Camera Strap!

I have owned my sewing machine for 3 years now. I am slightly ashamed to say I have not used it enough times these past few years. So to correct this wrong, I have been working on a few projects the last few weeks!

One particular project I started and finished yesterday! We are going camping with friends in a few weeks, and we found out that 3 of us all have the exact same camera (Nikon D3200)! While I don't think it will be a HUGE problem, I decided this was a perfect opportunity to put my sewing skills to work and make a camera strap I have been eyeing for a bit, so I will know exactly which camera is mine without having to scroll through pictures!

I rounded up a few pieces of scrap material I had at home and followed the instructions HERE . Here's the fabrics I found that worked well together. Perfect combo for a random project right?

The instructions were super easy to follow! Though I do think I need a fancy measuring grid to help cutting fabric, I'll invest when I get a little more serious about sewing. Following instructions, I cut the fabric, ironed them, and then sewed them together with finished sides facing in.

See? It made a tube, if you will.

Next was time to put the fleece on the fabric. This is where I improvised with what I had (hey it was SLEETING outside & I wanted to finish the project in one sitting!), so I did not use an iron on fleece, but rather just pressed some extra batting I have leftover from my aforementioned other project. I ended up having to pin it in place on the edges, and it got a bit tricky; if you are new to sewing or OCD, I'd recommend following the instructions to a T. Which I don't do often.

Ever.

You then turn the tube inside out so it's right-side out! 

(Is that confusing? The fleece/batting is inside now)

I didn't capture the next few steps in pictures (I tend to do that..a lot), but they are outlined perfectly on the original instructional website! Fold those unfinished edges inside, and sew them shut. Now you have a pad! Then fold said pad hotdog style, iron to get a crisp fold and sew edges together (if that doesn't make sense, just go to the other website, please). 

Now you have another tube, with your inner fabric inside (my green) and the exterior fabric outside (my floral print). I had some issues with my sewing machine and the thick fabric, so this last step took WAY too much time; maybe because it was 9PM, maybe because I'm still a newbie at sewing and using my machine, maybe because I used quilting batting and not the recommended iron on fleece, and definitely because I didn't have enough thread on my spindle and had to refill it mid-sew (ugh). 

WHATEVER the true problem, I still finished the project in about an hour and half, and now have a rocking camera strap! I love it!

If I didn't love using my camera enough before, now I have even more reason to use it! And it won't get mistaken for anyone else's camera, either!

I think what I love most about these projects, whether sewing or crocheting, or heck, even cooking, is that I am actively working to learn lost art forms. Seriously. How many people do any of those type of activities now-a-days on a regular basis? More importantly, how many can pass on those skills to future generations? 

Both my mother and mother-in-law are rockstar seamstresses that quilt and sew clothing. Although it is in no way expected of me to live up to their standards, I WANT to learn these skills so that I may also pass them down to my daughter (or ambitious son). Everyone should know how to sew on a button or fix a hem. Everyone. But taking it a step further and doing these small projects make me feel a little more in touch with my ancestors who could do everything needed to live day to day, and they didn't have to rely on anyone else! 

In case of apocalypse, I will have the skills necessary to sew easy garments for my family; currently those garments would stop at tubes, but I intend to work on my skills the next few years. Wish me luck!

~Rachel

“Learn to do common things uncommonly well; we must always keep in mind that anything that helps full the dinner pail is valuable.” 

― George Washington Carver