My 2 year-old walked up to me the other day, a corner of a baby blanket tucked under her chin. She tried to wrap it around her waist and asked me, “Can I cook?”
We have a lot of baby blankets around here. Since most have stains on them I haven’t felt good about donating them or passing them down to other new babies. I also haven’t wanted to throw them away because the material is still in pretty good shape on most of them, and my daughters like to use them with their dolls. We still have far more than we actually need though.
When my daughter came up and asked about using the blanket as an apron it gave me an idea. Since I don’t know much about sewing, these blankets would make great material for practicing. I can try out some different textures of material, different techniques, and play around a bit without feeling like I’m wasting material. We may even be able to make a dress-up dress or two for my 5 year-old who occasionally asks me to tie a blanket around her waist or shoulders to be a dress. So, I’m now looking for patterns for kid-size aprons and simple dresses.
Of course, the whole thing got me thinking about what other kinds of materials can be recycled into other projects. Can worn-out t-shirts, jeans, or other clothing be turned into other things? How do I go about “harvesting” and storing the usable fabrics for new projects? I feel a whole new wave of craftiness coming on.
Of course, along with a new craft or hobby also comes all the new tools and supplies. How do you decide which to get first or how to store them? I need all the ideas I can get, especially for sewing, so please leave a comment or share your best ideas on your blog and leave me a link.
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Sounds like you have some great ideas. I store all my fabric I want to use in a storage tub. It works great. I have some blankets around also that would make good crafts like you are talking about.
I’ve heard of blue jeans being turned into purses, the blanket apron thing is a great idea! I’d love to be more savvy when it comes to learning how to sew, especially for the kids! Also I’ve heard of mini quilts being made from scraps of clothing, so cutting out squares and storing them for that could be a great idea!