I've been recently doing a lot of home decorating crafts - things we need like rugs and right now, I'm crocheting pot holders, since our old ones are now useless. :)  I'm finding that apparently this is a trend for less frugal people, and the big craft stores have caught on and raised their fabric and yarn prices.  If making things I need instead of buying them was just a hobby, it wouldn't be a big deal.  But like many frugal people, I'm trying to be more self-sufficient and stretch those dollars!

So I'm curious to know what are some tips our wonderful DS members have for finding new yarn dirt cheap and/or using scraps of...well, that's what I'm wondering.  Scraps of what?  What works?  What are some things you have made for around the house?  What tips do you have in general for those of us trying to supply our home with our own two hands?  Thanks!
 

 

Some of mine would be: Thrift stores often have unsalable clothing that you can get by the bag; you can get 100% cotton and wool clothing for rugs and dishclothes.

 Often the flea market is a great place to pick up craft supplies, especially spring and early summer when people are cleaning out their homes and getting rid of stuff.

Estate sales seem like they would be good, but I have yet to see more than a couple advertised where I live now - apparently they aren't big in my city.

 
I have gotten a little yarn off Freecycle.org, but not enough to make it worth the drive. It would be good for someone, though!

 

Any others?
 

I have gotten alot of yarn through word of mouth, if you know others who crochet or knit, people who buy yarn for one specific project and have some left over usually are glad to be rid of it.  Outgrown kids clothes that have a small amount of usable space, I use to make clothes for my daughter's dolls.  I'm saving jean legs to make a quilt cover and rugs for the kitchen and diningroom.  I don't really get into crafts that requires specific tools or supplies. 

Aggie

My two daughters played varsity volleyball on the same team at the same time.  The head coach asked if I would cut off the long sleeves of the uniform tops and make them short-sleeved.  I was glad to do so, but what to do with all of the sleeve "parts"?  I cut them into strips (uniforms were 100% cotton) and crocheted them into a bathroom rug!  My daughters say, "Mom, that's making lemonade out of lemons!"  HA! 

I crocheted a room-sized living room rug out of yarn.  For a year, I collected the colors I needed from every possible source: second-hand stores, crafting friends, and clearance sales at craft places.  I used three strands, N hook, and single crocheted 9 (nine) individual 3-foot x 4-foot rugs, then whipped them together, crocheting a border around outside edge.  Total cost:  Less than $20.

I recently made a twin-sized rag quilt out of 4-inch denim squares.  I bought 10 pairs of the largest jeans I could find at the local thrift store, as all jeans are priced $1.  I cut all of the jeans into four-inch squares with a rotary cutter, then sewed pieces together with seams on the outside.  Looks great for a price of $10. 

Someone gave us a couch that was in great condition, except for the upholstery.  I found 10 matching twin sheets at the bedding outlet and used those to slip-cover the couch and make matching valances for the living room.  Total cost:  $20.

I wanted a new ceramic floor for my dining room.  I went to a place that sold ceramic tile (odd lots) and asked what they did with the tiles that got broken.  The man said the broken pieces were thrown into a dumpster in the back and I was welcomed to them.  I hauled home a pickup load of ceramic tile; in fact, some of the tiles were unbroken, but there was not enough of any one color to do a whole room.  I separated all of the tile pieces into two piles:  light and dark, then using a chalk-line, drew out a pattern on my bare concrete dining room floor.  It took my two teenaged sons and I two days to "lay" the tile (attach to concrete) and about a week to grout all of those pieces.  But.....I have a beautiful ceramic dining room floor that I get lots of compliments on and the total cost was less than $50.  (I didn't purchase any tile, only grout, mastic, and sealer.)

We needed a new roof for our 3600 square foot house.  I really wanted a metal roof, but the estimates we had gotten for materials and labor were between 12K and 15K!  So....we approached a man in our church who works for a place that sells the metal to roofing contractors.  He agreed to sell it to us at the contractors' discount and his salesman would do all of the measuring, at no extra charge.  My 23-year-old son, who is pretty handy, agreed to be the foreman over the project, even though he had never done a metal roof before.  My 18-year-old nephew, my 17 and 15-year-old sons, and my brother-in-law agreed to being the "crew".  We did have a family friend who had installed several metal roofs who was willing to give my "foreman" son some tips on installation.  The greatest thing about a metal roof is that it can be installed over the old roof--there is no tear-off of the old composite roof!  Anyway, my family crew spent two days on installation and what a difference that metal roof has made in the appearance of our home!  We have had people driving by who have stopped to comment on the attractiveness of the roof!  With materials and labor, total cost was $5K.

My husband is a tax consultant who has the opportunity to barter his services.  This year, we got a custom-made computer desk and built-in bookshelves for less than $100; all we paid for was some supplies, as the craftsman had everything else.

dontdreamitsover, On one of the knitting boards I read, one women wrote in and said that she buys old sweaters and takes them apart and re-uses the yarn.  I'm not quite sure how to determine if an article can be taken.  I think it might be trial and error.  But if it is feasible, stores like the Dollar Stores, Goodwill, thrift stores, etc. could be a place to shop for yarn.

Bonnie

I've done that before. Look for items that are hand made. Factory made knit garments are cut and sewn, so you'd come up with a lot of short pieces of yarn. Once you've unraveled the piece, wind the yarn on a chair back or someone else's willing arms, then tie it in several places and wash it gently by hand. Hang it to drip dry and most yarns will be crinkle free and ready to reknit.

I've salvaged my one hand knit things this way, too, when the kids would grow out of them or I was tired of the style.
 

I'm sorry that I was unable to pull up the link that you sent; I am inspired by stories of people who do a LOT on very LITTLE!  Edited to add:  We are blessed with a large family of assorted talents, but their greatest asset is they have learned to THINK outside the box!  Once your mind is geared towards "Problem-Solving 101", that attitude colors every decision that you make! 

My mother told a story about my grandmother, who was trying to raise a family on a farm during the Great Depression/WWII years.  When my grandmother bought animal feed, which was sold in cloth sacks at that time, she not only used the feed sacks to make clothing, but she painstakingly ripped out the heavy thread which was used to sew the sacks closed.  She kept a big ball of that heavy thread, continually adding to it as she had opportunity, until she had acquired enough to crochet a beautiful doily.  Today that doily is one of my prized possessions; it reminds me of a woman who was willing to use her talents and what little she had to beautify her surroundings.

I love that story, mimipaula1!  It helps me remember that resourcefulness is usually in finding a new way to use an old thing!  

Whenever I go to a fabric store or Wal-Mart I always hit the remnants. I make a lot of things that I only need a few inches of fabric.

Some thrift stores have a lot of craft and sewing things. You probably won't find much at Goodwill, but try ones that are privately owned or sponsored by a church. In my area there is a little private one near that always has a lot of fabric for very little, and one that is run by the LDS church. They have a lot of needlework kits, knitting and crochet hooks, embroidery hoops, etc. Both of these stores also usually have patterns.

Check Craigslist, or post a request there asking for what you need or want. Also let your friends know what you are looking for. One time I moved, I gave away four boxes of fabric that I had purchased thinking I would try quilting. Another time I took several boxes of  odds and ends of craft stuff to my church and put it into the Sunday School supply room.

If there are any sewing factories in your area check to see if they have an outlet store or if they would save scraps for you. Jantzen used to have such a store in my area, and I could buy enough swim suit fabric to make my daughters a swimsuit for a quarter or less when they were little. And the boxes of fabric I had gotten to use for quilting was purchased by the pound at the outlet store of a company that makes pillows and bedspreads.

Sharon

Mimipaula, your story about your grandmother reminds me of MY grandmother, who told stories of how her mother unravelled flour and sugar sacks for the thread and made exquisite knitted or crocheted lace for their undergarments.  Somewhere is my junk is a little petticoat that was my grandmothers (she was born in 1887) as a very small child, with just such lace.  The fabric is totally worn out, but the lace itself survives.
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