I do have a sewing basket. Inside that sewing basket are a couple pin cushions. Is that where I store my needles? No, it is all the way in the other room most of the time. I do have a cloth divider in my side table, and the needles go well there, and are at hand when I need them.
I first discovered button hole elastic in clothes purchased for my kids. This ingenious addition to the inside waist of pants helps harried parents tighten the waist band of their offspring’s pants without resorting to a belt, which is particularly important during the bathroom independence revolution. I purchased some for my stash, and have used it to adjust clothing, for mask elastic (during the cloth mask years), and now to hold together a rolled mat. Sewing a button on both ends of the elastic allows an adjustable way to secure the roll, and the elastic between acts as a carrying handle.
I would put forth that button elastic deserves a place in any crafter’s stash, along with hot glue and duct tape.
A fuzzy blanket on the back of the couch is the favorite spot for both Izzy the cat and Missy the dog. But the blanket doesn’t stay there. Up and over the back of the couch is also Missy’s favorite race track path. (I still don’t quite understand how a 20 pound, stubby-legged dog can vault up and over the couch.) The blanket usually ends up on the floor behind the couch. Arg. So I’m trying a blanket stay. I took 1/2” elastic and wrapped it around the couch cushions (these cushions are not removable).
I pulled the elastic quite snug and tied it off, then tucked the tied ends into the cracks. The blanket then gets folded in half, slid under the elastic, and folded in half again.
When my youngest needs to wrap up in the blanket, it is easy to pull down, but so far I have not found the blanket on the floor, a victim of a high speed ball chase.
I have a precious recipe book that my sister put together from my Grandmother’s most used recipe cards. I don’t want to spill or drip on it, so I cover the pages with a sheet of plastic wrap to protect it.
The cucumber salad is the recipe I use the most often.
Warning: hand sewing ahead.
I picked up a shirt when shopping with the kids and the neckline turned out to be way too low. So I added a modesty panel using cotton knit material. I did attempt to do the whole alteration on my machine, but I had a terrible time feeding the thin knit material consistently under the sewing foot. Frustrated, I turned back to hand stitching; the inside of the neckline had a convenient seam that made making an invisible whip stitch easy. I think the next time around I will hand stitch a decorative edge on the top as well, leaving the machine work for woven cotton and inside seams. The finished product has the look of layers, without the bulk.
Critters and Craft 