Pocket Organizer Tutorial

Finished!

In my house, there are several piles of stuff.  Mostly it's stuff I want to keep, little odds and ends like bike oil, camera cords, the cat's laser toy.  Surely there is a better way to keep it?

My solution so far is the pocket organizer!  Here it is finished and hanging up next to my bulletin board.

Here's how I made it.

Supplies:
Pair of jeans
Scraps of cloth

Step One

 Step One: Cut the Jeans.  I used two pairs of jeans because each had only one leg that wasn't worn out. I used the back side of the jeans, cutting one leg out as wide as possible.

Step Two

Step Two:  Make Some Pockets.  To make the pockets, I sewed scrap fabric into tubes.  Starting with two rectangles long enough to stretch across the jeans and of the depth I wanted for a pocket, I put right sides together and sewed the long sides of the rectangle.  I then turned them right sides out and ironed.  As you can see, I made four pockets.  I also top stitched across the top of the pocket because I thought it looked nice.

Step Three

Step Three:  Sew Pockets to Jeans.  Choose which piece of denim you want to be the front.  Lay the pockets out on the denim in the position you want.  Sew across the bottom of the pocket.  The seam will be visible.  If you want an invisible seam, lay the pockets upside-down, sew across the bottom, fold up, and iron into place.

Step Four

Step Four: Sew Front and Back Together. Lay the two pieces of denim right sides together.  Now would be a good time to make sure that they are the same length.   Sew around the edges, leaving the top open.

More Step Four

Step Five

Step Five: Finishing.  Turn the thing right side out through the hole you left at the top.  I top stitched across the top at this point, and also across the bottom of all the pockets.  I figure this increases the stability.  I used belt loops to make loops to hang the organizer with.  Then I hung it up and filled it with stuff!

Belt Loop Hangers

Socks! Knit Them!

I knit those! I'm pretty excited to have knit a pair of socks, even if it is sandal weather right now.  I was not sure that I would be able to master knitting a pair of socks, but it was a lot easier and more fun than I thought.  Working with tiny needles was not so unpleasant, because a sock is small, too.  Learning to turn the heel was relatively simple.  Now that I've knit two, I understand the basics of sock construction, and I think I could handle lots of neat sock patterns.  So, if you've been thinking about knitting socks, but have been intimidated by the tiny needles or the prospect of turning the heel, let me tell you that you should try it!  I found lots of simple free patterns online, and lots of helpful advice.  If I can do it, you can, too!