towels we had used in the bathroom of our old travel trailer. They didn't match our new decor so they had
ended up in the linen closet. Upon
further inspection I found they were in good shape except they had stains on
them so not worthy of donating. But
definitely worthy of a new purpose.
I
cut them up into various sizes and hemmed all the raw edges so they won't
unravel and leave a trail of strings and terry cloth fuzz behind when we use or
wash them. I simply folded over the edge
a 1/4 inch and did a fairly tight zigzag stitch. Nothing fancy, in fact I used the thread that
was already on the machine. Didn't even
try to match it. These are cleaning
cloths after all. Four old hand towels
later I'm back in business with a nice big stack of cleaning cloths.
I
gave up buying paper towels several years ago deciding to switch over
completely to cloth for cleaning. It is
a decision I've never regretted. Not
only do I save $$ by not purchasing paper towels, but it is less I contribute
to the landfill. We do keep a roll of
paper towels in our garage for really nasty stuff when we have a need, so not
100% paper towel free, but pretty dang close.
I've
used a lot of different things to make cleaning rags over the years. My favorite, hands down, is cutting up old
towels. I use old flour sack towels for
cleaning mirrors and windows, a microfiber cloth for polishing furniture and
terry cloth for just about everything else.
Super easy, super thrifty and super simple.
I basically do the same thing you do but have never thought to finish the edges. Mine are kinda ugly and weird shaped but they do get the job done.
ReplyDeleteHey, as long as they get the job done that is all that matters. :)
DeleteLove this idea. As a kid, we always used old t-shirts for dusting and other cleaning. To this day, I still use newspaper to clean our mirrors and glass tabletops. Having paper towel was a luxury back then, so I use very little these days too.
ReplyDeletePaper towels have become quite costly. I'm happy not to purchase them. :^)
DeleteI have large totes full of rags from going through my parents old clothes and linens..one bunch set aside for tossing after use...cleaning up cat yak or greasy dishes...also have not purchased paper towels in years...a roll of toilet paper easily reduces the need for a box of tissues, though I do keep one on hand for company
ReplyDeleteThere is always cat yak to clean up. In fact, my cat just did! LOL
DeleteI don't mind using toilet paper as tissue either. I consider it one of my luxury items and do keep it on hand stocking up when it is on sale. Kroger has been running their soft tissues for $1 a box for quite a while.