Category: sustainability

Upcycle from the Outside In

I’m committed to upcycling, since I had great success with my tablecloth-turned-dress last year. So when my old bathrobe got a bit too ratty to use anymore, I held on to it in hopes of giving it a second life.

IMG_20170615_172539
Upcycled from my old bathrobe

The fabric is in good shape – minus a few holes at the shoulder from close encounters with a hairbrush, and a coffee stain on one pocket that defies detergent.

There’s enough fabric here to make a nightgown, so I reached again for McCall’s 7297. The  nightgown is basically a longer version of the pajama top I made last fall:

IMG_20171128_181210 (2)

The PJ top has been great, but with warmer weather coming, I would like something cooler. (The pants are ginormous and have stretched out with use, but that’s another story.)

I lined up the bathrobe with the pattern pieces and sew I could squeeze out the nightgown and even lengthen it a bit.  I will need to remove ease in the sleeves, but they’re basically OK. I have enough of the candy-striped facing and belt for the trim along the bodice, hem and sleeves.

I was hoping to reuse the pocket that did not have the baffling coffee stain, so I gently unpicked it – what a chore! There was all this gross gray lint inside. Ew.

IMG_20180308_192208

All in a day’s work for the environment, eh?

More Pussyhats for More Fresh Hell Ahead

I’m making more Pussyhats for the Women’s March in New York on January 20th. Last time, I made 22 hats out of remnants of polar fleece, about half from my stash (leftover from my niece’s Halloween costume) and half purchased off the Joann’s remnant rack.

This year, in the spirit of environmentalism, I am upcycling fabrics for the hats:

Upcycled from a thrift store
Upcycled from my old bathrobe

On the right you’ll see the old hooded bathrobe I retired this year after faithful service left it with too many stains, tears and pills to be quite decent anymore. Each hat takes about a fat quarter’s worth of fabric, so I estimate I can get about 12 hats out of the robe. I will definitely use the striped front band as headbands for the hats, and I may do something creative with the hood.

The pink garments on hangers are two items I bought at Goodwill for $5.25. The item on the left is a tennis dress in French terry that has a little stretch. The item on the right is a short nightgown in four-way stretch jersey. I estimate I can get 8 hats out of both, maybe using the nightie’s lace and rouleau straps creatively.

I got both items at my neighborhood Goodwill store. I have donated many times to this store but have never bought anything there. I was disappointed to find no sewing supplies or yardage on sale, just a sad-looking Singer from the 1970s.

As I perused the clothing racks in search of suitable fabrics, it occurred to me that my sewing project might pose a hardship to someone. I found a couple of pink sweatshirts, but I thought, “It’s so cold. Maybe someone needs this sweatshirt to stay warm. Is it right to buy it?” So I chose items that I imagine no one needs, at least not in January in Connecticut. Maybe this is presumptuous of me? Anyway, it’s done.

I plan to make 20 hats in all. I already have orders from a few friends and neighbors who missed out last year, and I imagine others will roll in. A bunch of us, including my sister, are going to New York on the train for the day. A friend from PatternReview.com has drafted a hat for this year’s march. If yo want to try that pattern, send me a message with your email and I will send it – it’s on a .pdf.  I am going to use it instead of the free “Fleece Fun” hat I tried last year. While it got the job done, it was rather inelegant and ill-fitting.

IMG_20170108_103113866

Are you marching too?