Turn An Old Bath Towel Into An Eco-Friendly Paper Towel Alternative

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While paper towel alternatives can reduce waste and help the environment, they can be quite expensive to buy — so much so that you may have been putting off switching to them. However, if you're looking for ways to reduce waste and overall be more eco-friendly at home, you might like this clever idea by YouTuber OnlineFabricStore. The video shows how to use terry cloth — or an old bath towel — and cute printed cotton fabric to DIY washable and reusable paper towels. Once you've made the towels, you connect them with metal snaps, roll them up, and hang them on a holder.

You really don't have to buy new terry cloth for this project. Repurposing your old bath towels is a more earth-friendly approach. Select a nice printed cotton fabric to give your fabric paper towels a more decorative look and to provide stability for the snaps you will attach. We love this bundle of 20-by-20 inch, variously patterned Patikil Gray Cotton Precut Fabric Squares for a bit over $15, but any fabric will do. Choosing quality heavy-duty snaps is a must because they will be pulled apart often and washed frequently. You'll also need a CooBigo Silver Snap Button Kit and a pair of Dritz Heavy-Duty Snap Pliers. In addition, you'll need some interfacing, a pair of dressmaking scissors, an iron, and a sewing machine.

To start, cut your cotton fabric and old bath towel into panels that measure 8½ inches by 11 inches. To make the process easier, lay the fabric on top of the towel and cut a stiff paper guide to size. Next, take your interfacing and cut it into 1-inch squares. This will sit underneath each of the snaps. Iron an interfacing square to each corner — on the wrong side — of the cotton fabric pieces. It will be wedged between the fabric and the towel when you turn everything right side out. Don't be tempted to skip this step. Without the interfacing, the snaps may eventually tear through the fabric with repeated use.

Place your bath towel pieces on top of the cotton fabric panels and set your sewing machine to a zigzag stitch. Sew around all four sides of each square. You're not just stitching the fabric together. A zigzag stitch ensures the edges don't fray in lieu of a serger. Once all your towels are sewn neatly, it's time to attach the snaps. You need to attach one pair of female snaps on one long side of each paper towel and one pair of male snaps on the opposite long side. Place them in the corners of the panels, where you added the interfacing. Plan ahead — you'll use these snaps to attach one paper towel to another, so they must be correctly positioned. Once you're certain, go ahead and attach the snaps using the snap pliers.

Once you've added snaps to every reusable paper towel, you're ready to create your roll. Lay out your first towel and attach the next to one end. Repeat until all the towels are joined together in a long strip. Roll the strip around a Bright Creations Cardboard Tube and pop the whole thing onto a Simpletome Paper Towel Holder mounted under a shelf or upper cabinet in your kitchen. Alternatively, you could use a wooden, metal, or ceramic standing countertop holder. Another option is to simply fold the towels, concertina fashion, and pop them into a repurposed tissue box.

Since this is a DIY project, there are lots of ways to make the un-paper towels your own. Switch out the plain silver snaps for something a bit more decorative, like antique brass, gold, black, or navy. Why not match them to your kitchen hardware? If you want better-finished edging, encase the edges in some patterned bias tape. Or opt for the quick fix for fraying fabric that doesn't involve any sewing — using Dritz Fray Check Liquid Seam Sealant. If you have a lot of old bath towels to repurpose, you can skip the cotton fabric. Instead, cut all your panels from the towels and follow the same steps. You can also make this project the ultimate upcycle by pairing the towels with an old bedsheet for a sustainable paper towel alternative.