#111 Make Your Own Draft Dodgers

This was a work in process a while back and then I finally finished them today with my daughter. It really doesn't take that long to make these, I just took an extended break in making them because after the first half of the process we needed to go make & eat some lunch and I just finally got back to finishing them since we need them now that it is cold (seriously! we are supposed to get 3-4 inches of snow tomorrow in our part of MN).

Anyways, I don't have a specific pattern for these. I just made length measurements using a standard door frame and added an inch on each end . I cut the width of the fabric at 6 inches, allowing 1/2 inch on each side for seam edges. When I sewed them I tried to make an angled tail because my daughter really thought they needed to look like a snake. Actually, when I was cutting out & sewing these tubes, she really wanted to have her own snake to play with so I used some more of the excess fabric to make small ones. She wanted to have one for her, her brother & some gifts to give friends.

I used fabric that I had bought a long time ago for some other project but never used it. So, it was there taking up space and it was a nice heavyweight with a tight enough weave. The thread was leftover from another sewing project.

We used a funnel & scoop to put the sand in each of these. Then we had our extended break.

Today I stitched the other end and she glue on beads and yarn/pipe cleaners as eyes & tongues. Then we used a bunch of leftover fabric paint we had to put designs on the snakes. We made a total of 8 snakes, 4 small ones (for her, a xmas gift for her brother & 2 gifts for friends) and 4 large ones (2 for us & 2 others to give as gifts.)

The best thing is that we made these just at the cost of the sand. I bought play sand because we used about 1/3 of it to fill these snakes and then we just put the rest of her sand in the sandbox (which was losing it's sand rapidly over the summer.)

I have seen these sell for anywhere from $6-$15 (sometimes even more) in stores. And they are going to help keep drafts from getting through doors (or windows - just make sure you take measurements.) It helps to be able to keep the cold from getting in & cooling the house down during the winter months and will leave you feeling more comfortable.