Sewing On A Budget: 10 Tips From The Great Depression

One of the top things people did during the Great Depression was to reduce the amount of waste they created. Instead of throwing out that old shirt or pillow, you can use your sewing machine and fix your clothes and home decor items. Don't just toss them out if there is a small rip or hole. Your sewing machine was made to mend the clothing.

You will have tons of scraps from projects. Instead of tossing them into the garbage bin, consider making something from the scraps. There are a ton of small kids' craft projects that can use small scraps of fabric to make bookmarks, embellishments, toys and school projects.

You probably have some old drapes or curtains stowed away in the closet. Instead of having the items collect dust, make clothing from them. Curtains, large tablecloths and old blankets can be made into new quilts, dresses, shirts and home decor. Don't forget that if you have old clothing that you don't wear anymore, you can upcycle your old garments to make new clothes for your small child.

When the clothes are just too beat up and are destined for the rag bin, don't toss out the buttons or zippers. They will often still be in good use for other new garments that you make with your sewing machine. You can also use the old buttons and zippers to replace broken zippers or missing buttons on existing clothing.

Speaking of repurposing blankets and table cloths to make table cloths, you can also make cloth diapers from many of the garments sitting neglected in your linen closet. You can save tons of money in your budget by skipping the expensive disposable diapers and just making your own that can be reused again and again.

Garage sales offer more than just old kid's toys and beat-up electronics. These places also offer tons of fabric and garment choices that you can change into great craft projects with your sewing machine. You can even find things that have hardly, or never, been worn as the person hosting the garage sale is trying to clear out their closet of old things.

Even if you are keen to purchase fabric at your local fabric store, you can save money and get great fabric choices by buying remnants. Fabric stores have bins that hold fabric remnants, which are pieces of fabric that may have been cut wrong. Most of the remnant pieces will be sold at half price or even in bulk at great prices.

Thrift stores are another ideal spot to find inexpensive fabric and garments that can be transformed into craft projects. Thrift stores also sometimes have craft sections where you can get the necessities and notions you need to place into your sewing supply case.

Look for the sales at fabric stores and your favorite online sites. During certain times of the year, you can find a wide range of sales and promotional coupons that you can cash in on to get a wide range of sewing supplies. Don't pass up on getting newsletters from craft stores that can provide you with discounts.

A very important tip from the Great Depression is to make the things that you owned last for as long as possible. Perform scheduled maintenance on your sewing machine so that it functions properly and will last for a long time. There is no point in wasting money buying a new sewing machine because your old one broke down because you failed to service it.