Recycle Denim/Jeans into Reusable parts with no waste.

Why waste? You can turn your forgotten, out-of-style, or unwearable jeans into a ready to use crafter's dream!

Use these steps to efficiently deconstruct a pair of jeans into all reusable parts. This process yields minimum scraps and a host of useful materials.

Step 1: Materials

You will need:

A pair of Jeans
Sturdy Sewing shears

Comments

[kylara70]

Respect on making the MOST out of your jean cast-offs. I went through this last year when making a project and I kept all the pockets because I just COULD NOT bear to throw them away. There is some GOOD inspiration here. Also, denim can be composted so the little scraps can go back to the earth. It takes a while to breakdown but it does eventually. :)

[gearhead1951]

When I was a child growing up in the shadow of the smoky mts in east tn my mother would use every last scrap of clothing that none of us could wear any more to make new clothing (there was 5 of us kids) or other usefull things !

She used blue jean material for quilts because the material gave so many shades of blue , from washed out and nearly white to brand new denim blue

[love4pds]

You can cut the fabric into strips and crochet or braid with them then stitch together in a circle, great for rugs or handbags. My 2 cents,

[reginainqc]

It is possible to put in a new zipper if you have a sewing machine or are willing to sew by hand. On a pair of jeans you are willing to sacrifice cut out all the seams pertaining to the zipper, paying attention to the sequence. Find a new or used zipper and sew everything up in reverse order of taking apart. Work yes,but not necessarily difficult. And you'd get quite some additional wear out of your pants. I have a mountain of old jeans accumulated and will use your suggestion to glue the double stitched seams on a base to make a carpet.

[Faynilla]

 said before already, but i have to add my two cents. this is a great tut because people like me wouldnt have thought of using the seams. my machine prob wouldnt be able to sew it, and i would need to get a zigzag foot to even try but other projects would work. and the mat you made was amazing! i guess i could in a pinch, use some good glue to a sturdy fabric base as a matt with the same concept in mind. maybe i just need a better machine :) have a blog i can check out????

[passionfly]

your idea for gluing is a good one! especially if you use a rubberized backing so that it will stay in place on smooth flooring! No blog to follow but THanks for the compliment!

[orksecurity]

Hm. Seat covers from seat covers. That's an interesting idea, and in fact I do have some chairs which need to be re-upholstered.

[lady4feet]

Thank you for posting this. I never thought to cut the seams off to use as cording.

[passionfly]

:D you should check out the recycled floor mat I made out of seams and waistbands. you can sew a bunch of seams together into a neat durable, flexible material that is textured nicely. There is an instructable for it if you search "recycled denim floor mat".

[mslaynie]

You know, I just did this with a pair of worn out jeans last week. I wish I'd seen this then, I'd have more usable parts! Great suggestions for using all the parts, by the way!

[passionfly]

thanks!

[bedeboop]

Great idea on saving everything, no waste! :)