Sunday, May 5, 2013

Homemade Swiffer Duster

About a month ago I did a post about a homemade dusting spray.  My final line in that post was,
"It also works well with my homemade Swiffer, but that will have to wait for another post, to be continued...."

I had planned on continuing that post a week later.  You can see how well that panned out.  I've done enough posts now that they are all starting to jumble together and I'm forgetting what I've posted about.

So without further ado, here is the highly anticipated (or quickly forgotten) review for my homemade Swiffer

Homemade Swiffer or another Homemade Swiffer (they are both good tutorials)
You will need:
A sewing machine
A Swiffer wand
Fabric (microfiber and fleece seem to be the most popular when I looked at all the tutorials)
Scissors

Directions:
Cut 2 pieces of microfiber cloth into 4 inch by 6 inch pieces.  Cut 2  pieces of microfiber cloth into 8 inch by 8 inch pieces.  Place one of the small pieces of cloth on top of each of the larger pieces.  Sew each small piece to the top of each large piece. Right down the center.  Place the two large cloths together with the two small pieces facing out.  Fold the small piece of cloth to the side. (both the small pieces to the same side) Sew the large pieces together leaving a  1 & 1/4 X 6 inch slot for the handle to slide into. Cut the cloth into fringe around the Swiffer holder

Before I get into my quick step by step process, let me warn you that my sewing skills are awful.  Want proof? I bet you can't guess what this is suppose to be...
Give up? A pair of boxers that I made in 9th grade.  Yes, I really do have awesome sewing skills.

So with that in mind, you aren't allowed to mock my sewing job on the Swiffer I made..... ok you really are, but only as long as I can join in on the mocking.

I decided to do fleece, since that is what I had on hand.  I grabbed a Swiffer and used that to measure my first piece. 

I then cut out three more pieces, each one smaller then the next.  Apparently my cutting skills are just as awesome as my sewing skills. 


 I placed my Swiffer handle on the fabric and traced it then I sewed on the lines.


Here is where my really fantastic sewing skills came in handy.  By hand, I sewed the top two pieces together and the bottom two pieces together so it would be easy to put the Swiffer handle in. 

 I then cut all around the edge and voila!  It's ready to go.
 The Verdict: If you have used a Swiffer then you know that there is something on it.  Something that helps the dust get collected then stay put. So it wasn't a big surprise to me when this homemade version only succeeded in pushing the dust around.  I ran around and dusted my family room and when I was done the homemade Swiffer looked brand new.  There wasn't a speck of dust on it.  The dust was currently floating around in the air trying to find another victim to land on.

However, when I spray it with my homemade dusting spray, it works pretty good.  Not as good as a store bought Swiffer, but the money I save by having a reusable duster is worth it. 

 Maybe I can use that saved money for sewing lessons.


3 comments:

  1. it's "voila" not viola..... which is the name of a musical instrument.. lol cute sewing by the way. ;)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for pointing that out. I'm sure I have many MANY other typos.

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  2. Your boxers were fabulous, I serged the bottom (where your legs come out) shut. I had the makings of a pillow in the shape of shorts ;) I feel your pain. Glad to see I wasn't the only one that had no idea what they were doing. I wonder if the Swiffer ones are static charged? The dust just seems to suck right into it, maybe shuffle across the carpet or rub it on a balloon before using them?

    Sarah
    Fort McMurray, AB Canada

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