One positive thing about this crappy economy

[xmas74]

is that I've become very good at mending and darning, remaking old clothes, and making patches for everything from bits of scrap. I haven't had anything new in a few years-everything has been made over and patched to the point of being one huge patchwork mess. Fun times, especially when I poke my finger with a needle.

Anyone else have an offhand positive?

[graywarrior]

1. I've lost weight from not eating like I used to.

[xmas74]

2. Congratulations!

Now you can browse the shops online and dream about the clothes you'd love to buy for your new, smaller size but cannot afford.

I have learned how to make patches out of baby t shirts in the free bin at the local thrift store so I could mend my bras. That was fun.

[graywarrior]

5. Hahahaha!

My cat and I share the can of tuna..lol.

And I also have become skilled at darning socks.

[xmas74]

6. And you've learned how to share!

Isn't that lovely!

(Darning socks kinda sucks but at least it works. I've noticed that athletic socks don't hold up as well once they've been darned but others work just fine.)

[graywarrior]

14. I now wear two pairs of socks at the same time.

so if one has a hole in it, the other doesn't.

[xmas74]

16. Sounds like you've also started a new fashion trend!

I bet you could market that look.

[graywarrior]

33. Between you, me, and pansypoo53219 there are some great ideas for

a fashion magazine.

[xmas74]

34. I bet we could sell a million copies

if it weren't for the fact that most of the people who'd want our ideas don't have the money to buy magazines.

[graywarrior]

39. A vicious circle of poverty

Maybe the rich would by it for a novelty

[xmas74]

40. Good idea!

They might purchase it for a few laughs.

[graywarrior]

41. Then toss them so we could use them to fill the holes in our shoes

[xmas74]

42. I bet they'd make us buy them back first

if they knew we had another use for them.

[graywarrior]

43. And pay $14.99 for shipping

[xmas74]

46. Score one for you!

Maybe they'll even turn it into an informercial. Hopefully we'll be better than the ShamWow!

[graywarrior]

57. New trend

As we will be the elite of the homeless people soon, we could do the commercials in tatters and rags.

[xmas74]

71. We can call it "Homeless chic"

and send models down the catwalk, kind of like they did with the "grunge" look in the 90's.

I believe we've just found our new jobs! We are designers.

[graywarrior]

72. And penniless entrepreneurs

[xmas74]

75. I'm practically penniless as it is.

Maybe we can collect cans and cash them in for lottery tickets instead.

[graywarrior]

80. We need supermarket carriages to collect cans

And huge bags to put them into.

[xmas74]

86. We should take them from the Walmart parking lot.

They need to share something with us.

[graywarrior]

88. Don't they have things on them that make them impossible to leave the parking lot?

[xmas74]

91. Yours might

My store does not. It's common to see college kids around here take them and run them down hills.

You'll have to come to Missouri so we can steal the carts. People litter quite a bit around here too so it's easy to find cans on the side of the road.

[graywarrior]

93. Sounds like a gold mine

Hopeless people around here are sooooo possessive of their carts. You'd think it was the only thing they owned.

[xmas74]

96. I'd tell them to come to my town

but the local homeless shelter recently lost all funding and is no longer in operation. That, plus the 100+ days isn't exactly something to recommend.

[graywarrior]

98. Well, homeless people are supposed to be homeless, aren't they?

:P

[xmas74]

99. True

but I think you'd want to be homeless in a better place. This town isn't worthwhile to anyone.

[graywarrior]

102. Homelessness in Sarasota Fl is the pits

[xmas74]

103. The good thing is that the temp is a bit nicer in the winter.

Here in Missouri you roast in the summer,you freeze in the winter and good luck finding a shelter. There's almost no funding to help anyone. After all, we're the state who wants to roll back child labor laws. If they hate the kids you know they hate everyone else.

[graywarrior]

104. At least in Sarasota there is a large shelter and you can walk around

Whole Foods all day tasting samples or fish off a pier.

[xmas74]

105. Our shelter closed down recently because of a lack of funding.

They put families out on the street.

I see them now wandering Walmart, camping out in the library, or napping in the university union.

[graywarrior]

107. Makes you want to start a darning business and hire them all

[xmas74]

108. Except the a-holes in this town

just throw their crap away instead of mending it. We have some talented seamstresses around here and no one uses them.

[graywarrior]

109. Hey, no one gives a rats ass that radiation is being spewed into the water and air!

[pansypoo53219]

31. foo, i gave up on shoes AND socks several years ago.

saves a LOT of money. tho in WI, a girl needs something. land's end slippers. $10. i got as many as would buy a new pair of shoes. don't wear them much tho.
my old socks are for winter after dark.

[xmas74]

35. I read on one site where someone

took old flip flops and moth holed sweaters and turned them into boots.

I kid you not.

[graywarrior]

44. Great idea!

[xmas74]

47. I did check out a book from the library recently

where in the book they took sweaters from thrift shops that were in very bad shape and turned them into slippers. They were pretty cute.

[graywarrior]

58. Too bad Goodwill & Salvation Army charges the same prices for things as WalMart

[xmas74]

69. I think it depends on where you live.

Our local Salvation Army charges $4.00 for a pair of women's jeans, $2.00 for tops and $1.00 for t shirts. We also have tag sales every week. The tags on the clothes are colored and each week a different color is half price. You can get a t shirt with the sale tag for $0.50.

Ours also sells bags of t shirts for $5.00 that might have inappropriate messages (such as alcohol ads), dates (they won't put any of the commemorative t shirts on the racks, such as college bid day or such and such a 5K race), shirts with holes or stains. Some of the shirts are still in good shape and others are great for crafts/remakes/cleaning rags, etc. I can also get paperback books for a quarter and hard covers for fifty cents.

The thrift shop three doors down charges just as much as Walmart so I never shop there.

[graywarrior]

79. Jeans varie $5 to $7 here

Then there's the "Boutique". I like thrift stores better. There is one in North Conway that rocks! Jeans for $1 and $2, t-shirts $.50, shoes $1 to $5. Half my wardrobe came from there. I'm making a trip up there next weekend.

[xmas74]

81. I really like those prices!

I usually buy mine with the sale tags, though as a volunteer I get a discount either way.

I've heard complaints from customers that the SA the next town over charges double what ours does. I guess it depends on who manages it.

[graywarrior]

82. Yeah, it's the management. They're almost like franchises

One guy owns all the Goodwills in Sarasota, Venice, and Englewood Florida--about 15 of them. He makes a mil and a half a year. His wife, who works there, makes half that.

[xmas74]

87. That's quite a bit of money

for a thrift shop!

[graywarrior]

89. Goowill makes millions on free stuff

[xmas74]

90. I usually use Salvation Army

instead of Goodwill. It's personal preference but this makes me glad I shop there.

[indurancevile]

92. I agree. Despite the religious part, salvation army's thrift store prices have always been

better than goodwill's -- for the last 30 years, at least.

i think goodwill gets big government kickbacks for their sheltered workshops too. i think goodwill is a massive fraud but have never taken the trouble to investigate the details. i just know that some of local sheltered workshops are government kickback schemes & figured goodwill worked the same way.

[xmas74]

95. I've always liked the SA.

I volunteer there on occasion and have never had any of the religion even discussed. The most I've noticed is that a few things are considered inappropriate to put on the racks. (Shirts with tobacco, drug, and alcohol messages, violent and/or sexy movies and games, music with explicit lyrics.)

[graywarrior]

94. Goowill around here is called Morgan Memorial

[xmas74]

101. Glad I use the SA and the DAV! nt

[Liberal_in_LA]

49. +100

[defendandprotect]

3. kr -- and ....

Not really in line with what you're saying -- tho I am fairly good at patches --

I've been trying to get away from plastic -- and found that lining my bathroom

garbage can with newspaper works wonderfully well!!

Now, have to figure out what to do about kitchen can -- my husband is afraid a

doubled paper bag will split --


Also, I'm tired of the waste of paper towels so I'm going to try more seriously

to use squares of newspaper to clean mirrors/windows -- and to empty the kitchen

sink waste/stopper into -- I've moved to the mesh kind of stopper in the sink and

that has to get cleaned often each day cause it catches more.

Also for floors -- I'll use cloth --

Also going to try baking soda and vinegar as a cleaner --


Have read a lot on DU about making your own soap, but don't think I'm ready for that

yet -- but maybe soon!!

[xmas74]

9. Baking soda, vinegar,

peroxide, lemon juice-all work well for cleaning. I've used them for years. For polishing furniture you can buy the cheapest bottle of veggie oil and apply it to a soft rag in a small amount, rubbing it directly into the wood. Still cheaper than polish!

I'm ready to make my own laundry soap soon. I've found the ingredients at my local Farm and Home so it's almost time. I'm just waiting for the temperature to drop a bit, so I can do it outside.

[Booster]

12. The ONLY thing I ever learned from Mylie Cyrus - she was a

cleaning person in her earlier years and she said the best thing to clean glass with is newspaper. I tried it and she's right. Only problem is I stopped the paper from coming to the house. LOL

[Tallulah]

4. I'm a better cook

better grocery shopper, better keeper of the gate. My mission has been to live lean in every way possible. So far it's working.

[xmas74]

10. Congratulations!

All are commendable. Keep up the good work!

[yourout]

7. We started a garden an have picked a ton of wild black berries.

[xmas74]

15. I'd love to find some blackberries.

I've thought about harvesting kudzu. (Anyone not familiar with the legendary Lounge do a search. It's a long one.) Anyway, you can make jelly out of the blossoms and can dry it as a fried chicken breading. (Another Lounge fight.)

[chalky]

8. I'm reading a lot more for entertainment these days.

Who the hell can afford to go to a movie? I can barely afford basic cable.

[xmas74]

17. Reading=increase in brain power.

The recession has made you a smarter person!

[gkhouston]

11. With both of us unemployed, my husband and I are enjoying daytime sex.

:blush: That's something that you don't get much of an opportunity for once you have kids. :-(

[xmas74]

19. I've forgotten what sex is.

I now envy you!

[FreakinDJ]

83. Me and my wife too

Nooner !!!!

[gateley]

13. Eating up whatever is left over, buying MUCH more cautiously

(I have no choice, only have a finite number of dollars) and rediscovered the Library! AND, most importantly, realized that what I used to be convinced I couldn't live without, I easily can, and don't even miss all that crap. It's almost liberating.

[xmas74]

20. Free entertainment

can't be beat!

[grilled onions]

18. Thinking Positive For Every Negative

No cable....read more No trips...enjoy home much more Not eating out much...Using slow cooker these days It makes me happy to be with less because I appreciate what I do have and not moan about what I don't have. Meds take up much of my $$$ but I feel lucky to even be able to buy them these days. We should look back and see what people did or bought during those "simple" times. While I am very angry at the greedy ones who are trying to ruin this country by catering to the ultra rich I will try to be as content as I can with by lot in life. Being miserable only makes them feel they have won. They like to see those beneath them suffer. I will still do what I can to spread the word of their hate and greed because this used to be a country built by people from all walks of society and being poor or less then wealthy was not a crime and getting help was not an entitlement.

[xmas74]

21. Now you're seeing things my way!

Someone might see a pile of trash while I see an opportunity to make crafts, patches, etc.

A positive from a negative.

[jwirr]

22. You are in a good position to start a new business in future when

our economy tanks. I remember reading a story about the gold rush in Alaska - women often made money by repairing clothes etc. Now if the rest of us can just come up with some other need we can start our barter society.

[xmas74]

23. Even more positives!

I've repaired friends clothes already and they liked my work. Then again, they were as poor as me and were just happy to have a pair of jeans without a hole in the butt or a jacket that actually zipped.

[Warpy]

24. My last period of real poverty came when everybody else

was still flying high and racking up those credit card bills because the housing boom was going to last forever.

I learned how to overdye fugly crap from the thrift shop as well as remake some of it.

I've patched and mended since the 60s. A lot of people are going to have to learn how to do that now.

[xmas74]

25. I've mended before

and some simple patching but not on this level. When the outfit is more patches than clothing that's when you know you're in trouble.

I dye all the time. My bras that I patched tonight will be dyed soon, so the patches at least match in color.

Remaking clothes is all the rage now. There are blogs dedicated to doing nothing but. I've had fun a few times with old items in my closet.

[Warpy]

51. We Shall Overdye

The rallying anthem of the newly poor!

[xmas74]

53. Now we even have an anthem!

This is getting better by the minute!

[grasswire]

26. for some reason this is reminding me of a scene from Fiddler on the Roof

I'm not sure why.

[TorchTheWitch]

27. yeah, being poor is so awesome

Hey, if I lose my home that means I can enjoy the outdoors more!

If I have to wear rags it won't matter if I get a stain on my clothes!

If I don't have a toilet I won't ever have to shell out money to a plumber to fix it or deal with keeping it clean!

If I can't afford to eat I'll be fashionably thin!

If I have no means of transportation then I'll get loads of good exercise walking miles and miles and miles to everywhere I have to go!

If all my teeth rot and fall out I won't have to bother brushing them or spend money on a dentist!


Oooh yeah, so many positive things about becoming poor and desperate. Yahoo. :eyes:


THERE IS NOTHING POSITIVE ABOUT A SHITTY ECONOMY THAT MAKES PEOPLE BECOME POOR AND DESPERATE! NOTHING!

Looking for positives about what this shitty economy is doing to peoples' lives means you're accepting it, and it's TOTALLY FUCKING NOT NOT NOT ACCEPTABLE!

[999998th word]

32. And if I can't afford to see a doctor

I won't have to bitch about the shitty old magazines in the waiting room.
@ almost 60 I'm learning how to keyboard so I could type w/out turning on a light.
This does bite major ass and I've always have had to be 'resourceful' with creative adaptations and reuse of something else.
This uncertainty makes me fearful-a forced 'early retirement. I am on a fixed income don't know what to expect.
Absolutely hate what this is doing to the morale of the young people,including my own.
No I don't accept this. I think those of us who are experiencing this now are better prepared than all of those smug
self righteous folks out there ,who not only perpetuated this but revile those of us who now endure this crap.If this continues
those folks will be in the same situation as us and not prepared to handle it
.

[xmas74]

36. A bad economy is not acceptable

but finding ways to make do is quite acceptable. If you don't try you've given up.

Personally, I can't afford to give up. I have a child to raise and the last thing she needs is to live with negativity. She deserves better. She deserves a childhood, even if it's not quite what I wanted to give her.

Maybe we don't have everything we'd like. My clothes are old and patched with pieces from my scrap bag. My shoes are held together with super glue. I no longer have a vehicle so I do walk everywhere in order to get to work and to purchase the basics. The only reason why I have internet service is for my child and her classwork. I have dental insurance but can't afford to use it. (It's for her, not for me.) We have a decent garden and are learning more preserving methods to keep our food supply throughout the winter. I've rediscovered the joy of walking to the library and sitting around, reading magazines or newspapers for an hour and then finding books and movies that I normally wouldn't watch available for checkout. I've found free activities that just a few years ago I would have dismissed but now find quite enjoyable. And I've realized that a cup of coffee while sitting on the back porch watching the sunrise can be a wonderful treat.

I've learned to reuse, to make do, to do without all the crap that wasn't actually needed. I'm proud of what I've done, what I've learned to do, and what I've accomplished.

If times do get better I see myself maintaining my skills and never taking things for granted. It's a hard lesson but something I feel proud of learning, knowing that many never learn that lesson.

[SammyWinstonJack]

59. +1000!

:thumbsup:

[hfojvt]

28. do clothes actually wear out?

The other day, digging around I found this old muscle shirt, probably from 1983. 28 years old and it still fit - and I still don't have any muscles. But I wore it to work anyway, for two nights.

On the other hand, I just tore my favorite black jeans on a stupid metal table at work, so I need to dig out a needle and thread and attempt a patch. Not that that is an issue. A year or so ago, I bought ten pairs of brand new bootleg jeans for $3 a pair and still have about six of them unopened. So I have plenty of pants, but those black jeans were my favorite. But clothes seem to last a long, long time, as long as one stays away from rickety metal tables.

[gkhouston]

29. Some mending tape/hem tape on the underside of the tear might help,

especially if it's a jagged tear.

[xmas74]

37. Proof that you don't have children!

Ask a parent if clothes wear out and they'll tell you yes. Most common places are in the knees of pants, sometimes the seat, and the elbows of shirts. Hems also fray, as do collars, buttons pop off,and zippers sometimes break.

You could make a patch but with a pair of jeans it might be easier to go to the store and buy a pack of patches. They'll run you about $2.00 for anywhere from a 2 pack to a 4 pack. Most now are iron on but I'd still sew them on after setting with the iron or else they might not stay.

I do think that some people are harder on clothes than others. I know I'm really hard on my work pants and I constantly have to mend them. Then again, I can only afford two pair and have to constantly wash and wear them, causing them to wear out faster.

[Warpy]

52. Women's clothing is pure garbage

with planned obsolescence built right into them. Ten washings and most of it is shot.

Even making our own isn't all that possible these days with fabric stores turning into suburban housewife craft shops.

Patches and rags are going to start to look very common, I'm afraid.

[xmas74]

54. That's why I buy old clothes from thrift stores

and remake them. Most of the newer fabrics are flimsy, to say the least. Older fabrics tend to be a bit more durable.

[hfojvt]

56. well that is another thing about being a bachelor

ten washings? That might be about 28 years :hide:

[eilen]

63. Well, I have to admit I don't wash stuff as often.

I will hang pants after wearing, blouses and jackets too. I will wash jeans after about 3-5 wearings depending if I get anything on them I can't blot out with a little soap and water. Towels I try to hang dry and use for a few days. Wearing undershirts helps keep shirts and blouses fresh but in summer can be too hot. Tshirts I generally always wash. My dh gets really dirty at work so I have to wash his workclothes after one wearing. I am wearing pajamas a week before washing.

[Warpy]

66. Hey, I live alone and I keep house by the Quentin Crisp method

"Never sweep. After four years the dust doesn't get any worse."

[leftyladyfrommo]

106. That's what I do, too.

Dusting just stirs up stuff. Better to just let it lay there in peace.

And the dust bunnies are not big enough to kill a person.

I don't care. Spending a lot of time doing housework is such a total waste of time.

[DireStrike]

60. It depends how old your clothes are

The newer they are, the shorter they last.

[xmas74]

70. Isn't that the truth!

I've purchased old clothes just for the material and they still hold up while things I purchased for the kid at Old Navy fall apart after a couple of months.

[eilen]

61. If you go to Joanns or Hobby Lobby

You might be able to find some black fusible interfacing. You iron/fuse it on the wrong side. Then stitch the edges together. If you have a sewing machine, you can use the zig zag stitch. If you machine can drop feed dogs, you can use a darning stitch. I have patched many of my husband's workpants.

My dh lost about 80 lbs. Went from a 42 waist to 34 or XXL to M. I found a free men's tshirt pattern on Burdastyle.com and printed it out, taped it and using my dh's new measurements, traced out the correct size and cut it out. I used it as a template over his old tshirts. First I cut all the sleeves off his old tshirts. With the pattern over the tshirt (folded in half lengthwise) I matched up where the pattern shoulder/neckpoint matched and then cut the fabric. I did not cut the length as he likes tshirts long and that way I did not have to hem.

I did the same thing with the sleeves, matched the hem to the bottom of the pattern and cut around.

Then I sewed the sleeves in flat and then sewed down the sides of the shirt.

I did this with about 10 tshirts. It didn't cost anything but some paper, ink, thread.

[xmas74]

73. I love Burdastyle!

I look on there all the time, along with the Refashion Co-op.

[eilen]

62. If you go to Joanns or Hobby Lobby

You might be able to find some black fusible interfacing. You iron/fuse it on the wrong side. Then stitch the edges together. If you have a sewing machine, you can use the zig zag stitch. If you machine can drop feed dogs, you can use a darning stitch. I have patched many of my husband's workpants.

My dh lost about 80 lbs. Went from a 42 waist to 34 or XXL to M. I found a free men's tshirt pattern on Burdastyle.com and printed it out, taped it and using my dh's new measurements, traced out the correct size and cut it out. I used it as a template over his old tshirts. First I cut all the sleeves off his old tshirts. With the pattern over the tshirt (folded in half lengthwise) I matched up where the pattern shoulder/neckpoint matched and then cut the fabric. I did not cut the length as he likes tshirts long and that way I did not have to hem.

I did the same thing with the sleeves, matched the hem to the bottom of the pattern and cut around.

Then I sewed the sleeves in flat and then sewed down the sides of the shirt.

I did this with about 10 tshirts. It didn't cost anything but some paper, ink, thread.

[bhikkhu]

30. Gardening, and sharing produce with neighbors

...and almost as good, I started bicycling to work three years ago, the last time gas prices spiked, and am still at it. As it turns out, the rides are one of my favorite parts of the day, and I'm in great shape now!

[xmas74]

38. See-

sometimes it's nice to take what we thought was a negative and turn it into a positive!

[Nye Bevan]

45. 1. Easier to get restaurant reservations.

2. Car dealerships tend to be more flexible in terms of pricing.

[xmas74]

48. More positives!

Of course, I can't afford to eat at a restaurant and I can't afford a new vehicle. I couldn't afford the vehicle I had last year when gas prices increased.

[999998th word]

50. I seriously love the library

When I feel particularly broke I can go there and get the feeling 'I can go on a spree'-not a supershopper,but its cool anyway.

True story-years ago,when I was still married and my kids were 2 and 3 yrs old we just bought a small house.
It was Christmas and we were pretty broke.What little I had saved I wanted for the kids and told my ex-'no presents'.I was at the library
and checked out the new (at the time) Star Trek book-wrapped it up and 'gave' it to my ex.When he opened it up-he said 'You got me
something anyway'.I told him "Read it fast it's due back @ the library in 7 days".
:evilgrin:

[xmas74]

55. We are library people too.

It's a place to spend the entire afternoon out of the house. The air is cooler than anything at home, the internet signal is strong and not sporadic (router is going out but internet cable company says it's not-wireless now drops signal quite often.), there are lots of magazines and newspapers to read. Our library has comfy couches and chairs to sink into and relax while reading. We also have movies and books on tape for check out and they have free programs open to the public at least once a week. They have craft nights to Civil War presentations to astronomy programs and even magic shows.

We spend lots of time there, along with time at the thrift shops looking around.

[eilen]

64. My Mom and nephew are coming to live with me

So, I won't be spending as much time, money and lost work to travel out of state to visit.

[xmas74]

74. Money in your pocket.

Can't beat that!

[Tennessee Gal]

65. I don't put near as many miles on my car.

Staying home to save money on gasoline has that effect.

[xmas74]

76. Do what I did:

Sell your car to pay off a few bills and then you won't have any gas to worry about!

[oldlib]

67. That is exactly

what my mother did during the Great Depression. We would get a new pair of shoes, and a pair of pants and a shirt, in September, when school started. She canned vegetables and fruit, and did a lot of mending.

[xmas74]

77. People think this is horrible

What's horrible is that some don't even have enough to do that.

I'm proud of the skills I've learned so far!

[rucky]

68. I've learned to do some minor car repairs

and change my own oil.

[xmas74]

78. Not bad

at all. You could always charge a neighbor a couple of bucks to do an oil change and make some money off of it.

[southernyankeebelle]

84. Well you know you can use iron on patches also. Works pretty good.

[xmas74]

85. Not for the wear and tear I put them through.

They just aren't durable enough. I've tried.

[BoWanZi]

97. K&R I fix EVERYTHING I own if possible these days whether it be car, cell, computer, clothing, etc

I have learned how to sew using my wife's sewing machine (she quit using it since her brain injury), fix my own car/truck/motorcycle, repair my own cellphone or other small electronics (ebay is a wealth of cheap parts), fix my own computers, etc etc.

Too poor to do anything else.

I buy lots of stuff at good will and repurpose or repair.

[xmas74]

100. Bravo for you!

I hate the economy and what has happened to many but it does have its positives. I think some of us have learned how to live without the crap we wanted to own. We've learned how to reuse and make use of things that we would have thrown away before. We've learned how to take better care of our things instead of just throwing them away. We've learned how to eat better with less processed food (for those who have given up eating out and those who now garden). We've learned how to entertain ourselves without spending much money.

We're learning some valuable skills and I hope to someday pass them on to my grandchildren, when I have some.