I just discovered this Japanese cleaning method that'll save you money — and I'm totally hooked

I'm always looking for new ways to clean my home, especially if these ways can save me money and reduce waste – and that's when my research led me to a particular Japanese cleaning method.

While I've previously practiced the Osoji Japanese cleaning ritual, I was hoping to find some tips and tricks on how to make my cleaning more sustainable, rather than how to clean my home.

Don't get me wrong, I love my microfiber cloths, but as I started to notice the 3 signs it's time to replace my microfiber cloths more and more, it felt like I was spending a lot of money and I couldn't repurpose my old cloths for anything else.

Then, I learnt about Zokin, a traditional Japanese cleaning cloth, which you make yourself (very simply) from old clothes, towels or fabrics around your home – and I've become obsessed.

What is a Zokin?

As briefly explained, Zokin is the name for a traditional Japanese cleaning cloth that you make yourself from creating layers of old worn-out clothes that you're planning to throw away, or old towels, or any old fabric you have lying around.

Creating Zokin means to practice 'mottainai', a Japanese cultural concept that you don't have to regret wasting something that's too good to waste. Instead, you're reusing it, giving it new life, and saving yourself money and good karma alongside it.

So, instead of throwing old clothes or other materials away, you can stitch the layers of fabric together to create a wonderful, and most importantly sustainable, cleaning cloth to use around your home. In fact, you can make loads of them.

You'll want these fabrics to be absorbent though, such as cotton, as they'll make it easier to clean.

Cooquimbo Sewing Kit: $6 at Amazon

A simple sewing kit is all you need to make your first Zokin (and many more after that). There's multiple supplies, but what you'll need most importantly is a needle and some colored thread of your choosing. Fortunately, in this $6 kit, you get 18 different colors to choose from plus an stitch unpicker in case you make a mistake.

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How to make Zokin

Zokin - This is how I first learned Sashiko #zokin #sashiko #repurpose #upcycling #japaneseculture - YouTube

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As explained by the YouTube Shorts featured above from channel @thegreenwrapper, to create a Zokin, you simply layer up squares of old fabric that you want to reuse.

Then, stitch them together around the edges and in a cross through the center, by hand or by machine (if you have one). Or, if you fancy getting more creative with it, there's all sorts of patterns you can follow or feel free to create your own.

Whether simple or decorative, this stitching technique is called 'sashiko' and can actually be a really relaxing way to create your Zokin before cleaning with them.

While I'm currently in the process of collecting up old materials to use for my Zokin, I'm already totally hooked on the idea that instead of throwing them away, I'm going to have a wealth of beautiful-looking cleaning cloths.

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