But paper towels were created from a mistake. You could say that the Scott Paper Company made lemonade out of lemons, or in this case, made paper towels out of a railroad car full of defective toilet paper. The paper had been mistakenly created too thick and useless for toilet paper.
Arthur Scott had read an article of a school teacher who had given her students soft paper in the community washroom to dry their hands and then thrown away rather than spreading germs with a multi-use cloth towel. He had the defective paper cut into towel sized pieces and highlighted their superior hygienic quality for public washrooms in restaurants and hotels.
In 1931, Scott introduced the first kitchen paper towel. It measured 18” by 13”. However, paper towels didn’t catch on and didn’t become a must have item on everyone’s shopping list for some time. I suspect part of the reason could be the Great Depression. Who could afford a luxury like paper towels when their bellies were empty?
When my grandparents were young, they never would have imagined that one day cloth could be replaced by paper. The problem with the repeated uses of a cloth towel between washings is that it becomes germ and unsanitary.
In my attempt to reduce my trash footprint and consume less single-use items, I have come up with un-paper-towels. This is not a new thing. It’s more of an old thing, and with so many people on a green kick these days, it has made a comeback.
Their are a lot of YouTube videos of people showing how they make multi-use towels. Most buy fabric, cut it, and sew the edges. Some even add hook-n-loop dots to get them to stick together so they can roll them up like traditional paper towels on a roll. If I was going to give up paper towels, I needed something that was cheap, easy, and convenient.
Being on an extremely tight budget for the past several years, I didn’t want to spend money on fabric for this purpose. In order to have enough to use them for everything like we do with traditional paper towels, I would need scads of them so I wouldn’t have to wash them everyday. I needed something super cheap that I could make several “paper” towels out of. And what is cheaper than things we discard anyway.
So after some thinking, I decided that old T-shirts would make the perfect paper-towel replacement. They are cheap (from old ones I have in my closet that I no longer wear to ones I’ve been given to cheap ones at 50% off at a thrift store), and I can make several out of each T-shirt. And I don’t have to sew around the edges. Just wash them, cut them, stack them, and use them. Repeat.
When I make my T-shirt totes, I use the normally discarded sleeves as un-paper-towels. I use them in the same way I would paper towels. From sopping up spills, wiping counters, holding fresh fruit I’m eating, to many other things.
At first, I unhemmed the sleeves as to not waste any fabric. That became tedious right away, so I cut off a few hems.
Then I decided I didn’t care if one side had a hem or not.
I collect the dirty ones in an area and wash them all together in an extra hot load.
Like some of the current paper towel companies who have made it easy to tear off various sizes of paper towels depending on the job, I have cut my un-paper-towels into various sizes for the same purpose.
Because they are super easy to “make” and cheap, I can have piles of them. I don’t need to worry about running out. And because the T-shirt material is thinner than terry cloth, they don’t take up a lot of space.
I bought these at a dollar store, thinking I could cut them in half and get twice as many for my money.
Well, I needed to sew the cut side so they didn’t unravel, and these particular ones didn’t absorb water well, so I lost interest in them. I did like the scrubby back they had.
I’ve been using my un-paper-towels for a couple of months now and like them a lot.
I must confess that if I didn’t like them and they weren’t easy and cheap to make, I wouldn’t use them. If I need to use one or two for some truly gross job that I’d be concerned that no amount hot water or bleach would make them sanitary, I wouldn’t feel bad about throwing the occasional one away.
Not only am I not needlessly using up paper towels, but I’m repurposing T-shirts that might have otherwise gone into a land fill, as well as not spending money on something designed to be thrown away.
I’m really happy with my un-paper-towels.
And thank you to all the YouTubers who put their video ideas for reusable “paper” towels online, giving me inspiration. Though someone may have already made these out of T-shirts, I didn't see any.
Related Posts:
Can I Recycle That: http://marydavis1.blogspot.com/2019/08/tuesday-tidbits-can-i-recycle-that.html
Throwing Away Money: https://marydavis1.blogspot.com/2019/09/tuesday-tidbits-throwing-away.html
T-shirt Totes: https://mountainbrookink.com/2019/07/25/mary-davis-t-shirts-to-totes-an-upcycling-craft-from-mary-davis-giveaway/
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THIMBLES AND THREADS: 4 Love Stories Are Quilted Into Broken Lives
Love Stitched into Four Women’s Lives
Enjoy four historical romances that celebrate the arts of sewing and quilting. When four women put needle and thread to fabric, will their talents lead to love? #thimblesandthreadscollection
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“Bygones” by Mary Davis
Texas, 1884
Drawn to the new orphan boy in town, Tilly Rockford soon became the unfortunate victim of a lot of Orion Dunbar’s mischievous deeds in school. Can Tilly figure out how to truly forgive the one who made her childhood unbearable? Now she doesn’t even know she holds his heart. Can this deviant orphan-train boy turned man make up for the misdeeds of his youth and win Tilly’s heart before another man steals her away?
Other stories in this collection:
“The Bridal Shop” by Grace Hitchcock, “Mending Sarah’s Heart” by Suzanne Norquist, and “Binding Up Wounds” by Liz Tolsma
THE DAUGHTER'S PREDICAMENT (Book 2 in the Quilting Circle series)
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Can a patient love win her heart?
As Isabelle Atwood’s romance prospects are turning in her favor, a family scandal derails her dreams. While making a quilt for her own hope chest, Isabelle’s half-sister becomes pregnant out of wedlock and Isabelle--always the unfavored daughter--becomes the family sacrifice to save face. Despite gaining the attention of a handsome rancher, her parents are pressuring her to marry a man of their choosing to rescue her sister’s reputation. A third suitor waits silently in the wings, hoping for his own chance at love. Isabelle ends up with three marriage proposals, but this only further confuses her decision.
A handsome rancher, a stranger, and an unseen suitor are all waiting for an answer. Isabelle loves her sister, but will she really allow herself to be manipulated into a marriage without love? Will Isabelle capitulate and marry the man her parents wish her to, or will she rebel and marry the man they don’t approve of? Or will the man leaving her secret love poems sweep her off her feet?
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A single mother steps out of the shadows of abuse and into the sunshine. But will a secret clouding her past cost her the man she loves?
Finding Love In Last Chance, California by Miralee Ferrell
Dreams of My Heart by Barbara Scott
Hills of Nevermore by Janalyn Voigt
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MARY DAVIS s a bestselling, award-winning novelist of over two dozen titles in both historical and contemporary themes. Her 2018 titles include; "Holly and Ivy" in A Bouquet of Brides Collection (January), Courting Her Amish Heart (March), The Widow’s Plight (July), Courting Her Secret Heart (September), “Zola’s Cross-Country Adventure” in The MISSAdventure Brides Collection (December), and Courting Her Prodigal Heart (January 2019). Coming in 2019, The Daughter's Predicament (May) and "Bygones" in Thimbles and Threads (July). She is a member of ACFW and active in critique groups.
Mary lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of over thirty-four years and two cats. She has three adult children and two incredibly adorable grandchildren. Find her online at:
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