Waste not, want not

So whenever I complete a project I try to save all extra thread, even if the length is in itself too miniscule to actually tat with. I tie all the odds and ends together and roll them into a ball. Then, when I want to just tat something without worrying about patterns or colors, I pick a color for my shuttle thread, tat a starting ring, then add in the ball of excess thread.
After this point, I either stick to a certain number of stitches, or just tat whatever looks right at the moment. Thus far, I have done two of these excess thread projects in size 10 thread.

The first ended up becoming a pencil holder.

Duckie felt a sudden craving for burritos

When flipped upside down, the sombrero becomes a flower

Size 10 thread, various colors

While the second became a sombrero for this rubber ducky!

So the next time you finish a project and see only a little bit of thread left on the shuttle, pause for a moment and think about what you might be able to use it for.