Tag Archives: non sew-er

Screen Out the Bugs – Port Lights and Hatches

We had a bad case of the flies in July in the Bay.  It took several days to get them all.  But, we got them!  Now how to avoid those buggers in the future?  My sailing friends know that I've complained about flies before and haven't had a good solution for our boat.  Our 1990 Morgan 44 didn't come with screens on the plastic-frame portlights.  I envy my friends with the lovely stainless portlights with screens built in.  But, you can't have it all. Boats are about compromise. I looked at marine consignment shops for screens and found some, but none were right.  I thought of a couple of ideas for working with old screens and those ideas didn't cut it. They had gaps or wouldn't stay in place. I decided to try the stiff plastic mesh canvas Read more [...]
The Better Bucket

The Better Bucket

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, Read more [...]

Sitting in the Catbird Seat

Recently both Good Old Boat and Sailrite provided ideas for covering pushpit rails and catbird seats.  Simple and straightforward, you too could be sitting pretty. Good Old Boat (March/April 2013 issue) had an article on covering catbird seats by Clarence Jones that is easy enough for a non sewer. He used iron on fabric mending tape to create the seams and snaps to hold the cover on. Sailrite just did a video too.  They sewed the hems and used Velcro to fasten the cover. They both used home foam insulation underneath. Either way would make a nice comfortable perch for any catbird. March 2013 Blog Dedication: This post is dedicated to my cat, Stella, who will not be cruising with us as she has gone to the rainbow bridge Read more [...]

Pillows

Pillows are an easy sewing project.  They can be very simple or dressed up a bit.  Where would you want to add a bit of color and comfort? Start with your pillow form. What size do you want?  14" is small but cute.  20" is a good larger size. Maybe you want some in between or odd sizes? Joanne's Fabrics and Sailrite offer nice pillow forms.  Do you have serviceable pillows you could recover?  Or do you want a pillow sham that you can stuff with extra linens or clothes?  The captain requested one pillow cover for storing his down coat. What about a pillow made of old sailcloth for cockpit lounging? Are you going to sew in the pillow form or make a cover that you can take off easily?  You can easily make an envelope-style pillow Read more [...]

Five Tips Every Seamless Sailor Should Know About Canvas On Her Boat!

Originally appeared as a guest post for Women and Cruising Blog - October 18, 2012 Anyone else have canvas on her boat? Yes?! I do.  Lots of it. Big and small.  Canvas is important protective covering for your boat. It saves you money and time by protecting teak from the sun, keeping dirt out of your winches and instruments, and keeping you cool at anchor. Can you guess how many different canvas items you have on board? Quick without looking.  I counted 20+ unique items with some items having multiples in use at any given time on our Morgan sailboat, Magnolia.  That doesn't count functional and decorative fabrics below.  And I have plans to add more canvas on my growing sewing projects list! How many unique canvas items can you Read more [...]