I’m still working on mending some things that Lilo the cat ate before she was taking medicine for her fabric-eating compulsion. This project is a duvet cover that she nibbled near one of the corners. I sewed a seam around the hole, at an angle that connected the side and bottom (using white thread, below). I trimmed off the excess … Read more
I have a futon in my basement that’s between the size of a twin and a double mattress. Since it’s impossible to fold a flat sheet around the corners (there’s nothing to tuck them into), it really needed a fitted sheet for those times when it is used for sleeping. It was easy to convert an old fitted twin sheet … Read more
In December, I wrote a post about this comforter from Target that had developed a few snags in it. I covered one of the snags with this applique: … and then I set it aside and did nothing about the other snags until summer came. On this snag — — I sewed a four-point star sewn from four kite-shaped pieces. I … Read more
Gray water is water that’s not clean enough for drinking, but is fine for using in vegetable and flower gardens. It can include gently used water from showers, baths, dishwashing and laundry. You can build a gray water system that collects water from sink or tub drains, then pipes it outdoors. Instructions on building a gray water system are at the website of California’s … Read more
As I shared last week, my current piecing obsession is eight-pointed stars. I’ve gotten better at matching up all the points in the center, so of course I immediately decided to make things challenging again by turning one of my eight-point stars into a sixteen-point star. Usually, you would finish off an eight-point star by sewing triangles and squares into the … Read more
Dekalb and I went downtown again to harvest ‘garbage‘ today – one of our favorite ways to save money and recycle at the same time. Here’s the first spot we hit: A lot of this furniture was in good condition even after being thrown into a dumpster, but neither of us needed any so we left it there. Both of … Read more
It’s that time of year again, when consumer goods grow on the curb and around dumpsters as if by magic, all sitting there just ripe for the picking. In other words: the leases downtown are almost up, university students suddenly realize they have no desire to move all their crap with them, and they end up throwing perfectly good stuff out as trash: … Read more
Quilting is a great way to use up scraps left over from other sewing projects. But no matter how efficiently I cut my fabrics, I am always left with lots of tiny pieces that are too small for piecing into another pattern. I used to save these tiny scraps to use as batting in dolls and fabric ornaments, but they … Read more