Sweater to Slipper Refashion

It seems that most of my projects these days are necessity projects. Today’s project is no exception.

Yesterday I debuted our new space (sewing space for Mama, and play space for the boys). Since our new space is in the basement, the floors tend to be cold (a bonus in the summer, but gives you shivers during a Michigan winter). Another problem with the floors….when in a sewing frenzy, Mama tends to drop pins. I’m getting better, but I still do not to risk one of my little guys stepping on one.

I had a solution.

Slippers.

My husband had chucked a wool sweater into the donate box. I quickly pulled it out knowing I could do something with it, it was wool. Unfortunately I don’t have a before picture because I cut into the sweater pre-blogging days.

I used this tutorial and template from Leafy Treetop Spot. The slippers in the tutorial are made with fleece. I have plenty of fleece, but I was envisioning something warmer and a little bit sturdier.

The outside upper slipper, and inside sole are cut from the felted sweater.

The bottoms are made from Blue Jean Buttercup leftovers.

I used some red fleece left from the boys’ Halloween costume to line the slipper uppers. The Velcro is also from my stash (which is why it doesn’t match).

I made size 10/11. They are quite big on the boys right now, but they’ll grow into them. The tutorial is very easy to follow, and would make wonderful last minute Christmas gifts.

Do you dive for wool sweaters? If so, what are your favorite wool projects? That sweater barely touched the donation pile before I snagged it up. It seems like wool sweaters are a little harder to thrift these days.

Mama Carries Lunch In Style

Something glorious happened today. Right now, as we speak I write.
I would climb our rooftop and sing praises to the heavens, if I wasn’t afraid of violating the peace. (One thing this mama should never do in public is sing!)

So what is all this celebration for?

My sweet little boys are taking a nap! (They are sweet right now, because they are sleeping.) They haven’t napped in over a week. This mama was getting tired.

Anyways, wish me luck that they are back into the groove. In the meantime, I have some hats to catch up on. So to hold you over, I wanted to share a sewing project I finished last month.

Mama’s Lunch Tote



As you know, I start school soon. Buying lunch is out of the question. Not only does our budget love when we take our lunch, so does my waistline and energy level.

The fabric, a corduroy, is from my stash, and has been in my stash for at least seven years. Oops. The lining is made from a vinyl tablecloth (bought on clearance from Target last summer). The Insul-Bright is also from my stash. I bought a zipper and webbing for the handles.


Isn’t it so bright and cheery in there?

I used this tutorial from Zaaberry. The pattern is well written and easy to follow. It would be really easy to change the dimensions to fit your needs.



I have been using this tote daily for over a month, and it is holding up great. I absolutely love how much this tote can carry. I easily fit four Sippy cups, a sandwich, applesauce, and a couple of ice packs.

I do need to make a couple more lunch bags this month, so stay tuned.

Are you doing any back to school crafting? Lunch bags are my top concern right now. Having a child with a food allergy means that I have to pack the boys’ lunch every morning too. (It gives me a good excuse to try out some other tutorials I have pinned.)

Sharing here:
Whatever Goes Wednesday