apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

If cotton, cut off the elastic and toss it into your recycling bin. It'll go faster if you cut it into strips first.

I just wash them one last time and use them for household rags. When you cut the elastic, they're usually about the right size, and soft for surfaces and hands. Useful for cleaning bathrooms, wiping grease from bikes, etc...

So far, none have them have gotten narsty enough to be demoted from rag use, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it...

It is my understanding, and I could be wrong, that Goodwill takes all textiles that are not sellable (pit-stained t-shirts, etc.) and sends them to be recycled/ turned into rags. I send all of my clothing there with the hopes that it is resold or recycled. Some clothing that is sorta ok but not what the store wants to sell is shipped overseas. Even stuffed animals are recycled: http://flickr.com/photos/pintuck/2065145660/in/photostream/

I think only the larger thrift stores (Goodwill, Salvation Army) typically do this practice at their stores, so if you use another outlet, you may want to check what their policy is. The store closest to my house just throws stuff they don't want away.

A note about the recycling bin option ~ if your local collection does not specify that they take textiles for recycling, they are not recycled - just thrown away with the other stuff that wasn't supposed to be there.

I also have been known to cut up underwear (my husband wears boxer briefs, so there is a lot of useable material) to use as rags, but there are only so many rags I need, so now most underwear gets sent to Goodwill.

Are you cute? Take a picture of yourself wearing the underwear, and sell it to pervs on eBay. Profit!

Cut 'em in half and use them as rags (if they are cotton). I got out of this habit but am trying to do it again. My mother always had a ragbag in our laundry room and she used old t-shirts, underwear, blouses, etc., for washing windows, the car, woodwork, etc.

According to the Goodwill website:

What happens to donated items that aren't sold at Goodwill stores?

Our goal is to try to generate money to fund Goodwill programs from every item that is donated. So in most cases, we'll do what we can to get items in salable shape. As for items that can't be sold in our stores, we've found other creative uses for them. For instance, some member Goodwills recycle old clothing scraps into industrial wipes (cleaning cloths) for industrial buyers. Other items that are too damaged for retail sales are sold to salvage brokers.

i really like to use men briefs for a sports bra. cut down the crotch and voila ! super soft sports bra. need a little more support? layer two brief bras.

use them as fill for a pillow?

or make them into a hot air balloon a la baron munchausen.

Could cotton ones be composted / fed to a worm farm? I guess they'd have to be 100% cotton, but it seems like it should work...

Rags! They make great household rags.

Ha ha! I see I already replied to this. I am passionate about rags!