Custom scrubs

AshleyO77 · Aug 10, 2012

I work psych so I'm not worried about blood and vomit so much. I just think it would be cool to have some extra-dapper scrubs 'cause that's how I roll.

You go girl (or boy, if that's the case)!!!!!! Do you!!!

xoemmylouox, ASN, RN · Aug 10, 2012

Sounds comfy. I love it when I can find a nice set of soft, comfy, and well fitting scrubs. I pretty much live in them.

allnurses Guide · Aug 10, 2012

That sounds pretty snappy, algebra! I haven't seen much other than cotton with polyester and blends thereof, but silk is actually a very strong, absorbent fiber so I'd say it would definitely be worth it to spring for the better fabric. Just make sure it isn't going to be too thin or be like Hugh Hefner's jammies. Maybe hold it up to the light to see how dense the weave is. Best wishes!

Hoozdo, ADN · Aug 12, 2012

30 bucks for a scrub top is not unheard of and quite reasonable for a custom fit and design. If you get pants made, be sure and get some cargo pockets. I can not wear a pair of scrub pants that are not cargo. Do it!

algebra_demystified · Aug 17, 2012

Oh, I done did it. $150 in silk/cotton blend material for four scrub tops with a half a yard of rayon/poly/whatever blend. It's all shades of blue from midnight to sea foam green. All four colors mix and match well and the extra half yard had all four colors in it. They'll come out very seaside, very relaxing, very chill. I'll sacrifice a $20 Dickies top for the pattern and probably another $75 in labor to get them sewn, but I'm happy with that.

In the end it's going to set me back about $60 a top. Fair enough, I want some top quality clothing.

While I was digging around in the fabric store I found some really cool Pendleton wool material that was about $22/yard that would make some FLY scrubs for the winter. There was some very nice Italian wool suit jacket material that I might have sewn into a double breasted style scrub top with a white silk hanky in the pocket with kind of a Hugo Boss take on a scrub top. My wife thinks I'm nuts, but I don't care.

Now hold on to your seats cuz we're about to take this rollercoaster right over the drop and into the twisties. There was some very sharp old gentlemanly brocade fabrics with layers of texture, fabric, color, and reflectiveness. Think an 1890's gambler vest with duelling pistol pockets left and right. Some of it had an Asian style to it, which I can't use. Sometimes I work on a military unit that has vets from Korea and Vietnam, and they have a problem with that kind of thing. That's OK, I just need to work around it. Lots of it has cherry blossoms or bamboo or something like that in it that I can't use. But there's some that's just ornate paisley brocade, and that might make some very cool sleeves or neckline accents.

I've always bought clothing off the rack so maybe I'm too into the idea and it'll come off as looking stupid. Oh well, I've blown $100 on dumber things.

allnurses Guide · Aug 17, 2012

I'm thoroughly impressed with your creativity. Design is sort of an avocation of mine - I especially have a soft spot for well-made "work clothes" for lack of a better term. They should last a long time, but won't look horrible the way flimsy material does after you subject it to many washings. Would love to hear how it all turns out.

algebra_demystified · Aug 17, 2012

I'll take some pictures.

tweetyRN · Sep 2, 2012

I would love t!o see how they turned out

GoosbyLPN · Sep 2, 2012

yeah please share ....maybe this could become a business for u

algebra_demystified · Sep 5, 2012

I'll let you know when the tops come in. The seamstress has other engagements at this time, so there will be a lag before she will be able to produce the final product. If it's good, I am straining at the gate to pick up some really over the top stuff to make ornate short sleeves, neckline, and pocket accents that will look nice with a hand-turned burl wood pen.

I love nursing, the patient contact, the bond we share. I work in psych so there's an element to it that can't be expressed verbally. It helps to be able to floss some gear that says I know what I'm doing and I'm committed to this line of work. The white jacket just doesn't do it for me. It looks cheap and throwaway.

By the time I have my PMHNP cert, I want to have a work closet of scrubs that tell the world I'm a nurse, but I'm a stylin' nurse. How cool would that be to have a set of scrub tops that are made of nice Italian suit material tailored to my satisfaction, with a white pocket hanky, pen holders, and a sleeve sticky note pocket. I really think that would be just the thing.

Of course, that means I'd have to pair that top with some fine wool slacks, etc. Maybe I'll get some cotton/silk blend slacks made to match the tops. I just don't want to show up to work with the same scrub top every other guy has. Dickies, red sleeves, black body. How boring is that.

Wouldn't that be cool to have a nice black/sand houndstooth Pendleton pattern sleeve/neckline and pocket with a black silk/cotton blend body? Come on, that's hot. Preshrink, mate, and sew. Scrubs can be high end if you want them to be.

allnurses Guide · Sep 5, 2012

Love it - thanks for sharing the progress report here with your fellow lovers of the creative approach.