If you're an Army famly who's been in for more than a few years, chances are your spouse's closet is filled to the brim with BDUs and DCUs. Now that our soldiers wear the ACU, our household was overflowing with useless green and desert camo. Besides keeping around a set or two for Halloween costumes, what are we to do with all these old uniforms?
I came up with one idea...
I'm a terrible quilter, so this project too me forever and a day. And I backed it with ACU material, which is a nightmare to sew with and which I will never sew on again! But once I got the idea stuck in my head, I wanted to have one so badly that it was worth all the hours of work. I think this project was like childbirth: despite the gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair, the minute it was finished, I completely forgot how miserable I was. I really love how it turned out.
One thing I wasn't sure of before I started this quilt was proper uniform etiquette. I didn't want to do anything to the uniform that would be disrespectful. I couldn't find much info on the internet about this topic, though I did find several websites selling Christmas stockings and purses made out of old uniforms. So I asked my husband if he thought this would be an appropriate way to preserve his old uniforms. I liked his answer: he said, "What could be more respectful than turning them into a family heirloom?" So now we have a lovely quilt to preserve those years of BDUs and DCUs, instead of wasted closet space.
What are your BDUs and DCUs doing?
