Making crafty and useful stuff with fabric.

Making crafty and useful stuff with fabric.

crafty stuff recycle reuse

Hello. It's a lovely morning and I want to get on the bus and go to Hull, so here is a quickie. The notebook cover I started on Monday is finished. They are so easy to make, sew strips of fabric together with the machine. Add cross stitch and sequins, make a lining for it, and blanket stitch the top and bottom together, making inside pockets to slide the front and back cover in.  

Front. 

Back.

Inside front.

Inside back.

My next project. Unpicking the stitching on a duvet to separate the layers, which will then be cut up and made into cushions and pet beds.



Phew, I'm busy. Don't forget, walkers unite, it's the last day of the month. Tomorrow is check in day for the Walking Group, we want to know your mileage, whatever it is. I know some of you are forging ahead and doing splendidly, but it isn't a race, it's all about taking part. It's about doing some walking, it doesn't have to be marathons, you just need to get up off your bums and walk.
Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip

Motorcycle gear for sale.

Motorcycle gear for sale.

happy recycle reuse

I haven't owned a motor cycle for many years, the last one was a Honda CX500 custom, which I sold more than 20 years ago before I moved house. But I kept the gear thinking I might buy another one, one day. Well that day has never arrived and I have moved on, no point in hanging onto my leathers, so they have to go. As well as the gear I am modelling here, I also have a good quality, padded waterproof oversuit. 

I've had a card in the local shop window for a month, no enquiries. I asked a friend who is a biker if he knows someone who might be interested, he goes on rallies and belongs to a club. He said he could ask at the club next time he goes. He might get there tonight after work, but if he doesn't he offered to photograph and put it on Facebook for me. I suppose I could do that myself but I don't want the faff that goes with it, people enquiring, coming to have a look, haggling over the price, etc.

This morning I had a brainwave. I don't need the few quid it would fetch, why not give it away, easy peasy. I don't want to put it on Freecycle or Freegle or whatever, you don't know who is coming to your house for it. I rang the guy who does the motorcycle training and he said he could find new owners for it. So, I have just delivered it to him, and hopefully some young trainee who perhaps can't afford to buy new, will get some benefit from it. Makes me feel better, gets it out of my house, sending it off to a new life with a new owner.

What goes round comes round. Janet gave me a lovely jacket, and a lady has dropped off an unwanted duvet with me this morning and I will turn it into cushions for the church. Recycling, reusing, repurposing, keeps stuff out of landfill, got to be good for the planet.

Second post today, that's ya lot. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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Home made super deluxe garden table.

Home made super deluxe garden table.

free garden home made recycle reuse

Hello. I thought I would give you an extra day to check in with your miles, and I'm pleased to see that the Walking Group are doing really well. It's good to read your comments, I can sense the determination in your writings, to do the best you can. It's nice to know that you are not finding it a chore, and now look forward to increasing your fitness levels. Stick with it everyone, do as much as you can, any walking is better than no walking. 

It was a good turnout at Crafty Club this morning, a full table again. It's been a lovely sunny day and I had a project I wanted to get on with this afternoon. Out with the tools, hammer, screwdrivers, saw, screws and nails. A bit of DIY is needed. 

My garden table is getting a bit wonky, it has been repaired once and now the wood is rotting further. Musn't grumble, I made it a few years ago and it cost me nothing, I have had good use out of it. It has been mainly used for potting plants and seeds, and any other DIY job which needed to be done outdoors. I've sawn many a piece of wood on this table. But now it's at the end of it's useful life, I need another one.

And here it is. The new all singing and dancing deluxe model. Heidi likes it. 

The two ends used to be a bed, out of a skip of course, I've had them ages. I've still got the base but it didn't fit in with this project. Some of the wood was from the four divan beds I had from my friend when they moved. I didn't have a pallet to cover the whole top, so I used a narrow pallet on the right where Heidi is lying. On the left I used two side pieces from a divan bed with some blocks nailed at each end to bring it up to the same height as the pallet. The top is one piece but I haven#'t screwed it to the frame, in case I want to move it.

I'm mighty pleased with that, my home made garden table/work bench. It's very sturdy, the cross bars hold it all together. Old screws used so it was all free.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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Walking Group call out. Log your miles here.

Walking Group call out. Log your miles here.

crafty stuff recycle reuse walking

Hello. I dropped lucky yesterday. I stopped off at the Cash and Carry on my way to town and there is also a junk warehouse which is not open very often. The man was there, with second hand furniture spread about on the yard, so I had a nosy inside. I found a brown table lamp with a green shade, the perfect colour. He wanted £1 for it. I have scrubbed the shade with soapy water, it has come up a treat, and added some pink trim to the top and bottom. There was already some white trim on it which looked a bit tatty, so I just stuck the pink over the top. I'm very chuffed with it. 

This is it's permanent place next to me when I am on the computer, it is within easy reach so I can switch it on and off without getting up. I only need a light when I use the keyboard.

This is the brown lamp which it came with, it looks ancient, like the old fashioned bakerlite. I wasn't expecting it to be working, but it does. I've given it a clean up, it was filthy, and put this old shade on it which looks perfect. It must be about 40 years old, it was on a lamp which I bought for my mum, which I am still using on my bedside ironing table. 

Right, it's the 1st of the month, you know the drill, this is where all the members of the Walking Group congregate together to share their stories. I want to know how you have been doing, or not been doing. Do you need praise from me, or a kick up the bum?

I have finished the first three months of the year on 375 miles. I would have done more if it wasn't for the twisted muscle in my leg, but that's gone now thank goodness. The weather is hopefully getting better so I am looking forward to a few day walks this month.

So how is it for you, don't be shy, spill the beans.

Lunch time, belly is rumbling, so I'll leave it with you. Lets have those miles come flooding in. You can update at any time in the month, just come back to this post on the 1st.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon. Have a nice weekend.
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Girly catchup

Girly catchup

friends recycle

Hello. I've had a lovely afternoon with my friend Helen, and Henry choc lab. We had a girly catchup, took the dog a walk, and put the world to rights, as they say, over a mug of coffee. Basically we had a natter about what we have been up to since the last time we met, in January. 

She is having a de clutter, going from room to room and getting rid of things she doesn't want. None of it will be dumped in a skip or go to landfill, she is as passionate as I am about reusing, and recycling. 

I came home with four cushions which I will give to the church, some bed linen which I can use in projects, a small bread basket which can be sold on the cat stall, and a pile of magazines which I will read, then pass on to another friend to read, then they can go on the cat stall. So, nothing wasted. I included the clock in the picture, the one I rescued from someone at the tip, it keeps perfect time. 

I did a telephone interview this morning, a young lady is writing an article about the summer house for a  magazine called Modern Gardens. It is for the June edition which comes out sometime in May.

I hope you are all keeping up with your walking. I have had a few days off, but that's ok because I am ahead with the miles. Tomorrow is the last day of the month, so one last push to boost your three month total. On Saturday's post, the 1st of April, I expect to see some good numbers. Don't let me down.

Thanks for popping in, that's all for now. We'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

A new picture using recycled materials

A new picture using recycled materials

arty stuff recycle

Hello and Good Morning. Another of my art projects finished. The picture is 11.5 inches by 9 inches. The colours in this first picture are close to the real colours. I took the photo before I put the glass in, to cut out any reflections. I have some old frames which I rescued from being dumped in a skip. A lick of paint works wonders to spruce them up. 

In the closeups the background is not as yellow as it should be.

And this is how it started. A piece of fabric with a simple design. I started by covering the whole thing with a yellow wash, which allowed the outline to show through. Then it was just a matter of carefully filling in the colours with a fine brush. The little pots of emulsion tester paints are great for painting pictures. I'm very pleased at how it's turned out. 

What's the plans for today? More crafting, sewing, crochet. Wash hair. Walk three miles. Get things ready for a talk I am doing tonight. Good plan eh!

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon
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It's a throw away world - Meanqueen to the rescue

It's a throw away world - Meanqueen to the rescue

recycle reuse rubbish skip diving

Hello. I think I must be on a one woman crusade, to rescue all useful stuff bound for landfill. I took my old brown crappy cheap and nasty cupboard to the council tip today. Broke it up to fit in the car. What did I do when I was there, had a nosy in a car full to the brim with stuff which didn't look like junk to me. The owners happily passed me a few things before they got tossed in the skip. I could have taken more, but the attendant advised that I should be doing my rescuing outside the gate, not on the premises. The owners just wanted rid of it and didn't want to sort it and give it to me out on the roadside. 

This is what I managed to grab before it was dumped. The woman was more helpful than her husband, she loaded some of it in my car. Three big cushions, they look clean but I will wash the covers, and pass them on to the church. 

A brand new iron in it's original box, never been used. I will keep hold of it for the time being in case my very old one packs up. If I haven't needed it by June I will sell it at the village fete on our cat rescue stall.

Seven picture frames. I can use some of these for my pictures. I have enough to keep me going for a long time. Best make some more pictures then. The frames I don't use I will pass on to the Age UK charity shop.

A big clock, metal surround, reminds me of a clock in a railway station waiting room. I put a battery in it and it works. Will sell this on the cat stall.

I really must try not to bring so much stuff home. I noticed there are two doors on the skip tonight as I passed it on my walk. I could very easily build another summer house, ha ha. I resisted the temptation to take my car round there and pick them up.

Nice to see some new readers commenting. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon. Enjoy your Sunday.
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I love free furniture.

I love free furniture.

free recycle skip diving

Hello. Question, where can you get free furniture? Answer, from a skip. I found these two bedside cabinets the other day, not a mark on them. The house had been empty for a long time, it has recently been bought and a skip appeared on the driveway. It's on my walk, I pass it every day, and when I saw these I was so excited. 

There was no one around so I asked my friend up the road if he knew who had bought it. Yep, go down the next street and knock on a red door, so I did. Permission was granted to remove said furniture. I immediately went home to get my car, as it was in danger of raining. 

They are smashing. My first thought was to find a home for them because they won't fit in my bedroom, then I had a look around and thought they would look nice in my living room. 

This is a bit of a messy spot, the brown stereo unit next to the chair is about forty years old, it was cheap and chipboardy, and is too big for the space. I think it's time to get rid of it. I have to keep the tall cupboard behind the chair because it has a false back in it, it was made to cover up the electric meter behind it. Stupid place to put a meter.

Hey, look at the difference, a lot better. I moved the coffee table next to the chair and the cabinets fit perfectly either side of the alcove wall. This room used to be two smaller rooms, the previous owner knocked them through. I'm chuffed to bits with this.

The moral of this story is keep your eyes peeled for any skips which appear on people's driveways, they might be throwing something useful out. Always ask permission to remove items you want. They will always say yes. I love free stuff. 

My dinner yesterday was very simple, tagliatelle and frozen vegetables drizzled with toasted sesame seed oil. Only takes a few minutes to simmer in one pan. My lunch today was a bit of a mishmash, iceberg lettuce, potato salad, Danish Blue cheese, and tagliatelle, with a splodge of tartar sauce. 

I was up late this morning so I am a bit behind. I'll get off now and catch up. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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No problem, I'll make one.

No problem, I'll make one.

home made recycle sewing

Hello. Thank you for the many more messages coming in. You are so kind. I'm taking one day at a time, looking for things to occupy my time and my mind. Can't sit around feeling sorry for myself. Bugsy had the best life ever, I made him that promise when he first came into my life. For the last few years he knew he was the King of the Castle, mooching  around his domain,  checking on his subjects, letting them know he was boss. Nothing bothered him, he was so laid back. The last few months while he was living on the table we had conversations, face to face. He knew he was loved. We were a team, I am grateful that I have lovely memories of him. 

 I'll tell you about a little invention I made yesterday. I bought my sewing machine about the time I retired, nearly eight years ago, it was just under £100, nothing fancy, it does what I want it to do. 

This is the piece I am working on at the moment, patchwork pieces. I cut out some brown strips of fabric for the tree, it's a heavy material and frays a lot. I laid them out where I wanted them.

Hand sewing was going to take too long, so I thought machining would be best, but the pieces were in danger of falling off while I was doing it. I need a wider flatter surface around the machine to support it and  keep it all flat. 

I could make one out of wood, but that might take a while, and it's too cold to work outdoors at the moment. So, I had a look around and found a sturdy cardboard box that I brought my groceries home in from Aldi. Measured the height, exactly three inches, perfect. I cut an aperture in it, the width and length of the machine base.

 Covered the top with sticky white glossy paper, and slid it onto the machine.

Perfect. Now I have a flat surface to support my work, and it cost nothing.

Does the job just fine. A good invention I think. 

It's lunch time and I am going out this afternoon, so I'll sign off. Don't forget, tomorrow is the 1st of February, the day the Walking Group clock in with their mileages.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
Toodle pip.

Recycling Upcycling Queen

Recycling Upcycling Queen

free make a bag recycle sewing

Hello, and welcome to Tightwad Towers Recycling Centre. There was a knock at my front door this morning, my friend Bob was on his way to the council dump when he decided to call in here first in case there was something in his car that I could make use of. Most of it was packaging, but I had to rescue a few things. I'm not sure if I actually need them, but I couldn't see them thrown away. I can probably use the two big frames, but the smaller ones might go to the charity shop. 

I do need a small lamp shade, but I these are going to be too big. Probably charity shop. Three cushions. Don't need them myself, but I could take them apart. They have too much stuffing in them, I could make four cushions for the church. My goodness I've got loads to do now, I'm going to be busy trying to keep up with all this recycling upcycling lark.

I made a sign to go on the lamp post on the High Street near to the Village Hall. It's simple, didn't want to spend too much time on it, as it will only be up for six days, then put away till next year.

Two shopping bags made today, with the fabric from one of the beds. They are a slightly darker shade than they are here on the photo.

So, that's what I've been doing on this chilly but dry Sunday. The days are very short now, it's a job to get everything done in reasonable daylight. I've got to go. There's a ginger cat demanding my attention, he wants to snuggle up to me. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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Recycle and reuse

Recycle and reuse

free recycle reuse

Hello. I didn't get to dismantle the beds the other day, it was raining, is it ever going to stop! Well it did stop today and as I was passing my friends house, I noticed she had put two of the beds out on the front lawn. That's handy I thought, so after lunch I took my bag of tools and went round there to attack them. 

I slashed the fabric around the edges with a Stanley knife and unscrewed as much of the wood as I could. The tough bits gave way with a bash from a big hammer.  

I am trying to salvage as much as I can, that blue fabric on the top bed is lovely and ideal for shopping bags. I broke it down to manageable pieces to fit in my car, and will sort it out later. The wood can be separated into useful pieces and put in the garage, aka the wood store.

My friend gave me a bag of smellies, she doesn't like toiletries that are heavily perfumed. I will use anything if it's free. The handwash can be used as shampoo and bath foam, the small soaps I will pass on to Janet to be sold on the cat stall. I will wear the socks.

It was library day today. It has changed from a Monday, because the van parks on the health centre car park and they said it was taking too much room up, so they changed the day to Tuesday because it's closed on a Tuesday afternoon. The bin collection day has changed as well. It used to be on a Monday, now moved to Wednesday, just about getting used to the new routine.

I didn't do a walk yesterday because of the rain. People have been asking what next when we have all finished at the end of the year. I think it would be good to have a new challenge, but I'm not sure what. I will carry on walking and will record my mileage on my calendar, and I hope everyone else will do the same. Keeping healthy and looking after your body is not a one year experiment, it's forever. Come next spring and I hope to be doing more long walks.

Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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Shopping haul and a job to do.

Shopping haul and a job to do.

budgeting shopping recycle

Hello. It's looking like it might be a busy day, so I'll fire this one off super quick. Last minute decision last night, go for the yellow stickers at Tesco. A good haul, all with 75% off. The man with the ticket machine said not so many people come for them now, it used to be 90% off. This saving is fine by me. Other foodstuffs were bought as well. No need to go again for another couple or three weeks. 

My friends in the next street are downsizing, moving up north, and they need to get the house cleared. There are four single bed bases to get rid of, no one wants them, not even charity shops. The council will take weeks to come and pick them up and they don't want them lying around in the front garden. The plan is that I  dismantle them and salvage any timber that might be useful for other projects and take the debris to the tip.

Must get on with the job. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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A day out at the Festival of Thrift.

A day out at the Festival of Thrift.

crafty stuff enjoy free holidays/days out recycle reuse Scrapstore

Hello. Yes, I was in Redcar yesterday for the Festival of Thrift. Apologies to those who live not far from the site, Cherie and Brenda and anyone else up in the north east, but I did not make up my mind to go until 10pm on Saturday night so there wasn't time to make arrangements. I had been mulling it over for a few days, ever since I saw Max tweeting about it. I considered making it into a two or three day jaunt but was undecided. 

Then I had a closer look at the festival web site and thought a lot of the activities and entertainment was geared up for children and families. Also advertised was food, workshops, films, talks, and shopping, none of which I am particularly interested in. The only things that did interest me was the arts and crafts and the upcycling, not really enough to warrant the time, effort, and cost to get there and back. 

However, when the tweets started coming in after the first day, with reports in the local media, I thought I might give it a whirl. My Saturday was a bit boring so I thought perhaps I ought to get up off my backside and just do it.. 

The event practically took over the whole village of Kirkleatham. When I arrived at 11.15am the road was blocked by a massive queue to get in the car park. It crawled along at a snails pace. I was not best pleased after driving almost two hours. The road to the main entrance was closed to all except disabled and trades people, so I followed the signs straight on for the car park. Just as we were coming to a roundabout I could see the queue stretching a long way into the distance, I hate queuing. Just off the roundabout to the left is a Business Park, and being a Sunday no one would be working so I thought why not park there. Good move, others had the same idea. It was a few minutes walk back along the road to the entrance. To be honest, I wouldn't have minded paying £5 to park, but I wasn't going to sit in that queue. 

The event practically took over the whole village of Kirkleatham, it was spread out over several fields, and there were stalls and suchlike inside the Museum buildings as well. It took me a while to Find Max McMurdo next to the big green Gumtree bus. Those of you who saw Shed of the Year will remember him as being one of the judges. His face regularly comes up on the TV as inventor and upcycler on other programmes. Max has a book out, his first upcycling book and it appears to be very popular amongst thrifty people. If you want to have a butchers at it, click on this Amazon link. No I am not getting a cut in sales, I just think he is a thoroughly nice guy who works very hard. 

With a steady stream of visitors waiting to speak to Max, I hovered for a few minutes and watched him dish out his words of wisdom to enthusiastic upcyclers. 

That was tempting, the weather was hot and I could have murdered a pint of cider, but knowing that I had to drive home I supped the watered down apple juice in my bottle brought from home.

There was much to see and do. The solar powered cinema was closed for lunch, and as I didn't fancy being squeezed into a box with other sweaty people I decided to give it a miss. Nice idea though.

Lots of wood about. Two owls for sale, can't remember how much they were though.

There were stalls with all kinds of craftwork. Blocks of wood with letters carved into them, £6 per letter. I did think of getting my name but I am much too tight to part with £30 on an impulse buy.

In the stable block there were artworks from local artists. I must say though that there was only one which looked interesting. One stable had nothing in and was lit up with a coloured light. Another had a moving film of horse racing projected onto the wall with a makeshift steeple chasing jump built of branches in front of it. And two others were empty. It was a bit gloomy in there, with not much to look at. 

There was a little courtyard with vintage camper vans, which was nice.

This one was for sale, 7,000 quid if you are interested. Looks fully restored on the outside but you will have to put your own innards into it. Mind you, thinking about it, it has an 02 number plate so it could be a kit car built from scratch.

Lots of vintage stalls to browse. One thing I can't understand is that once something is given the 'vintage', label how come the price rises, and rises, and rises. Baffles me that people will pay silly money for old tat, when probably family members will have cupboards full of the stuff stashed away somewhere. 'Spose it's a bit like antiques, the older something is the more valuable it becomes.

There were various cooking smells wafting around, and long queues at the stalls. If this was a thrift festival, why didn't more people get organized and take their own pack up from home and have a picnic. It was the ideal weather for it. 

Jam making demonstrations here, and if you took your own fruit you could turn it into jam yourself and take it home in a jar.

The church was used for sewing sessions. Make a patchwork block and it will be added to a quilt.

Choose your pieces of fabric and sit at a machine, someone will tell you what to do. The little girls seemed to like this activity.

I had a peek in the museum while I was there. 

This old dear looks happy enough perched on her stool, with the cooking pot on the fire. Fish for tea tonight.

How about a swing in a hammock. Looks very relaxing, the young lady is gently rotating the line of swinging hammocks on a turntable.

Hairdressing was popular, get your hair done in a vintage style by ladies wearing forties dresses, outside their vintage caravan.  £5 a go.

My overall view of the festival was that's it's a great day out, and if you live close enough you could easily find enough to do for two days. There is no entrance charge, free to get in. The entertainment is free, and a lot of the childrens activities are free. There are drop in sessions if you want to attend some workshops. If you have money to spare there are plenty of crafty type stalls which will gladly relieve you of it. I picked up some cards and have checked out web sites which you might like to take a look at.

Sarah Turner makes hand made lighting, sculptures, and artworks upcycled from waste materials. Mainly plastic bottles and cans. www.sarahturner.co.uk 

Sarah Oatley is a textile artist using a wide range of fabrics, mainly recycled and vintage. www.drawnthreads.co.uk

Abigail Lagden creates fabric sculptures and mixed media canvases, using Powertex.
www.curiously-contrary.co.uk

Scrapstore was there, only they call it Percy Creative Reuse Centre. It's at Commerce Way Middlesborough. Here is their link if you want to check it out.

I left about 3.30pm and decided to take a look at Redcar seafront while I was there, but I'll leave that for another post. Thanks for popping in, we'll catch up soon.
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