DIY t-shirt yarn!

With Blue in Kindergarten now, I only have one crazy bambino to tame and she's pretty easy to occupy. This means I have a significant amount of time to spend on crafty things, which is super awesome. Yesterday I decided to try making my own t-shirt yarn, and it went rather well. I've had an old tie-dye shirt I don't fit anymore and I haven't been able to bring myself to throw it out because well, why waste good tie-dye? Blue came home while I was working on it and was fascinated enough to be my helper. He's a sweetheart like that. Anyway, it was super easy so I bet I'll be making more in the near future. Want to know how to make your own?

Step 1: Cut your t-shirt from armpit to armpit, then cut off the bottom hem. Fold that fucker hamburger, with an inch allowance at the top, then start cutting 1 inch strips.

Step 2: Crumple them up a smidge and take a pretty picture.

 Step 3: Unfold your now spaghetti shredded shirt and lay out the inch that is holding all your strands together.

 Step 4: I wrapped my shirt around my cutting mat so I could see where I was cutting. This is optional, but I'm the kind of person who messes up the simplest of tasks.

Step 5: Cut from the first strip of fabric, over to the second, diagonally. This is how your yarn makes a continuous strand instead of a bunch of t-shirt loops. (This is where having a kid comes in handy, they can hold the other side while you man the scissors.)

Step 6: Unravel your yarn from your cutting mat and breathe a sigh of relief when you find out that you actually did it right.

 Step 7: Starting from one end, stretch the shirt, so it rolls in a bit, and work your way through to the other end.

Step 8: Now roll that shit into a ball.

Step 9: Good job! Now go make a cup of tea and get ready to crochet something stellar.

See? Easy peasy. 

Morgwn with a W.

I suppose I should introduce myself, but the anxiety of a 'list five things about yourself' situation is always stressful. It is very likely that I labored over the decision to blog for too long, put too much thought into something so simple, but what can you do? I'm here now. So let's crack open a beer and get on with this awkward post so we can move on to more sassy topics.

I'm a girlfriend, I'm a mother. I'm fat (and okay with it). I'm vulgar, I'm bisexual. I'm a feminist, I'm an atheist, I'm a democrat. These feel like updated lyrics to an Alanis Morissette song, but there's no point beating around the bush. I don't know why you're here, and I don't want you to stay if it's not your cup of tea so lets have an open honesty policy shall we? I can, however, tell you why I'm here. I'm here because I need a friend, and lets face it, making friends is even harder as an adult than it was when you were 5. And it was no picnic back then either. I need to relate to people. I love finding people online who have similar life situations, feelings, and stories. It's so nice to feel like you're not alone. I'm here because maybe I can be the person someone else can relate to. I have anonymously trolled awesome blogs for so long that some of these people who don't know me and I've never even met have written something so honest that they have gradually helped shape who I want to be. Said something I was thinking or feeling and it made me brave enough to say it for myself. I'm here because I want to give back. I want to be another voice pulling people out of their shells.

My topics will probably be all over the map. See, I'm a flighty person with an addictive personality, so right now, my passions are crochet, and body positivity. Three months ago I was all about politics and sewing. I fly from one hobby to the next and you'll probably get to see the whole range of them in time. There are three things you can always count on seeing though. My three great loves, my boyfriend, my children, and photography. They are a constant in my life. Would you care to meet them?

 

This is my son, Blue. He's almost 4, and he's a whole lot of love and attitude. Right now, he's in a Batman phase, and I'm totally okay with that.

 

 

This is my daughter, Rainbow. She's 2, going on 13. Seriously, the drama on this one is hilarious. But her smile can move mountains.

 

 

And finally, the man who helped me bring these two little bambinos into existence, and we could never be a family without him. He's my lobster.

(Oh, and that's our cat. Her name is Zero and she hates us. She spends most of her days hiding under the couch and growling at us. She is Micheal's cat, but his parents couldn't take care of her anymore so she started becoming an outside cat. I was worried about her when it got cold last year and decided allergies be damned, so she came to live with us.)

Now I'll leave you with two fun facts.

• My name is actually Morgan, but I spell it with a w because it's the traditional Welsh spelling. I guess I just like to be unique.
• I told you I'm into being body positive, well, that's how I got the name for my blog. I recently started making a list of things I love about myself, and my crooked pinkies are one of them. This is especially meaningful to me because silly as it sounds, they were the first thing people made fun of me for as a kid.

So, I hope you'll hang around for awhile. I hope you'll comment and give me the chance to meet you too.