You've been doing your part for the planetary ecosystem by biking and walking instead of driving. And you've been doing your part for your inner ecosystem by making better food choices. Suddenly, you make a delightful discovery: Your skinny jeans fit again!

Fab. So... what do you do with the old size 14s?

How about stuffing them into the walls of your house?

Not exactly, of course. An Arizona company has discovered that denim — and other cotton products — make great insulation. BondedLogic gets scraps from clothing manufacturers (that otherwise would head to the landfill) and turns them into eco-friendly insulation. The end product is less toxic than conventional insulation (even though it is treated with a solution that makes it resist fire, mold, and pests — but the manufacturer says the formula used is less toxic than table salt).

Plus, the company claims, their product, called "UltraTouch Natural Cotton Fiber Insulation," keeps more heat in (and better acoustic buffering) than the conventional stuff. And it's almost zero-waste: all scraps from its production process get recycled back into the next batch. Best of all for do-it-yourselfers, the company claims you don't need to use gloves and masks to install it, as you do when handling fiberglass insulation. After all, you're essentially just packing big gobs of cotton into your walls.

(See a video of how the insulation gets produced at CottonFromBluetoGreen.org.)

The government has given UltraTouch its nod of approval: the product qualifies for federal tax credits under the 2005 Energy Policy Act. And for green builders, it also qualifies for LEED credits.

Want to be a part of this massive "reuse" project? Until June 30, 2009, you can send your old jeans to National Geographic Kids, which is trying to set the Guinness World Record collecting the most amount of clothing for recycling.

NG Kids / Set a Guinness World Record
1145 17th St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20036

Photo credits: judgmentalist, Bonded Logic