Ench By Sew-029: The Importance of Scrap

This show is created, produced and brought to you by Laurel Shimer.

Izzie the Teenage Tabby Says ....
There's no doubt about the value and importance of scrap!

Forget about analyzing scraps, Laurel
Let's just play!

A cada quien su gusto – To each her own

As well as being useful and cost effective, using up the Scrap from our garment sewing, opens up a world of personal creativity, as well 

Coming up with different ideas for utilizing my scraps, keeps me . . .  Enchanted by Sewing.

Listening Option I) You can listen to the show right on the web (while sewing perhaps?:-) by 
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The Enchanted by Sewing Podcast is, an extension of my regular sewing blog - Me Encanta Coser,  (http://www.meencantacoser.blogspot.com) which,  roughly translated means, Enchanted By Sewing

My blog is written in English. The name celebrates the historical and modern use of the beautiful Spanish Language in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, where I live.

This month’s show  is  

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Clearly, scrap is important to the newest member of our household, Izzie the teenaged tabby cat.

Scraps are just as important to me as they are to any cat. Working with scrap, gets my mental processes humming,in ways not so different than they do for Izzie. I have a habit of going to my scrap bins when I feel the need to get a little jolt of playfulness. That’s something I think our young cat can relate to.

I like to work on my scrap habit. It’s good for the planet, and it reminds me that I don’t always have to purchase a new product, 
to make something useful, fun or really beautiful. To top it all off,  focusing on playing, oh I mean experimenting!, with my scrap,
gives me a chance to build more neural pathways - It sparks my creative juices, just like it does for Izzie the Teenaged Tabby Cat. 

 A cada quien su gusto! Or, maybe you say To each her own!

Izzie says, Just get out the scrap, let’s play!


Here’s what I talk about, in this month’s show, “The importance of scrap”, recorded in February of 2015

1) Pensamientos Primeros
Scrap – Rags, Patches and Snips.  How useful a sewists leftovers can be!

Scraps are sewing leftovers. I call some of my  larger scraps, remnants, These are scraps, from which, I might still make another tee shirt, a camisole or  maybe a tote bag or little purse .  

Entonces/Then there are the smaller remnents odds and ends– not big enough for a whole garment, but quite useful for a variety 
of projects and make -do challenges. 

Finally there are my snips – tiny bits and pieces, and strips that are just too pretty to toss. These bits and pieces are what really bring my creativity to life.

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I'm sorry I lost the link to this site.
I remember it was a public site in Australia

 Yup that’s me singing that old hit, "Ragg Mopp" , once sung by the Tenriers and the Aames Bros. Rags might be considered kind of  lowly to some folks, but in fact these leftovers have been important for a lot more than wiping up spills and polishing cars throughout history. Rag mops and rag rugs are just a few of those very utilitarian, and sometimes beautiful ways to repurpose strips of old or new fabric.

1. Ragg Mopps and Raggggg Rugggggs
iii. Nice link to Little House Living a woman who makes her own rag rugs for her own home.
http://www.littlehouseliving.com/how-to-make-rag-rugs.html

According to this link, rag mops are the best mop in the world, and the author says the that professionial cleaners in many countries swear by them.
http://www.instructables.com/id/HOW-TO-MAKE-%22THE-BEST-MOP-IN-THE-WORLD%22/

 I’d love to hear from listeners who’ve made either of these raggy kind of projects. How patient do you have to be? I’m thinking of trying out something more basic along these lines like coasters. Could you maybe braid and curl up hot pads from repurposed scrap or old clothes?

Follow the Drinking Gourd - The Spiritual 

http://www.followthedrinkinggourd.org/What_The_Lyrics_Mean.htm

http://www.contemplator.com/america/gourd.html

SewRuth, who I think hails from Ireland, had several ideas I hadn’t thought of. She had some very nice photos and how-to for belts, covered jewlery - bracelets, watch straps  and embellishment for handbags.. I’m going to revisit the tutorial part of that posting when I think about making a belt from scrap I also really liked her idea about making an obi .That posting is definitely worth a visit if you’re into using up your scrap in an artistic way. 

Sew Ruth Wee Scraps - https://corecouture.wordpress.com/2014/01/28/wee-scraps/comment-page-1/

Me Encanta Coser - Using Up Scraps http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2014/02/using-up-scraps-green-sewing.html

A couple of postings about the buttercup purse pattern, including a free pattern link
Embellishing a buttercup purse with tatting http://www.meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2012/09/tit-fortatting-embellishing-my.html

Do you love butter? In Praise of the Buttercup Purse. http://meencantacoser.blogspot.com/2012/09/do-you-love-butter-in-praise-of.html

Pinterest - Sewing Fabric Flowers http://www.pinterest.com/lrshimer/0-sewingfabricflowers/

2) Entonces/Then - Technicos – How I sew appliqué
I have my own way of doing a somewhat deconstructed appliqué

AngelLea has her own ideas  
http://angelleadesigns.com/tutorials/how-to-make-and-apply-appliques

3) Pensamientos Finales/Final Thoughts – A Story of Scrap