DIY Sponges: 10 Effective Ideas

DIY sponges, why not? Cleaning your home doesn't require a lot of money on various types of sponges, cloths, and rags. Creative recycling allows you to make everything you need, transforming everyday objects and clothing into something new. What can you use instead of a sponge? And how can you make one? Here are 10 must-have ideas to try at the first opportunity.

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10 ideas for recycling old sponges

From old sweaters to shoe brushes, let's see how to do it and what to use to create some DIY sponges with creative recycling ready to help us with household chores. And they're truly effective.

Sweater

If you have a closet sweater felted or that you no longer wear, don't throw it away: use it to make new ones rags and cloths To clean the house. Remove any zippers and buttons, if any, then cut two squares, overlap them, and sew some braid along the edges: the sweater makes an excellent cloth for polishing floors after waxing.

Photo Credit | Facebook Irene Frilli Gualtieri

socks

Jute

Want to make a DIY dish sponge and are you a crochet expert? Then you can try working with jute, which will help you clean without scratching. Get a size 3,5 crochet hook and some jute thread, which you can buy in handy spools at craft stores.

Start by making five chains in a circle, then pull the loop and close with a very low stitch.
The second round includes a chain stitch, two single crochets in each subsequent stitch and closing with a slip stitch in the first chain stitch.
For the third and fourth rounds, chain three, then make two double crochets in each subsequent stitch and close the round with a slip stitch in the third chain.
For the fourth and final round, chain three, work a double crochet in each subsequent stitch, and close the round with a single crochet in the third chain.
Finally, create the hook by working 20 chains and closing with a slip stitch in the next stitch. At the end of the work, you will have a 10 cm diameter disk: your jute sponge is ready.
Wash it with dish soap and let it air dry before using it, and after each use, leave it hanging in the sun.

Shirts

If you have worn shirts or old pillowcases, make dishcloths by cutting them into squares and tying them with ribbon to prevent fraying. You can use them to clean surfaces or dry bathroom fixtures after washing.

Photo Credit | Facebook Health Juice – By Berardino Giuseppina Business

Fruit nets

If you happen to accumulate a lot of orange nets during the winter, you can transform them into practical sponges for washing dishesGet two of these along with some synthetic raffia, a metal wool needle, a thimble, and some round pliers, the kind used in jewelry making.

Leave the nets whole, crumple them between your hands and, using the wool needle, thread the raffia through the middle, helping yourself with the thimble and the pliers.
The raffia thread should pass through the center of the sponge about five times before returning to the starting point, so that you have two threads on the same side. Finally, remove the needle from the raffia and tie the two ends with a double knot.
With the leftover raffia, create the loop with two more knots, at the bottom and at the top and you will have made your sponge in a few simple steps.
The sponge made from orange netting does not scratch pans and easily removes encrustations.

Toothbrush

Even one toothbrush It's excellent for household cleaning. Boil it for a few minutes to thoroughly disinfect it. Then use it to clean metals, furniture, and inlaid glass, small appliance parts and furnishings, limescale from faucets, and even to revitalize carpets and rugs.

Photo Credit | Facebook Mariella Dipaola

Tawashi

Making a traditional Japanese-inspired Tawashi sponge is very simple. It can be made with a variety of materials and is excellent for reducing waste and combating pollution. There are many tutorials online for this technique. Find old, worn or unwanted clothing and get to work.

Brush

Towels

Raise your hand if you don't have at least one ruined one at home. Well, how about cutting it into rectangles or squares, stacking two or three, and sewing the edges? A DIY sponge made from old towels is the perfect solution for saving money and doing good for the environment.

Photo Credit | Facebook EurEco

Coconut fiber

Having two scraps of fabric and some coconut fiber, easily available in specialized shops or on the web, you can make a ecological sponge Like few others. After sewing two rectangles or squares of fabric on three sides, insert the coconut fiber inside and finish with the final stitching. That's it.

DIY sponges for cleaning the house