when you reach breaking point

Popperwell

Great idea about wanting to help at the food bank, I hope they want helpers when someone is willing.

I am ready to ask for help if I think I need it regarding feeling down...Of course everyone has their own reasions for depression etc...but as Gailey says and I did elsewhere on MSE last night. I think most of those with depression or stress have it for moeny problems.

Those who have overspent and are trying to keep their head above water and get out of debt. And those who haven't enough for what I would see as ordinary bills and if working worried if they will still have a job at the end of each week...and such worries include keeping a roof over your head, enough food on the table and staying warm...

Popperwell

chirpychick wrote: »

I know that the DM are a scaremongering newspaper, but has anyone read their article about the cost of food sky rocketing that was on there this morning? It does worry me so much!
My first port of call is Freecycle to see if I can get a freezer and maybe even a breadmaker!

I posted a link somewhere to that story, it is as you say a worry...

Angel_Jenny

chirpychick wrote: »

I know that the DM are a scaremongering newspaper, but has anyone read their article about the cost of food sky rocketing that was on there this morning? It does worry me so much!
My first port of call is Freecycle to see if I can get a freezer and maybe even a breadmaker!

I did - scary stuff!

GreyQueen

chirpychick wrote: »

But it is SO true!

I am 27, learning to cook from scratch, have 3 pairs of trousers I need to sew (2 hubby's work, 1 mine) but don't know how, can knit a scarf if I follow tutorial on YouTube but took me a year!

Hun, if you're willing to describe what the respective trousers need to have done to them, I would be pleased to advise on the fixing of same. I'm sure there's a fair few others up here who could offer practical advice on that issue as well.:)

PipneyJane

chirpychick wrote: »

Sorry I don't remember who said this

And now the children of those people are reaching adulthood. They don't really know how to cook because mum bought frozen ready meals and/or opened a jar instead of cooking from scratch ("too time consuming"). They can't sew or knit or crochet, because they were never taught ("only poor people make their own clothes"). They're not too sure about DIY skills, either, because it was "easier to get a man in to do that sort of thing". As for basic motor maintenance, "isn't that what the garage is for?".

But it is SO true!

That was me.

I am 27, learning to cook from scratch, have 3 pairs of trousers I need to sew (2 hubby's work, 1 mine) but don't know how, can knit a scarf if I follow tutorial on YouTube but took me a year!

...

All we can do is our best, keep learning new skills, teach others, learn from others and as long as we have a roof, clothes (even old torn ones) and a half full belly we will be ok.

Thank you for this thread and reassuring me I'm not alone in trying to keep us above water

You are not alone. There are hundreds, possibly thousands, of people who are battling along side you.

In some respects, I was lucky. My mum did teach me to sew, knit and crochet. But she wasn't much of a cook. When I was growing up in Oz, though, you didn't need to be. Meat was cheap and "any fool can cook meat and 2 veg, right?". Err, no, not my mum. Not if you didn't want some part of the meal stone cold. She knew the basics but couldn't be bothered. Cooking didn't interest her.

Mum did teach me some of the basics - how to roast anything and grill a steak, mainly because as soon as we were capable, my sister and I did a lot of the cooking. (We had to if we wanted to eat well.) It was years before I realised that the reason the wife of one of dad's colleagues used to send food parcels into work for dad was because she felt sorry for him. (Aunty Theresa gave me my love of Italian food.)

I mainly learned to cook from cookbooks. I learned to cook because I like to eat good food. My cookbook collection started with me trying to find recipes for things I liked to eat. I learned to bake when I was 8 by following a recipe for fairy cakes from the Brownie Guide Handbook. I wanted to eat cake. )

Most OS skills, just require persistence. And repetition. Follow the instructions over and over again until they become second nature. Do a little each day, whether it's cooking, knitting or sewing, and one day the skills will just click.

chirpychick

GreyQueen wrote: »

Hun, if you're willing to describe what the respective trousers need to have done to them, I would be pleased to advise on the fixing of same. I'm sure there's a fair few others up here who could offer practical advice on that issue as well.:)

Bless you! Thank you.

Basically hubby's work trousers the hems have come down completely. They are these http://direct.asda.com/george/men-s/suits/classic-suit-trouser/GEM1875,default,pd.html (funnily enough they were £6 when I brought them last year).

and on mine the cat has made holes with his claws, they are just claw holes but they are a bit bigger than a claw hole if that makes sense. They are on the front of the trousers on the leg but high up. The trousers are these
http://www.marksandspencer.com/Active-Performance-Cotton-Stretch-Joggers/dp/B004FT1GVY?ie=UTF8&ref=sr_1_24&nodeId=43118030&sr=1-24&qid=1346175753

I don't know if my ones are fixable or not but these trousers I have had for 3 years and I just find them so comfy (I have a couple of the same kind incase anyone was looking for some cheap but good quality black everyday type trousers) I'd rather mend them than replace them, even if they have to be the ones i wear dog walking or something. The thing is because they are black and im pale pale you can see my skin through the holes otherwise i wouldnt bother repairing and just carry on wearing :rotfl:

I hope thats enough info! I just haven't ever sewn so I have no idea where to start!

GreyQueen

OK, the hubby's suit trousers are easy enough.

You'll need a fine-ish hand sewing needle, thread which matches the trousers (it's black isn't it?) plus a pair of scissors to snip the thread. You may want some straight sewing pins as you're a newbie (but getting there) but I wouldn't use them myself.

Firstly, don't do this right now. You'll mess with your eyes if you try hand-sewing black on black under artificial light. Far better to do it tomorrow in full daylight sitting by a window or even outdoors.

1. Turn trousers inside out.

2. Cut off 2 lengths of sewing thead each about 18 inches long. Thread both at the same time through the eye of the needle. That's advanced sewing trick as if you put one longer length and pull it thru until it is doubled, the thread will have a tendancy to double up on itself and twist into loops and knots when you sew. It's to do with the way the thread is twisted. And always pay attention to which end of the thread comes off the reel first and put that through the needle.

3. If you're using pins, as this point go around the inside of the hem and gently pin the turnunder bit to the leg. I'm imagining that the raw edge will probably be overlocked to stop fraying and that there will be a permapress seam which will hold the true edge of the hem, so you'll just follow that.

4. With your needle, draw thread thru one part of the hem (not catching it down on the good side yet, leaving a tail of about 1 cm. Repeat on same patch and the end of the thread will anchor. Cut off the tail at the end of the job.

5. Working carefully, catch the hem down to the trouser leg (we're working on the inside-out trouser leg, remember) with diagonal stitches, quite small.

Your aim is that there's a small diagonal stitch visible on the hem, sewing over the edge, but where the needle goes to the good side of the fabric, you only just catch it thru (think about 2 millimeters as a guide) as this will be potentially visible and you want to minimalise it. Draw the thread up but don't pull it terribly tight as this may cause puckering.

Think to yourself at all times that you are catching the hem down with these little light stitches. It'll take a few mins per leg.

Once finished, it's always helpful to settle the sewing down with a light pressing. At that price I'm guessing its polyester , so I'd get a white cotton hankie, soak it and wring it out, then lay it over the hem and press thru with an iron. This should crisp everything up.

Wasn't too bad, was it?

Regarding your own trousers, I'm less hopeful of getting an acceptable result. You could take a fine needle and a single thread and attempt to carefully draw the edges of the hole inwards, putting it a few stitches but from experience I think this would just replace a claw hole with a pucker. It may be something you'll just have to live with. If the holes are in places which would make the following fetching rather than insane or obscene, you could always sew them up gently then garnish each mend with a tiny bead.

We used to call them design features............

chirpychick

Thank you so much, I will definitely give it a go!!! I wish I could thank you a thousand times over lol

GreyQueen

chirpychick wrote: »

Thank you so much, I will definitely give it a go!!! I wish I could thank you a thousand times over lol

A pleasure, hun. No of us are born knowing this stuff, we get taught and we share our skills with others and that's just how it should be.:)

COOLTRIKERCHICK

chirpychick ...Just a thought even though its not mending your m&s Trs, but couldnt you wear the same colour tights or socks underneath then? as this will not show your legs/skin through then and not make the holes so noticeable..