Crate cover!!!

So...I usually take the rusty assistant with me to my mom's over the holidays for lots of reasons, but mostly he's spoiled and I can't stand to leave him alone for that long. :) Unfortunately he's HUGE and gets all excited around my young niece so sometimes I have to put him in his crate. Then he cries....because he's a people puppy. So I thought maybe if he couldn't see out of his crate he wouldn't cry as much...out of sight out of mind kind of thing, you know?

So I googled and found this tutorial.

Supplies:

• fabric
• scissors
• measuring tape
• chalk (optional)
• thread
• sewing machine
• And ignore the other things because it didn't work :(

Please ignore the bottom half of this photo :)

"You're making something for me?!?!?!"

 For the most part I followed the directions from the tutorial. So I'll just paste them here :)

TAKE MEASUREMENTS
The first step is to measure the crate surfaces. Areas to measure are the top, the left and right sides, and the front and back. Each will be covered by a separate panel of fabric that you later sew or glue together.

Add an inch and a half (35mm) to each panel width and length to make allowance for your seams and ensure your cover will not be too small.

Put your measurements down on paper in the form of drawings and clearly mark each panel area. If you have quad paper, you can do the drawings to scale (for example, one block equals two inches). You can then cut the paper pieces out and try them in different combinations to help you in figuring out how much fabric you need.

FIND A SUITABLE FABRIC
If you are adding the cover for warmth, find a quilt at a thrift store that you can cut up or an old sleeping bag or two. Be sure to have your measurements and measuring tape with you. Check twice to make sure that you will have enough fabric.

You can also buy quilted fabric or create your own insulating panels by taking two layers of fabric and putting batting in between them. If you choose to do this, pin and sew the three layers together so that you have a complete panel before you try and attach it to the other panels.

CUT OUT THE FABRIC
Use a piece of chalk to mark out the panels on your fabric before you cut it. If need be, pin the fabric to a few layers of newspaper to keep it in alignment before you mark it and start cutting.

SEWING or GLUING SIDES TOGETHER
Here's where you see how easy it is to make a dog crate cover!

• First pin the pieces together inside out
• Note that you will only attach the top end of the front panel - leave the sides unpinned to form a flap
• Try the cover on the crate. Adjust as necessary
• Sew or glue the side panels to the top piece and the back panel
• Sew or glue the top part of the front panel to the top panel
• Finish off the seams along the edges of the front flap
• Put two strips of velcro (the hooked part) on the top panel
• Roll up the front panel
• Add the other half of the velcro strips to it so they match up with the ones on the top panel
• In other words, you want to place the velcro so that when you roll up the front panel, it will stay attached to the top

I realized pretty quickly that I cannot cut fabric in a straight line and that getting the edges right would be greatly assisted by some awesome creases. I thought the iron would be too big, so I used my hair straightener instead!

Quite brilliant if I do say so myself!

Momma...it's late...let's go to sleeeeep!

 I glued the pieces together initially with the fabric glue.

Giant dog = giant crate = giant crate cover...

 Then I thought the fabric glue might not be quite enough so I busted out the old sewing machine...and I do mean old....

Check out the color!!!

 Funny story about this machine. My old roommate (who shall be referred to as Louise to protect her not-so-innocence) and I used this machine to make shirts a few years back. We had been using it for a couple days when it stopped working. The light still came on, but we couldn't get it to do anything else. After a while I unwillingly called my mom to tell her we had broken the sewing machine that had been her mother's and her sister's before she had it...I explained to her that the light still came one, but we couldn't get it to run. We finally figured out that we had to leave the light ON for the sewing machine to work. OOPS!!! We had plenty of light so we always turned the light off before trying to use the machine. Best my a 50's sewing machine...how sad...

Best sewing machine instruction manual EVER!!!

 I somehow managed to finish it!!! I really should take a sewing class in the near future...the cover's a bit rough around the edges...quite literally too!!

TADA!!!

The prisoner...

I also wanted to try this. But...I wanted to avoid Wal-Mart the day before Thanksgiving so I got the closest to lacquer thinner I could find at Hobby Lobby. Total fail. So the Ranger Hangar will have to get its name applied at a later date. Probably very soon because I'm very excited about it!!!