Ta Daa...Extremely Frugal Project Reveal

In the last few weeks I have been working on a project. This seems to be the way to go if you want to keep your spending down...just make sure you are so busy you don't have a moment to miss going to the shops!

LB and I are lucky to have a campervan - this beast, a Fiat Ducato:

It is not a sexy split-screen VW, but frankly I would rather have a loo and the extra space. We try to make sure we go away in it at least once a month, and now that I am saving, this will be a cheap way to keep life interesting (if it passes it's MOT - keep your fingers crossed!). Diesel is expensive though - it costs £100 to fill up, so we will only be taking it out locally this year. That's OK though - living in Wiltshire we are surrounded by gorgeous countryside, and any time out of the house in the fresh air is still a great break.

The van formerly had two very narrow single beds, but LB's dad and uncle have recently very kindly converted this to a double for us.

This means we needed new cushions as the formation of the mattress was slightly different to the previous two.. LB's dad treated us to some foam, but it was down to me to make the cushion covers. I know from previous experience that upholstery fabric is expensive, and a cursory eBay search revealed the cost would have been approximately £60. Not frugal!

However, I found two pairs of floor length curtains on Freecycle - red, to match the rest of the interior, and lovely thick corduroy fabric. Perfect! They were faded in a few places, but I made sure I cut the fabric around the faded patches, so you would never know.



Then I spent several evenings and most of a weekend bending the sewing machine. Thank god for BBC iPlayer, even if I am busted for watching EastEnders! I am no expert with the sewing machine, but it really is as simple as cutting out panels the same side as each face of the square foam cushion (plus 2cm seam allowance around the edge), pinning the seams, and sewing them together.

I had to leave a seam unsewn to allow me to stuff the foam into the covers. Leaving them stacked up in the Living room meant I couldn't procrastinate as by this point I was sick of the sight of them.

(Might have stacked them on top of the dogs bed...oops!)

Then started several evenings in front of the TV, of pulling the seam tight, pinning it and slip-stitching the seam shut. I could have gone for zips, but that would have blown the budget. If I really do have to wash these covers, I can always unpick and stitch them up again.

Ta Daaa.... finished:

I know it may look like these are the wrong size from this photo - however, they all fit together like a jigsaw to form a perfect double bed when the wooden slats are pulled out.

 

They aren't perfect - I can see a wonky seam from here, but they will do just fine. They mean we now have use of the campervan back, and all for the princely sum of £1.55. the cost of a reel of black cotton and my time.

 

Now that's what I call frugal.