Gifts to Warm your Prepper

     In the summer time, I personally dislike working with fleece or heavy yarn projects.  Even with the air conditioner on full blast, my lap gets hot and, well, hate it!  For fleece projects, I work on the sewing table that is also a guest bed.  For yarn and crochet projects, I wait until the fall and the colder it gets, the faster I crochet.  I will post more on fleece projects later.

     I am on your side if you live in the hot summer country without a fresh breeze anywhere, but the minute it cools off, here are some craft projects for the prepper that any prepper would appreciate, as it comes from the heart and hand.

Curtains. 

 

http://www.owfinc.com/fabrics.html

Winterize a loved ones' bedroom or bath room by making a quilted window covering.  Curtains that keep out the cold can be made in two parts.  This summer you can measure off windows or doorways and make what I call curtain covers.  Basically, they are a duvet with tabs that allow the curtains to be hung from a sturdy pole.  The second part can be done anytime.  You fill the curtain cover with a thermal blanket, or an old tattered quilt, or quilt batting, or the recycled sweaters used to fill a futon mattress.  Then you "tie" the curtain cover by using a curved needle and sturdy thread or yarn.  

If you have a nice quilt you are finished using and it matches your loved ones' decor, you can cut it, bind the edges, make window coverings and a couple of pillows or pillow shams.  

quiklt batting by the roll

http://www.marshalldrygoods.com

The tabs the curtains hang from can be as simple as shoelaces folded in half and stitched to the top or as nice as yards of twill ribbon stitched across the front of a solid color curtain cover then looped at the top and stitched to the back to secure.  

Mittens.

I do not knit.  I do know how to cut and sew.  You can join me in making a pair of knitted mittens by recycling a sweater.  Crochet a cord to keep them together or make a cord from the round spool loom (featured in basic weaving post).  These mittens were made from the sleeves of an old sweater.  You make a pattern by tracing the hand then draw a line about 1/2" all the way around the tracing.  Cut out the pattern and stitch along the tracing line.  Turn right side out and you're done.  

From the recycled sweater craft file, you can make leg warmers from the sleeves.

Make a vest from a sweater who's arms are blown out.

Steal away a favorite sweater that has seen it's better day, repair the elbows with patches of felt or leather and re give it to them!  

Use patches of sweater to make patch pockets on a sweatshirt.  

For all above projects, bind the edges by folding blanket binding over the raw edges and stitch closed with a simple running stitch.

Go online and find a recycle sweater craft site like this one.

www.brit.co 

Don't forget your basic Loom crafts!

Make a warm winter scarf by sewing together a row of nine blocks made from  yarn on your potholder loom!  Use all earth tones to make a "Cammo" scarf or use up odds and ends of colorful yarn to look like the favorite Dr. Who scarf!  You will need way more than Nine! 

Also from your loom, you can make baby blankets, lap blankets or a whole bed cover, it just depends on how many squares you weave while watching TV !

Have fun, keep busy, give from the heart and hand.