Practical Sewing For Your Home -- Recycle Crafts Sew Old Towels

Old Towels Make New Washcloths if You Sew

Practical Sewing for Your Home

Have you checked the price of bath towels, washcloths and hand towels? With the cost of household items so high, practical sewing will pay for your sewing machine in no time. Practical sewing includes alterations and recycling. Towels get a workout, and January is white sale month in many stores. If you need new towels, don't throw out the old ones. Use them wisely.

Towels often wear on the edges first, and you can only trim the fringe a number of times before the towel isn't quite fixable. That's when you need to make some washcloths or hand towels. Find a washcloth in a size you like to use for a pattern. Lay the towel flat on a cutting area and cut as many washcloths as you can from one towel. Cut squares, then round the corners.

Thread your sewing machine with thread matching the towel. Set the sewing machine for a close zigzag stitch, almost like a satin stitch and about 1/4 inch wide. If your sewing machine doesn't zigzag, fold about 1/4 inch seam allowance. Stitch around a washcloth and see how it works. If you have trouble with stitching around the edge or if the stitches gather the fabric, you can place a piece of white tissue paper under the stitching area. Once you stitch the washcloth, you can wet the paper and remove it.

Use a Satin Stitch or Close Zigzag to Sew Washcloths

If you use hand towels, you can also make hand towels from worn bath towels. Choose a hand towel in a size you like to use as a pattern. Lay the bath towel on a flat surface for cutting and pin the hand towel in place where the bath towel fabric is not worn. Cut about half an inch larger all around the hand towel pattern. Cut as many hand towels and washcloths as you can from the single bath towel. Fold 1/4 inch seam on the long side of the hand towel, and fold 1/4 inch seam again. Stitch each side of the towel with a straight stitch. Do the same for the ends, unless you want to add ribbon, lace or eyelet. If you choose to add a decoration, turn 1/4 inch under and stitch with a running stitch. Pin the decorative edge to the end of the hand towel and stitch again, turning the edge under on each side.

If you need new towels, purchase sale towels to match the washcloths and the hand towels you made. Your bathroom will have a new look and you'll have saved a substantial amount of money with little effort.

Hand Sewing Sock Doll Folk Art Crafts Instructions

Folk Art Dolls are Easy Hand Sewing

How to Make Sock Dolls Country Folk Art Fabric Crafts

You don't need a sewing machine to make sock dolls for gifts or for decorations -- you don't even need a pattern. Most of the sewing on a sock doll is best done by hand. These folk art dolls are fun and safe for small children. They bring a smile to the maker as well as the child, and you can add expressions with embroidery or fabric pen.

We used some old socks, quilting thread (it's stronger than regular thread), embroidery thread, a tapestry needle to make sock dolls for the two new babies in our family. We stuffed the dolls with cotton quilt batting so the babies won't be able to get hurt on the interior in case they get them apart.

You need two socks to make a sock baby that has a light-colored face and dark-colored body. Cut the toe off the light-colored sock about 4 inches up. Run a gathering thread with a running stitch and quilting thread around the cut area, but leave it open. Stuff the opening with cotton or whatever you have available that is safe for a child. Some children are allergic to Fiberfill. Stuff the sock so the cheeks are cheeky and the head is smaller at the top than the cheeks. Pull the thread to gather the head.

Handmade Sock Doll

Cut the dark sock straight across at the heel. Hand stitch with a backstitch from the bottom up in the center to make legs. Sew a running stitch around the top for the neckline. Stuff each side of the legs and the body. Pull the thread to gather the neck.

Match the size of the neck and the bottom of the head with gathers. Stitch by hand to join the head to the body.

Backstitch from the neck part of the way down to form an arm on each side.

Stitch eyes and a mouth with embroidery thread to give the little guys some personality. Use the top of the dark sock for a hat. Sew across the top or gather it on the wrong side and turn right side out. Stitch the hat to the head to keep it from getting lost.

Another Style of Sock Doll Completely Hand Sewn

Another Style Sock Doll

A single white sock can make a small doll. Imagine the sock heel as the doll's behind. Turn the sock wrong-side out and stitch a soft curve for feet. Cut the center piece between the feet to use for arms. Make arms in a closed tube shape and stitch around the edge. Turn the stitching to the inside and set the arms aside.

Turn the sock back to the right side and stuff to a couple of inches above the heel. Use a running stitch with quilting thread to make a gathering line for the neck. Pull it tight and use a strand of dental floss on the outside, knotted and ends cut short, to hold it tight. Stuff the head with more cotton or stuffing.

Leave about 1 1/2 inches of sock at the top. Use quilting thread and a running stitch in another line around the top of the head for gathers to close the top of the head. Tie the gathers with dental floss and turn the top down to create a hat.

Place a small amount of filler in the arms. Turn the fabric edge inside and stitch the arms to suitable spots on each side of the body of the doll.

Embroider eyes and lips. Your little sock doll is light-weight and easy for a small child to handle.

We hope you enjoy a wonderful holiday season and that your new year holds pleasant surprises and lots of crafting.

See you soon!

Linda

Christmas Fabric Crafts are for Gifts, Too

Embroidery on Unusual Fabrics

Christmas Fabric Crafts are for Gifts, Too

If you aren't deep in the mire of Christmas crafts, you are losing valuable time. Crafts are personal gifts and although you think it's easy, crafting is not easy for those with no interest, desire or talent. This may describe your relatives or friends that you buy for each year. This year, save some money and spend the time it takes to make something personal.

Choose colors you know the person likes. Whatever your project, favorite colors matter. Use colors in the home for a project for the house, or favorite colors for a personal item. Starting with favorite colors makes the item special to that person.

Choose a design that speaks to her (or him). If you give a gift, you know enough about the person to express her style. You know the kind of dog she has, her favorite flower, or her favorite season.

Make something usable. Whether displayed in the home or a personal item, make a usable item. A fleece throw in an appropriate color for the individual or house, decorated by you with embroidery of a favorite animal is an example of something your friend or relative should appreciate as a Christmas gift.

Fleece is reasonably priced and easy to work with. You don't have to do much sewing as it doesn't fray, and the blanket or buttonhole stitch is suitable for finishing the edge. Remember how to do blanket stitch?

Here's a picture.

Blanket Stitch Looks Good on Fleece

You can use yarn, ribbon or embroidery thread for the blanket or buttonhole stitch on fleece. Once you have the binding around the edge, embroider a design in a corner -- an initial monogram or something that shows you made the gift especially for the person. You'll be one gift ahead, and you didn't even have to fight the crowd to shop!

See you soon!

Linda

Fleece or Felt for Crafts Projects -- Think Christmas

Felt Makes Crisp Cutouts

Felt or Fleece?

Fleece has taken the crafts market by storm, but felt is an old standby. If you like crafts that do not require much sewing, felt and fleece are ideal because they do not fray. However, fleece does not produce the same result as felt. The feel of fleece is an improvement over the feel of felt, but felt has been around for years and works well for crafting.

Why use felt when fleece feels best? The answer is in the crispness of the fabric and the way it is made. Fleece has a center layer of foam and when cut, the edges are not crisp. Using a crafts project made with fleece creates more fraying or feathering of the fleece fabric. Fleece is heat sensitive because of the foam center in the fabric. Use care if you attempt to press fleece. Felt holds up better for small crafts.

Fleece is a good fabric for large projects such as scarves or even baby throws, but is not as good for, say, making a snowman applique for a Christmas stocking. We have some fleece books and patterns available on a selling site if you need ideas. Copy and paste this link to get to the fleece items.

http://www.ioffer.com/selling/cajunc?query=fleece

Felt has been available for many years and there are some excellent patterns. Felt patterns are available for sale as well, but you will need to copy and paste the link.

http://www.ioffer.com/selling/cajunc?query=felt

Fleece does not work well for applique work with layers of fabric as it tends to get thick with just two layers. Sometimes you can use fleece best with cut-out designs.

Here’s how to make cut fleece designs. Make your background shape with fleece first. Cut a second shape slightly smaller than the background with a contrasting color of fleece.

Cut Two Fleece Shapes

Cut out designs in the second shape before you stitch the two pieces together.

Cut the Design on the Top Layer

Fleece is fun and easy to work with, and you just need to design the work to accommodate the fabric capabilities. Cut-outs are one of the ways to use fleece for your Christmas projects this year.

See you next time with more needlework crafts!

Linda
cajunC

Candlewicking Embroidery Stitches You Can Make

French Knots and Satin Stitch

Candlewick Embroidery Stitches


Candlewicking is an old needlework craft that takes only a little ability and a few stitches to make something splendid. Candlewicking is returning to the needlework scene and is an embroidery you can use on many items. It is mostly French knots made with ecru cotton candlewicking thread. Satin stitch and chain stitches add texture and emphasis to candlewicking projects.



French Knot

Bring the threaded needle up through the fabric. Twist the thread around the needle three times and put the needle back down into the fabric close to where you brought it up, placing your thumb on the twisted thread as you pull the thread through to the back. Move to the next French knot and repeat the process.

Satin Stitch

Satin stitch is a long stitch that fits the space you want to cover. This stitch works well for smooth leaves or specific shapes. Make the stitches close side by side. You can see some satin stitches in the gold pillow surface here. You can make a padded satin stitch by creating a row of long stitches going in the opposite direction before you start the top row of stitches.

This Pillow Uses Chain Stitch for Edging Shapes

Chain Stitch

The chain stitch is ideal for outlining and is used for the green butterfly in the picture. Here's how to make the chain. Pull the thread through to the top and put the needle back down and up in a small stitch like a lazy daisy. Loop the thread around the needle, and pull the needle through the fabric. Move forward a few threads and place the needle into the fabric and bring it up about the same distance away as the first stitch. Don't pull the needle all the way through until you loop the thread around again.

Chain Stitch You Can Do

Needlework crafts are relaxing and beautiful. Enjoy candlewicking and embroidery crafts this summer while it is still too hot to work in heavier crafts like making afghans or quilts.






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Have a great week!

Linda
cajunC