Seamless Sailor is delighted to provide this guest post by Lin and Larry Pardey – world cruisers, authors, and speakers. They inspire other cruisers by generously sharing their experience and knowledge. I love how Lin and Larry find just the right solution in self-reliant Seamless Sailor style. Here's one solution that all Seamless Sailors can use...
By Lin and Larry Pardey©
From – The Cost Conscious Cruiser
THE BETTER BUCKET
It is such a simple chore, lifting water from the sea. Seems like any old bucket should work. But at sea, nothing is ever that simple. You’ve just caught a glowing, leaping, 18-pound mahi-mahi (dorado). Your luck holds and you land it flapping, glorious gold and royal blue. The battle over, the fish subdued,
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Countdown - 10 Things I'm Glad We Invested In
These are mostly Seamless Sailor related but then I can argue that anything that contributes to our improved life aboard counts as a great investment. Here's our list of things that have been worth investing some money into. These items have improved our time on the water. What would be on your list of worthy tools and investments for the boat?
10. Metal T-square and heavy duty scissors for patterning and engineering marine canvas projects
9. Hot knife for sealing marine canvas edges
8. Porter Cable multi tool - It was actually a gift.
7. Wireless booster
6. Freezer - We made our second box into a full freezer space.
5. Settees recovered in Ultraleather
4. Rocna anchor 
Does your boat smell? Have boat halitosis? Do you come off the boat and people take a whiff and look at you funny? Dreaded boat smell. At one point I was told to live with it. Boats Smell. I didn't want to be condemned to boat smell if this is my home. The hunt was on to get at the moldy stuffiness. Here's what I'm doing to minimize boat smell starting with the least expensive options. I've got it on the run...
1. Get fresh air flowing through the boat as often as possible.
Whenever I can.
2. Take out, wash or dry clean any old, mildew-y fabric (e.g., curtains, cushion covers, bedspreads, blankets, pillows, etc). Marine canvas seems to really hold on to smells.
Yup. If you follow this blog you'll read 
Here's some tips for making a duvet cover for your boat.
1. Look at the shape of your mattress and find the closest standard size to start. We are fortunate that our mattress on board is pretty close to a full size. The foot cuts in a bit but not too much. The chart will help determine the amount of fabric needed. You may want to take the boat mattress and make a pattern out of brown paper or an inexpensive shower curtain that way you can account for any odd angles. Allow about 12"of overhang depending on how deep your mattress is, how much space you have on the side of the berth or if you are going to tuck the coverunder the mattress. (You see that a lot on those big fancy yachts!)
NOTE: The above chart is for one side. 
Originally published as a guest post on The Boat Galley, February 20, 2013
What linens do you need to provision for use in the galley, clean up, and dining? While you can buy linens, they may not be exactly what you want or your style. It's not hard to make your own linens for your boat. Besides it's a great way to save some money. Practical and self-sufficient. That's the essence of being a Seamless Sailor. Here is a checklist eight types of linens that every Seamless Sailor should consider having in inventory.
1.. Kitchen towels - I like to have plenty of these - a fresh one every day or so depending on how much cooking we are doing. Any inexpensive bar or kitchen towel will do. No need to use paper towels all the time. 
In February 2013 I went into a fun shop at Mongoose Junction in Cruz Bay, St John. Fabric Mill. The proprietor had some beautiful batik fabrics and really cute casual clothes. Wouldn't it be fun to collect fabrics along the way to make interesting souvenirs?
http://www.mongoosejunctionstjohn.com/stores/fabric_mill.html
Have you found a shop in an interesting place selling interesting fabrics? Why don't we try to collect names and pictures of fabric stores with unique offerings in our travels? We all know the "big name" stores and they serve a great purpose. Maybe we could support smaller unique stores as well for unique items. (I asked the proprietor if I could take this picture and she really appreciated being asked so