Hey all, long time reader, first time poster.

I have read quite a few different post on this site and many others regarding things to either stockpile or cache for TEOTW scenarios. Most dealing with the basics : food, water, shelter, security, medical and in at least some aspect clothing.

This is where I had by "little light bulb" go off; most articles or post say "3 pairs of socks, and cold weather gear in your B.O.B.", or something to that effect. But, after the SHTF where do more clothes come from? I have not yet read a post promoting the stockpiling of clothing, and although I have not read everything out there (far from it), I believe it deserves a mention at the very least.

The second thing I wanted to mention was clothing repair, now, assuming that you have a stockpile of clothing both for yourself and immediate family (including children now and for their growth spurts)without stores to go to and buy new clothes what happens when they wear out? I bring this up because today I had an epiphany... I have this one pair of jeans that I love, they are insulated (a must in these cold northern winters) and plain enough to blend in. They do, however, have one gaping hole in the crotch...I didn't want to throw them away, so I asked the wife if she could sew them up for me. She agreed, with the stipulation that I get the patch needed for her to fix the jeans with. That is where my idea came from, I took two old pairs of jeans I had from high school, when i was big into "looking cool" and before my awakening, and decided that I would never again wear them. So I cut them up, and in the process I realized a couple things.

1. By cutting each leg individually, you essentially get 4 usable areas to pull patches from.

2. By cutting off the bottom hem, and the hems on the pant legs themselves I made 12 tourniquets.

3. If you are careful, you can remove the back pockets without damaging them or the fabric underneath, which results in 2 more "normal" patches, and the pockets, which are sturdy enough to be used as elbow or knee reinforcements.

4. You can save the zippers and buttons also. They can be reattached to new pants or clothes you make, or they can be saved for barter.

5. The fabric "recovered" from the jeans doesn't have to be patches for other clothing items, they could be boiled in water to make wound dressings, or used as general-purpose rags (as I found in afghanistan when my shop ordered rags, and received 2 boxes of shredded jeans and t-shirts)

I dunno, just my two cents. I hadn't seen much in the way of clothing preparation advice, so I thought I could help change that. Hope it helps offer a new way of looking at those old clothes!