World Water Day 2015

This will be a less ambitious post than my past World Water Day posts because I'm still a bit under the weather.

However, I was able to follow through and make a t-shirt from recycled textiles (as I have shown previously), thus reclaiming its embedded water.

Have I shown this one before?

Two recycled Ts into one.

About 18 months ago, I took 24 of my mom's souvenir t-shirts and made them into 12 long-sleeved ones using Kwik Sew 2555.

I pulled out KS 2555 again for myself.  The t-shirt for the body started out white, but I dyed it with a mixture of burgundy and fuchsia Procion fiber-reactive dye.  It's a perfect match for this sweater.  (In fact, it's shown in the top picture of that post with the yarn swatch.)

Working with recycled textiles means having bins of "potential" tucked all over my home.

Refashioning box

When I made these striped PJ pants, I knew that I wanted to use the scraps to make a top.  My refashioning box and fabric stash yielded an organic cotton t-shirt advertising some kind of housing development and a piece of organic cotton rib knit gifted by a friend who was moving.

Nice color match!

I've long admired Eileen Fisher's box-top.

I started with a Vogue 8175, originally published in 1991.  I've made it once a long time ago and thought it would make a good starting point.  The EF 'box-top' has slimmer sleeves. I'm not sure which type (slim or full) I prefer. Which do you think?

I shortened the sleeves by 2" and the body by 3-5".  I unpicked the neckline ribbing to reuse it.

Aren't slogans like "You can change the world!" (by buying this humongous LEED house) super-annoying?  And don't let that organic cotton fool you.  Organic cotton takes more water and energy to produce than nonorganic cotton.  The least environmentally-damaging cotton is reclaimed cotton.

If only it was so easy.

You want to see the top?

Sure you do. After all, this is a maker blog.

The back is 2" longer than the back and the sides are shorter than the center front.

I also unearthed a grouping of deep blue and white woven remnants.  From top to bottom layers:

1. cotton/lycra gingham poplin
2. puckered rayon uneven plaid
3. cotton/rayon blend chambray

Any ideas for what to make with it?

If you haven't done so before, please read the links about world water day and reclaiming water at the top of this post.  It's not just about shorter showers.  For most people, the goods and food they consume account for more water than direct household use.  Using less cotton and eating less meat are very effective ways to conserve water.