I have gathered all my embroidery and cross stitch supplies together and realised I have a lifetime’s supply. So I was delighted to find inspiration from Mistikomakes on YouTube.
Not only did this give me lots of practice on fly stitch, chain stitch and French knots it inspired me for little makes that are satisfyingly fast to finish.
Thank you Misti Ko!
I am gradually reducing the fabric stockpile and this project must have used up oh, a millionth, in one go!
Part of a polo shirt, stained beyond use, was sandwiched between two layers of old cotton sheeting to create a new supply of reusable face wipes.
The trick for fast production is to make a large rectangle sandwich then draw on, with a frixion or erasable pencil, circles which you sew around. Then you cut around the sewn circles with pinking shears before ironing to remove the pencil marks.
Now to top up the diy facial cleanser…
Thank you Emma for the bundle of braid you sent. I have used some to upgrade hand towels. They really brighten them up.
I am stitching on cards this month, but it is a long process so these upcycled Christmas cards were stitched on the sewing machine.
Each card has a tailor made envelope using the plain side of 12x 12” patterned paper. The stash for Christmas 2023 is underway!
I metre long strip by 20cm wide fabric is all it takes.
Multi media pillows have been created to use up some of the fabric stash. I combine free motion, appliqué, hand embroidery including lots of French knots, fabric pen drawing and pearl drop embellishments.
A quick and straightforward sew converted elderly placemats into storage bags and pots.
I folded a mat in half so that the fringed edges became the top hem then seamed both sides to make a simple bag. Then I boxed the bottom corners to give it structure.
Because these are heavyweight mats the finished article stands up well.
Smaller bags were made by chopping a mat in half and following the same simple sew.
Made on the same basis as lavender bags, fabric sachets are filled with activated charcoal (as used in home aquariums). These are supposed to absorb the sweat in trainers and shoes.
The sachets are lined with dark fabric as charcoal is very messy. I decided to label them with fabric pens so recipients know what to use them for and will enclose a note explaining that the charcoal can be reenergised if warmed in the oven.
Adapted from a Crafts Channel tutorial
A clear out of surplus hand towels too good to dispose of led to today’s make. Sets of make up remover pads to pair with my diy cleanser.
Sandwich the towel (bindings cut off) between sheets of cotton and pin. Then draw circles using a jar of glass as template. I use a Frixion heat removable pen.
Zig zag around the circles. It doesn’t matter if you go off piste a bit.
Then cut around the lines with pinking shears. Voila.
Simple flannel pockets: sewn to use up the soaps we seem to have accumulated.
Each pocket uses half a flannel, could have squeezed it down to a third of a flannel with hindsight. A simple sew, making an envelope with a loop of ribbon stitched in to a side seam …
janecrafts 