Make Every Day Earth Day by Recycling Your Craft Waste

What do you do with all those thread ends, bits of yarn, and fabric scraps?

For smaller lengths of yarn that I can't knit with, I often use them to decorate gifts (if they're long enough), or to use as ties to keep yarn skeins tidy while I'm dyeing them (if they're shorter).

And I save as much leftover fabric from projects as possible, to be used later on for crumb piecing.

But what about stuff that you simply can't use, like bits of yarn or thread that you snip after weaving in ends or finishing off a project? There was a time that I used to throw these things away....but always with an immense sense of guilt. There is already so much textile waste taking up space in landfills from fast fashion, I don't want to make it any worse.

Then I started seeing ads on Instagram for the For Days Take Back Bag. Initially I ordered a few because we had a lot of old clothing, textiles, etc. that were not in good enough condition to keep using or donate. But then I noticed that they will literally take ANY fiber - including sewing/textile waste. Turns out all of these things can be made into insulation!

So now I keep a bin in my craft room where I can add all of the leftover bits of thread, yarn and teeny-tiny fabric trimmings that I can't find a use for. When I have enough to fill a Take Back Bag, I send it in to be recycled, guilt-free!

Each bag costs $20, which is then credited back to your account when the filled-up bag is received. Then you can spend it on anything in their online store! I have already ordered a few shirts made from recycled fibers and have been pretty happy with them. I'm looking forward to treating myself to a few more pieces later this year after I send in another Take Back Bag or two.

Incidentally, this is NOT a sponsored post - I just wanted to share how I'm keeping as much of my craft waste as possible out of landfills. Happy Earth Day!

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