Loose Thread Stitchers

Today's post has little to do with stitching (well I did stitch it a bit) and more to do with thinking outside the box. I have found over the past few months that a majority of stitchers like to play it safe. They choose a design and want to stitch it EXACTLY as it is shown. Selecting the same fabric, threads and embellishments that are recommended by the designer. But who says you have to play by the rules? Who said a framed design can't be finished differently to fit your taste? To personally reflect your style? Have you ever considered stepping out of the box and transforming something you already have into something totally different and equally useful?

I must admit, I am a bit jealous of those who can make this happen. I mean seriously, how can someone be so creative? How can you look at something and think, hmmm if you put it together this way it could be something new and useful. What an amazing gift. I long to be that person, the creative mama who just got inspired and thought, I can totally use this to make that, no problem. I've been waiting for years for inspiration...and suddenly this morning it came to me!

I will transform the baby hamper (that has seen better days and has not been used in more than 2 years) into a bow and headband holder for the girls. I know you think I am nut...to be honest, I thought I was a bit crazy myself, but it actually turned out really nice!

See we have a problem in the girls room. TOO MANY HAIR ACCESSORIES! They LOVE bows and clips. They LOVE to get their hair done and unitl this morning we housed everything in an old box. All the bows were starting to get ruined b/c we had to dump the box all the time to find what we needed and we just threw everything back in when we were done. Not a great system. I have been looking for bow holders to match their room for a while. Nothing really caught my eye and I looked at the hamper this morning and thought this could work.....

I took the hamper shown here (I know the picture isn't that great but it is a pinks and cream stripe fabric) and pulled it apart (no worries, the seams ripped easily and I had PLENTY of fabric to do what I wanted to do.

I removed the bolts from the 2 wooden sides of the hamper and turned them sideways. After cutting the fabric into strips (5 strips, 3 inches wide per wooden side) and securing them (top stapled and bottom tied) I got these adorable and fun bow holders for the girls.
Total cost ~ Free

Emma's Bows



Gracie's Bows

Then we had a headband issue. Yes with 2 girls we have LOTS of headbands. Most of which (b/c they like to dress alike) we have 2. Just like the bows, these were starting to show lots of wear b/c we just threw them in the box. I was trying to figure out a way to hang them and decided to go to the basement into the big guys tool den and see if there was anything I could use. (FYI ~ this only works when the hubby isn't home, do not attempt this if he is, you'll get in trouble) (:

Anyway, not sure if you read my latest post on MomSpace.com about how the big guy built our house (if not it's a great read, here's the link) but he has LOTS of supplies in the basement that he's never used, so I thought why not take a peek! It was a gold mine.

I found PVC pipe, a PVC Adapter and I used the fabric from the hamper and some batting I had in my office. Who knew you could turn this.......


Into this....



Total cost ~ Free

I thought is was going to be too big but I see I can easily get another PVC pipe downstairs (this one is 2.5 Ft) and with the left over fabric and batting make another one. FYI ~ this is where the stitching part came into play. I had to hand stitch the fabric up the back (no sewing machine). The best job ever? Absolutely not, but it will do and no one can even see it.

I hope this story (of a girl who finally found a way to re-use and be creative) inspires you to look at things differently this week and ask yourself, how can I make this work me me! Be sure to e-mail your story to ~ Info(at)LooseThreadStitchers(dot)com ~ we'd can't wait to hear your story!