maviskw

Not a good idea to give too many of them to the birds. They can strangle themselves on long strings and baby birds get pneumonia from wet nests. Natural fibers dry out much faster.

That said, I save everything "pretty" over 3/4 of an inch wide. They make really cute outlines around blocks or quilts before the final border. If they aren't pretty, they make great plant ties, morning glory trellises and package ties. I just used several yards of those ugly strings to tie the insulation around a heat pipe that was a long way from the furnace. Worked slick.

Debbrah

Thank you for the reminder! I have been cutting lots of fabric and have lots of little strings left over. Forgot all about the bowl wrapping!

annesthreads

Thankyou so much for all the replies. I'd no idea you could do so many things with such unpromising strips! I don't think I'll be throwing them out just yet.

icul8rg8r

I really dislike working with anything less than 2" ..... so I controller saving selvedges or narrow strips.

stella63

Annesthreads Thank u for mentioning me in dispatches made me giggle! Lol I know some one who wanted everyone's thin strips and selvage to make a rag rug ! Don't ask me what one is cos the concept went straight over my head .

quilttiger

I have been saving salvages and strips of fabrics for future projects, too. The remaining pieces too small to use as well as snipped threads go into a recycle bag. When filled, the bag goes to Goodwill or Salvation Army. A few years ago, I checked with these two agencies who replied they accept them.

Kris P

I save these strips, tie them together end to end. When I have a couple of really big balls, I start knitting a rug with really big knitting needles.

Jingle

I keep any 1" and over. I put 1" sashes between blocks not long ago. I don't think I posted pics of the quilt yet. I wanted to break up the blocks with a bit of gold and cornerstones were 1" too. They sewed up at 1/2". Worked perfect for what I wanted to do.
1" strips are good to use in scrappy string quilts, I have used them for that too.

annesthreads

It depends on my mood : sometimes I quite enjoy working with small pieces, other times it just drives me crazy. I also like multicoloured, random projects, so I think I probably will find a use for my long thin scraps at some point.

abdconsultant

Keep some strips to check your machine tension and stitch quality.