Anyone who has ever sewed a pillow, or hemmed a pair of curtains knows that sewing produces a lot of extra fabric. Rather than throwing away these perfectly good scraps, you could use any of these simple patterns to reuse those leftovers to create something new and useful!
1. DIY Scrunchie
This scrunchie is super easy to make by hand or with a sewing machine all you need is a strip of fabric and some kind of rubber band.
How to:
1-Cut scrap fabric 3 ½ inches wide and 20-22 inches long, fold the fabric over the long side and pin in the center while the fabric is inside out
2-Sew a straight stitch along the edge of the fabric and remove pins and pull right side out making a tube of fabric.
3- Take an elastic/rubberband 8-9 inches long, and pin one end of the elastic with a safety pin.
4-Thread the elastic through the tube of fabric, unpin the elastic and tie the ends to make a hair tie loop.
5- Pull the ends of the fabric together to create the full loop and sew a straight edge across to finish the scrunchie.
2. DIY Heating Pad
Heating pads can be a great tool for cramps, and injuries, but can also be a bit expensive. However, you can easily make one with some spare fabric and a sewing machine.
How to:
1-Measure out your fabric to be however long you want the heating pad to be and mark that on two pieces of fabric, when you have two rectangles of fabric that are the same size cut them out, pin the two pieces of fabric together(stacked on top of each other).
2- Pin them together only on three sides, when you get to the fourth side leave two inches of space left unpinned.
3- With the sewing machine sew along the edges by the pins on all sides except where you didn’t pin, you should now have a pillow type of formation.
4- Take enough beans or rice to cover the entire pieces of fabric when laid flat, and pour them into the heating pad through the small opening you left
5-Then sew over the open edge to complete the heating pad.
3. Small Drawstring Bag
Drawstring bags are great for giving gifts, storing jewelry, and much more. All you’ll need is some fabric and a ribbon!
How to:
1-Cut out a rectangle of fabric roughly 4 x 12 inches.
2- Take your drawstring(shoelace, ribbon, string, etc) and place it along the top of the long side of the fabric and pin the fabric over the string to create a loop around the drawstring, mark with a pen or marker how far down you must fold the fabric to fit over the drawstring, sew a straight stitch along the marking (while the fabric is folded over)leaving about a centimeter of space at the end of the fabric.
3- Next fold the fabric over in half and sew a straight stitch(while the fabric is inside out) up the fabric stopping when you get to the mark of the drawstring.
4- Then sew a straight stitch along the bottom edge of the fabric leaving no opening.
5- loop the drawstring through the fold and tie the string at the very end to complete the drawstring bag.
4. Hair Ribbon/Tie Scarf
This hair ribbon looks great with a ponytail, braid, or as a hair wrap, and it’s also super easy to make!
How to:
1-To make the hair ribbon, take a very long strip of fabric(long enough to tie around your head), and cut the strip of fabric out.
2- fold the fabric in half the long way and sew along the long edge, then sew along the short edges to complete.
5. Face Mask
Buying face masks can be expensive, so why not make one at home?
How to:
1-To make the face mask cut two rectangles of fabric roughly 10” x 6” of cotton(tee-shirt, scrap fabric), stack the two pieces of fabric on top of each other, and fold a very small hem on each edge of the fabric and pin.
2- Stitch along the edge of the fold creating a tube of fabric along the 6” side of the fabric.
3-Sew a straight stitch along the 10” side being careful to not sew over the tube of fabric
4- Take a 6” piece of elastic(rubberband, hairband, shoelace) and loop it through the tube of fabric, sew along the bottom edge of the fabric sewing over the elastic to ensure it stays in place to complete the face mask.
6. Cord Wrap
Storing your phone cord can get messy and tangled very quickly, but using a cord wrap to keep it in place is super convenient.
How to:
1- Cut two pieces of fabric 4” by 2”, place fabric pieces on top of each other and fold over each edge to create a 1-centimeter hem and pin in place along all four sides of the fabric.
2- Sew along the pins leaving no openings.
3- Cut two pieces of velcro ½” x 1”, sew 1 piece of velcro onto each opposite side of the fabric making sure they line up to finish the cord wrap.
7. DIY Bookmark
Instead of dog-earring the pages of your book, use this DIY bookmark to mark your pages instead!
How to:
1-To make the bookmark cut two pieces of fabric 6” x 2”, stack the pieces of fabric on top of each other inside out and pin a 1-centimeter hem along both long sides and one short side.
2- Sew a straight edge along with the pins. Unpin and turn the fabric right side out.
3- Sew along the last edge to finish the bookmark, to add some flare use a small stitch to add ribbon on one end of the bookmark.
8. Coffee Sleeve
A coffee sleeve is an easy and fun way to keep your coffee cup from burning your hands.
How to:
1-To make a coffee sleeve cut out two 6” x 14” pieces of fabric you would like to be on the outside of the sleeve, and one thicker piece of fabric(6” x 14”) to be the lining of the sleeve.
2- Take a hairband and pinch it in the middle and sew a zig-zag stitch across the hair elastic onto the right side of one of the exterior pieces of fabric.
3- With the hair tie facing down, stack the lining fabric on top of it then the last exterior piece on top and fold over each part and pin.
4- Sew a straight stitch along the pins to create the hem and unpin.
5- Sew a button onto the opposite side of the fabric to where the hair tie is to complete the coffee sleeve.
9. Embroidered Tee-Shirt Pocket
Adding a pocket to a basic tee-shirt can transform even the most boring clothing pieces into a fun new item you’ll want to wear all the time!
How to:
1- To make the embroidered pocket take a basic tee shirt that you want to add a pocket to and select a piece of fabric to make the pocket. Cut the fabric to be 2 ½” across and
3 - 3 ½” tall, if you want to add something fun to the pocket take embroidery thread and hand stitch a fun design(flower, quote, etc.) into the fabric.
2-Then pin the fabric onto the tee-shirt.
3-stitch the edge of the fabric onto the tee shirt and unpin to complete.
10. Fun Hoodie Strings
Class up a simple hoodie by adding these fun and colorful hoodie strings!
How to:
1- To make the fun hoodie strings measure out a long piece of fabric 1” wide and 50” long, fold the fabric over the long way and pin.
2-Sew a straight stitch along the edge to make a tube of fabric.
3-For the ends of the tube tie a knot on each end of the tube, then thread into the hood of your sweatshirt and enjoy your fun new hoodie strings!
