Green Options

I check out a lot of craft books from my public library, and when I happen to have a little extra cash on hand, I might buy one of my favorites. I rarely follow the instructions or tutorials inside just exactly, however–I always tweak them to fit within the boundaries of my Green Crafting Manifesto. The way I evaluate a book, then, is dependent on the following criteria:

How amenable is the book to using (or how easy are the instructions to modify to include) natural or recycled materials?

How appropriate is the book’s sizing for my body, if it includes adult clothing projects (I have a 42″ chest, a 36″ waist, and I’m 5′2″)?

How reader-friendly are the instructions (I have at least the basic skills for any craft, with my best skills being in sewing, probably, but since I’m self-taught in everything there are often huge gaps in my knowledge)?

Here, then, based on those criteria, is my review of Weekend Sewing, by Heather Ross:

I’ve always been a total tightwad and pretty hardcore DIY, so other than the fact that my pension basically hit the floor last year, I’m remaining chill even in these trying economic times. One of the total tightwad/hardcore DIY activities that I enjoy doing at the beginning of every season is taking a look at my little girls’ wardrobes for the upcoming months, passing down what’s ready to be passed down, altering what can be altered to make it more seaonally appropriate, mending anything that’s torn or stained, and lengthening anything that my girls have grown out of.

Admittedly, I just love to sew for my kids, but even if you don’t, this method of lengthening your kiddo’s pants will give you months’ more service out of pants that are too short but still fit fine in the waist, and it really is quick and pretty easy. Of course, get ready to do it again in just a few months, because kids? They grow like weeds.

After you’ve followed my felted wool tutorial, you will find yourself left with–what else? Felted wool!

What to do, what to do?

The best thing is that there are loads of cool projects designed for felted wool, and its versatility means that there are just as many projects for beginners as there are for the most advanced crafters.

What to do with felted wool?

Well, here are five things to start with:

The other day at Goodwill I found some sweet, butt-clinging, ample-hip-hugging (but not too much!), faded, boot-legged, artfully frayed jeans. Waist size? A perfect 36″. Length? A perfect…38″? Friends, I am 5′2″ balanced up on my tip-toes. Should I give up my second-hand search altogether and go get my bootylicious self over to Lane Bryant?

Friends, I should not. And you know why?

Because I have been kissed with the crafty bug.

There are several pretty easy and cool-looking ways to hem jeans, in particular, that I can tell you about, but the method I’m going to use today, primarily because I’ve got a lot of stuff to do today and I also want to wear these jeans to an Old Crow Medicine Show concert tonight so that Ketch can look down from his sweet fiddle and appreciate them, is something that I like to call the controlled fray.