Monday Message

"The counsel to have a year’s supply of basic food, clothing, and commodities was given fifty years ago and has been repeated many times since. Every father and mother are the family’s storekeepers. They should store whatever their own family would like to have in the case of an emergency … [and] God will sustain us through our trials." (James E. Faust)

We need to be able to repair our clothing.

Kids keep growing and taking clothes in and out and fixing buttons and zippers helps.

I have lost weight on purpose and I needed to keep my clothes that no longer fit. I like loose-fitting clothes but some would fall off and my shoes got too big. Fortunately, I have some sewing skills and was able to shrink my clothes, almost entirely redoing them. Some dresses I added the elastic gripper things to the back.

I am thinking on shoes - regular shoes are no problem, I can just wear thicker socks, but church shoes with nylons hmmmm... I'm toying with making pillows for the toes of the shoes. Can't hurt to try. That is what we need is not to be afraid to try.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGVMjFJuwbw - this is so fantastic we all need these skills.

https://www.marthastewart.com/274965/how-to-patch-a-hole-mend-a-seam-and-fix - some creative ideas.

https://remake.world/stories/style/how-to-mend-your-clothes-during-quarantine-5-easy-stitch-fixes/ - I like the embroidered circles.

I think we need to try to make everything last longer. We need to take care of what we have and learn to fix things.

Hang onto things that are useful. Find different uses for those things you feel need to be tossed.

Find ways to save on everything.

https://makeit-loveit.com/making-pants-longer-lengthen-trousers - kids grow taller, this is helpful.

If you don't have a sewing machine, it is a great place to start. If you can, get one, even if you have to get one used. Look at thrift stores or your community web pages. Have family and friends be on the lookout for you as well. Ask someone you know who sews to go with you so they can make sure it works. 

We had two little girls so I needed a sewing machine. Someone posted in a paper of sorts. I wanted one with good tension and a free arm since I would need it for arms and legs of clothing I would make. We went to the house of the couple with the ad. She showed me the machine and my heart sank. I said I had really wanted a free arm. She said oh, but it is. Then she showed me how it was and we got that machine. That was near forty years ago and it was ten years-old at the time I got it and I still use it to this day.

This machine has made many things - toddler clothes, school clothes, it even sewed on our eldest's wedding dress. It is my work horse and the machine that those metal bobbins are for.

I know I have seen machines lately at Salvation Army....they let you plug them in and test them.

Once you get one, learn every bit of it. If you did not get a manual, look online most have free ones online.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vva2h5oSYK8 - good to know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJjPF5_jB00 - if you already know how to sew, then build on your skills.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVR7Iy0TPIY - upcycle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-OcCW7n8h0 - upcycle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQIX4lYbUb8 - upcycle

So these things should help you get started. 

Missy says she can't count all the ways sewing saves money but if she could actually count, she would get right on it.

Tippy Longstockings says she is showing you how to keep your chin up through hard times.