5 crafty uses for a mismatched sock: #5 therapeutic eye mask / headache soother

Few things in the world are more confounding then the world wide sensation of the missing sock. You know it and I know it.  Two socks go in and one sock comes out.  I have in the past searched and double checked the machines.  Now I don't even bother.  It's time to rethink this as not a loss but instead an opportunity!  Check out my top 5 uses for a mismatched sock...

5) After facing the stress of continual annoyances use that sock to make a therapeutic eye mask or headache soother.

Let's face it, it's clean it just came out of the wash.  Fill about 2/3rds with either rice or flax seeds, add dried lavender or some drops of essential oils, and sew it or  just tie the end. Use as is OR they can be put in the freezer or even warmed up in the microwave (just be careful cause I worry though have never seen it catch fire).  More detailed instructions for therapeutic eye mask or headache soother.

5 crafty uses for a mismatched sock: #4 make wacky creatures

Sewing is a great skill that needs to be practiced.  Socks are great because they are a very forgiving material, and easy to manipulate.  There are so many specific tutorials on making various creatures but you can also just get some stuffing, some random sock(s) and start messing around.  This is a great activity to do with kids so they can learn too!  If sewing scares you forget about it and just cut and stuff!  Look at this no sew octopus!

5 crafty uses for a mismatched sock: #3 Play games like Sock Wars!

Don't buy a thing when you want to arrange for a groups of people to have fun!  Play these games :) NOT only are they great exercise and fun they can take as long as you want them to. Now there are two ways to play sock wars and they are not to be confused.

The first and preferred way is to crawl around on your knees with no shoes on in a cleared area and try to snag others peoples socks and NOT have yours snagged.  Why mismatched socks, well because this game is played best if everyone has clean socks, not ones that have been sweated in all day!  Most times this game goes better if each player has already pulled their sock an inch off of their toes otherwise toes can be wrenched!

This group got quite rowdy, let me just emphasize if you require everyone to crawl there is a lot less of a distance to fall...

The second and much more likely to hurt game is definitely the preferred sock war for adolescents.  In this game you take your mismatched never to be the same again socks and put in a 1/2 cup of flour in the sock toe and wear a black shirt.  This game's rules are basically like capture the flag but tagging is done with a wap from the sock! The black shirt increases the visibility of each hit and can still be easily erased if your game rules allow for multiple hits. As is best with most games, start off with the concept and ask the members to agree to the rules, funny how everyone has slightly different rules to play by.

5 crafty uses for a mismatched sock: #2 useful and fashionable accesories

Socks can be fashioned from everything from glamour finger-less gloves to coin purses to Mp3 holders for running and hair accessories!

Glamour gloves can take minutes or longer.  The glove part is easy, cut the ends and a thumb hole, try them on to determine where they need to be cut.  At this point they are great wrist warmers.  However I have seen young people just go nuts and and and add everything from buttons to tons of eyeballs for whatever look they want.

Coin purses, mostly made out of baby socks  and let me tell you, those are always mismatched baby socks about as my kids felt toes were for fiddling and I couldn't believe how many times I noticed we were down a sock.  No laundry machine to blame this time!  This does require you to get the clasp; follow this link for more instructions.

The simplest no sew method to make this Mp3 holder is that you simply cut a tube sock and put it on your arm and fold the bottom of the sock back over your device,  

There are  "sew" designs that are great and they are so easy to wash and take so little time to make that making multiple ones either to match your outfit or even to accommodate a different device is a snap. Socks are so stretchy that I have made one of these that fit many devices!   It took me about 10 minutes using these instructions.  Once again, totally an opportunity to take this project and customize it.  I made one for a friend to put on her walker :)

Socks make great donuts for buns.  All you do is cut off the toe and roll it down.  I've had super long as well as middle length hair and this worked with all my lengths (except the Pixie cut which was not bun friendly)

5 crafty uses for a mismatched sock: #1 around the house and simple gifts

Socks can be used to ward of a draft from a door, or to clean and also make lovely simple gifts like wine bottle or pot covers.

Depending on  your door you could use several socks for this activity.  Basically fill your sock with everything from batting and popcorn to heavier duty materials.  I have a friend who fills these with cat litter and uses them whenever water could be coming in either because he is cleaning the outside of his house or to keep out rain and rising water in the intense storms we have here in Florida.  To add a sock just slip the toe of one sock into the top of another.  You can sew them or use fabric glue and knot the final end. Check out more in depth instructions here.

Socks make great "cleaning gloves" and can even replace Swiffer refills.  

I often get special holiday socks, especially around Christmas time.  I'm sure there are a lot of people who would love to wear that but I end of with a drawer of unused holiday socks.  Consider "wrapping" a bottle of wine in one of these festive socks.  To be honest I've seen some covers that were just plain socks and they were great, or add a ribbon.

Really you can dress most things up as long as they are the right dimension: small flower pots, various hot beverage cups, or even a festive birdseed filled sock to weight down balloons! 

T Shirt Surgery: the fringe

Have you ever gotten a t-shirt but then realized it was just  too tight around the hips.  I was forced to wonder, "Do I have a deformed figure?" If you have a shirt you just wanna wear or for some purpose have to wear consider t-shirt surgery.  No sewing required although sharp scissors and a willingness to experiment are a must!

If your shirt fits nicely EXCEPT that it is tight around your derriere or hips simply try on your shirt and put a clothespin right where it gets snug.  Take it off and lay it flat.  Cut straight up about 1/4 inch apart fringing the bottom.  After you have finished cutting you can pull straight down gently on each strip and the t-shirt material will roll making it swing better.  Feel free to knot, bead or otherwise weave the fringe.