Tactical pants no more.

In the DIY-er generation of eco-friendly this and going green that, it’s pretty difficult to just trash an old pair of your favorite tactical pants. Why not repurpose that material if it’s of no use to you in its current form?

Most recently, we saw crumpled cargos transformed into a sweet messenger bag. All you need is one pair of Goodwill-ready tactical trousers, one-half yard of lining material, bias tape and thread. The full step-by-step instructions can be found right here.

And if you’re going to fully embrace the do-it-yourself spirit, there’s a laundry list of jeans projects that can simply be applied to cargo pants. In one blog post alone, there’s a list of 13 projects you can take on, including a book cover, a quilt, a bulletin board or even a bean bag chair.

Want to just fix the old pair you have? In this video, HedgeTV takes a too-small, red flannel shirt and uses it to spruce up a worn-out pair of BDU trousers. He cuts up the flannel for pocket flaps and patches on the pants. As much as we like the idea of doing your own repairs, the color choice sort of makes the green tactical pants look Christmas-y. Well, if you disregard that anarchy symbol.

HedgeTV words of wisdom: “Actually I think anyone can sew. You just hold two things together with string that you put it there with a needle. Or you can use a sewing machine.” See, it’s that simple!

(Image via Noodlehead)