tiny strings
 

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I finished cutting up all of my fat qtrs for my quilt and this time I decided to cut up everything instead of throwing scraps in the bucket...in the bag is my left over scraps small strings. Now what to do with them. I don't think I want to make anything...wonder if the schools would be interested in them for the art classes?

great for Snippet quilt
https://www.google.com/search?q=snip...iw=960&bih=516

Snippets have to be fused before cutting or you have a mess. Unless you want to use the strings for stuffing the best thing is to toss them randomly outside for the birds and squirrels to use.

Use them to make dog beds or give them to someone who does

Check with your school they may be able to use them. At one quilt event there was a class making bracelets by wrapping strings around wire. Another had small looms making purces. So there is a use for them.

I wouldn't toss them outside. Fabric used in birds' nests does not dry out fast enough (the way dried sticks and weeds do) and causes pneumonia and death in the chicks.

oops, you're right. I forgot about that.

I cut them into a bit smaller lengths and use them as mulch in my perennial bed.

I read about the fabric not good for birds and then I read it is okay. I guess it's better to be on the safe side.

I've seen a lot of websites that say to put fabric strings out. However, someone who worked with professional ornithologists posted on the QB years ago with a plea not to do it. Since then I've found a few corroborating websites, but still many that seem to have never heard of this issue. Since the reasoning seems sound, I'm for playing it safe.

What pattern are you making? (If that is not being too nosy) I'd love to only have a few strings left after cutting fat quarters, that would be ideal.

I would NOT have cut the top row of fabrics. There are always quilters that do charity quilts and those looked like some very nice fabrics. I would have kept the smaller stack on the left and the right for using to start and end stitching then when full, you toss them out. The tiny squares I would have said Adios to......

Our quilt guild meets in an "arts and garden center" owned by the city. In the summer, they hold art classes for children and have asked the guild for small fabric scraps.

I am meking the falling charms but made a few changes...my center square will be 6 1/2 inch not 5 inc and the strips are 2 inch not 2 and 1/2 inch. I also fut up 3 x 6 1/2 inch for the outside border. I also cut up 2 and half x 6 which will be for the binding one I sew them all together. with the small amounts left I cut up 2 inch squares for a pillow sham or maybe a table runner for the dresser. I am making a king size and looks like I make have to cut some more squares Thank goodness for a large stash....though I do have to go back to the quilt shop for more border fabric.

A group of us collect those trimmings to put in pet beds for the humane shelter. I use ticking for the bed cover.

Why not have a go at a confetti wall hanging. I can see some lovely tropical rainforest trees and ferns in those colours.

oops! Just googled confetti quilts and showed something totally different. :eek: Think of Monet's bridge painting - sketch a landscape outline onto fusible backing -or cotton fabric and spray with adhesive - cut strings into 1/4" or so bits, arrange [sprinkle] into positions to create a picture - press with iron to set, then use quilting or hopping foot with same-coloured threads, and meander all over to hold in place. I've seen some fabulous fabric art done like this.

A really beautiful art project can be made with scraps like you have between two sheets of soluble stabilizer. You put all the scraps and any leftover threads, yarns, etc. inside completely covering the stabilizer and then quilt/sew all over the top back and forth until the quilting is completely covering the scraps to hold them in place.

When you gently wash out the stabilizer, you have a very interesting piece of new material for another project. Batiks are great for this since they do not have a distinct wrong side.

Take a look at the work of Anne Brauer - it might change your mind about those strings!

Thanks, I have a fat quarter set, I just can't seem to find a pattern I want to work it into. Though, I am itching to do something with it. Falling charms is a good one, I like the way you altered the size to fit the fat quarter. Thanks for the idea.

As a former school teacher and preschool director, please ask the art teacher first. I know folks have big hearts and want to donate to schools and most of the time these donations are much appreciated but ask if the teacher can use your scrap donation. If they cannot use it the donation will end up in the trash or stuffed in a cupboard for years and that is not what you want.

You may ask around your area or local quilt guilds too if any one can use your wee bitty scraps. I know we have someone who makes dog bed outs of scraps of batting. Never even considered that until she mentioned it in class one evening. There may be a secret user of small scraps just an arm length away.

Call your local animal shelter. A bunch of us save all those "snippets" and batting scraps. Once a year get together to sew up pillows for the shelter.

I think it was a couple of years ago I read where someone took a bunch of threads, put them between 2 layers of water soluble stabilizer and just stitched in a crazy manner all over the threads to connect them. Then she dissolved the stabilizer and made a vest or something with it as right now I can't recall what it was but I don't see why you couldn't do the same thing with the small strings. Maybe use a fabric behind it to give it stability.

You could buy some of the clear plastic or glass ornaments available at craft stores and fill them with little tiny pieces. That's what I'm planning to do with my embroidery thread scraps. I figure it will make an appropriate ornament for a quilter/embroiderer.

I give my scraps to a school so the kids can make collages from them! The teacher is only to glad to accept them.

I've seen some quilters use them as stuffing for small items -like pin cushions. Just a thought.

If they are long enough, how about crocheting a bag? I have a pattern for a crochet (or knitting..I forget!) Christmas stocking. They also might be used for locker hooking a rug. I have piles for scrap quilting/leaders and enders/strips/ strings and finally they end up in the dog bed pile! My quilty friends bring me THEIR scraps (you might get as crazy as me and go thru THEIR scraps...some of that stuff is big enought to cut!) and once in awhile, I make dog beds. I think there have been upwards of 300 made from all scraps generated. My local shelter says that sometimes they give a bed to the new family. (I LOVE that part! http://bzyqltr.blogspot.com/search?q=locker+hooking

My niece is only eight and I give the snippets/thinner scraps to her. She's been practicing with her hand stitching at home. When she comes to my house, she'll bring her "stringies" as she likes to call them and see if she can match up to other pieces. She has resorted to using her little fingers as measurements. The strings that she thinks are too small she knots up and braids and has her mom press and makes coasters. Her pinky finger is about a 1/4" wide. She's very clever and uses that as her 1/4" seam allowance.

make potholders, placemats, Christmas gifts, purses, almost anything and Great for paper piecing .
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honestly, please consider stuffing something like a simple "pillowcase" shape for an animal shelter. concrete floors are cold on animals there who may have been rescued from even worse circumstances and just need a safe place to get warm.

wish we had a "like" button! I do them also. Ohio gets cold too. it was 27 degrees when I got up at 6:30 this morn.

That's what we do with scraps in our guild. We make pet beds and donate them to the local shelters.

I save all my little snippets and give them to a lady who makes dog beds for the Humane Society. I am not filling landfills and every smidgen goes to a use. I just hang a bag on my cutting table and everything goes in it. Maybe someone does this in your area. Your local Humane Society could probably tell you. At the price of fabrics, we do need to find a use for every inch.

I'm saving some to use instead of ribbon for Christmas gifts--not sure it will work well, but figured a good way to use up some fabric scaps and be a little recyling!

If you have a wood stove or fireplace, burn your 100% cotton strings. I use a lot of my scraps instead of paper to get my fires started in my wood stove. (Not needed/do not use in pellet stoves to start fire).

I like the idea of making pet beds with the scraps.

Anita

Regarding fabric and birds ...

Another reason not to give fabric scraps to birds is that they'll re-arrange the scraps over and over when they build their nests, and in the process, some of the strings will fray. The frayed strings can easily get tangled around the birds' legs, especially small birds, whose legs are the size of toothpicks. I used to have finches, and found this out the hard way. Thankfully I found the bird in time and untangled her leg. Whew! Had I not found the problem, the thread could have cut the circulation off, and her leg and foot would have died. Birds can be so fragile, especially tiny ones who don't have enough strength to break the thread and get it off their leg.

Personally, I wouldn't chance it, but if you do decide to let the birds have the scraps, cut them into 1" or smaller bits to help eliminate the possibility of threads getting tangled around their legs. :)

I safe mine and give to a friend who makes pillows that she takes to the dog pound for the animals.

Wow, I'll never look at a "string" the same way again. Just looked at that Anne Bauer site - and that lady has patience!! She doesn't command a simple price either, but the work involved. :-)

Marysewfun

They can but cut into small pieces and put in a doggie pillow and delivered to a local pet rescue. We do that in our guild.

They look perfect for a spiderweb or string quilt. With those batiks it would look awesome.
peace