Superpowers 101: Making Old Things New Again, Part 2

Here are some patches for boys' jeans

Outer Space

On The Farm

 

A few more ideas for girls' jeans

 

 

Superpowers 101: Making Old Things New Again.

I have been very disappointed in the quality of my kids jeans lately, particularly the girls' jeans. It seems that they are crafted for style and flashiness, not durability. Maybe my girls are a little rough but I still think kids clothes should be made to last a while.

Now, I know that holey, tattered jeans are kind of "in" right now but I don't really care for it. So, as the number of jeans with built-in air conditioning increased, I decided to do something about it. Here are the pictures and step-by-step instructions of how I mended half a dozen pairs of jeans for my girls.

Before:





Here I have matched a solid fabric with a pattern.

I have also matched embroidery floss to use for embellishing the patches.





 For the patches, I made a pattern out of an empty box. (cereal boxes are great!)





I chose shapes that are simple and coordinate with the fabric I am using for patches.

I traced the pattern over the hole with a ball point pen. (This takes a while to come out in the wash but it is easy to use and shows well. If you care careful, you can cover the pen marks with embroidery floss and it won't be noticeable.) Make sure the entire hole fits into the pattern. You might have to adjust the size or angle to make it fit.

Pin a piece of fabric to the inside of the jeans so that the front of the patch shows through the hole.

Sew by hand around the shape you drew on the jeans. For some

I used regular thread first, then used embroidery floss. For others, I only used the embroidery floss.

I used a back stitch for the embellishment.

I used three different colors to create a layered outline effect. I also added a leaf using the same back stitch and matching floss. Then I snipped off the excess denim near the stitching. This will leave a slightly frayed look after it has been washed.

The other knee of this pair was thin but not yet holey so I made a more decorative image here.

I just eye-balled the cut-outs within the pattern I had made before.

I used a scrap of silk from an old shirt to give it a dressier look. As you can see, I only cut out the petals.

I stitched the center with all three colors to reinforce the remaining denim.

I tried using fusible interfacing as a backing for the patches but it kept peeling off. I finally bought some fabric glue from a craft store. I glued on a rectangular piece of denim (from old jeans) and  trimmed the edges. I also used my sewing machine to sew the sides of the denim to the seam of the jeans as extra reinforcement.  It made them a little stiff at first but the girls didn't mind. They said it was more comfortable than the raw patch or the interfacing. The denim backing makes the whole area much stronger, too.  (Note: be careful that your glue doesn't bleed through or you will glue it to itself!)

 Here is the finished product.

I tried to add variety so the girls had some choices. Here are the others.

This is my favorite! It doesn't show well in this picture but I added a little spiral to the bottom wing.

I made the heart and flower by hand but for the butterflies, I printed coloring pages from the Internet. I didn't plane to do any for the boys because I didn't think they would like it. This week, John got a whole in his jeans and asked for an Iron man patch. (doesn't ask for much, does he?!) If that happens, I will post pictures.

Superpowers 101: Provident Living, part 1

One of my favorite movies is "Blast from the Past", starring Brendan Fraser. It is about a quirky family from the sixties who build a HUGE fallout shelter and are mistakenly locked inside for 35 years. While the story is funny and kind of sweet, the thing that fascinates me about it is the amount of planning and foresight involved in keeping the family alive, underground, sealed in a vault, for 35 years. They have a greenhouse, fish tank, and TONS of "food storage" including fabric, toothpaste, books, power sources, tools, materials to make whatever they may need, the list goes on and on. Each time I watch this movie I am awed by the amount of time it would take to prepare in that way. Of course it is only fiction.

In reality, most people don't have anything stored. They buy little bits at a time, whenever they need it, they buy it. Sometimes they buy when they don't need it. If it breaks, or looses it's value in any way, it is often thrown away, wasted in the garbage heap for no good reason. Here is a case in point.

Years ago, my dad noticed an electric pencil sharpener sitting on the floor in the office where he worked. He learned that it didn't work and was there to be thrown away. He asked if he could take it home for my brothers to take apart. (Boys like doing that sort of thing sometimes.) When he got home, the first thing they did was open the little drawer on the front that catches the pencil shavings. It was PACKED!!! It was so full they had trouble getting it opened. After emptying the drawer, they plugged it in and, you guessed it, it worked like a charm. We used that pencil sharpener for many years. In fact, my parents may still have it!.

That experience alone taught me a great lesson about waste. As the years have passed, I have become more and more disgusted by the  wasteful attitudes that are so common in the world today. For example, we bought a new TV a few years ago. Our old TV was showing signs of age and we were sure it wouldn't lat much longer. We put "old trusty" in a spare room and used the new TV in the living room. It lasted 3 years. One day, we couldn't turn it on. After a few calls and internet searches, we learned that the average lifespan for that model was 3-5 years. Our experience with it was typical and there was nothing that could be done. "It wasn't made to last. "

Everyone seemed confused by our disappointment. "Now you can get a newer one." they said. WE couldn't seem to explain that we didn't want to buy a new TV every 3 years. We pulled out "old trusty" and used that TV for a few months until we bought another new one. Trusty has now died...after 12 years and several moves! What continues to make this whole experience frustrating is that we have been told more than once that the TV we bought a year ago is an "older model" and why haven't we upgraded yet?

I know what you are thinking. Technology is moving forward and we have to keep up. I can accept that...to an extent. But what about non-technical things? My husband sometimes gives me a hard time about keeping too much stuff because I might use it one day. I have challenged myself to actually make good on this claim. Lately I have been careful to look at what I already have before going out and buying more. So if I need yarn, I need to use what I have on hand rather than buying new yarn. (I have WAY too much as it is... for some reason I can't explain.)

I recently took this a step further. A few years ago, my son wanted to be a pirate for Halloween. I went to the local thrift store and bought several pairs of pants for him to try. They were a few dollars each, of different sizes and colors. He chose one pair to use and the others went in a box, where they stayed for at least 2 years. 

As my daughters have gotten older, I have been disappointed in the choices available to them in the skirt department (I will talk about that more later). I decided to make some modest skirts for them out of old pants. I made one out of a pair of jeans that were too short but still fit in the waist. The other was made from one of those pairs of "pirate pants". I was able to easily take out the seams, sew the pieces together, add an elastic waistband, and hem. I was impressed with how well they turned out. The girls were very happy.

This simple act of reusing something I already had left me with a tremendous sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. Buying new things sometimes leaves me feeling empty, even when it is something I need. I find that I have sometimes settled. I got what they had, not what I really wanted. I have taken the easy way. 

In contrast, I love the feeling I get when I can go to the closet and pull out the hand-me-downs. I love the feeling of making something myself. I love trying a new thing to see if I can do it and I find that I can. Sometimes I think that is what is really missing in the world. Too few people ask "What can I do with what I have?" They don't exercise their minds and bodies in a way that is productive.

I have more to say about this but I will stop for now. In the mean time, I hope you will take the time to look at what you have differently. What would you do if you couldn't buy anything new for an extended period of time? Could you do it? For how long? I hope we never have to go 35 years, like the family in the movie. But what if we had to go a few weeks? A few months? A year? What would you need to have on hand to make it through a difficult time? What skills would you need? What knowledge? What supplies?

Think about it for a while. Maybe there is something simple you can change about your habits that will make a big difference later on. Good luck!

Developing your "super powers"

I believe there are a few skills that are essential for every person to know. These are skills that make it possible to function successfully in the world. I also feel these skills are important for survival and self-reliance. If you have these skills, great! If you don't, maybe you should consider developing them. It won't hurt and will very likely improve your life.

1. Reading. Okay, so that may seem obvious (since you are reading this) but there are people in the world who are able yet rarely read. I used to only read for information; magazines, newspapers, How-to books, etc. This kind of reading is important and more people should read to learn something from time to time.
Several years ago I started reading for pleasure again. It has changed my life. I always enjoyed reading but I thought I had outgrown "fun reading". Since I started reading again I have found that I read faster, my comprehension is better, I have something to think about besides children and cleaning, and I am much happier than when I filled my time with TV and movies. I also read aloud to my children more. I used to hate doing this because I didn't like my voice. If I read for very long my throat would get dry and I would stop. Now I don't mind either of these challenges. I guess practice makes perfect.

2. Cooking. This might seem obvious to some of you but I have met many women who can not cook...or DO NOT cook. I find this incomprehensible. I enjoy cooking most of the time. I like trying new things and having control over what I eat. I am by no means a gourmet but I think I am a pretty good cook. I feel satisfied that I can provide meals for my family. I also believe that cooking for yourself saves money. During our recent move we found ourselves spending between $30 and $60 per meal to feed our family! I have added up the cost of our favorite meals and the most expensive was only $18 with lots of leftovers.

3. Basic Financial management. I am not a financial expert but I have learned from my mistakes and work very hard to avoid repeating them. That is why I am horrified when I meet a woman who says "I let my husband do all of that." or "Money isn't important." Are you kidding me!?!?!? Money one of the most important tools we have in our society. Without money you have no home, no food, no transportation, no education, the list goes on and on. Now I am not saying that you should be obsessed with money or that it should have unrealistic priority in your life. I am saying that by not understanding basic principles like interest and budgeting, you can get into SERIOUS trouble. I guess many people are learning this lesson the hard way. What is most devastating is not finding your self over your head in debt but learning how a simple it would have been to stay out of that pit.

4. Sewing. This might seem like an outdated skill to you but it isn't. Although making your own clothes may not be cost effective, sewing skills are still valuable. Simple minding does not take much time or effort but can save you in the long run. I am surprised at how many people can't hem a pair of pants or sew on a button. They find it too much work and would rather replace it than mend it.
Another important reason to learn to sew is modesty. I have very strong feeling about little girls wearing short shorts and sleeveless dresses. I would much prefer to add a sleeve or lengthen the hem than let my girls be overexposed.

5. Organizational skills. I hate trying to find something in a pile of junk. My husband would laugh at that because I am the "cluttered one" in our home. My argument is that I have to keep track of 8 people's stuff and he only has to keep track of some of his own. Still, I do have meticulous standards when it comes to our important documents and records, storage items like baby clothes and Christmas decorations, and the children's toys. Less important clutter ends up in piles or boxes or bags until I sort it and re-sort it and eventually find a home for it or throw it out. It is an ongoing process. I can't tell you how good it feels when you need scissors and they are in their place or when your 3 year old put all the cars in the car box without being told what to do.

6. Shopping skills. I know what you are thinking. ALL women know how to shop. I disagree. All women know how to SPEND MONEY!. There is a difference. A successful shopper can go into the store and buy what they need without overdoing it. She knows how to get a good deal and buys with the future in mind. I am particularly surprised at how many people buy only enough food for one or two meals instead of stocking up on the things they eat often. I tend to buy food on a cycle. One week I might buy several jars of spaghetti sauce. Another week I stock up on ground beef. When we start to run low on an item I buy at least a months worth. The same principle applies to kids clothes. I might buy several pair of jeans in different sizes because they are on sale. Now when my "giant child" has yet another growth spurt I don't have to rush out and buy him something so he can breath at school the next day.

I have only listed a few of the many skills that help keep a family running smoothly. Not only are they good skills for a mother to have but good skills to teach her children. As I said in the beginning, these are important for anyone to master...even guys!