When goods continue to change hands and find new homes, they are kept out of the waste disposal system. Children have the opportunity to learn the valuable lesson of conserving resources by converting materials that otherwise would have been thrown away into endearing collectibles. So before you pitch out those fabric scraps that have been cluttering up your storage closet, be sure to contact a local school, day care center or nursery school to see if they could be used for art activities. Our mothers and grandmothers knew the value of reuse when they made patchwork quilts and braided, crocheted and hooked rugs out of old clothes. A braided rug made from wool clothing can last for many years and has a special charm.
Patchwork quilts become family heirlooms.
If you don't do craft projects yourself, perhaps you can locate someone who would like your outmoded or unwanted clothes or fabric scraps to use for rug-making. Check the Yellow Pages for alteration services. There are some 13,000 reuse businesses or agencies in North America and the number is increasing every day. Reuse is a promising area for economic growth and new jobs, with the added benefit of making goods available at low cost. Over two million tons of reusable durable goods were recovered in 1993 and the number is growing each year.