Our households are stuffed with all sorts of fabric and textile materials. And like all other household items like toasters and sinks, there is a common theme: they break, or in this case, tear or rip. But when our car has a flat tire, we don't toss out the car. We patch on a new tire and continue on our way.

The same case can be made for fabrics, but usually if there is a rip in our favorite shirt, we just toss it out. And doing so ends up costing us money, when there is a much easier solution.

Ready for it?

It's called sewing.

Don't stop reading yet; sewing isn't just for grandmothers or great aunts who liked to make cute bunny slippers for your five-year old self. Sewing—as well as knitting and crocheting—are valuable skills that can be likened to the importance of learning how to fix a leaky sink or changing oil. You can call the plumber or take your car to an autostore, but again, why spend money when you can just do it yourself?

And as there are fabrics of all types in our household, learning the arts of creating textiles not only saves you money, but also brings uniqueness to your wardrobe, house, and personality as well.

Design Cute Clothing for You and Your Family

For your wardrobe, you can hem jeans, replace buttons, and fix a seam. But you can also tailor your clothes to fit your own body type, which makes you look trimmer and neater as it suits your shape and isn't baggy. Or you can create your own wardrobe and design your own style, so your clothes are one-of-a-kind and personalized.

And its always a useful skill to have. I once knew a girl who had the skill to create a sweater out of an airplane blanket and make it look natural and cute—while even keeping her warm. Being resourceful helps cut down your clothing purchases and can be helpful in times where you need an impromptu article of clothing.

Household Décor

As the old adage states, home is where the heart is. So why not decorate your special place with your own personal touches? Take advantage of home décor through sewing. You can create your own throw pillows, children's bedsheets, quilts for the guest bedroom, and more. This will add that personal touch to your house and can also be a proud moment when friends come over and see your cute designs.

Not to mention you can also update the fabric to give it a more modern, artistic design. Recently my mother-in-law and myself reupholstered old dining room chairs with cute fabric, and they look like something you'd find in Hobby Lobby—new and chic.

Crafts and Personality

You ever know that child who becomes attached to their airplane blanket or won't redress their doll because they love their doll's outfit too much? Children love unique items. You can make capes for their imaginary adventures, outfits for dolls, bedsheets and pillow cases of their favorite animals, and even halloween costumes of that obscure television show character you won't find in stores but your kids just have to be. 

You can also create crafts for holidays, be it table clothes stitched with fabric leaves for Thanskgiving, Halloween bags and banners, and Christmas hot pads or plush wreathes. Knitted or crocheted beanies, gloves, scarves, and even small bags and purses are also just a few of many examples of creative things you can do with this fun art.

Sewing, knitting, and crocheting are important arts that many people overlook. At CEWT, some of the classes we are offering are crocheting, quilting, and even a beginning fashion design course this summer. Check out these classes and more at cetrain.isu.edu or call (208) 282-3372 for more information.