Dogs and cats always enjoy getting something new, whether it's a blanket or toy.
I crochet quilts and always have yarn left over. Each time there is yarn left over, even a piece 10 inches long, it is tied to the end of another leftover. This is wound into a ball. This hodge-podge of colors is used to make my dogs crocheted blankets, sweaters, and toys. They don't mind if the colors don't match.
I used to have a cat and she was always getting a new toy of some sort to play with. A single crocheted chain attached to a crocheted ball made a mouse, as far as she was concerned. Sometimes I sprayed it with catnip spray.
Source: As a depression baby, mother taught me to never throw anything away. All scraps could be used in some way. That has stuck with me, and saved me money.
By Clynn Altemus from Inglis, FL
This page contains the following solutions.
A softer way to tie up your vine type plants is to tie the vines to a post, fence, etc. with a piece of yarn. It is much softer on the plant than wire ties and can easily be removed with scissors.
Do you have piles of leftover yarn that is in knots instead of balls? Try this, take an empty toilet paper holder, put a little split on one end, cut the yarn anywhere, and attach to the holder.
Don't throw away those yarn tails and left over small amounts. If you have an extra skein of yarn laying around, it makes great stuffing instead of the polyester stuffing.
My grandma was a big crocheter, and was always getting left with small, 1-3 inch balls of yarn she had no use for. I came up with a way to use the small balls of yarn.
I just saw an interesting tip on how to use up excess yarn by making baskets. Well, I use my excess yarn by making drinking glass sweaters.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have lots of rug yarn, the 4 inch pieces. I don't know what to do with them. What do you do with left over rug yarn?
By Misty Groth from Sequim, WA
These pieces are just the right size to make a hook-latch rug with. Make up your own design with dots & swirls of all colors. You can also make pompoms too!
You might want to use them somehow to make colorful poofy luggage tags. They would enable a person to easily spot their luggage at the airport. You might be able to weave them into some small pieces of plastic canvas with some initials for gifts. Hope this helps.
Hair for small doll or ornament heads, I even use the wild stuff for my angels hairs. Stuff small items with it as it is pretty soft and plushy for small toys etc. You can buy rug hooking canvas by the yard and try making what I call a crazy carpet. Cut a 4-6" square or circle of rug canvas (leave a row or two of canvas holes for turning under) Then just go wild, hooking with a latchet hook until the shape is covered. Turn under and hand stitch the raw edge to the back. Use self adhesive felt to line the back side.
Use it as a mug rug or coaster for drinks. I have also made several, and stitched them together like a patchwork rug, again backed with felt, the sewn on type this time to coordinated with the colors of yarn used in the pieces since you will only sew the patches together in about 4 spots, so the felt will show through. if you use round patches it kind of looks like one of those felt rugs called a penny rug, only bigger circles of course. You can make it any size and I recommend button twist or extra strong thread known as carpet thread for sewing it together for strength and durability.
You can buy blank rug canvas and create your own design!
Good to "paint" with. Using cardboard, plywood, or whatever as your foundation, You can paint on a background color first - if desired. Using Elmer's Glue All, start filling in areas of your "painting" with the yarn pieces.
I've bought some blank backing and made a rug. I hooked my leftover yarn into stripes, varying the widths by the amount of yarn I had. Once done, I gave it to my sister as a gift.
I am looking for ideas for scrap yarn projects other that knitting or crochet. Anyone have any ideas?
By mkay from IN
Cut colorful yarn in 1" pieces and stuff them inside plastic/glass ornaments.
Make bows for the upcoming Holidays and for other gifts like Birthdays, Anniversaries, etc.
Use them for curtain tiebacks.
Make pom pom's for hair barrettes.
Find a simple vase or glass jar and begin wrapping the yarn around it for a new and improved look.
Wrap into balls and make a bowl of pretty decorative yarn balls for any room.
Instead of dollar store gift bags or paper gift wrap (regardless of occasion), use leftover yarn to knit or crochet durable gifts bags. www.allfreecrochet.com/
Use the single crochet stitch to cover wire hangers as a terrific way to keep silky clothes from sliding off. Use a double layer for light-weight sweaters.
Check out these photos.
I decided to make a prayer shawl that used some of the Lion Brand yarn stash I have accumulated while making various other prayer shawls. As you can see from the stash photo, my palate leans toward the earthy colors.
If you crochet, jazz up your ride with a colorful scrap yarn steering wheel cover. This is a page about how to make a crocheted scrap yarn steering wheel cover.
Creating a continuous ball of scrap yarn makes it easier to use in your next crochet, knitting, or other craft projects. This is a page about scrap yarn ball.
Use leftover balls and yarn scraps to make a beautiful, functional, variegated crochet afghan. This page offers instructions for making a recycled yarn afghan.