Here in India it's custom to take off your shoes when inside, so I spend a lot of time without shoes. Yesterday while barefoot I almost got into a rickshaw because I am so used to not having any shoes. While I love not being attached to shoes or sandals, it does make my feet more dirty. No matter how many time I rinse my feet throughout the day, it seems like just a few minutes later they are dirty again.
So when I step onto my yoga mat ... guess what? My mat ends up dirty as well especially at the very front and back from repeated surya namaskars. The yoga place where I'm staying goes through this clean - dirty yoga mat cycle very quickly. I began to brainstorm some ways the mats could be reused or upcycled.
When I looked around on the internet I found lots of DIYs and crafts for recycling yoga mats, but a lot of them seemed inappropriate for a thoroughly loved and down and dirty mat. In fact some of these DIY projects appeared to be only for brand new mats. For instance one "recycling" idea was to cut the mat and use it to line kitchen cupboards to rest underneath glasses and plates. Hmmm ...
I definitely won't be doing that with any of the old mats that are seen around here. So what should we do with those? Toss them in the landfill? I hope not. Instead here are some ideas:
Here's a great idea for those really grudgy mats. Cover up the grudge!
What do you do with your old yoga mats??
So when I step onto my yoga mat ... guess what? My mat ends up dirty as well especially at the very front and back from repeated surya namaskars. The yoga place where I'm staying goes through this clean - dirty yoga mat cycle very quickly. I began to brainstorm some ways the mats could be reused or upcycled.
When I looked around on the internet I found lots of DIYs and crafts for recycling yoga mats, but a lot of them seemed inappropriate for a thoroughly loved and down and dirty mat. In fact some of these DIY projects appeared to be only for brand new mats. For instance one "recycling" idea was to cut the mat and use it to line kitchen cupboards to rest underneath glasses and plates. Hmmm ...
I definitely won't be doing that with any of the old mats that are seen around here. So what should we do with those? Toss them in the landfill? I hope not. Instead here are some ideas:
Make Confetti (use the edges and corners that are not damaged)
Source: Namastilo
Cut out shapes for kids' yoga (endless imagination here)
Photo Source: Namastilo
Use under a blanket fora dog/cat bed
Gardening knee pads (maybe 2-3 layers glued together)
Source: Brit + Co.
Here's a great idea for those really grudgy mats. Cover up the grudge!
Source: Let's Get Crafty
(The author here suggests still using it as a yoga mat, but I think it would be too slippery. Instead cut to size and use as a door mat. Try using different mediums to glue to the old mat.)
What do you do with your old yoga mats??
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