13 Best Baby Boys' Novelty Socks

Bestselling Baby Boys' Novelty Socks in 2023

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Re-Purpose Old Socks and Save Money

No matter what the economy is doing, saving money has never gone out of style. Neither has turning old socks into something useful again. Re-purpose old socks into new items have fun and save money. Learn more here.

But wait. There can be new life to these often-purchased items.

Here are ten ways to re-purpose old socks into useful items. Long socks, ankle socks and booties all work. Do more with them than just dust or oil rags.

1. Quilt Batting

This is from my Grandmother, Clara Snoderly. She took old socks and cut the elastic part off. The rest of the socks were carefully whip stitched together to form a mat. This mat then became quilt batting for denim quilts. You know the kind if you grew up in the country- heavy to lift but warm in the coldest of winters.

2. Polishing Tubes

This one is from my Mother, Violet Brooks. Old socks were used to stuff old tube socks whose elastic had worn out. My brothers easily provided a lot of these. The ends were sewn shut, and the tubes, which flattened out a bit, were used to polish the car, wash windows, and more.

3. Dog Toys

After wrestling with the dogs over the polishing tubes, we stuffed socks to the gills and made them as solid as possible. Two or three tube socks were stuffed full length inside each other and other old socks provided the stuffing. The ends were sewn shut with heavy string, and the tug-of-war was on.

Of course, this does have drawbacks. Dogs, especially young ones, don't readily make the distinction between "toy" and "not-toy" sock, even when putting one on your feet. I still have the marks from one of our hound pups, and it still makes me laugh even though I limped for a couple of days.

Seeing the look in their eyes of "its-toy-shaped-so-its-a toy," is still funny.

4. Cat Toys

Instead of stuffing completely with socks, we used a girl's sock and used catnip and other socks for stuffing. Bells and things that rattled also worked wonders. Hysterical to see kitty go nuts with their new toys.

Of course, the distinction for "toy" and "not -toy" is the same for cats. We found a lot of socks hiding under the bed where the cats stashed their "prey" to hide them from the dogs - and us.

5. Bean Bags

Remember beanbags? Great toys. Sew any holes shut, fill with the desired amount of inexpensive beans and toss. To make the bag last longer, use two socks stuffed inside each other. They can be square, oblong, or any shape you desire. The stores only sell squares.

6. Heat/Cold Pad

Use a sock whose elastic has "left the building." I use the cut off feet of two socks, or better still, booties one stuffed inside the other. Fill with plain white rice and sew closed. It should lay flat with at least half a pound of rice in them.

For heat- microwave for no more than 20 seconds on medium, then apply to the area with a cloth between the bag and the skin. When cool, repeat as necessary.

For cold- keep this in the freezer and apply with a cloth between the skin and the bag. When warm, repeat.

The inexpensiveness allows anyone to keep a large supply on hand- great for parents with active kids.

7. As a Strainer

As a child, I was used to seeing neighbors run their washing machine hoses outside during a drought. What intrigued me, though was the use of a sock rubber-banded around the drainage tube.

I asked about it, and it was brilliant. The sock acted as a strainer to keep hair, lint and other bits out of the watering barrel. These bits would fall to the bottom, pile up and rot, causing foul odors. When the socks were "full," they got tossed into the trash or compost pile if they were pure cotton.

8. Make Monkey Socks

Remember (if you're over 40) the gray and black stuffed monkeys with the red mouths? They were made from Rockford Red Heel Socks, produced for hunters to keep their feet warm. Sock monkeys have been around for over a hundred years.

Sewing skills are needed, as well as two good socks. Yikes. New socks. Fortunately, these monkeys are easily made from any pair of socks. Use different colors and produce one of a kind monkeys. Tall, short and in every conceivable color and pattern, children (particularly small children) love them. They're soft, nothing to swallow, and go into the washer and dryer without complaint. How many children's toys do that these days?

9. Sock Animals

With a glue gun, minimal craft skills, small rubber bands and of course, socks, over a dozen different animal toys can be made by both adults and children.

Make them out of socks of different sizes and colors. Each animal will be one of a kind.

Get a youth group together and make toys for a children's shelter. Police departments often accept donated new stuffed animals and blankets for children they have to remove from dangerous situations. Often, these toys are the first new ones they've ever had. Use new socks for this project. For small children, embroider eyes, lips, noses, etc. so they can't be pulled off or swallowed.

Sock puppets are also easy to make. Many websites offer free patterns. Any size sock is usable, and your imagination is the only limit.

10. Shoe Protectors

As a child, we would get a pair of adult socks with our "Sunday church shoes." Once we got home from church, the shoes were cleaned, dried and stuffed carefully into the ready-made protectors. We were never late for church because we couldn't find our shoes. Now I use men's large size socks, and if both of my shoes won't fit, a large safety pin keeps the pairs together.

This works wonders when travelling to protect shoes from scuff marks. Customs agents may want to remove the shoes just to see what's in the socks, but that shouldn't hurt anything.

There are hundreds of uses for old socks. Being a little crafty or a lot crafty doesn't matter- just use your imagination and have fun. Many housewife over the years stashed a few extra dollars here and there for Christmas by using an old sock in the back of the closet.

Source: The author of this article has over 40 years of experience in diverse forms of crafting, designing, and building furniture, outdoor projects and more.