Help! Someone!
I have an Emergency Domestic Situation!
No, I'm not being beaten about the head and face with the closed fists of a man who says he loves me and that this is the last time he will ever do this to me.
No, there's not an electrical fire in the kitchen and I don't know whether to put it out with water or baking soda or a box of cereal or just run out of the house, flailing my arms, hoping to flag down the nearest handsome fireman.
No, my adorable four-year-old son is not jumping up and down like a fucking miniature maniac on a plastic squeeze bottle of chocolate sauce in our white-carpeted living room. (The Stanley Steemer commercial that depicts that horrifying scenario will eventually cause me to suffer a stroke and/or aneurysm. Or cause me to find that kid and force him to lick the carpet clean with his tongue.)
My problem is worse. Far more serious. Far more pressing. I don't know what to do.
What is causing me so much chagrin? What is making me drop to me knees, shake my fists up to the heavens and down to the hell(s?), and plead with a higher or lower power to "please help, oh please, I'll do anything you say!" if only I can be relieved of my burden?
This: The drawstring came out of one my favorite pairs of yoga pants!
Can anyone tell me how to put it back in? Do I use a hanger? A knitting needle? Telepathy? Chocolate sauce?
Any McGyvers out there who can help a damsel in entirely too much distress?
fresh-baked at 01:41 PMMy suggestion would be to attach a large safety pin to one end and use that to guide the drawstring back through the casing. That is how my mother, who is an excellent seamstress, feeds all drawstrings through items that she makes. It also helps to gather the casing together as much as possible so that you can feed the cord through more of it at a time.
Offered by: revolution9 on October 4, 2002 01:47 PMSafety pin through one end and then use that to work the string back through.
Offered by: Chris on October 4, 2002 01:48 PMDamn, beat to the punch.
Offered by: Chris on October 4, 2002 01:48 PMIt's unanimous, then.
Offered by: revolution9 on October 4, 2002 01:50 PMTake it to the cleaners/tailor and let them do the work.
Offered by: Suzy on October 4, 2002 01:53 PMI was going to rush to your rescue and tell you the ancient buddhist secret of attaching a safety pin to one and, but...
Offered by: kelly on October 4, 2002 01:54 PMGet a team of specially-trained knitting donkeys to make you a new pair. That one's ruined.
Offered by: aaron on October 4, 2002 02:03 PMChris beat me to it.
Offered by: Nancy on October 4, 2002 02:22 PMSafety pin, yup.
Offered by: Desert Mermaid on October 4, 2002 02:24 PMDarling! Just...buy a new pair. My God! You're passing up an opportunity to shop!
Offered by: Mad Genius on October 4, 2002 02:45 PMOh, Jodi. However do you survive in this big harsh world without these simple domestic skills? Shame on your mother for not teaching you these things. ;)
Offered by: maddy on October 4, 2002 02:48 PMUmm... how is it that everyone knows the safety pin trick but you Jodi? Are you sure your ivory tower isn't on the upper east side? Is it the maid's day off?
Offered by: Chris on October 4, 2002 02:49 PMI didn't know that trick either Jodi. You're not alone!
Offered by: Yolanda on October 4, 2002 03:53 PMI was so excited to be able to tell you about the amazing safety pin trick...but I at the end of a long line!
Offered by: anne_nyc on October 4, 2002 03:55 PMI must be a martha steward dork cos I immediately thought "elastic feeder"--a grabby tool that I use for feeding elastic and cords through little purses I sew. A safety pin never even crossed my mind.
Offered by: Sassy McSmartpants on October 4, 2002 05:01 PMA straw will also do the trick, and easier than a safety pin even. Notch the straw enough to hold the string so it wont come out in transit. two or three nudges through the pants. Voila.
Offered by: Danelle on October 5, 2002 02:06 AMHave you ever heard of using a safety pin attached to the drawstring and then woven thru the casing till it comes out the other end?
Oooops, I guess you do know.........
Offered by: Lorraine on October 5, 2002 08:43 AMOMG! I seriously thought that I had invented the safety pin trick. What else have I "invented?"
I'm completely disillusioned.
Safety pins and chopsticks -- you've got to keep them in stock if you're going to own yoga pants, woman.
Offered by: Kelly on October 6, 2002 08:46 PMI was going to mention the safety pin trick as well but I have a question about the the elastic feeder that Sassy McSmartpants mentioned -- where do I get one? I need to put some elastic through a sandal. The safety pin won't work because it is the curvy part of the back heel. The original piece was chewed through by a puppy I was babysitting and now I can't wear the shoes. Thank you!
Offered by: Patty on October 7, 2002 01:39 AMDid you get the pants fixed?
Enquiring minds want to know. (plus, I've been locked up here at home, trying to feel better, and daytime TV is making me insane!)
Offered by: Deb on October 8, 2002 07:46 PMI still haven't tried to fix the pants, Deb. Uggh. I just want to pay someone to do it for me.
Offered by: Jodi on October 9, 2002 10:08 PM
