How To Husband Proof Your Tools

Do you ever spend inordinate amounts of time looking for something, convinced that you know exactly where you put it last? Only to find out that someone has absconded with it and not returned it to its place. Or worse yet, that it has now been contaminated by who knows what on its journey to who knows where. 

It happens.  And this project is my solution to at least one such tool.  I wanted  MY craft utility knife to stay in the house.  Not going out to the garage to be used to cut through grime and grease.  And who knows what else.  Simply writing my name on it was no guarantee whatsoever.  I needed a husband repellent for this knife.

And you know what? Now I have one! I showed it to Mr. P the other day. He raised his eyebrows, grimaced and backed away. He even said, "I am NOT using that!" Ha! Exactly!

If you have the same problem and want to make your own, it's very simple.  Trace the outline of the knife onto paper.  I reduced the size by about an eighth of an inch all the way around so the fabric would cover only the top of the knife and not need to wrap onto the sides.

Next, coat a piece of fabric with Fabric Mod Podge and allow to dry.  (Remember to do this on foil or wax paper or something you don't care about getting messy.)  When the fabric is dry, use the paper pattern to cut the shape.

Using sand paper, rough up the side of the utility knife where you will apply the fabric.  Use Mod Podge to apply the fabric.  Once it dries, cover in several coats of Mod Podge.  I used Hard Coat for this step.

I also cut out the hole where the screw can be seen using an exacto knife.  Because the fabric is on the opposite side from the one where the screw is inserted, I didn't have to do this.  But if I ever need to replace the screw with a longer one, I can do it without worrying about it.

Apply any extra glitz.  I used opalescent fabric paint to outline the fabric and the hole in the middle.  I also outlined the flower in the fabric design.  Just keep in mind that it needs to be comfortable in your hand so don't build up the surface with too much stuff.  Lastly, spray with an acrylic sealer and allow to dry completely before use.

And that's all it takes to be certain your tools won't go wandering off.  A little creative touch.