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Make do and Mend

Many years ago I took a needlework class at our local primary school (it would never be allowed now). The project was to embroider a picture of a tree. What a wonderful experience it was for me. I wanted the children to use their own imagination and what they produced was wonderful. Some of the children lacked confidence I tried to help them, once they got started the result was excellent and very diverse. Their teacher was very pleased and a large mural was made of the work. I was so thrilled I was a full time mom then and this gave me a boost as well. I hope these girls remembered what I taught them and kept their needlework skills.
 
i hated sewing
and always tryed to get out of sewing class one day at city rd school we where told to make something i was told not to bother by the teacher
well that was like a red rag to a bull i went home and my little sister was playing with a childs umberella i dicided to make a parallel
asking my mom if i could get some remnents of silk from a little shop on spring hill i set to work i sewed it all by hand and won first prize that i hated ( it was a sewing book ) but the look on that teacher face made up for it and i never picked up a needle in school again
 
Did anyone ever make paper bricks? I once got sucked into buying a brick maker, I shredded reams of newspaper mixed in wallpaper paste then put it into the brick maker to squeeze out the excess water, it made two measly small bricks which when dry didn't even burn well. Good recycling idea pity it didn't work.
 
I used to like making pom poms with oddments of wool. Trimmed many a cardigan up as teenager especially if it had gone out of shape at the bottom. Threaded some wool or ribbon round the middle or waist of the cardi and add the pom poms . Tied it up done.
 
I have one it keeps the grandchildren happy for hours making paper bricks. I only use water no paste and they are great for starting the BBQ!

Topsy what a great idea. I have taught the grandchildren to make pom poms it's just difficult to get hold of odd balls of wool now.
 
HI POIHIPI
Ye we tried but fid to make it proper whe we was in king edwards rd ladywood
but my uncle bill whom was the care taker in loge rd church saved there bacon for heating bcause he had a brick making machine and they was bang on and he had them piled high and when he retired and went to live in king standing he still made them stacked high by the fire ready ;
we tried but faild to make them by hand they fueled well and lasted for ages before turning to Ash ;
best wishes Astonian;;;;;
 
Yes pom poms are always popular with the kids. I have a daisy wheel which also kept them amused for hours. The rag dolls that I made are still played with along with all the many stuffed toys. At Christmas I always made one for their stocking and the year I thought they would have outgrown them they were very disappointed. Surprising what you can make out of old scraps of material and wool with buttons for eyes.
 
Our gang went camping in Devon in the early 1950s and we forgot we needed a table, so we made a table with branches chopped off trees and tied with rope. The local newspaper made nice table cloths and a cardboard box for our larder. It looks like it was salad for tea that day, nice juicy tomatoes.
Camp_Tea_Ready.jpg
 
With a bit of imagination and some bits and bobs it is surprising what you can make. Old Mohawks camp looks very cosy. ( who need ikea)
 
It was a two week holiday in Combe Martin and we decided we would not buy fish and chips every day, so we took our primus stoves and big pots. We delegated cooking duties, I was in the mid day-lunch crew and the other lot prepared the evening meals. We hired rowing boats and caught fish from the sea and cooked them. The sky was cloudless for two weeks which was normal in the glorious 1950s !
I had put some other pics in the 'where first holiday thread' in this post https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/for...here-was-your-first-holiday.25590/post-235849
The first pic shows another view of the table
 
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I made these teddy bears out of polar fleece offcuts and donated them to the Women's Refuge. The stuffing came out of off cuts from sleeping bags, a firm here sells big bags of offcuts but you do have to spend some time pulling off the material but well worth if for very cheap stuffing.


Teddy Bears.jpg
 
I was thinking of other things we made and think the best was at Christmas. We made paper chains and paper lanterns and most of the tree decorations. It was a time I loved as it meant using all the bits and pieces we had saved throughout the year.

Yes the teddy's went down very well but don't make them now as sewing has got a bit hard on the hands. Thanks for the nice comments.
 
Yes we made a lot of things at christmas, paper chains and things for the tree, cheap and nasty they would say today but i loved them and enjoyed making them. regards Podgery
 
Reading another post about polish made me think about how we clean glass. To clean the glass in the wood burner I use a wet cloth dipped in the ashes it removes the most stubborn scorch marks. Windows, newspapers dipped in vinegar is a great substitute for commercial cleaners.
 
I do most of the recycling mentioned, so glad others do too. Shortie, as a crafter, I use those ribbons from the shoulders to make bows to use on greetings cards , they are also used to tie the tops of lavender bags and any perfumed soaps are put into muslin bags, tied with these ribbons and placed in airing cupboard or drawers to perfume things while they are "drying out". If nothing else you can sew a fancy saved button or bead to the ends to make bookmarks.
 
Aurora - thank you for these hints. I have made lavender bags before, but not used the ribbons as I always make them in lilac or purple, but will now change my ideas. Very useful for making for the local fetes etc. I don't do cards, I tried that but it was not my favourite, but at the moment I am making loads of Suffolk Puffs to decorate cushions. These can be made using either left over material or old dress fabric, although in this instance I have not done this was I needed specific colours. I made a cushion last year for a friend using Suffolk Puffs in different sizes as flower heads, and I used a ribbon or two to tie the 'posy'. I had thought of using some ribbons to 'weave' a fabric piece that could be then appliqued to a cushion cover. Still thinking about that, could prove problematic. In the meantime I am still cutting the ribbons out of new clothes, I just can't help myself!!
 
We needed a doorstop, the rubber kind that screws to the floor. I had just changed the ferrule on my walking-stick so we screwed the old one to the floor, job done!!
Shortie, what's a Suffolk Puff? (Sorry if it's off-topic!)
I have a large bag of old ties which I intend to make into a cushion one day, they are all different patterns and Paisleys, and they have to be opened out and laid like the slices of a round cake.....one day!
rosie.
 
Rosie I think your cushion, when you get round to it will be a real talking point. A Suffolk Puff, briefly, is a circle of fabric which you then turn in at the edge a tiny bit, run stitches round and gather it up tightly. Then flatten it. The Americans call them yo-yos, but a Suffolk Puff was documented in England by 1601 and are probably older. If you Google it you will find instructions. At the moment I am joining quite a few together in a square, and then putting them in the centre of a cream cushion cover. They can be used as table runners if you make a lot of them, and also quilts, but you need a mega amount of fabric and of course, time.
 
Thank you Shortie, they sound interesting! When I did machine-knitting there was a stitch on the double-bed where you could make a little puff and stuff it lightly, perhaps for a pram quilt, very fiddly though! Crafts are more difficult these days with arthritic fingers!.
rosie.
 
That's trye Rosie, but although I do have arthritis in my fingers, it's only my thumb joint that is badly affected. I don't find it makes a lot of difference to me. I find my eyes the worst thing, I can do a little, then my eyes get blurry. I have worn glasses since I was 10, so was surprised and quite shocked when I had my test last July that my eyesight had actually improved to a level which means I can wear the glasses I had 13 years ago. I thought the blurring meant they had got worse. The Suffolk Puffs can be made as large as you wish, if you use, say, a saucer, the finished puff is less than half the size. They make lovely flower heads on a cushion, and with a pretty button in the middle it closes the little hole and adds a nice touch. I don't think I will be doing tiny ones, I think the ones I am doing presently measure about an inch and a quarter across (never measured), that's small enough for me.
 
Here you are Rosie, the ones I am doing for my daughter (that's why I used new fabric, I wanted specific colours) plus a larger yellow one which I am going to use for a flower. A smaller one in the middle plus a button should do nicely.
 
Your Suffolk puffs look great Shortie, I am sure anyone receiving them will treasure them and appreciate the work you have put into them. Regarding the Ribbons, don't forget if you are not going to be washing them you can colour them using felt tip pens, inks, even food colourings etc. People who do stamping often use their ink pads.
 
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