Kids

My son has an orchestra concert. Tomorrow.

So today – he tries on THE PANTS.

You know – the formal attire typically worn twice a year by the average 11 year old.

I crossed my fingers and held my breath – but maybe he should have held his – because the waist was too tight, and the length was too long.

Darn hand me downs.

Ok – moving into emergency mode.

The button is a little metal hook and bar number. So if I move the bar a little further out we could get enough room.

I’m no seamstress but maybe I can handle this.

But it doesn’t look like it’s sewed. I mean – I’m not seeing any thread here.

Sure enough – I rip out the seam and find that I need TOOLS for this button. It’s kind of like a paper fastener thingy that goes through the fabric.

Wow.

Hammer, pliers, and screwdriver – yes, I said screwdriver do the trick.

Now for the length.

Hemming pants is not for the faint of heart.

So I find this roll of stuff that my mother gave me years ago. I think it might be Stitch Witchery.

I hope it might be Stitch Witchery.

So I cut a length equal to the leg opening, fold it over once and start to iron.

Nothing’s happening.

Maybe this really isn’t Stitch Witchery anyway.

So I get the bright idea to test it out. Let me just iron a little piece directly and see what happens.

Don’t try this at home. What happens is that the Stitch Witchery tape actually melts all over the bottom of the iron – making it extremely sticky and not really usable.

But I persevere and manage to get it all off with an old towel.

Aha – so maybe the iron isn’t hot enough.

I turn up the iron to HIGH/COTTON – the only problem is that the pants are synthetic.

Don’t try this at home. What happens is that you just might end up melting THE PANTS.

I’m sure no one will notice that little spot.

But being the smart person that I am – I get a new bright idea: How about I Google “How to use Stitch Witchery” – now there’s a novel thought.

And the solution: Steam.

Puff a little steam on the tape to make it tacky. Place the fold of fabric that you want to glue together on top, cover with a slightly damp cloth, and then iron on Wool with even more Steam for about 10 seconds.

Hello.

Yeah – I should have done this in the first place.

And now we are all set for tomorrow.

But don’t even ask me about THE SHIRT.