Emergency Repair Kit - Fits in Your Pocket or Glove Box

One of the things I have hated about being in the business world, has been going to meetings, and any traveling that sometimes has to be done.

"Out there", or even just "at work" we don't have access to a sewing machine (or spouse) to do minor repairs to clothing when such is necessary (buttons that pop off, shirt pockets where the seam starts to unravel, etc.).

Well, the way I remedied this was to create a small pocket sized sewing emergency kit (I keep it in the glove compartment, and can retrieve it and pocket it whenever I need it).

Oh sure, you COULD go out and buy one, but what is the fun of that :-) Besides, some of them can be a bit pricey...

Step 1: Gather the Materials

Obviously, one needs the "change purse" in which to hold all the goodies of the sewing kit. Either one of the two kinds I have shown in the introduction, have worked well for me.

Next we will need a variety of items for the kit such as:

a sewing needle, preferably one with a decent sized threading eye
a pen "end cap" (not the writing end, the OTHER end)
some Elmers or all purpose glue (nothing that hardens too rigidly) {items 2 &3 will be explained later on}
Some lengths of thread (some white, some black, some brown, some blue, some yellow)
A small piece (about one by two inches or 2.5 by 5 cm) of card stock cardboard
a few unadorned buttons (one can hold them together with some "cellophane tape")
a "paper" ruler (or cloth measuring tape)
a few small "safetly" pins
and if you can get one cheaply, a small folding pair of scissors, barring that, sometimes a knife will suffice, IF you have it very sharp.

I do NOT recommend getting or using a thimble. They are dangerous, even the metal ones can eventually wear through, or weaken and you could end up pushing the BLUNT end of the needle through your finger or hand. If you need a thimble, you are probably going through much too much material anyway. But, if you must have one, one can use such items as the end caps to (say) number 1 or 2 sized knitting needles, or the tip of an antenna (radio or TV single or rabbit ears) if it screws off. Just make sure it is pretty strong.

Step 2: Making the Bits That Need Constructed

First, the thread holder. Take the cardboard card and cut notches in it about 1/2 apart or so. Do this along the two long edges. This will be where you will wrap a length of thread around. A little "nick" in the card will help hold the loose end and keep it from unraveling. If you can not make enough notches for the thread you have you can make the card a bit longer (just not longer then the "purse"), or move the notches a bit closer together.

The needle. You won't be making a needle, but you do want to keep that point out of harms way until you are ready for it. The Pen cap, as pictured will work for this. Filling the cap with some white glue (like Elmer's or similar) and allowing it to dry will give a stiff medium in which to stick the point. It will also be readily removable also.

As mentioned elsewhere, you can keep the buttons from jostling around and getting lost with a length of cellophane type tape. Lay the buttons, bottom down, on the sticky side of the tape.

If you can not find a needle with a sufficiently large enough eye to manually thread it (this takes a bit of practice), one can use a needle threader as pictured. It is a piece of aluminum with a loop of very fine spring steel wire that you push through the eye, and then the thread gets placed into the loop and you pull that loop back out of the eye and it pulls the thread in through that eye with it.

Other then folding the paper tape measure into a small flat package, your kit is ready to assemble and organize in the small purse (and, those that feel embarrassed by carrying a purse; no one need know you have the purse, if you use it discretely). The safety pins can be run through the cardboard also in order to keep them from flopping about.