MAKE A BLANKET FROM YOUR OLD DENIM

Life is long, and there comes a time when even your favorite pairs of jeans get old, or snug, or tired, and it’s time to move on. But you shouldn’t throw them out, and you don’t even have to give them away. Instead, reimagine your old denim into a blanket you can use forever. Don’t know how? We do, and soon you will, too.

The first thing you’re going to do is flatten out your denim and cut the fabric into patches. Grab your chalk and ruler to lay out straight lines to cut—it’ll look more interesting if you measure different shapes and sizes (and use different colors, from several pairs of jeans). About 15-20 medium or large patches should provide plenty of material for a decent-sized blanket.

Now it’s time to design your blanket. Find a large, flat surface — the floor is probably best — and start laying down your denim patches. Go nuts mixing the different patch colors, shapes and sizes. But by the end, they should all combine to form a rough square or rectangle.

Once you’re happy with how your blanket looks, pin the patches together to be sewn. (You’re going to need a lot of pins.) When your design is set and there are no yawning gaps between any of the patches — because what good is a holey blanket? — it’ll be time to actually make this thing.

Unsheath that needle and get to work. Use your sewing machine to connect the patches using the yarn color of your choosing, and remove the pins as you go. You’re technically finished once you’ve sewn your design into a patchwork blanket — but if you want to go even further, you can use your scissors to fray the raised edges and add some texture. Your old jeans will now live on forever as a one-of-a-kind denim blanket.

Use a belt (we make some nice ones) as a carrying strap for your rolled-up blanket. Now you're picnic-ready, even if you're only going as far as your back yard.