Upcycle Living

The virus is showing no sign of retiring, which means, we need more reusable face masks to go around. They are especially useful for when we just need to go out to sort something out in the garden or just to receive something from the delivery guy. Can you imagine wearing a disposable face mask just for that few minutes or so then dispose of it? By the time this pandemic is over (if that's ever going to happen), we will have another pandemic of trash mountains made out of disposable face masks! This has been put aside for quite a while now as I have been rather busy for the past few months and had not much of a DIY motivation, plus, I couldn't find any suitable material such as a good, used fabric. However, while going through the chest drawers, a used pillow case caught my eye. It's tough enough, it's cotton, and it's grey - just great for the design I had in mind - an embroidered Batman logo 😁 The good news is, the old embroidery frame that has been in the family...

During these movement-controlled days, besides worrying about the shortage of surgical masks, the accumulating disposal of the one-time use masks is also a concern - not to mention the money we would have to keep spending on buying them. As I have more than usual free time on my hands, there is really no excuse why I shouldn't look into learning to make some washable reusable face masks for ourselves. After studying the structures of the existing surgical masks and what other people have shared online, I have made a few for the people around me. What I have done is to add a pocket to some, in order to slot in a filter pad if needs be. Another add-on feature is the adjustable clip-on straps so that there is no need for elastics bands over the ears. The main reason for this is that the elastic bands would dig in to the back of the ears and could be painful over time. Secondly, I am making all these with existing materials I can find in the house, and I just do not have them at hand. ...

Forgive me God, for I have been lazy... I started making my very first DIY Advent calendar in April, thinking that I have all the time in the world to finish it. But I was wrong. As I'm using 100% reused and recycled material from everything readily existing in the house, it means that all forms and shapes are made from scratch. And my plan is to make 24 individual little bags with hand stitched numbers on! The moment I started, I encountered a problem: my embroidery skills are nothing to shout about so stitching the numbers on with threads is out of the question. Thankfully, a solution came soon enough, which is to shape the numbers with colourful ribbons or strings then stitch them onto each bag. Phew... the plan went on... During the first few weeks of its production, I was gung-ho and adamant about it, watching Hallmark Christmas movies while stitching away; then I got tired because it took way longer and more complicated than I expected it to be 😭 ! Then I got busy...

Been really lazy since Chinese New Year. And thanks to the extreme heat, it's painful to sit down for hours trying to make something. But there has been some occasional rain recently so I've managed to steal a few cooler hours here and there to get something done. I was given a Depeche Mode vest (bootleg one by the way, but still loved it!) a few years ago, but it never fit me properly- or should I say - it's my weird-shaped body that couldn't carry it off 😅 I would usually give away my old clothes to charity collection but definitely not this one - no way! Couldn't bear to see it gathering dust so I decided to turn it into a bag. And yes I haven't had too many bags yet 🙊 All I did was sewing the bottom together to make a base with gussets, trimmed off the shoulders and hemmed them; then finished with straps made from an old knackered neck tie. Took me one rainy evening 🌧 plus two punctured fingertips. I'm now ready to go shopping with my new p...

We believe in afterlife. Not in a religious way particularly, just factually :) This cushion cover is made from one of my husband's old shirts, which unfortunately had been damp stained on the collar due to the highly humid weather. We can't give it away to the charity and the material is not suitable for cleaning. I was meant to upcycle it into a wrap dress but was too lazy to do so. Whilst I was staring into the buttons the idea just came to me. It was so simple: Just lay the shirt flat, buttoned, turned inside out. Mark out the square (whatever size fits your cushion) where the button panel will fall in the middle. Secure with pins or quick stitches, cut the excess material out and sew it all around. (I did it by hand as I don't have a sewing machine) Unbutton and turn inside out. Now you have a cushion cover with ready button fastening. We probably won't buy another cushion cover - unless, of course - if there are some really nice ones.