Shopping moratorium and first dye job

On September 13, I challenged myself to a 6-month shopping moratorium. "Why in god's name would anyone do that?", you may ask. Well, I'd like to know that I'm not that much of a shopaholic and I know Rich is secretly excited that he won't have to worry about my shopping habits for a few months.

OK, there would have to be some rules. Here's how it has ended up:

1. No new clothing or accessories purchases for 6 months (starting September 13, 2009, ending March 13, 2010)

2. Exception 1: I get to buy a bag I've been watching for on Etsy.com for months, if it becomes available (one must have their limits!)

3. Exception 2: I can spend gift certificates or gifts of cash on whatever I like, including clothing and accessories

4. Exception 3: I can DIY (sew, dye) during this period

That's basically it! So, I'm more than a week onto my challenge and, so far, still holding up fine. I think things will start getting more challenging around Christmas and February sales. Wow, six months is a long time...

This brings me to my first DIY project since the challenge. I have been wanting to try dying something for the longest time and when I noticed my cotton Old Navy trench getting a little discoloured I thought it would be the perfect thing to try.

I got myself 4 tins of Dylon #7 (coffee), mixed those into a pint of boiling water with 4oz of salt. Put water in a big pot on the stove. Washed my trench and left it damp. Added the dye mixture to the now hot water on the stove. Put the trench in and stirred it and poked it with the water on high heat for 20 minutes. Rinsed the trench until the water ran clear and hung it up in the basement to dry. That's it! Easy!

I have to say that I'm stunned at how well the fabric took the dye! The polyester thread shows up as contrast and I need to add new buttons (and I wish I had thought to dye a bit of cotton to make a belt!) but I'm pleased with how it turned out. I can't wait for it to dry so that I can post a picture of the final product!