September is National Sewing Month

Hop on over to NationalSewingMonth.org for a bunch of ideas and inspiration or visit some of our favorite sites in the links over there on the right, try one of our projects or search this blog for projects and tutorials, and scoot over to Pinterest and see what others are sewing. You might even consider teaching someone else how to sew. With that in mind, here's an update to an article I wrote many years ago for Sewing.com, when I was doing community work for them.

Learning to sew can be fun and rewarding, but start small and work your way up. I've never been sorry that I caught the "sewing bug". 

The first stop is your public library. The Dewey Decimal System for sewing-related items in the nonfiction section of your library is here:

    640 Home economics & family living
    646 Sewing, clothing, personal living 

I have found that the children's section of the library is a good place to look for sewing books for beginners. Do a couple of the truly easy projects (no one has to know!) and then move on to something more "complicated" like a garment.

Browse through the stacks of sewing books. Some are great and others are lame, but there's sure to be one or two that suit your needs. Singer has a great set of sewing books, and the Reader's Digest sewing book is good for beginners. I've found "how to sew" books on eBay and at yard sales, so you don't have to spend a lot of money. As well, most pattern companies (Simplicity, Vogue, Butterick, McCall's, to name a few) have basic sewing instruction books, and there is a Sewing for Dummies and a Sewing for Idiots, both aimed at beginners. If you're interested in buying any of the books you see, you'll at least have a good preview by borrowing them from the library first!

Fabric stores often offer classes. Find a reputable fabric store in your area and see if they offer craft or sewing instruction. Even if they don't, they may know someone who does. Check the bulletin boards at the store. Another place to check is your yellow page directory. Sometimes you can find instructors there. Check with your local Extension Agency or 4-H, if they are available to you. Again, the phone book is of great help in this respect.

If there is a sewing machine dealer in your area, check with them. They may already offer classes for the general public. If they don't you can suggest it to them! Some public school systems and community colleges offer community education classes for adults.

Consider looking for an on- or off-line mentor. Other people who sew at church, sewing associations, quilt guilds, online communities, newsgroups, email groups - all good possibilities for mentors.

What has changed since then? There are so many sites on line with how-to information, including this one. Google is your friend and with a few keystrokes, you can find pretty much anything you want to know on the web. Nothing substitutes for having the human interaction, and that's something we can do for others.

Recently, I was working with my 30-year-old daughter on a graduate school art project which involved sewing. I followed her design lead, she did the cutting, color choices, etc., and I did the sewing. At one point, as she was cutting, she looked at me and said, "I have a whole new respect for what you do, mom!" It was a great moment!

Happy National Sewing Month everyone. Make it a good one.

Where there's a will, there's a sewing machine!

It's catch up day in my household. I had a few hours to kill, so off to the sewing room with me. I have a stack of potholders ready to sew. They're cut out, the backing is cut out, and the InsulBrite is cut out - All of them have been just waiting for me to do my thing.

I sell my potholders on Etsy and eBay. Guess what? I sold two that hadn't been finished yet! Eeep. That's one of those things that one should not do, but I did. Thankfully, it's a holiday weekend and I have an extra day before I have to mail these out.

I sewed the lattice on the two unfinished pieces and did the machine side of the binding. As I speak, I've finished 2-1/2 of the hand sewn backs. Whew.

Now I'm in a sewing mood. I have some amazing vintage fabrics and patterns that I have lined up for fall/winter clothing. I've cut out one eyelet top and have a striped brown fabric to make slacks. Another outfit consists of an asymmetrically closed top using two different fabrics. No special slacks for that blouse. As always, I have 100 more ideas than I have hours, but I'm going to give it a go.

Thankfully, I got the potholder pile caught up. I'm sure there will be a new pile in its place before you know it.

Time to start sewing for fall - Let's start with the Zombie Apocalypse!

Yep, summer is slipping buy. I sew a little something every day, but lately, I've been obsessed with the Zombie Apocalypse. True devotees have their go bags all ready. So, being the good citizen I am, I figured it was time to make a Zombie Apocalypse tote bag. I found some amazing fabric at Spoonflower (they'll even print fabric of your own design!), and have been having fun with it ever since.

Here's part 1 of the Zombie Apocalypse tote bag. More to come!

That's the finished product. Unfortunately, the picture shows the shadows of the quilting lines and it's not the best. Don't worry, there's another one below. 

This is the fabric and I love it. As soon as I saw it, I had to have it. 

 First things first. I found a brain coloring page on line and made some adjustments, then cut out some large brains for the tote bags and small ones for future placemats. 

I first made the bag front and back, using a 4" x 4" patchwork using recycled denim.  

Then it was time to sew. You can see the quilting lines a little better. I used my machine and did parallel lines approximately 1/2" apart. Then I stitched around the edge, close to the edge as possible.  

Then came the fun part - satin stitching around the brain. I did a wide stitch with essentially no stitch length. When it was completed, I applied a fray retardant solution to the appliqued edge.

A good denim tote needs a recycled denim pocket. The stitching was reinforced on the cotton faux denim lining. I stitched around it twice so that it was made to use and not baby. 

Time for handles. I cut 4" strips from another piece of denim then folded it and ironed it on a high heat to get a crease down the center. I folded raw edges to the crease and stitched them down on both sides. 

Then, I folded this in half and stitched down both sides for closure and reinforcement. The finished handle is about 1" wide. (I'll add a measurement of the length of the handle in my next post, but if you can't wait, measure the handles on a tote you like and cut your handles 1" or so longer.)

 

Brain on bag and handles. Now to put it together. 

That's the beginning. I'll be posting the photos and how-to for making the bag, adding the lining and handles, and finishing it all up!

You know you need a Zombie Apocalypse go bag - make one! 

More to come. 

So, I had pneumonia - guess what I did? Sewing, sort of. (Update: 09/14/14)

 I don't crochet, I really don't. But, I used to, sort of.  

I crocheted a very small rug about 25 years ago. It lived in the bathroom for years. I had a book about crocheting fabric and remembered that I used to crochet as a kid. I wondered how hard it could be, and it wasn't. I did the easy oval that was shown in the book and used up tons of remnants of fabric. The yarn is 1-1/2" strips that are torn, attached to each other with just a few stitches, and then rolled into a ball. The hook is either J or K. Whatever it is, it's huge. 

Well, I ended up with pneumonia somehow and had to stop exercise classes and take it easy. I made a blouse (will share that after I have a photo). I repaired all the mending that needed help. I was so bored. I wasn't in the mood for fine hand sewing to work on my hexie quilt. I broke out that big hook, started tearing remnants into strips and began my oval. I made the first piece THREE times. I took it apart because it was so humpy in the middle. (I can't find my book, so was going on memory and a few online instructions.)  After taking it apart the third time, I got it to the size shown here. And I was running out of remnants. 

I found a bigger piece of fabric that I had intended to make into the bodice of an Empire waist dress. As it turns out, I made two dresses out of that pattern and neither were all that great. They became "toss on in the morning until you get dressed" dresses. A third was no longer in the works, so I tore that into strips too. Why not? And I crocheted and crocheted and crocheted, and the result for round 2 is below. 

Interestingly, the light blue above is the print that would have been the rest of the Empire waist dress I never made. Between that and the rust color is some old brightly colored snake fabric. I knew I'd never use it for anything, so into the rug it went. 

I then moved on to a darker blue, which I ran out of fairly quickly. I grabbed some light weight lavender fabric and tore it into strips and got started on growing the rug even larger. I got around one time with the lavender and said to myself - You are not sick anymore. You do not need this rug anymore.  

And I was right. 

I tied it off and put it in the dog's crate. I'm making a cushion for her crate, but it's not big enough for the whole thing, so the newly dubbed Pneumonia Rug fills in just right. 

It's not pretty, it's lumpy and bumpy, but you know what? I love it. It has kept me company and kept me semi sane for a few weeks now. My obsession with crocheting kept me from being obsessed with my illness. 

Today, I went to exercise for the second time since being ill, I am back to feeling like cooking, and I am sleeping again - all of those things were disrupted or interrupted for several weeks. I'm so happy I'm back! 

Another upside to being sick, but not sick enough to not sew, is finishing those little unfinished projects I had lying around. 

Thanks to everyone who wished me well and let's get back to our needles and thread! 

Update: My dog loves the rug and the covered dog pillow which now live in her crate. We keep the door open and she stops in once in a while just to hang out. And sometimes, dad gets in with her. 

Fruit Pie Potholder - Want to make one? Tutorial with pictures.

Here's another project you can make using scraps you have on hand or purchased fabric just for the project itself. Scrap sewing at its best. Use this as a jumping off point. There are no rules written in stone. I've learned from others, so I now pass this along to you. A fruit pie potholder.

I photographed my first attempt at one of these, so it's way far from perfect. I'm making more for Etsy and as gifts. Here's the basic how to:

The usual tools - well, the plate's not too usual. It's the best 9" circle I could find and it was tons easier than using a paper pattern. You'll need a pie crust looking fabric too. I made bias tape out of the same fabric for binding the potholder when it was done. 

I have some fruit fat quarters and chose blueberry for my first foray into pie making. You'll also need insulated batting made for potholders and hot pads. I use InsulBrite, but there are others. 

Next, cut the pie crust fabric and the insulated batting and the fruit fabric using the 9" plate as a guide. I tried using the fabric pen tracing and then cutting with scissors method. The second time, I used the rotary cutter and a rotary cutting board. Much easier. 

Cut a variety of lengths of 1-1/4" strips. These will be the lattice work on the pie.

Fold one edge of the strip toward the center and press. 

Fold the other edge of the strip toward the center, but not all the way to the edge. The goal is to keep the raw edges toward the back of the lattice strips. 

Turn your strip over and press again, then set them aside. I made too many strips for one potholder, but will be using them for other potholders. 

Looks kinda cute already, doesn't it?  Layer the circles in this order:

Back crust right side down

Insulated batting

Fruit fabric right side up

I chose to baste the layers together with a long stitch that I will remove later. 

This is the basting from crust side. The basting will hold things in place while we put the lattice on the top of the pie. (Looks kind of like a pita unfolded to me.)

Pin strips of lattice that were set aside at equal intervals and pin in place. Then stitch across the top to hold the strips while you weave. Be sure your strips are raw edge side down. 

Take another piece of lattice and weave it over and under through the tacked down pieces. I pinned them down, but it wasn't really necessary. 

Sew down one edge and back up the other. Weave another strip, alternating the over and under pattern, stitch up one side and down the other. Continue this process until you have all the woven pieces sewn down. 

This is how the back looks with one direction of the lattice sewn in place. I also took out the basting stitches at this point as the were no longer needed. 

Stitch the strips going the other direction, up one side and down the other. 

Trim the circle of uneven edges and excess fabric. Apply bias strips to the edges. I created a hook with the bias binding. 

As mentioned, this is my first try making one of these. I have 3 more cut out and ready to go. 

I suggest making your bias tape with the pie crust/back fabric. If you like, you can add rick rack to the edge for decoration. You can leave the loop off or do it another way. 

I use primarily machine stitching so that the potholder is fully machine washable. I've never had a problem with any I've made for myself, and I hope you won't either. 

One thing I will do differently is to add a hanger that will allow the pie lattice to show, when hung up, as straight up and down rather than on an angle. 

Now, go make some potholders!

The dress of the damned (updated 07/11/14)

I have called this the damned dress more than I would care to admit. I shared with you the beginnings. My goal is to make a couple dresses and to refashion a dress I made into a skirt. That should pretty much take care of summer clothes with the items I already have. As I'm losing weight, I don't want to spend a lot of money on clothing right now, so making things out of fabrics and patterns on hand is the deal.

It looks a little plain and frumpy on the dress form, but it looks great on! I need to hem the sleeves and the dress itself, but other than that, the damned dress is done. 

For the next one, I need to lengthen the bodice about an inch. The neckline fits almost perfectly. I have a summer dress! The fabric is super thin. That's what made it so difficult to work with. I had to put in one sleeve since I caught the sleeve itself in the seam the first time. Argh. No matter how long you sew, you make mistake that just make you want to shake your head. The skirt attached to the bodice has a few seam errors, but they really don't show. I need to avoid this type of fabric in the future. 

Lesson learned is that even if you are calling your project in progress lots of nasty name, go ahead and finish it. You just may be amazed. 

Update 07/11/14 - this dumb dress ended up in my crocheted rug; it became the finishing lavender edge that told me it was done. It sucked as a dress anyway :)

Summer sewing has begun

I used to have a couple empire waist dresses that I wore in the summer. They were flowy, comfortable, had pockets, and could be worn with sandals. I loved those dresses. They're a) too big and b) long since given away. I set out to find a similar pattern and found a fun one by McCall's:

McCall's 8249 from 1996, which is when I had the two dresses mentioned above. 

I bought three runs of fabric, so I want to make the dresses each a little different. My first dress is made of extremely lightweight fabric. It probably wouldn't hold up to buttonholes, so I decided to cut both the front and the back on the fold and made some bias tape for the neckline rather than a facing. I rarely use a facing; I'll line and item or make bias to either surround the raw edge or apply it and turn it to the wrong side and hand sew it on the inside.

I added a wide trim to the center front and used some of the bias tape I had made to weave through the holes rather than using ribbon. 

This shows the neckline a little better. 

Next, I will do the sleeves, apply the pockets to the skirt, and then attach the skirt to the bodice. I think I'm going to like this dress a lot! More to come.