Gransnet forums

Arts & crafts

Why on earth I didn’t think of this before, so brainless!

(11 Posts)
isomrat Wed 12-Mar-25 09:11:30

Sometimes I have the feeling that I am dreaming and none of this is real, which results in me doing the most stupid things. Because who cares?

Notagranny44 Mon 27-Jan-25 14:31:19

You don't have to thread the elastic through the casing if you sew it into a cirlcle of the correct size before you make the casing. You then just fold the turning for the casing over the elastic and sew it, encasing the elastic as you go, if you see what I mean!

AuntieE Mon 27-Jan-25 13:17:43

Thanks for giving me a good idea! My step-stool is now disfigured by a patches of insulating foam, which the young man who was helping me by putting up insulation in my kitchen got onto it, and which neither he nor I thought to try and remove before it hardened.

I have been kicking myself ever since, and haven't be able to convince myself to get out a sander and try and remove said foam, as I suspect doing so will be too much like hard work.

But a nice cover won't take me long to make!

Beechnut Sun 26-Jan-25 18:56:47

Lots of nappy pins are still being sold.

Witzend Sun 26-Jan-25 15:08:39

Gin

Witzend. I have two kitchen stools whose leather tops have started to split and look shabby. I was trying to work out how to recover them without using my heavy duty staple gun that my arthritic hands can no longer operate. You have solved the problem, I will just need to buy some strong elastic!

For my first attempt, I hadn’t ‘anchored’ the quilting by stitching it to the 2 layers of fabric - not just the edges but side to side and top to bottom, too. So the quilting got all bunched up - and I hadn’t allowed enough for the casing anyway.
Trial and error…..

Witzend Sun 26-Jan-25 15:04:35

Graceless

I use a nappy pin (gives you some idea of the ages of my children) to thread elastic through casing.

That’s what I ended up using! The ordinary safety pin I was using at first kept opening - so until I realised what was happening I thought I’d left a pin in somewhere.
Thank goodness I still had a nappy pin after 40 odd years!

NonGrannyMoll Sun 26-Jan-25 15:02:00

Trial, error and ingenuity saved the day! Now if you could just advise me on what the dickens to do with my damaged bathroom wall, I'd be grateful (still going through the T&E stage, wish me luck as you wave me goodbye).

Graceless Sun 26-Jan-25 14:58:34

I use a nappy pin (gives you some idea of the ages of my children) to thread elastic through casing.

Gin Sun 26-Jan-25 13:34:25

Witzend. I have two kitchen stools whose leather tops have started to split and look shabby. I was trying to work out how to recover them without using my heavy duty staple gun that my arthritic hands can no longer operate. You have solved the problem, I will just need to buy some strong elastic!

teabagwoman Sun 26-Jan-25 13:20:16

We’ve all been there! Glad you now have a comfortable step stool.

Witzend Sun 26-Jan-25 13:13:27

I made this elasticated padded cover for a new step stool (used a lot for sitting) after the old one broke. It came with just a hard wooden top.

My initial effort didn’t work. 2nd one, I put a layer of padded quilting sandwiched between 2 layers of fabric, and after it was finished (getting the elastic through the casing was a monumental PITA) I wondered why on earth I hadn’t included more layers of padding - too late now.

Until it dawned that I could cut a few more layers and just put them between wood and cover! So it has 3 more now. 🙂