Today is Tuesday/ Laundry-Sewing day
I love to sew and do a lot of it especially when I volunteered for the Empress Theatre here in Magna. I sewed all of my boy's halloween costumes and most of Charly's.
When Charly was born, I was SO excited to finally have a girl. I knew she would want to do things like mama. So when I found this toy sewing machine, I got it for her.
It really is just a toy, though it said it could sew. These are available at "J?????" fabric store or even online. I was lucky to get mind at the thrift store.
This last year our Relief Society sisters went on a tour of the Beehive House, downtown Salt Lake City. It was one of the home of Brigham Young. While there we went by one of the children's rooms. The guide told us the President Young had toys for the children to help them learn basic skills. He supplied fabric for the girls to make cloths for their dolls, and tools and supplies for the boys to build things.
I was really impressed by that, and while I did make sure my boys got a tools box when they were Bears in the cub scout program, I wanted to now get things for Charly. So I started looking and found this machine that she got for this last Christmas.
It is battery power, however you can get a AC adaptor for it. It does just a basic straight stitch, but that is a all this little girl needs to make fashions for her toys. I got it at "W" for about $20.00, by Dritz, however they are also available at other fabric stores ranging from $20-$75. Watch for sales. You can sign up for ads and emails from "J" and "H" fabric stores here in the valley.
She also got a sewing basket with pins, thread, pin cushion, bobbins, patterns, tape measure, another small things to get her started. (She loves pink and I was able to get a lot of these in pink).
Here is Charly working on her first project, she designed.
Tutorial: Reusable Swiffer Duster Cloths.
I hate to say it, but I LOVE cleaning products. Not cleaning, just the products. Even more, I love DISPOSABLE cleaning products. I hate that they're full of chemicals and are wasteful and expensive, but I love the convienience. Somehow having the latest cleaning gadget helps to motivate me to clean. It makes it more fun. Not that it's fun to begin with. I've wanted to make some changes to my habits when it comes to cleaning for a while now.
One of my favorite cleaning products is the Swiffer duster. They are so handy and work so well. If only it weren't for the disposable duster cloths they use (and use, and use). I've been wanting to make a reusable Swiffer duster cloth for a long time but hadn't gotten around to it. I guess I was saving it for Go Green Month. I love the reusable flannel duster cloth. It can be washed over and over again, and really does a great job dusting. I HAD to share the tutorial so you can all make your own!
Description:
This tutorial will guide you through the steps to make your own reuseable Swiffer duster cloth. The best part is that the more it's used and washed, the better it will work! From start to finish, you should have your new duster made within 30 minutes!
Materials:
4 7"x7" pieces flannel
4 4"x7" pieces flannel (can be co-ordinating color)
Swiffer duster handle
Thread
Note: I found that flannel works best at dusting. I also tried using microfiber (you can get microfiber cloths at the dollar store for a couple of bucks), but personally didn't like it as much as flannel. It didn't seem to hold as much dust, and made a HUGE mess as I was cutting it up. Polar fleece may also be a good alternative, but I would still prefer flannel, in my very humble opinion :).
Directions:
1. Place two pieces of 4"x7" flannel on two pieces of 7"x7" flannel, centering smaller pieces on top. Repeat with remaining flannel squares.
2. Join small and large pieces together by stitching down center of all four layers of fabric as pictured. Stack the two sets of flannel on top of each other, with the small pieces on the top and bottom.
3. Next, make the casing for the Swiffer duster handle. Fold the small pieces of fabric to one side, align the base of the prongs at the edge of the fabric, and center the prongs over the middle seam where the small and large pieces were joined together.
4. Trace close to side edge of prong all the way to the edge of fabric, leaving spaces where the curved areas of the prongs are. It is better to leave a little extra space where the curved areas are than to leave too little space. Fold small piece of fabric to opposite side and trace prongs again the same way.
5. Fold top and bottom small pieces to one side and stitch along traced lines, through all four layers of flannel.
6. Fold top and bottom small pieces to opposite side and stitch along traced lines, through all four layers of flannel.
7. Open up top and bottom small pieces at middle seams and lay flat. Slide Swiffer duster handle into the casing you have sewn, in between the 4 large pieces of flannel. Curved areas on prongs should slide into the spaces you left when you stitched the casing in step 6 and hold the handle in place.
8. Beginning with top layer of large flannel piece, trim approximately 1" of fabric from edge on both sides.
9. Continue trimming each layer approximately 1" shorter than the layer beneath it.
10. Turn duster cloth over and repeat steps 8-9 with opposite side.
11. Beginning with narrowest layer, clip edges of flannel at 1/2" intervals along length of duster.
12. Repeat with the next flannel layer beneath.
13. Continue clipping edges of all layers on each side of duster cloth.
14. Ruffle up all clipped edges, and this is what you will have:
15. Throw your new reusable Swiffer duster cloth in the washer and dryer to let the edges fray. You may need to clip some loose or dangling strands of thread.
16. Let your kids, husband, and even you (ya, you) fight over who gets to do the dusting!
Want proof that your new reusable Swiffer duster cloth works? Here ya go.
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