Scrap Yard

I save my fabric scraps left over from projects.  I save them all.  Always.  My craft room is overrun with scraps.  I believe this is the root cause of why my craft room is constantly messy.  I have vowed to organize my crafty things and to make my little room a space to promote creativity.  I know the physical clutter predominantly caused by my scrap fabric reflects on my creative output.  But it is hard to part with sewing material because some of these pieces are so fabulous.  For example, here is what is left of a larger yardage of fabric that I used to make a pair of leggings.  I wore them in a skating marathon in the fall of 2016.  So I have held onto this scrap for over 2 years! 

As you can see, there is not really much left to work with, but I love the print and the colors and the shine!

I was given several yards of fabric by a friend who works for PolarTec.  Using the blue, I borrowed my base pattern by See and Sew Now #3827 and turned it into more of a turtleneck.  The blue of my skating leggings material was a perfect match so I decided to use it as side panels.  Finally after all this time, I have another use for this graphic print (and I can clear out a scrap from my pile!)

This project took a lot of measuring and remeasuring.  The size of the side panels was based on how much fabric remained.  For the neck, I measured the circumference of the unfinished top opening of the shirt.  Then I cut a rectangle out of the blue fabric.  The length was the measurement of the circumference plus 1 inch (for sewing the seam) and 6 inches tall which is how high I wanted the neck.  I sewed this along the shorter edge to make a tube.  Now I have my “neck” which I then attached to the shirt.  I am sure this is not the official way to make a turtleneck shirt, but it worked!

In these photos, I wore my shirt to work with my scrub pants.  It was very comfortable in this health care setting.  I also took it on a winter ski trip where I actually wore it out to dinner with jeans, but it would make a warm mid-layer when on the mountain.