What do you do with pantyhose once it’s outlived its original purpose? For some pantyhose wearers, this may be a relatively short time. Even knee-high nylons snag or get runs and are no longer desirable for wearing. But since nylons take decades to decompose, what does an environmentally-conscious and frugal individual do with nylon stockings when they are no longer wearable? Here are the top 10 ways to reuse your nylon stockings and keep them out of a landfill.
1. If you form a wire frame from a wire coat hanger, you can stretch a nylon stocking across the fame to form a net. This net is useful for skimming out unwanted leaves, pine needles, or insect creatures that have fallen into your backyard pond or water feature. Plus, you can use a variations of this idea as a strainer. You can place the toe end of a clean knee-high nylon stocking into a quart jar, and then fill the jar with whatever you need to strain. When you gather the band end and lift up, you will see how well it works to strain out the liquids below.
2. Pantyhose or nylon stockings are very soft and very stretchy. Because of this, nylons won’t damage your plants. Reuse your spent nylons to tie trees and plants to stakes. Your plants will be safe and won’t blow over in the wind.
3. You can reuse nylon stockings for many household purposes that require polishing or shining. You can safely polish your furniture, clean your bathroom fixtures, or polish your shoes without worry of a scratch. And paired with baking soda, you nylon stockings make a great non-abrasive way to clean your tub or shower.
4. Do you save seeds from your garden, dig up your flower bulbs, or hang garden onions, potatoes, garlic or herbs to dry? The leg of a pantyhose or a nylon stocking is a great place to store seeds, flower bulbs, or certain garden produce until ready for use. And because of a nylon stocking’s strength and ability to stretch, you can use nylon stockings to contain a bunch of items. The stocking just makes room for more and its strength ensures it will hold up its load.
5. Do you have an indoor dog or cat and lots of pet hair on your floors because of it? There’s something about a nylon stocking that loves pet hair. Put the nylon stocking over the end of your dust mop or broom and sweep your floors. You’ll be amazed at the job your broom does at picking up pet hair.
6. Don’t you hate it when the soap bar gets too small to use effectively? What if you use the leg of a nylon stocking and dispose all your little soap bar slithers into it over the course of several months? The soap slithers dry out when exposed to the air, and they stay contained. If you tie a knot in the open end of the stocking, you can use the container of soap at a utility sink, or you can put a hole above the knot end and dangle the soap container from an outdoor facet. Then you will have ready access to soap and water after outside chores.
7. Here is a travel idea. Suppose you would like to take several pieces of jewelry with you when you travel, but you don’t want the jewelry to tumble together in a jewelry bag or be loose in your suitcase. You can use a nylon stocking to hold your jewelry. Just cut off the toe end of the stocking and knot it. Place individual jewelry pieces into the stocking and knot after each one. When you need a jewelry piece, you can unknot the end closest to your desired piece. Your jewelry will be contained, protected, and won’t jostle against each other.
8. Here is one for gardeners. Next time you grow a wonderful melon, or prize winning tomato, cover the vegetable or fruit with a nylon stocking. It will still allow for sunshine and air circulation, but it will discourage bug activity. And you can also use nylon stockings to tie up branches that are laden with produce to keep the crops off the ground.
9. Do you need a large rubber band? If you cut the top off a pair of pantyhose, you have a very strong, very wide rubber band. It may not be pretty, but it will work. And you can make maller bands by cutting across the width of each nylon leg. These bands stretch and work like rubber bands or ponytail bands. Or if you need a long stretchy rope, loop together individual bands from a nylon stocking to form a chain. You can make the chain as long as you need by joining numerous bands.
10. Probably the most popular reuse of pantyhose or nylon stockings is to make stuffing — stuffing for pillows, cushions, assorted craft projects, and homemade toys. The stuffing is washable, holds it shape well, works to insulate, makes soft padding, and fits into small spaces that need stuffing.
See how many uses there are for your pantyhose and nylon stockings once you’re finished wearing them! With these top 10 ways to reuse pantyhose, you never need to send another pair to a landfill.
