2022 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

skogar

I have a spend to report. 1 navy and white dress. I prefer to wear dresses for work but only had 4 so this will bring me up to 5 and had the advantage of being in the sale.

Cherryfudge

I've bought various things off-coupon recently: I won a couple of auctions for summer-weight trousers off 3bay and realised I am never likely to lack green/khaki trousers in my entire life: I have five pairs, not counting all the other coloured ones.

The other day I got a chunky cardigan, a satin blouse and some jeans at the car boot. My coupons are likely to go on yarn at this rate.

I also bought several pairs of knitting needles at the car boot sale: chunky ones. They are too big for my needle gauge so I'll have to resort to squinting at a ruler to work out the unlabelled ones. Also - is there a recommended way of replacing the ends of needles where one of a pair is missing? I'm thinking blue tack would end up woolly and modelling clay could be too heavy. I know I could just throw them out, but I like to repair!

Laura_Elsewhere

Cherryfudge said:

 is there a recommended way of replacing the ends of needles where one of a pair is missing? I'm thinking blue tack would end up woolly and modelling clay could be too heavy. I know I could just throw them out, but I like to repair!

Now there's a good question - I don't know (I use double-pointed ones) but after puzzling over it for a few minutes, all I can suggest is the next time you come across that packaging that is very dense expanded-polystyrene (if that makes sense!), you carve a little knobble of it and hollow out the hole for the needle-end, and then glue it in place and let it dry fully... you could then paint it with nail varnish  

Cherryfudge

Ah! - nice and light. I think cork might work similarly? Thanks @Laura_Elsewhere

florianatwobob

Alternatively air dry clay may work?

PipneyJane

Cherryfudge said:

I've bought various things off-coupon recently: I won a couple of auctions for summer-weight trousers off 3bay and realised I am never likely to lack green/khaki trousers in my entire life: I have five pairs, not counting all the other coloured ones.

The other day I got a chunky cardigan, a satin blouse and some jeans at the car boot. My coupons are likely to go on yarn at this rate.

I also bought several pairs of knitting needles at the car boot sale: chunky ones. They are too big for my needle gauge so I'll have to resort to squinting at a ruler to work out the unlabelled ones. Also - is there a recommended way of replacing the ends of needles where one of a pair is missing? I'm thinking blue tack would end up woolly and modelling clay could be too heavy. I know I could just throw them out, but I like to repair!

How about a good, old-fashioned elastic band?  Put it over, and over, the end until it's big enough to stop the yarn escaping +/- a layer of sticky-tape (cellotape) on top to lock it in place. 

If you still have the knob, you could use super-glue to adhere it.  Not certain how well it would work if put under pressure, though.  My DH did that with one of the interchangeable tips for my circulars, when the tip broke off, leaving splintered wood behind.  However, in that case, the break was lengthwise and not a clean one, so both surfaces were long, which made it a more stable join.

On the sizing front, may I suggest a vernier?  These are measuring callipers, accurate down to fractions of a millimetre.  The link is to manual ones on Skrewfix, who also sell digital ones.  Worth every penny.

HTH

Pip

Laura_Elsewhere

...although if you read the negative reviews form professionals on that link, those Verniers are repeatedly out by 2.5-3mm on a 0-15cm scale, unreliably....! 

I have plastic ones, 30+ years old, and would love steel Verniers but when I do get some, it's really not worth getting cheap ones ime... second-hand good ones, maybe? 

PipneyJane

Laura_Elsewhere said:

...although if you read the negative reviews form professionals on that link, those Verniers are repeatedly out by 2.5-3mm on a 0-15cm scale, unreliably....! 

I have plastic ones, 30+ years old, and would love steel Verniers but when I do get some, it's really not worth getting cheap ones ime... second-hand good ones, maybe? 

Good point.  I was just using them as an illustration.  No recommendation meant.  (It was the first link that came up on G00gle.)

- Pip

Elisheba

Sugru would do the trick for your knitting needles if you don't fancy the elastic band trick.  Moldable glue,  It is like plasticine when you put it on, dries over night to become like rubber/plastic. You can buy it online.

Laura_Elsewhere

Could someone kindly give me just the teensiest bit of a swift kick up the sit-upon and tell em to stop faffing and get on with my skirt-making, please? 

Thankyou!