I found out this neat idea a week or so ago. Save those itty bitty piecies of fabric, even the wings, save them. Then every spring toss them around your yard (cotton is 100% biodegradable). The birds love them for their nest. I did it and actually watched through my window and saw a couple of birds scooping down to get the scraps. Too cute!

I save every scrap, even the narrow little strips that I get when I square things up. I find uses for them , such as stuffing for pincushions or little dolls that I have made. I did the same thing, put some scraps out by the bird feeder and watched the squirrels carry them off. Reduce Recycle Reuse. It's the best way.

Okay, this was for the people that scrap the scraps. Right on, reduce, recycle, reuse!!!

I always give some to my cat Slick. that way he won't bother me too much when I'm sewing. He's so jealous that he's not getting any attention.

What a neat idea. :)

I was just talking to DH about this!

I have been deep cleaning my sewing space and came across a tote full of flannel shirts that I had saved for 'a project' and decided to sit for awhile with DH while he is glued to the Indy 500 cutting them into usable pieces.

Being the wonderful, attentive man that he is; he asked what I was doing. I had reduced 6 shirts to 3 piles...

1 pile of 3" to 12" squares and strips for a quilt

1 pile of cuffs, collars, pocket, etc for purses/dolls/crafts

1 pile of scraps to small to make anything from

...when he asked what I was going to do with the scraps HE suggested I toss them out for the birds to use

I like the idea of using them for stuffing

Awe, what a sweet DH! :wink:

What a great idea! I'll have to do that.

IF you throw thread out make sure that all of the piece are cut really short or the birds will get them rapped around their feet and it could injure them.

I tried this and it didn't work. The birds around here don't like my scraps, I guess. They've been out there for 3 days now. :( Snobby little things they are. Hrmph!

Since seeing this post a day or two ago myself have been trying my hand at itty bitty scraps, and wow what a different world it is. A bit of a pain too! I made a 2 1/2" star with itty bitty scraps and wow, it was a challenge! With my stitch width at 2 my poor little scraps were trying to pull apart, I'm glad it's one I can say I've tried and leave it at that. :D

It could be they're done nesting. If they're cotton, they will biodegrade anyway.

You beat me too it. When I read this the artical actually said you could throw the strips in your garden (don't know the point of it except that they are biodegradable). My poor DH got so worried that I was going to put the pieces of fabric in the veg. garden to attract the birds. I did get a good laugh and told him birds need to eat too (We have four bird feeders)

One of the quilt shops collects fabric scraps (no size too small) and a lady will take the scraps and make Humane Society dog beds out of them. The bigger scraps are the outside and the inside gets stuffed with the tiny little ones. I've noticed I'm able to part with scraps that realistically I won't ever use a lot easier when they're going to help out animals

I've taken my long but too-skinny-to-use strips, about 3/4" wide, and used them to tie up my tomatos. I've also used them to make a sort of trellis for peas and pole beans. Gives a sort of calico garden effect!

One year I even made an edging for the garden out of the cardboards... free, versus buying landscape timbers... but they do sag after many rains. Next year I'm thinking of using them to make the paths in the vegetable garden. Anything that reduces weeding is fine with me!

oh? how cute. you can also stuff them in a pillowcase, stitch shut, instant pet bed

what a neat little idea!!! we have several little junkos and blue jays around our garden. We have two bird feeders out there and I think we are the local McDonalds drive thru of the block cause all the birds come to our place!! LOL We have to fill the feeders every few days. Right now they are busy gathering for the winter months.... I'll have to think of the scrap thing next spring when they are getting their nests together. Little miniature scrap quilts for their nests!! What colourful nests they will have! They will be the envy of their feathered friends!

I save scraps and take to Salvation Army. The manager says the scrap bags sell as soon as they are put in the store.

Years ago I saw a warning not to throw out scraps of fabrics for bird nests because fabric doesn't dry out fast enough. The idea was that after a rain, the nests remained damp too long and actually cause the baby birds to get sick. As I recall, it was a professional ornithologist who posted this in a similar thread on a quilting forum. Haven't been able to find confirmation of this problem when Googling, though, so I don't know if it has been discounted since then or if I am just not Googling in a way that will find that info.

On a different note, tiny scraps of fabric can be cut to make fusible pictures. A few years ago there were a couple of books out about how to do this. The author was on tv and demonstrated taking a pile of similar-colored-scraps and snipping them on to a fusible. In fact, I think that technique may have been called Snippet Sensations. (Later). Okay, I found the book on Amazon. Here is a link to it:
http://www.amazon.com/Snippet-Sensat.../dp/0873418034

I just unpacked an Accuquilt Go! and cut my first die shapes. I think I am going to cut my fabric pieces even larger than they specify so that I will have scraps big enough for a scrap quilt. Most of the pieces I have so far are too small even for a string quilt.

What wonderful ideas for using your scraps. I want to try to reuse some of my tote of little scraps. I just can't throw them away.

I do this for my outside farm dog, a Border Collie. She loves to snuggle on the covered porch with her pillowcase mattress. I've made a denim rag pillowcase for the "mattress". Wash the denim case when it gets too dirty or wet and snowy.

I read an article recently about someone who put the scraps in a wired container and hung it so she could see it from her window. She said for the first week nothing. Then all of a sudden she saw a bird picking out some. Was being real fussing about which strips he/she (bird) wanted. Then before you knew it there was bird after bird. She said it was so much fun to watch that now she just wants to chop fabric and not have to wait for scraps. So I am going to do that next spring and see what happens.



Lucy, .
That is so neat. I am going to call my local shelter and see if they need beds or blankets. I have so many scraps. :shock: And I am not a scrap sewer. Just the selvages I collect. So maybe I can use my scraps for the shelter somehow. Too bad I don't know anyone localy doing the same thing and the lady you heard of. I guess I could also check with my local quilt shops. Be nicer if someone else would sew and make them. Would get done a lot quicker! :wink:
Good Info! :D

i save all my fabric scraps and any thread/yarn (i crochet too) come the winter i use them to light fires when i use my fireplace

What a neat idea! We will all have to find those nests next spring and post pictures.

Wow, great idea. Would't that be neat :!: :D

I have been putting the thread scraps and itty pieces out for the birds. I take the rotary cutter and make them short so they don't get tangled, but they do disappear. Haven't seen any in nests, but haven't used a lot of real brights out there. Will have to do that and then look for nests!