As I was sneezing and blowing my nose yesterday, I got thinking... really what is the best choice when being cheap?

Hankies: + you can reuse and reuse

              - you have to wash

Tissues: + disposable, tosses germs 

            - fills up garbages/landfills

Any opinions?
 

When I am home and taking care of a drippy runny nose, I use old cotton t-shirt rags and keep a bag near by to collect then wash in bleach later on.  They are alot softer on the nose than tissues, and they last along time. I think any time you can re-use something you come out ahead by not filling up landfills or cutting down trees to make paper. Yes, water gets used but it gets treated and put back into the environment. E

I use both.  Kleenex's is use til I cant possibly use it anymore.  I have a lot of allergies so on days when my allergies are really bad I use a hankie til it get pretty bad.

I don't mind using hankies.  Where I grew up, that's all we had for everyday use.  Girls carried on with them most of the time.  I don't mind washing them either.  For kids,they use TP.  I rarely buy kleenex.  The rag idea sounds even more frugal!

I grew up with hankies but I use tissues now. Softer on my nose. I have allergies so constant drip!  My mom still uses hankies, or cloth napkins which ever is closer. Also handy for wiping kids faces and hands down. I only know one friend who uses hankies and that is a man.

As long as I don't have abloody nose I like to use from my stash of hand me down hankies. I have a whole drawer full. Otherwise I do buy Kleenex, but my family tends to go for the toilet tissue. I don't worry about filling up the land fill too much with tissue paper. It disintegrates fairly quickly and become part of the earth again in no time at all.

On this one convenience wins or cost over time. I prefer Kleenex or toilet paper. I find handkerchiefs just too gross for my liking. It is a personal choice though and I do not fault anyone for choosing the opposite way of mine.

My Family's Interests:

I only know one friend who uses hankies and that is a man.

It seems more "acceptable" in society I think for men to use them... from my observations. Feel free to correct me on that. (I am also "young" at 32 so haven't been around that much).

I don't get colds that much but spending money on things disposable seem like a waste to me. (I do have paper products on hand, like plates, but it takes me 2 years to go thru a pack of 100).  

I think it is just habit. My mom uses hankies plus cloth napkins, tote bags etc. just ever got in the habit of tissue. I think it is the same with him but we are in the same era of remembering when people used them all the time. (our 40's)  My dad used too also.  Now that I think about it more handies are made for men then women.  From a different era, just like the ironing in the other thread. We had a dryer but my mom lined dried most stuff so lots of ironing! but the fabrics weren't as wrinkle friendly as now.

 We use hankies always, we are about 98% paperless here.  ; )