Sewing and quitting smoking

I quit smoking on November 18, the Great American Smokeout. While preparing to quit, I decided to make a quilt by hand. I've made them by hand before; in fact, I've made a Grandmother's Flower Garden three times - once for my daughter when she was two and once for my nephew's daughter. This one was made of denim and strawberry fabrics, and the blocks were outlined in red zig-zag stitching to make it extra strong. I also made one doll sized in Halloween fabrics. I use it for a seasonal decoration.

Now, I'm doing another one. It's my quit smoking quilt. The hexagons are 1.5" (as are the ones in my nephew's daughter's quilt) and each one is a different fabric to give it a truly scrappy look. I collected a 4" square from every fabric I have that is suitable (cotton or cotton blend). I also printed out hexagon graph paper to use for the English Piecing method which I use when constructing anything with hexagons. Sunshine Creations blog has a great tutorial on English Piecing to which you will be led if you click on the link! Mine is not quite as tidy, but the method is essentially the same. It's a great way to make small pieces into a larger project.

The good news for me is that I'm not smoking. I've spent a lot of time cutting paper hexagons (NOT with my good scissors) and fabric squares, and trimming the fabric before basting it onto the paper. (Google will lead you to tons of tutorials about Grandmother's Flower Garden designs, probably the most popular of the hexagon quilts.) Hand quilts like these or Cathedral Window are a great way to do a little here and a little there and make it last for a while.

Smoking is a nasty habit. It will be nice to have a beautiful reminder of what one can do instead of smoking. I believe this quilt will be a keeper.

TKR and not about sewing

I ran across a blog while I was researching rehab for total knee replacement, which I am slated for on December 14. Add that to the mayhem of quitting smoking, which I did on November 18 (The Great American Smokeout) and you have my life in a nutshell of late.

In the blog, there was the best animated gif I've ever seen; it defines me recently.

Oddly mesmerizing, I'd say.

As I prepare for the total knee replacement, not only have I quit smoking, I'm getting my house in order,  moving furniture to the "other" room and preparing for delivery of recliner furniture in my living room. I am thinking that I will be downstairs for a good part of the time, at least in the beginning.

The consensus on partial resolution of my research is that the operation is a piece of cake, the hospitalization is a breeze, but the rehab is a bitch. Good drugs at first weaned down to eh. And then they expect you to bend again! Lily have even said it hurts like hell, but if she can do it, so can I. Folks who have gone through it say it's worth it. That's what counts for me, that it's worth it.

And so we prepare. I will have a hand sewing project to do, I've ordered some paperback books, I have a television at the ready, and I can take my laptop outside if need be.

In the meantime, I tap my fingers.

Halloween!

It's Halloween again! I stopped by Sewing Mama's forum to check out costumes that folks are making for their kids and it took me a bit down memory lane. I was taken back to the days of sewing bones on a black sweat suit to make a skeleton costume, stitching apples on a green sweatshirt to make an apple tree costume, covering boxes and other accessories with fabric to sew a very complicated Darth Vader costume, making a leopard costume with hat and tail that doubled as pajamas over the next year, and so many more. We still have, though don't go through as often, a Halloween box in the attic that we'd get down mid-October for the kids to dig through. There are lab coats, cowboy hats, old costumes from years gone by, and a variety of dress up items for Halloween and other times. We had witches, hippies, cats, ghosts, vampires, and all ilk of creepy creatures in our house at one time or another. Fond memories indeed.

Halloween can almost always be addressed with what you have on hand. There's no need to go rent a fancy costume or spend hundreds on one with exactly all the right trimmings. Someone who can sew (or even use fabric glue!) can make a costume for Halloween or other times with old clothes, sheets, and who knows what else you have in your fabric stash. Be creative and work with your kids on something unique. Yeah, you might end up buying a hat or something to go with the suit, but your children will have fun dressing up before the holiday and after, and if you think ahead, you too can take out the Halloween box a while ahead of time and let them go a little nuts.

In most parts of the country, it gets cold shortly after Halloween and we have other holidays on our minds. Let Halloween be the end of the season and the welcoming back indoors that it always seems to be. Have fun. Go crazy. Laugh and smile. And by all means, treats, no tricks please.

September is National Sewing Month

Welcome to National Sewing Month. There's a contest afoot. It's not being run by us, but hey, we just might look into it. Click the picture to go to the site. 

Every month is sewing month for me. How about you?

How to sew and a free beginning sewing book on line.

I was going through some old notes I had printed off the internet related to sewing. In the folder, I found something I've been looking for! Can you believe it? I often print things to refer to later or to try a project or for ideas to expand upon. The thing I found was this - the URL to the free sewing book online brought to you by Craft and Fabric Links

If you're new to sewing, check it out. I'm often asked how to do this and that, and this instructional manual covers most anything you'd like to know. I still refer to my Reader's Digest and Singer sewing books (my old go-to sources; we all have them, right?), but between our sewing dictionary and this online book, you should be okay. For example, here's the table of contents/chapter list:

• Chapter One: Introduction To Sewing
• Chapter Two: Choosing Your Pattern and Fabric
• Chapter Three: Pattern Instructions
• Chapter Four: Getting Ready To Sew: Lay-out And Cutting
• Chapter Five: Setting Up Your Sewing Machine
• Chapter Six: Now We're Sewing: Terms & Techniques
• Chapter Seven: Pockets
• Chapter Eight: Zippers & Buttonholes
• Chapter Nine: Sleeve Installation
• Chapter Ten: Darts & Pleats
• Chart: Needle / Thread

Looking for someone to teach you to sew? The Home Sewing Association maintains a database of Trained Sewing Educators in your area.

Other options are your fabric stores, local 4-H resource people, church groups, local mentors and friends, and self-teaching by using patterns, the library, and the internet.

And if you have a chance, stop by your local library. In the nonfiction section, sewing books are in the 640 section (domestic arts), specifically the 646 section. Head for the children's department and browse through 646 for truly beginner projects. Don't laugh; that's one of the things I did to learn!

Enjoy sewing. Start small and aim high. There are no real rules, just methods. And even those are adjustable to your own talent and desire.

An incomplete photo album of some things I've made over the years.

http://picasaweb.google.com/dgapperson/ThingsIVeMadeSewingAndOtherArtsyFartsyStuffThroughTheYears #

There are a lot more photos on my hard drive - one of these days, I'll get the pictures up here! Some of these things were created along with a how-to written for the web site du jour for which I was working or owning. Others are things I've made on contract, just for fun, to try something new, for the local community theater, and on and on. The overwhelming thread that seems to bind is that I like to make things out of things that have already been made. Must track back to my former hippie wannabe days!

Binding a quilt - boring or inspiring?

Now there's a question for which I do not have an answer!

I'm completing a quilt my sister started before she died. It's a labor of love and it's at the point where I've had it for about three years now and it's just plain time to get it done. She started by doing individual blocks the size of a bandanna and hand quilted around everything that was on the bandanna (they're all different). Her stitches are small, uniform, and beautiful. Her stitching far outshines mine, but I followed the same pattern of making quilt blocks individually with a bandanna, hand stitching around the designs. Next came the sashing between the blocks, between the rows, and around the edges of the quilt. I did this wrong the first time and put the quilt away, unable to work on it another minute. I finally took it out of its container and used my trusty seam ripper to take off the sashing I had messed up. From there, I made short work of backing, batting, and sashing all edges that needed it. It's still not perfect, but it's done.

Then came the binding. I had cut and pieced 3" strips of the same fabric as the sashing. The method I use is to machine stitch the binding on one side of the quilt and then turn it, pin it, and hand stitch the other side. Unfortunately, I was stumped on the corners. My miters just didn't work out. I improvised. I cut off the point of each corner and rounded it just a bit so that I could go smoothly around rather than fight a miter. After the machine work, I indeed did turn the binding and pinned it to the back for hand stitching. I had a few flaws to cover and the width of 3" was perfect for that. I was able to make it appear as though all edges came together as they were supposed to with the application of the binding.

And now, for the past two weeks, I have been hand sewing the remainder of the binding. I have had short periods of time to sit and sew. Compounded with the fact that my hands just can't take the hand sewing for a length of time, the hand sewing is taking more time than I expected. I stitch and stitch and stitch and my mantra seems to be, "I want to get this derned thing done! NOW!" and then my other mantra sneaks in - "I don't want this to be done; I want to sew forever." I'm winding down a very intense project, filled with emotion, memories, farewells, time, skills, improvisation, frustration, correction of endless mistakes and flaws, and now finally, it's almost done. Amazing.

I probably have a few nights' worth of sewing left to do. I will then snip off errant threads and wipe off any dog hair the quilt has adopted, photograph all that I can, and finally, I'll find a box. It's going to be very difficult to pack it up and send it away. It could be one of the most difficult things I've ever done, giving it away. The truth is, though, it's not mine to give away. It wasn't mine to sew. It was Patsy's and I'm going to have to let it go.

Back to the original question - Binding a quilt - boring or inspiring? I'll let you decide, but do know that most of this was written in my head while I was sewing binding earlier this evening.

A bit of this and that

• The former brother-in-law's quilt is done except some of the hand work on the binding.
• The bee potholders are done, but I need to take pictures.
• I put Halloween placemats on eBay (user name croakerwoods) and am going to put up some Virginia Tech Christmas stockings. 
• I'm finishing three sets of 4 Halloween Hunk/rainbow reversible placemats. I'll put them on eBay and Etsy as well. 
• My daughter and a friend want Halloween Hunk tote bags. So, I'll be crafting them soon. If you don't know what Halloween Hunk fabric is, just Google it or take a peek on eBay (lots of people have it for sale). 
• These placemats are the project I must finish before I move on. The bee potholders were the prior one. The quilt, well, it's been a work in progress, a UFO, for years, so finishing it now is just amazing.

Photos to come!

What are YOU sewing?

A reminder about sewing for charity

Some time ago, I posted about sewing for charity. The need in our country and elsewhere has never been greater. Kids are getting ready to go back to school, parents are losing or not able to find jobs, winter and cold weather are right around the corner, Halloween is coming and there are kids who may not have costumes, Christmas and other giving holidays are also on the way and many will go without presents, and there is much that we with our needles and thread can do. You can sew something for someone else for no reason at all - a random act of kindness. You can volunteer locally to help with sewing at a preschool, a community theater, a church, an early intervention center, a hospital, a Ronald McDonald House, and so many other places. To get you started, take a a trip back and read my former post about sewing for charity, which I updated today:

Sewing For Charity Post

Moving back to Blogger

Zen Sewing is moving back to Blogger for several reasons. I don't blog for profit, so it's silly to pay my former blog host monthly to keep it up. I'm more familiar with how Blogger works and it's more comfortable for me.

I'll play around with designs until I find one that is easy to read and keep updated on a regular basis. So, enjoy the ride. Here we go!

Sewing a memory

A few years ago, my oldest sister, Patsy, died after having open heart surgery. I still remember the phone call and my reaction. I also remember that the day before, she and I had laughed together on the phone. We didn't always get along, but we are sisters and that's just that. She was in the process of becoming single at the time, but she started a project for her soon to be ex (STBX). She was making a quilt-as-you-go beer bandanna quilt. Some time after the funeral, her STBX asked me if I would finish it. I agreed. He wrapped up her old sewing machine in what I think he might have thought was a trash quilt and mailed that to me along with the quilt squares she had finished for the bandanna quilt. Here's a post showing the "Patsy quilt" which was sent to her grandson as a gift.
Back to the bandanna quilt. I've worked on it off and on for three years and this week, decided it was time to finish it. The blocks that Patsy quilted were all done by hand with perfectly spaced stitching. She was an amazing embroiderer and could sew like a dream. I always seem to be chasing her talent! The blocks I completed, I started out doing all by hand, but did do some work by machine. I completed the sashing and connecting the rows this week. Tonight, I was working on the last of the hand sewing on the back. Unfortunately, the back is composed of several types of muslin and is not the most beautiful work on the planet, but that's the way it goes.
Later this week, I will machine stitch the binding and then at least pin it for the hand sewing on the other side. My hands aren't as eager to do hand sewing as they used to be. The STBX apparently has some health issues right now. I wrote to my niece (his daughter) for their address so I could send the quilt to him and she said this was a really good time for him to have a boost.
Overall, I think I'm doing this for Patsy more than anything else. I've hesitated to finish it. It's like the completion of my acceptance of her death, I think. But you know what? She wanted it done and so I am doing it. I think Michael (STBX) will like it.
I will post pictures soon.
The lesson to learn is that no matter what the motivation for a project's beginning, it deserves to be completed.

Life is a bit complicated right now, and yet, I find that I need to try and sew a little something every day. I'm almost done with the bee potholders and am really liking the way they're turning out. I'll have pictures of the finished products soon. The tops are made, the sandwiches of top, batting, Insulbrite, and back are made. Now it's time to complete the machine quilting around the bees themselves and make and apply the bias binding. I've made the decision to use the gold bandana and the bee fabric for the binding. I'll make fabric with non bias strips and then cut the bias strips and make the binding from that.

One of the ways I help myself fall asleep is to complete sewing projects in my head or create new ones as I ease off into the realm of sleep. I have so many specialty fabrics in my stash that I am vacillating between Christmas stockings, tote/grocery bags, placemats, and other small kitchen accessories. I have a couple patterns for tops I want to cut out for myself. I also have fabric I'd like to make pants with. For now, though, time is an issue, so I'll work on designing those items as I drowse and nod in bed.

Though it's not specifically project oriented, I am finding that sewing still helps me keep myself centered and brings me back to a place of my own when there is chaos all around me. I can focus and simply be. That, again, is the zen of sewing, and I hope it rings true for you as well. Sewing is our friend. Our very good friend.

Sewing almost every day

Life is a bit complicated right now, and yet, I find that I need to try and sew a little something every day. I'm almost done with the bee potholders and am really liking the way they're turning out. I'll have pictures of the finished products soon. The tops are made, the sandwiches of top, batting, Insulbrite, and back are made. Now it's time to complete the machine quilting around the bees themselves and make and apply the bias binding. I've made the decision to use the gold bandana and the bee fabric for the binding. I'll make fabric with non bias strips and then cut the bias strips and make the binding from that.

One of the ways I help myself fall asleep is to complete sewing projects in my head or create new ones as I ease off into the realm of sleep. I have so many specialty fabrics in my stash that I am vacillating between Christmas stockings, tote/grocery bags, placemats, and other small kitchen accessories. I have a couple patterns for tops I want to cut out for myself. I also have fabric I'd like to make pants with. For now, though, time is an issue, so I'll work on designing those items as I drowse and nod in bed.

Though it's not specifically project oriented, I am finding that sewing still helps me keep myself centered and brings me back to a place of my own when there is chaos all around me. I can focus and simply be. That, again, is the zen of sewing, and I hope it rings true for you as well. Sewing is our friend. Our very good friend.

Bee Potholders 2 - How a project progresses

Trial and error - that's how it works, especially when you're either working with no pattern or creating your own. The potholders continue. I consulted the drawing and used a water soluble pen to draw antennae, eyes, and legs for my big bee. I tried a couple different decorative stitches on the Bernina and came up with one that suited the design, stitching the legs per the picture. I created half circles on top of the black piece of the bee to serve as eyes. And then, I did the satin stitch around the whole body.

Looking at the picture above, it looks eh. the legs are not the same length and seem to have a cattywampus placement. That alone wouldn't be a problem, but the antennae aren't quite right either. Check it out in comparison of the drawing.

I didn't stitch the wings on, but did want to see how they looked, so placed them on, trimmed them down to fit so the legs would show, and then stood back and reminded myself this was my prototype and that I get to keep this one. Argh. Sometimes things don't go perfectly the first time! The position of the legs looks even worse with the wings, but there you go. This is how a project progresses. For the next three bees, I'll follow the drawing a little closer when drawing the legs and antennae. I hope that I won't have to cut down the wings any more than just a smidgen; they should be bigger than shown on the piece above.

I'm laughing as I type this because it is really kind of funny the first time you try something and it turns out a little wonky. I'm sharing it with you to show you that you will make "mistakes" along the way and you need to not let them bother you. It's never a waste; it's always a lesson. And I'll end up with a pretty groovy potholder to use in my kitchen. What I won't do with this one is use the bee fabric for binding since I know for sure I'm keeping it. I'll use black bias binding, which will work just as fine. For an item I want to sell, I prefer to use handmade bias binding that matches the design a little better.

Hopefully, the next post will show you the one above completed and one that is a little more like the drawing. I do love the colors and like the choice of bee fabric for wings.

Bee Potholders 1 - How a project happens

I'm back home and after some family health issues, have decided it's time to sew, and that means it is time to post.
People often ask me - "How do you come up with stuff?" Honestly, there is no rhyme or reason to it, but hey, here's a shot at explaining it. What I'm not going to do is go over every instruction for these potholders. You can see the general "how to" for potholders here. I've made them many times and the process is the same.

For many holidays and birthdays, when my younger son was asked what he wanted as a gift, he would respond, "a jar of bees." One birthday recently, I decided to do just that and made him a jar of bees pillow.

I  have leftover bee fabric and it has been speaking to me. So I went looking for bee pictures and found this one:

 

Now I have bee fabric and a drawing of a bee. Hmm, what to do? Potholders! I traced the basic bee parts from the drawing onto Wonder Under and cut the body of the bee out of a golden bandanna and the top and head out of black, but couldn't decide what to do with the wings. I fused the body to an 8" potholder blank that I cut out of recycled denim. Then I used a tight zig-zag/satin stitch on my machine to make the stripes on the bottom of the bee.

It looks kind of plain, but there's a lot of work to be done. I decided right about at this point to use the bee fabric for the wings and then use a satin stitch to give the illusion of veins per the drawing.

I have not yet stitched the wings down as I want to do them last. I'm still thinking on it, but I think my next step is to draw the legs, eyes, and antennae with a water soluble pen or pencil and get them stitched onto the denim. I'll use a water soluble backing when I do the embroidery (I do not have an embroidery machine, so will be creative with the Bernina I do have) for stability. The back of the potholders will be the bee fabric. I don't have enough of it to do the binding, so am thinking of doing a striped length of fabric with the black and bee fabric and cut my bias binding from that.

As projects go, this one is fairly easy. It will be time consuming because of the legs on the bee and the fact that I'm making four of them, but I need a machine project that will take some time. I'm not sure if I will sell these or keep them, but there you go. I looked at a pillow made from interesting fabric and decided it was time to use the remnant. I gathered other fabrics, including the junk jeans, that I already had, hit the internet for a drawing to use for my Wonder Under pattern, and there you go. You could do something like this on jeans or anything you wanted.

Start with something in your stash that speaks to you and just do it. More to come as the design progresses. Hope you have fun with your sewing!

Custom Fabric Covered Light Switch Plate Covers/Plates

I decided a while back to make some light switch covers. Then as I got further into them, it seemed like a good thing to share with others. This is my first set:

It was not my best work, but I got the process down after a few more. Here are some other examples of covers I made:

Regardless of the size of the cover or the shape of the switch itself, you can cover it with fabric using ModPodge or a water/glue mixture and a little imagination. I used an Exacto knife, but you can use scissors or whatever you have for cutting. The basic back instructions look like this:

Want to make some of your own? Comprehensive step-by-step, photographed instructions can be found here. (Updated March 24, 2013.) Now go gather up some small pieces of fabric, some new or old light switch covers, and get started. Way easy.

A couple of notes:

• I painted the screws for each cover to match the fabric. I picked up just a basic set of paints, stuck the screws in a Styrofoam ball to hold them steady, and then painted the heads.
• For light switches with the round fader, cut a circle a little bit larger than the circle itself and turn the fabric under on the back, using the same glue/ModPodge process.
• You do need to let these dry for a day or so before using them.
• They're great for selling on line or at craft shows too using trendy fabrics, holiday fabrics, hand dyed fabrics - the list is endless.

I'm sure there are other ways to do these, but it's the best way I could figure out and now you've got the instructions too.

No Sewing for a bit!

I am in Phoenix for a bit, visiting my sister. She is having surgery on her eyelid tomorrow and I'm here in case she needs help. I'm sure she'll be fine and it'll go very smoothly. But I only have hand sewing with me, and that's difficult to work on because my right hand is not as keen on fine movements as it once was. I'll take the sewing with me to the surgeon's office and possibly work on it some; I can't not sew! I'm making a doll quilt/wall hanging that is a Cathedral Window design - muslin for the windowpanes and M&M fabric for the windows. It will provide a calm familiarity when I thread the needle and slip stitch the muslin frames and colorful M&Ms into the design. I'm working with a muslin that is heavier than I like. I mail ordered it. Let that be a lesson - you need to know what kind of muslin you want if you order online or you need to purchase it in person so you can touch it and know the feel.

I'll be out of touch until about June 30. I may take a trip to a local fabric store, but I really don't need any. I have more fabric than I could ever use. I'm sure I'll find something sewing-related to do while I'm out here, even if it's merely designing in my head or buying a pair of light denim jeans at a yard sale for my dark/light pillow projects.

The Denim Pillows in Pictures

Here are the three pillows together. The single log cabin pillow was supposed to be round. Oh well, sometimes things don't work out perfectly, right? My daughter thinks the light/dark triangle pillow looks like birds flying. I told her there was a Flying Geese pattern that was similar, but this one was not the same. The four log cabin pillow is paned with a piece of denim to allow for the seam allowance. There are no photos of the back, but the backs were made of 6" wide random denim with reinforced seams. Fun stuff.

I mailed these off to Linda and Grace and they'll be receiving them soon. If you do make pillows like this, remember to put them in a pillowcase when you wash and dry them, then fluff them up when they're dry. I used stuffing rather than pillow forms; I've never worked with pillow forms. I reinforced all seams I could because recycled denim tends to fray. You can use any design you like. If you use tiny pieces, though, you may struggle with thick seams.

Recycling More Denim

A friend has asked me to make some recycled denim pillows, so I got to thinking - What kind of designs? What kind of backing fabric? It took me a while, but I got three designs going, one log cabin, another with
triangles, and then a random one (pix later). Then I broke out all my denim and sorted into really light and really dark, and started cutting. I used old threads because the color wouldn't show and it was a good way
to use up partial spools. I put in a spanking new denim needle (size 16) and started stitching. I haven't done any sewing in a while, so it was good to get back into it.

Now to cut the backs, put them together and stuff them. Another task for another day!

Recycling More Denim

A friend has asked me to make some recycled denim pillows, so I got to thinking - What kind of designs? What kind of backing fabric? It took me a while, but I got three designs going, one log cabin, another with
triangles, and then a random one (pix later). Then I broke out all my denim and sorted into really light and really dark, and started cutting. I used old threads because the color wouldn't show and it was a good way
to use up partial spools. I put in a spanking new denim needle (size 16) and started stitching. I haven't done any sewing in a while, so it was good to get back into it.

Now to cut the backs, put them together and stuff them. Another task for another day!

Coffee Accessories are Cool

If you click on this link, you'll be whisked away to a quickie tutorial about this, but we had to share anyway - it's a coffee container and placemat that I made lickety split one day. Well decoupage is never quick, but you get my drift.

It was time to gussy up the counter with something other than blah for the grinds and mat. It's a simple decoupage on a Cool Whip container and then a strip quilted mat. The coffee doesn't stain the mat if I spill a drop while pouring out and it's easily machine washed. I didn't have a pattern and I didn't follow any real rules. I just did it. And you can too.

Projects You Can Make

You can find most of the projects I've done here, with photos and instructions. I will add more as time allows. Let me know if there's something you'd like me to try. (Updated 02/19/10)

Cathedral Window What? How to make them and some I've made.

I was asked today what a Cathedral Window quilt was. Several years ago, I did a sewing project for Sewing.com about how to make a Cathedral Window quilt. Since then, I've made several. I've made doll quilts, finished a wall hanging, and made one for the family. I also made one for my nephew. You can find the project and how-to by clicking here or on our projects link.

Here are some that I've made over the years, though certainly not all!

This is a doll quilt and pillow made with a dark blue print for the frames and lace for the windows and binding.

This is a piece of a full sized Cathedral Window I made for myself with black and white fabrics that I've been collecting for years as the frame and recycled denim for the windows. The frames started with 11" squares. The windows are about 2" squares of denim.

This is a doll quilt made in the traditional sense with muslin frames, but nontraditional in the sense that I used flame fabric for the windows.

This is a Paddington Bear doll quilt and pillow. Each window has the face of Paddington Bear. The frames are muslin. All doll Cathedral Window quilts started with a 6" square.

This is a red/white/blue doll quilt with muslin frames. I alternated a star fabric with a flag fabric.

This is my first Cathedral Window which I made and included in the project linked above. It's another full sized one and the squares began as 11".

I really enjoy the portability and hand sewing involved with Cathedral Window quilts. I'm getting ready to fly to Phoenix and will take another project with me. This time, I'm using 8" squares to start. My hands got a little tired the last time I started with 6" squares.

There are no real rules. Do what you love!

Digging Groundhog Day

Sounds like Phil saw his shadow. Know what that means? It means six more weeks of sewing. I know I'm going to follow that edict! How about you?

I sold a few items on Etsy and a few on eBay, but mostly, I'm sewing items to sell in the fall. I'm on a Halloween kick now that I have Christmas stockings made and ready for next year. The final one is made of Smurf fabric and is embellished with a few Christmas buttons and some trim.

There's snow on the ground, my work day is almost done, and I'm going to sew today. I'm feeling the urge to feed my creative beast and that's one way to do it.

Frugal Devolution (or why one shouldn't blog when feeling pensive)

A couple of sewing thoughts to ponder. They're not just sewing thoughts, but could honestly apply to anything in life. So let's get started.

There is talk nowadays about 'devolution.' It's nothing new; the music group Devo had it down to an art. They suggested that everything is created for obsolescence and that we were devolving. Okay, that's a little heady, but it's worth thinking about. In the process of devolution, we will have met our level of competence (or a Peter Principle - level of incompetence) with technology. Our electronic world will begin to fail and we will start stepping backwards to a time when we knew how to take care of ourselves. Many people today would be hard pressed to raise their own food, build or maintain their own homes, keep themselves warm with fire, or to make clothing. That's where sewing comes in. With our sewing skills and curiosities, we're way ahead of the game. I would wager to guess that not only do people who sew create great clothes, dolls, crafts, etc., they most likely do something else that is creative - growing vegetables and cooking them into delightful dishes - that kind of thing. So congrats on knowing or learning how to sew. You're ready for the electronic crash.

A lot of discussion is held about frugality these days too. Not cheap, but frugal. Frugal often is defined as living beneath your means, like voluntary simplicity. (The two are not mutually exclusive, you know.) There are many ways to sew and do it frugally. There is no hard and fast rule that says you have to buy your supplies at a traditional fabric/notions store. Nor do you have to buy the most expensive sewing machine, used or new, to make the magic happen. I personally started with hand embroidery. I embroidered all the time. My work wasn't as perfect as machine embroidery, but that's okay. I didn't spend a fortune on an embroidery machine and I have such a respect for those who still embroider. I drew pictures on fabric and turned them into colorful paintings with thread. But I digress. I've had my sewing machine for 25+ years, keep it cleaned and tuned up, and it's running as good as new. I purchase fabric at yard sales, sometimes the thrift store, often on line (eBay is a great place for a smokin' deal, but keep an eye on those shipping rates!), and from friends or Freecycle for free. I do go to Hancock Fabrics from time to time, but only with a coupon from their flyer. I recycle towels into hand towels and dish towels. I recycle cotton tee shirts into cloths for cleaning. I recycle old blankets as batting for a quilt project. I use small pieces of fabric for doll clothes and crafts. I try to save where I can, but I also try to make sure I make time to sew.

Whether it be devolution or frugality, people who sew are ready for at least one portion of the de-techologicalizing of our lives! And we're going to keep practicing too, right?

Wonder Under is my friend, yours too!

Wonder Under is an amazing product. I use it often, so buy online since prices are usually better than offline stores, especially since WalMart stopped carrying sewing items.

I have used Wonder Under to recreate pictures that my children have drawn by tracing the picture, cutting the pieces out of fabric, fusing them to a piece of muslin and then doing a tight zig-zag or satin stitch around all edges. I finish the edges with Fray Check or a similar product and the life of the piece is endless. I have washed and dried many pieces I've made using this method. Check out my dish towel project - this is a typical Wonder Under application, as are the many potholders I've made. I've used Wonder Under to fuse photos printed on fabric for use with memory quilts as well. You can see another use in my bib project.


Some people use Wonder Under without stitching the edged; they simply fuse and let it go. I've not had good luck with that method. In order to make something that you can wear or use several times, items you are able to wash and dry, you really do need to stitch the edges. The only reason I use a fray reducer is that one project with printed photos did some unraveling on the edges. The fabric upon which the picture was printed was fairly fragile. Better safe than sorry with usable items. As mentioned above, I made hand towels using Wonder Under and have washed and dried them a lot with only minimal expected wear that is uniform and not limited to the fused fabric.


You can buy WonderUnder on line and off. There are other products similar to it, but I've not used them. I tend to stick with what I know most of the time. Now, go crazy and make some stuff!