Do you save string?

[watcher]

When ever I open a feed bag I coil the string around a small bottle I keep around. When ever I open a new square bale of hay I cut the twine near the knot and loop it around the gate closest to me. The wife (who grew up fairly well off and in a major city) thinks its a little strange because string is cheap.

Any one else save string?

[Gretchen Ann]

We get so much twine from our hay bales that we throw it on our burn pile. We use approximately 20 bales of twine a year!

You are welcome to come and get it if you want it. We do use some for odds & ends, but there is no way we can use it all.

[Jennifer L.]

Most of the time.

My uncle died 3 years ago, and he stopped dairying in 1976. When we cleaned out the place to sell it, we found his last winter's worth of saved twine from feeding those cows in 1976 hanging in front of the stanchions. So, of course I brought it all home.

[watcher]

Originally Posted by Gretchen Ann

We get so much twine from our hay bales that we throw it on our burn pile. We use approximately 20 bales of twine a year!

You are welcome to come and get it if you want it. We do use some for odds & ends, but there is no way we can use it all.

Save it and during the long winter nights you can use it to make rope.

[where I want to]

I used to but it became such a burden that I don't anymore. There is always enough around for bucket hanging, plant trellising, temporary fence repair, etc that I take mine to the dump and never feel the absence.

[Wolf mom]

Used to but it's the elastic bands that had me bouncing.

Interesting how freeing it is when I have to declutter to put the 'stead on the market.

[SLFarmMI]

I have a beautiful (although it needs some repair) crocheted bedspread that someone gave my MIL made from the string on feedbags. Every time I look at it I am amazed at the patience that whoever made it had to carefully save string bit by bit until she had enough to make a bedspread. It must have taken her years to get enough string.

[DSBlack]

[jwal10]

I do save sisal baling twine, We don't have much here as we haven't done baled hay for years. When I find some I keep it. I have miles of rope made from sisal baling twine that I made when recuperating or during winter time, years ago. I have even taken some apart recently to use for other projects. DS bought a roll of plastic baling twine when we were building his cabin, for layout work, figuring out placement of cabin and fences, of course I kept those pieces for later use. I have to buy cotton twine for gardening now. Kind of like paper grocery bags, when you don't buy much you don't have much (trash or recycle) to reuse. I don't even get a newspaper to start fires with. Not even enough junk mail anymore. My kids laugh at what I have saved in the barn, just junk. Old nails, screws, hinges, bits and pieces from junk I took apart. Nothing anyone else would want. I cleaned out after I knew I was done with building projects. Had a junk sale, hundreds of people showed up and I sold $13,000 worth of JUNK, a dollar or $5 at a time. 2 trailer loads of scrap was sold too. Sure is nice having the space to spread out the good JUNK....James

[TerriLynn]

Originally Posted by SLFarmMI

I have a beautiful (although it needs some repair) crocheted bedspread that someone gave my MIL made from the string on feedbags. Every time I look at it I am amazed at the patience that whoever made it had to carefully save string bit by bit until she had enough to make a bedspread. It must have taken her years to get enough string.

I sure would love to see a pic of that!

[Rustaholic]

Originally Posted by watcher

Save it and during the long winter nights you can use it to make rope.

Just what do you make rope with?
I am a master rope maker and that huge ball of twine has me drooling.
The last rope I made was with an old New Era Rope Machine and it was a very old bale of sisal twine that was treated against rot, mildew and bugs.
I used it all in one 3/4" rope that is 140 feet long. That bale of twine was wrapped in burlap. I would love to have a couple of skids full of it.http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x...peresized2.jpg

[fishhead]

A guy told me that sisal rope repels deer. He bought some to lay on the ground around his flower beds. I haven't heard if it's working.

[fishhead]

Originally Posted by SLFarmMI

I have a beautiful (although it needs some repair) crocheted bedspread that someone gave my MIL made from the string on feedbags. Every time I look at it I am amazed at the patience that whoever made it had to carefully save string bit by bit until she had enough to make a bedspread. It must have taken her years to get enough string.

I'll bet she had unshakable concentration.

[FarmboyBill]

Old rope, old feed bag string occasionally and near always old shoe strings.

[jwal10]

I braid it, cut the bales near the knot so you can have long pieces. Braid new pieces in as needed. 3,6,9 strand rope, then 3 of those braided together make a nice size rope. Roll it on the floor with your foot to make it round. I have done plastic also....James

[mammabooh]

Quite a few years ago, my grandma wanted to host the family Christmas get together, but she didn't want to put up the tree. I volunteered to do it for her and she sent me upstairs to get the fake tree and decorations. While I was up there, I saw a small paper bag. It was folded over and stapled shut. On it, she had written "pieces of string too short to use". It still makes me giggle.

[clovis]

I thought that everyone saved string.

Are there people in this world that don't???

[Rustaholic]

Originally Posted by jwal10

I braid it, cut the bales near the knot so you can have long pieces. Braid new pieces in as needed. 3,6,9 strand rope, then 3 of those braided together make a nice size rope. Roll it on the floor with your foot to make it round. I have done plastic also....James

Sounds like a lot of work for a piece of usable rope.
Check out my link here to see a very simple to make rope machine.
http://s183.photobucket.com/user/Rus...7/library/Rope

[7thswan]

I Make string (on my spinning wheels) , but also save some. I save the plastic twine from bales and use them to Florida weave the aparagus frons when they get tall in the summer so they won't flop onto the rest of the plants. When I have ends from weaving or knitting, I save them and put them out in a holder for the birds to us for nesting.I also have a crochet bedspread but my grandmother made it, and I collect lace, even have some still in the process of being made,suppose I'll never use that. My grandparents saved everything and reused it,from ice fishing gear-and when we bought their lakehouse,up in the rafters/attic they has saved the foam trays from meat they bought and insulated the roof. Ya, I could tell many stories about how they saved, but they went thru the war and had to become thrifty to stay alive.