This very unique Re-make & Re-use project comes to us from Julia Chapman, a new member of our Sew4Home seamstress team. She developed the idea for a benefit in which all the items for sale had to be an ‘upcycle' product of one kind or another. We love cloth napkins here at S4H, but had never seen any made from old shirts, let alone with their own handy carrying case. There are racks and racks of men's short sleeve shirts at thrift and second hand stores... and probably in your own closets. Colors and patterns that might be too wild to wear would be perfect as napkins.

We created this adorable luggage tag out of all recycled materials. A few items we'd been hoarding ... just waiting for the perfect project that would give them a second chance at usefulness. You could follow our re-make and re-use lead, utilize scraps of fabric you have from other projects, or find something new at the fabric store. Then, next time all those black suitcases are spinning around and around and around on the luggage carousel, you'll be able to spot yours in an instant. 'That's mine! The one with the cool tag!'

I have to give credit for these cute wraps to my mother. She was the original recycler. She saved every little scrap of fabric, every button, every too-short piece of ribbon, old wooden spools, and she even cut out and saved her favorite parts of old greeting cards. You never know when they might come in handy. So, thanks for instilling the habit, Mom. Here's what I did with MY stash of bits and pieces.

Did you know used wrapping paper and bows are the biggest culprits in a 25% jump in curbside trash volume between Thanksgiving Day and New Year's Day?! There are so many ways to create green gift wrap -- and make what's on the outside as memorable as the gift on the inside.

Every once in awhile, I'll open my closet and see something that causes me to shake my head and wonder, "What on earth was I thinking, and why do I still have this?!" What seemed like a great idea at the time, would now be fashion suicide should I actually slip it on and leave the house. Sometimes the item goes straight into the Goodwill bag, but there are also times when my Vintage Rescue lightbulb goes on. I see beyond the jacket's silly majorette neckline and wild, stacked cuffs and envision what could be a cool home decor project. My denim jacket lives again as a whimsical throw pillow.

The button jar. Most every house has one. It may not be a jar; it could a box or a lid or a cup or even a sock. A lot of us spent hours at Grandma's house playing with these beautiful chips of color. Although they do look pretty in pile, they really deserve to see the light of day. Give them new life as awesome accents and embellishments on your home decor projects.

I'll wager a guess you haven't used a handkerchief lately to blow your nose or mop your brow or even to tuck in your breast pocket or sleeve as a decorative splash of color. Less likely still that you've dropped a hankie to start a duel or bestowed one on your knight in shining armor. The humble hankie fell out of fashion long ago, but it was king (or queen) of the hill for decades, and everyone who was anyone had a collection. These beautiful squares are a wonderful "found fabric" source and another entry in our Vintage Rescue series.

We're excited to debut our new Sew4Home series: Vintage Rescue, a category of inspiring ways to recycle, re-use or redesign something old to create a great new look and perhaps salvage something meaningful. For our first article, I thought I'd start with a personal story. It involves my always-a-challenge-to-buy-for sister's impending birthday, cleaning the attic to move, and a much-loved and almost-lost rosebud chenille bedspread.

Be green. Save space. Save money. Why buy when you can reuse?