Talk Back Thursday

Duck Tape Prom Outfit!

Thanks for the link, Sarah!  :)

Photo Credit: Stuck-At-Prom

Thank you so much to BConky, Shannon, Patsijean, Debbie, Katie, Sarah, Becky, Elaina and CostumeDeeva for talking back to my confession last week!  I've decided to try to make some bloomers out of bed sheets, and asked what other unusual materials people have used in their sewing.

Reader's Digest Condensed Version of the responses: You guys are one creative bunch.  ;)

The most popular non-standard materials called out were curtains (and the legacy of Scarlett O'Hara lives on...), table cloths and bed sheets.  A few people mentioned using these items to create regular, everyday clothes.  For example, Patsijean recently made her grandson a nice, casual shirt out of a curtain - she said it was a loose, nubby cotton - really nice, but prone to unraveling.  

Many of the stories of creative sewing with creative materials had to do with costumes or unusual garments.  

Believe it or not, there were two stories associated with religious clothing!  BConky made real vestments for a friend of hers who is a priest, and Shannon made this costume priest's shawl with cross-stitched pictures of Dean Stockwell with a halo!  

Becky made this gypsy costume for a Renaissance Fair from an eclectic collection of thrift store finds, including a bed sheet, tablecloth AND curtain panel.  You can see more pictures on her blog, here.  

Sarah also used a table cloth as part of a Renaissance dress.  (And now I'm just showing off that I can spell the word "renaissance")  

One of Katie's favorite costumes was made from a super soft sheet, and BConky always smiles when she thinks of the Glenda costume (the good witch from the Wizard of OZ) that she made for a 6' 3" XXL man!  

Other unusual sewing projects mentioned included:

Becky tried to recycle a leather trench coat into a bag - but her sewing machine wasn't very cooperative...

Debbie repaired a friend's vinyl camper awning - she said that she had to set up her sewing machine in the driveway and it took 6 extra people to help her control the awning as she sewed, because it was so heavy - yikes, that's friendship!  

And Elaina used 4 Army sand bags (at $0.50 each!) to stitch up a tarp for her Mom's ferret cage - Army sand bags are a Project Runway challenge-worthy material!  ;)

Finally, CostumeDeeva - a new FL friend from the 1912 project - created a corset from an old t-shirt, and old dress shirt, shoe laces and aluminum pop tops!  Is this amazing, or what?  

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to leave an example - I really enjoyed reading your stories and seeing your pictures.

And special thanks for all the kind words about Susan and her family.  It may seem like only a little thing to you, but it actually makes a difference and means a lot to me.  Thank you.