#molly mutt

ah, pinterest. our old friend is a wealth of diy inspiration. granted, most of it we would never in a million years do, but it’s inspiring none-the-less. in reality, we believe the basic criteria to a good diy idea are these three things: do we like it? yes. do we need it? maybe. is it easy? absolutely!

that said, below are four wonderful (and easy) ways to upcycle your clothes to make your dog happy!

1// diy dog collar from petfinder

this idea is so easy you don’t even need written directions. just follow the one step below (two if you count buttoning as a step, which obviously we don’t) and your dog will be more dapper than ever.

2// diy ball and tug toy from yesmissy.com

never ones to miss out on a chance to chase, tug and chew, our pups love this toy. it’s definitely not for heavy chewers, unless you make it out of very tough material like denim, but it’s easy to make, smells like you and keeps a little cash in your pocket. win, win, win.

3// diy dog sweater from diy gift world

this might be our favorite of the bunch. definitely for small dogs, a quick snip off your sleeve and you’re in business.

4// diy dog boots from romp rescue

okay, we may have broken our rules just little bit on this one. not quite as easy as the first three, it definitely requires a little bit of skill. but we love this one – it keeps your dog’s paws safe from the cold, ice and salt in the winter, and the heat in the summer.

this is still one of my favorite songs – it reminds me of summer & writing in journals, and feeling like i would never be a grown up…(and then you become an adult & it’s all “youth is wasted on the young.”  i used to hate when my parents said that, and recently i actually heard myself say the same thing.  oy.) thank you r.e.m. for this song!

did you know when you tag your instagram photos with #mollymutt?  that’s what these guys did & we love it!!!

when your dog bed has seen better days & you are ready to get a new one – make a few zipper pouches out of the old one! depending on the size duvet you have, and how big you want to make your bag, you can make anywhere from 6 – a lot of zipper pouches!before you can really get started, you need to rip apart your old duvet. all you need to do is cut through the piping & cut all the way around, so you can get 2 large pieces of fabric (one from the top, one from the bottom.) (you can also salvage the 5” gusset, and use it for another project in the future!)

supplies zipper – you can use any size, for this tutorial, i used a 9” zipper.

outer fabric (cut from your dog bed) based on the length of your zipper, cut 2 panels out of your old dog duvet. for instance-if you have a 9” zipper, cut 2 pieces of fabric 9” wide by whatever length suits you! for this tutorial, i made the length 6”. i cut 2 pieces that are 9” x 6”.

lining fabric choose a thin cotton as your interior-otherwise it will be difficult to sew the zipper on. cut the same size as the outer fabric.

zipper end covers (use the lining fabric for these) 1.5” x 3” – cut 2

instructions take your zipper end cover and iron in half. and then iron a 1/4” seam on both sides.

cover the end of your zipper & sew along the edge, to seal the ends. do this with the other zipper end cover too.

make a fabric sandwich. lay the outer fabric face up. lay the zipper face down on top of that. lay the lining fabric on top of that, face down. all you want to align is the top of these 3 items.  you will notice that the top of the zipper end covers will peek over the top, which is fine.  sew along the zipper using your zipper foot.

flip the outer fabric over, and iron right by the zipper teeth. it will look like this.

zipper sandwich part 2 (you’re almost there!) lay your other piece of outer fabric face up. lay the zipper (with the other bits sewn on it) face down along the edge that has not be sewn. lay the lining fabric on top, face down. remember, just align the tops of these 3 pieces. when you are done, iron again & top stitch for an extra classy look.

now it’s time to wrap it up! open the zipper half way (this is for later, but do it now!)

take the two outer pieces and pin them together, good sides facing each other. the zipper will be folded at the teeth. now pin the lining fabric together. you are going to sew all the way around (leaving a 2” gap at the bottom of the lining, so you can turn everything)

upcycling, also known as creative reuse, is the repurposing of useless or unwanted items in a new (and often better) way. and to be candid, there is no downside to upcycling – it’s all up! molly mutt was born on the concept of upcycling, and we have the maker faire to thank for that.

in the spring of 2008 we knew that we wanted to develop a dog bed cover that would be long-lasting, attractive, and awesome. the challenge we were having was that unlike human beds with standardized sizes (king. queen, full, twin) there is no such thing in the dog bed world. what one dog bed company called “medium” was a different dimension from what another company was selling. awesome.

so, off we went to the maker faire and there we encountered some really fantastic and creative minds. there were techies and robot makers. home-grown space travelers and publishers. the common theme at the event was creativity and using, or re-using, items in creative ways! we had found an inspirational never-never land!

down one aisle were some of the coolest looking clothes we’d ever seen. “this is re-fashioning,” the creator said. “even after we donate millions of articles of clothing every year to goodwill and others, amercians still throw away tons of clothing – textiles make up as much as 7% of our landfills. our mission is to save some of those textiles, cut them up, and piece together new clothes that might appeal to someone.”

we soon learned that upcycling has four enormous benefits:

Upcycling keeps discarded materials and waste from ever entering the landfill.

Upcycling is even better than recycling: upcycling requires no additional energy or process to transform the article for re-use. This means reduced air pollution, water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Upcycling allows you to keep the items you love, breathing new life and usefulness into them.

Upcycling saves our communities’ money, reducing costs associated with recycling and landfill management.

we knew that dogs love to sleep on top of a pile of laundry (who doesn’t?!), but it was at the maker faire we realized just how many fabrics everyone has in closets, drawers and garages that are no longer needed or used.

and as we walked away from the re-fashioning booth the idea struck: if we could develop a mesh bag that was durable enough to hold these unused items, we could shape that bag to form the mattress sizes we needed. the mesh would allow everything to be washable without having to be taken out of the cover. the best part is that anyone could do it – we’d save them a lot of money, and their dogs would be thrilled to sleep where they always wanted to be.

it’s not an exaggeration to say that without learning about upcycling and re-fashioning there might not be a molly mutt. in our very small way, we know we’ve made pets happier, and kept lots of textiles from becoming part of the waste stream.

to see some great re-fashioning ideas, check out this pinterest board.

if you love learning about the creative process and interacting with talented folks – you should consider attending one of the maker faire events.  who knows what you could create by attending a maker faire and rubbing elbows with really creative and open people!

and visit upcycle that to learn more about upcycling.

“and i dreamed a dream for you, and now that dream is real”

i remember singing this song at the top of my lungs, windows down, knowing this love is the stuff of dreams, only found with very few people. and yet, when it comes to these furry ones we fall head over heels every time. our sweet pups bring light and joy and laughter into our days. our pattern of the month – the romeo & juliet duvet – brings this love to life in a rich navy blue pattern that offers your loved one a perfect place for dreams of their own.

sweet pup, i’d do the stars with you any time.

you can find more pictures of these fabulous pups at the following ig accounts in order of listing: @salve_61, @naturallabeauty, @sharonsteinman, @lownslow, @taxar and @samuelcaymusthegolden.

dog beds come in so many shapes and sizes, but the best kind of bed is the one you can customize to be safe, clean, comfortable and smelling just like you!

instead of foam, polystyrene or cotton batting, all of which are hard to clean and may contain toxic chemicals, using a molly mutt duvet lets you use fabrics you know from around the house. get a little creative and upcycle all the fabrics you love to make a dog bed that is completely washable and made just for your pup.

need a little creative push? here are some of our favorite items we use to stuff our duvets – you can mix, match and use as much as you want to make the bed the perfect nest for your dog’s next nap:

clothes:

sweaters

t-shirts

sweatshirts/pants

pajamas

robes

fleece coats

pillows:

bed pillows

body pillows

couch cushions

couch pillow inserts

bedding:

blankets

quilts

sheets

foam bed toppers

old dog beds

bath:

bath towels

bath mats

beach towels

wash cloths

hand towels

random:

aprons

stuffed animals

curtains

area rugs

tablecloths

need a little more help? check out our stuff your bed page for all of our duvet dimensions and example “recipes” of stuffing that will fill each one. it’s as easy as stuff. sniff. snooze.

“and every once in a while i’d sing a song for you that would rise above the mountains and the stars and the sea and if i wanted it to it would lead you back to me”

we can always feel the love we have for our dogs, even in the stormy days life can bring. a love so strong that at times we feel like we could roar – an explosion of emotion for these little warm bodies that change our lives and give us a place to call home.

in one of our favorite duvets, bows and arrows point the way to where our hearts lie in this pattern inspired by lake tahoe style. our lion’s roar duvet, with its rugged mix of dark grey, yellow, mint & white, is sure to hit the bullseye in any room!

you can find more pictures of these beautiful pups on their instagram accounts, in order from left to right: @doghaironmylife, @walter.the.weiner, @i_dream_of_gemma, @ashb610, @rigbythetripawd, and @ned_bark. a big thanks to each of them for being molly mutt fans!