I spent the weekend scrounging up and making a few new class samples for a series of classes I have been invited to teach in Idaho in April. I am thrilled that they have invited me. I wanted to expand my beginning embroidery class to include a little bit of bead embroidery too, so I made up these two samples to send off as photos for the class.
In celebration of discovering my new-old favorite sewing machine, I am going to give away one of these little ornaments…
(your prize will be made up special just for you, so the fabrics won’t match this photo exactly)
To enter, just leave a comment about your favorite sewing or crafting tool (sewing machine, thimble, scissors or humble seam ripper? You tell me!) I will randomly draw for a winner on September 24.
And her name is Singer.
My sewing machine is ailing. It made a horrible strangled noise and quit this afternoon. I had just spent all of a couple of evenings cleaning the lint out, replacing the needle and all of that good stuff. To her credit, she had started to squeak, which is what made me think that I ought to do a good cleaning, so I did perhaps have a little warning. I don’t think the problem is anything I did while cleaning (or putting her back together) but I am afraid, judging by the amounts of lint I pulled out, that a big blob of yuck has jammed in some plastic gears someplace I can’t get to. This machine and I have a love/hate relationship. I spent a lot of money on her. She has a nifty thread cutter (which stopped working after about a year). She has a wonderful walking foot that makes me smile while making quilts and a buttonhole gizmo that works like a dream. She has an overlock stitch which is super nifty and dozens of fancy embroidery kinds of stitches (which sadly I use next to never). However, she also has a tendency to eat and/or tangle threads at the beginning of whatever you are working on, no matter what you do to prevent it (no, holding the ends doesn’t work). She also likes to eat fabric if you get too close to the edge and groan about too many layers of fabric. She is computerized and so you can’t get to or see anything. She is a Babylock QC700.
Today I had declared that I was going to work on puppets. It is time to get my butt in gear if I am going to have them ready for holiday show season. I lost a couple of evenings to cleaning the Babylock and Andy is off playing with the boys today, so I made a pot of tea, got out the gingersnap cookies and was ready to cruise through the 60+ puppets that are cut out and waiting for me. Approximately 1/16th in to one puppet Babylock uttered her death cry. (I am pretty sure she’s not really dead, but it will cost me to get her revived.) I grumbled some choice words, shoved her under the end table and headed to the basement.
Several years ago, I got a couple of vintage machines as a “payment” for some costuming work I did. I got them home and admired them. Even cleaned up the 1952 Singer (so pretty) and figured out how to thread and wind bobbins. And then promptly put them away. Who needs an old Singer when you have the new fancy expensive machine. HAH! If I had only known! I am completely in love with the Singer. She sews beautifully. Best machine I have ever used. No thread tangling. Sews through layers of fleece like butter. Feed dogs that feed! Perfect tension. Fast – twice what my Baby lock can do! I finished something like 30 puppets just this afternoon. I may make fun of myself later for making all of this fuss, but for now I will just enjoy that new machine buzz.
Aimee Ray @ dreamfollow.com has been in my list of bookmarks for years. Her paintings and little stitched pieces are charming and I sometimes just wander the website on gloomy days for a pick me up. I ordered her new book from her etsy shop and I am delighted. The illustrations are lovely. It really is a book for beginners, but anyone could learn the stitches from her clear diagrams. The book has a “learn the stitches” section with photos and examples and is then followed by dozens of little projects you could finish in an evening or two. When I was 12, I would have checked this out from library every other week all summer long. It will come to embroidery classes with me from now on, I am sure.
I just got this today and although I haven’t done much more than flip through I know I am going to love it. First is that it is spiral bound and will lay flat in the table in front of you. This is huge if you need both hands to do the braid that you are trying to figure out. I have another of her books all about kumihimo and it is the best. In flipping, I discovered a section on the lucet (I have one that I haven’t figured out yet.) I will have more to report as I make my way through.
A gift for you!
Take one super cute puppy chewing on a shoelace, add a little photoshop and I give you: A puppy embroidery pattern! Print out the line drawing (if you click it will show you a bigger one) and trace on to fabric using your favorite tracing tools. Then embroider! I am planning to put this guy on a t-shirt so I thought I would share. If you do make something using my drawing, I would love to see a photo.
