Thursday, April 11, 2013

What's Old is New Again

It's true that I have complained about Art keeping some of his favorite clothes until I can almost tear it off his body.  Hmmm...That does sound rather provocative, doesn't it?

However I must confess that I do have this one cardigan that I got from Lands End decades ago that I wear whenever it's a little nippy here in Hawaii.

It's perfect.  The fabric is not too heavy so that I'd get overheated.  However it's not too thin so that it could tear with many washings and being hung up on the clothes line, buffeted by winds.

Art was appalled when I forgot and wore it to go shopping one day. 

The sleeve and bottom ribbing of the cardigan was worn and tearing.  In fact, I could easily rip it with my fingers.

I was almost going to throw it away, but I kept staring at it and was reluctant to let it go.


So I decided to try something.

Since the body of the cardigan was holding up, I cut off the ribbings and hemmed it up.  The sleeves are now more three quarters length and the bottom is shorter.

Perhaps now it's a little too short, but Art won't have to be embarrassed anymore to be seen walking with me.

I'm still tempted to throw out his gray, worn out shorts though.  


21 comments:

  1. A nice save. That is certainly the "green" way.

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  2. I agree with Olga, great save! I am the same way with my clothes, I like them last!

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  3. When I find something I love, I really hate to let it go, too. I just took a pair of favorite pants to the tailor to have the zipper replaced, which would no longer stay up! :-)

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  4. It looks great. M and I tend to wear our favourite clothes for decades too!

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  5. Perfect! I guarantee you'd have trouble finding another cardigan that you liked as much as that one.

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  6. I love to buy new clothes but do need to recycle my old ones...

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  7. I have a lot of clothes I should've trashed years ago

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  8. Clever to recycle your clothes. I sometimes have a favorite item I wear until it is falling apart. My cousin and I were sitting out back one day and she reached over and put her finger through the hole in my pants leg. You would have thought I only had one pair of pants, where actually, I have many...all from Land's End, of course. Dianne

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  9. Smart woman to recycle that way. I admire your ability to think this through.

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  10. Funny the synchronicity of what you post and what I experienced. Two days ago I discovered I was wearing my favorite pair of Levi's with a tear on the inside of the pant legs (ummm...because I need to lose weight). Gosh and I went in a couple stores before I discovered the tear while sitting in the car. Now I'm thinking, since I don't do laundry, who knows how long that tear was there.

    I like to recycle too and have started keeping my worn out clothing. Some people reuse the fabric and crochet into rag rugs which I think I may try. Or I may cut them into squares and reuse as rags.

    L...w

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    1. I confess I've got a pair of jeans shorts with a little hole in it that I can't seem to throw away either. You and I really do have a lot in common. Do you like Zippy's saimin better than Shiro's too? :-)

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    2. lol...sigh...maybe we finally found a difference. I rarely order saimin from Zippy's and don't frequent Shiro's often enough to comment. I do order wonton min from local Chinese restaurants whenever I need hot mustard in a soup to clear my sinuses :-)

      L...w

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  11. One thing I like about Hilo is that it does not matter how you dress. I do have several things I throw on when it gets cold. Nice work on the tailoring. I can't sew at all.

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  12. I have two pair of navy pants that I have had over 20 years. I loved them so much, I bought two pair. They are pretty well worn and the cuffs are frayed. I keep wearing them when I run errands. It's kind of funny--I have my makeup on, hair combed, and usually wear cute shoes (I get compliments on the hair and the shoes), but no one ever mentions the shabby pants!

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  13. I have very old clothes I still love to wear. I wish I had thought to do this with those that frayed and I eventually threw out. Such a clever idea!

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  14. Well, the style these days seems to be cute little shorter overjackets anyway.
    I'm about to wear out my favorite jeans, but can't find a similar replacement.
    My son had a hoodie before they were popular. He used it to cover up between swims at meets, and the bottom edge fell way below his knees. At 25 years old, he still has it, with frayed wrists, and tears, and calls it his lucky hoodie. He wouldn't even let me sew up parts, and every one I've given him to replace it never get worn.
    Art will get cold if you rip his shorts off.
    DrumMajor

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    1. Oh fine... I won't throw it away then. Maybe I should turn them into a patchwork short shorts. LOL

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  15. I love the short jacket with the 3/4-length sleeves, Kay. How resourceful and talented you are!
    K

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