When I was layering up to do a run in the 12F/-11C windchill last week, I realized I didn’t have my mittens or neck gaiter with me.  Both were a must for those bitter cold conditions.  So, I took a sweatshirt from the rag pile, and made some quick homemade mitts.  Then I took a long sleeved tshirt from the same pile, and made a neck gaiter from the sleeve.  With about 15 minutes of cutting and sewing, I had what I needed to brave the elements for a 3.5-miler.

Neck Gaiter:

(And yes, those are my favorite sewing scissors, a gift from my grandma.  They will cut layers of denim, or a single layer of tricot with precision.)

This is what the gaiter looked like after my run.  It didn’t stay up on its own.  I had to keep pulling it up over my nose.  But with that little bit of assistance, it did its job.

Sleeve Mittens: 

Turned inside out after sewing across the large open end to close it.

The length compared to my hand and forearm.  It was about an inch too long, and left too much mitten at my fingertips.

So, after my run I cut an inch off the end and re-sewed it shut.

The finished product.  The mittens worked great.

With the mittens, I might experiment with adding a large buttonhole for the thumb to stick out.  That will allow me to more easily use my hands when needed, without having take the mittens off.

Janathon blogs:

http://cjhenderson79.blogspot.co.uk/  Impressive Janathon totals.  Hilarious mention of two girls at the gym wearing polo shirts under another top.  Haha!

http://jameskennell.com/  In his own words, “A blog on tourism, events, regeneration and economic development.”  Mention of the London Marathon.  Several blog entries on the London Olympics.  I wonder if I’m the only one who is still going through Olympics withdrawal.  They were the best Olympics ever.

http://benjiboyw.blogspot.co.uk/  Goal of Brighton Marathon in April.  Nice running diary with maps.  Very nice page banner image.

http://juliesthreads.blogspot.com/  A diary of crochet and exercise.  Very nice combination of passions.

http://fitfor365.wordpress.com/  Concise running diary entries with inspiring quotes.

http://runrencerun.blogspot.co.uk/  Someone else who has posted photos to illustrate the lack of color in the landscape.  It is a lovely collage.  Well, except for the muddy socks, haha!  Impressive running bling, too.