Fixing, recycling and making

We have more wear and tear to our towels than we used too.  I am assuming it is because things are just not manufactured with very high standards anymore.
This hand towel had a hole and some fraying at the bottom along that plain part on a towel.
To save the rest of the towel,  I trimmed off the entire bottom, then enclosed that cut edge with some wide black bias tape.
I think it looks pretty good - it will hang in the hall bathroom that has yellow walls and mostly black and white accessories.


I also had to big bath sheets that had very frayed edges but the inside part of the towels were in good shape.
I decided to recycle them into wash cloths.

I cut away the bad parts of the towels, then cut 12 inch squares - you can tell they are not all exact but close to 12 inches. 

I cut 12 inch squares from a vintage yard sale sheet and sewed them to each wash cloth,  then turned them right side out and sewed around the whole thing, close to the edge to seal up the turn spot and to keep them from getting too wonky as they go through the wash.

Those towels were so big,  I ended up with 16 wash cloths.  

We have been using them for about a month and like them just fine.  

These go in the master bathroom that is mostly white with a little blue in the curtains.  

The bibs I made earlier worked so nicely on Gavin and Elizabeth.  They really enjoy picking out the animal they want to wear.
Elizabeth's momma, Nina,  requested some big girl bibs for Elizabeth to have at home so I sewed up 6 bibs that next evening.  3 of them are a "Pooh" print and 3 of them are dessert themed fabric.  I used fabric I already had - the thriftiest way to do things right now - besides not spending money on the fabric,  I also did not use any gas for a trip to the store.

Bibs really are quick and easy to sew up,  if you need some for your toddlers or maybe a baby gift,  give them a try!

Ironing - frugal ways

some of my son's dress shirts before ironing

I iron most every week.  

My son would rather not iron, but since his job requires him to wear dress shirts every day 

and his big law school debt,  he is currently ironing his own dress shirts.

He brought over 11 dress shirts to iron after Sunday lunch.  

He has taken them to the cleaners several times but it expensive.  I don't like the idea of my clothes being put in big tub of chemicals with many other people's clothes - ick!  So I never use the dry cleaners, even if it was  really cheap.  

Liquid starch - mix with water in a spray bottle
1 part starch to 2 parts water

A while back he tried adding the liquid starch to the rinse water in the washing machine.  He was not crazy about those results ( I am not sure why,  just that he did not want to do it that way again)

Since I was out of aerosol spray starch,  I mixed up some Sta-Flo in a washed out spray bottle.  

ironing in progress

some of his finished shirts -
and, Yes, he does only wear white or light blue dress shirts 

I thought his ironed shirts looked really nice.  So I tried the mixed up starch on my blouses too.  

My ironed blouses

I like this new to us way to iron.  I think it is cheaper than aerosol  cans but I have not done the math because I don't know many uses you get from aerosol compared to the liquid spray.  I do know that not using the aerosol cans is better for the environment.  

I've also read that mixing up, maybe it involved cooking?, corn starch with water can also be put in a spray bottle to use instead of liquid or aerosol spray starch.  Anyone tried this?  

For now,  I think I will keep using the StaFlo starch mixed with water for my ironing.  

any other ironing tips for us?