Do you have any uses for old, unwanted tennis shoes?
I use boots and tennis shoes as planters in my garden in the summer,,,they hold the water well and are an unusual conversation piece. The old boots are great! I have placed them near doors and in odd spots to fill in till the flowers dies or the new one grow!
Set them aside to wear when they are most likely to get soaked while doing a job. That will save better ones.
If they have velcro fasteners, carefully cut the stitching to remove the velcro strips. Each one can be used as a cable tie for so many things. They are strong and easy to use.
If they have laces, remove them and save them for replacements in another pair of shoes or for use like any strong cord.
~Charlotte
There is a garden center near our house that uses old tennis shoes to pot small plants in. You put them on the porch or deck and it looks really cute, especially the childens shoes! - Jackie
When you have old or unwanted items--shoes clothes or any thing else give them to the Goodwill or Salvation Army stores or the neighborhood thrift shops. Your junk is someone elses treasure. - Mabel
Use for planters. - Ron
I washed the old tennis shoes, removed the laces and the neighbors dog has a ball with it. He tosses it around the yard as the dog toys sit fading in the sun! Carol Hitts
Before tossing those old tennis shoes, leather joggers,etc, try washing them in the washer to revive them . They usually need a bit of pretreatment with a prewash, and maybe a bit of scrubbing with an old toothbrush on the rubber parts, then just toss them in the laundry. Sometimes it's amazing how good they look afterwards.
Often people say 'you can't wash leather!'. I say I do it all the time. Besides, after a point, what have you got to lose? It's worth a try before you toss them.
I wash my white leather ones in with my regular wash, and the bleach and laundry soap doesn't seem to hurt them. Of course, I don't do this OFTEN. I doubt that would be wise. I guess that I wash a pair 6 or 8 times during their lifetime with no problem.
I even partially dry them in the dryer. About halfway. Then air dry to finish up. - Eastwood
Editor's Note: Make sure you use cold water and low heat if you try this. Leather will wash if dried slowly, otherwise it can get hard. You could also try cleaning with saddle soap following the directions.
Actually you can do this with any type of shoe - Everyone thought it was the cutest thing ever - I used my husband's workboots and my two year old son's boots - they looked almost identical to daddy's. I filled with dirt and flowers and even poked holes threw the toe area and stuck some flowers through the toes. I know it can be done with any type of shoe because i did others after people complimented me on the boots, and I stuck some throughout the flower bed and garden. Have fun and be creative - even use fabric paint....you can even decorate the house, just make sure you put something under them before watering them. - Deb in Canada
I have an idea for a tennis shoe washing device that keeps the shoes from floating to the top of the washer---and hence---they get cleaner. What do you think? Would it sell?
I use my old tennis shoes for when I go to the beach. I like to walk along the beach and go out when it's low tide.
I like to keep an old pr of gym shoes around for yard work or going fishing....just anything that I might ruin a better pr of shoes. My son came home yesterday with very muddy gym shoes. He wore his spare ones he keeps in the class home and the muddy ones were in his backpack in a plastic bag. Anyway, these shoes he's worn since the beginning of school in Aug. They are already pretty worn but still fit and I decided to just give them a good soaking. I filled up a bathroom sink and just let them soak with hand washing liquid....the water really got black, I changed the water and added some Oxyi clean and let them soak a while longer. I let them soak overnight and changed the water again in the morning. It was amazing how clean and white they got and I didn't really do any work....just let them soak. I am not certain if they are leather or vinyl but they do not appear to be harmed in any way. Finally I took an old toothbrush and brushed them down good and gave them a good rinsing. They are sitting on a little rug now in the laundry room and I imagine they'll be plenty dry by the time he goes back to school on Mon! He's in Kindgergarten and they like to take them outside as much as possible but the ground was definitely soggy. Oh well, I'm glad he got out in the fresh air and had some fun. Now he can get some more wear out of these shoes before I let him wear the new ones I have in reserve!
take fabric paint and paint the old shoes... I have taken ribbon and use it for shoe strings or add studs for a sparkle... looks really nice if your really creative.
Plant Hen and Chick plants in them, or another succulent.
