SEW-lutions blog from sewing.org

Sewing-motif Cards

November 19, 2008 – 11:24 am

It’s that time of year when we all start thinking about holiday gifting and cards. I don’t know about you, but I have lots of sewing friends that I like to surprise with fun gifts at the holidays–whether it’s a small handmade “something” I created just for them, or a personalized card.

Over the years, someone I’ve never met has actually helped me to find just the perfect thing for gifting. Alison Winn is a talented artist who hand draws greeting cards. She has some standard designs in a number of themes, but just quite handily, she also has about 20 cards with sewing and/or quilting themes.

The fun part is that she will also personalize them with either your name, the recipient’s name, or almost any verbiage you want. For example, I’ve got some that say “A note from Linda…” on the front with a beautiful drawing of a sewing studio (if only mine looked that good!).

So, if you’re looking for a perfect gift for a sewing friend, check out Alison’s site and order early so she has time to customize them for you.

By LindaG | Posted in Sewing, Quilting, Embroidery & Craft Products

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Fitting Thoughts

November 13, 2008 – 1:14 am

I’ve received several questions about specific fitting problems that really can’t be answered without a personal consultation, and of course that’s “virtually” impossible at the moment. However, I would like to make one recommendation to those of you with fitting concerns.

It’s much easier to fit yourself if you can actually see how the garment looks on your body, all around. A three-way mirror is helpful, and a fitting buddy is a big help in determining fit issues. But, an even better solution is to have a dress form. Yes, custom forms are expensive, and many don’t adjust with the changes that aging and gravity bring us. But bring out that innate DIY spirit and make your own.

It’s easy to make your own dress form with duct tape from the home improvement store. (I, of course, am recommending Home Depot since my dear husband works there. They also sell duct tape in colors, so if you’ve ever wanted to be that “lady in red” you can be.)

Making your own form does require a sewing buddy, but most of us have at least one person we trust to see us in our undies without being judgemental. They can help you, and in turn you can help them make one as well. Take a vow of secrecy to the rolls and lumps you’ll both witness in the process.

To purchase step-by-step instructions to make your own dress form, check out sewingevents.com/html/body_form.html. This downloadable booklet is well illustrated, offers a bit of humor (after all it is a novel process compared to most of our sewing activities), and it gives you a complete supply list so you’re not left standing in the middle of the process while your buddy runs to the store.

If you’re a member of a sewing guild chapter, making your own dress form is a great activity either for a neighborhood group meeting or for the entire membership. Follow it up with a speaker who can address basic fit problems for the group.

I think it’s fun to dress up the form when you’re not using it for fitting. Add a seasonal costume, a hat, ribbons, an old college sweatshirt or perhaps a provocative bustier. It’s your chance for an alter-ego and it’ll make you smile when you spy it in your sewing room.

By LindaG | Posted in General Information, Sewing, Quilting & Embroidery Tips & Techniques, Sewing, Quilting, Embroidery & Craft Products

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Sewing Retreats

November 9, 2008 – 5:06 pm

I’m writing this from Gleneden Beach, Oregon where I’m attending a week-long sewing retreat with 12 other wonderful women. We’re staying at a condo complex called Beachcomber’s Haven and we’ve come together the first week in November for a number of years–over a decade at least! We sew in the community room, affectionately titled The Sandbox.

We sew whatever we want, whenever we want–from before dawn to well after midnight sometimes. There are no rules…just great fun and lots of food! We take turns cooking dinners, but there are numerous snacks around the clock. Good thing we have fitting skills, as there are bound to be alterations needed after this week.

The comaraderie sewers have is incredible–and it’s instant. Sewing brings us together and keeps us together. Perhaps you’ve had the opportunity to be involved in something similar, whether you’re lucky enough to have an ocean view right from a well-appointed classroom or at a local venue, you can imagine the pleasure of a week of uninterrupted sewing time 24/7. It’s just so incredible what you can get done.

In addition to personal and gift sewing, we’re also creating a fabric gingerbread house for Habitat for Humanity. All the entries will be given to needy families at the holidays. We’ve bedecked it with pompom snow, rickrack trim and notions in the “yard.” Besides that, there’s some charity quiltmaking going on–I just completed my third top that will be quilted by another group of women, then donated to hospitalized children at the holidays.

I know you can’t all join in our great getaway, but do take some time of your own for some dedicated sewing. You need it and deserve it!

By LindaG | Posted in General Information

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Fabric Beads

November 4, 2008 – 10:00 am

One of the fun things about attending Quilt Market, and also Quilt Festival which is open to consumers, is that you can go to lots of classes. I went to Kristal Wick’s class about making fabric beads. In case you’re not familiar with her work, she’s the author of a new book titled Fabulous Fabric Beads and it’s great! If you love fabrics, stamping, foiling and other embellishments, do take a look at this one. And, it takes only inches of fabric to make beads.

Personally, I love learning anything new and taking a class about it is even more fun, as it allows for some hands-on playing and experimenting with skilled supervision by the teacher. There are always those who profess to having no artistic talent, but somehow they create wonderful things. With fabric beads, it’s hard not to come up with something fun. Plus, this is also a great way to use your stash of other beads and jewelry findings in combination with the fabric ones to make a great accessory.

Kristal has been making fabric beads for five years, and she has a background in jewelry making, so it was a natural transition for her. Her signature Silkie Sassy beads are hand painted and to die for. They’re lightweight and oh-sew-beautiful, whether on their own or paired with other types of beads.

In the class, we learned about two types of beadmaking–glued, and those made using a double-sided adhesive sheet for stability. Using a straw inside the bead adds rigidity to fragile fabrics and helps the beads hold their shape. So, the next time you visit a fast-food outlet, check to see what size and color of straws they have to go with your drink purchase. Stores offering smoothies and fruit-blended drinks often have fatter straws, suitable for bigger beads, while coffee stirrers work well for smaller, more delicate varieties. It’s a whole new opportunity to add to the stash!

Check out classes in your area to learn new things–the medical profession says that it helps prevent dementia if you’re constantly stimulating the brain. Personally, I think my brain is on overload, but the fabric beads will be my next adventure. There are so many things to try with the process and the class was only the beginning of some fun experimenting, so check out the book and begin playing!

By LindaG | Posted in Sew & Craft Industry News, Sewing, Quilting & Embroidery Tips & Techniques

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Quilt Market, Fall 2008

November 2, 2008 – 1:25 pm

I’m back from Houston, TX –the home of the annual Quilt Market trade show. Encompassing the entire convention center, this show is where shopowners come to buy fabric for their stores, and this year there were 551 exhibitors with fun booths to show off their wares. And the good news is that 60 of them were new exhibitors–that certainly makes a positive statement in this economy about the commitment to sewing and quilting!

Walking the 1, 141 booths is no easy task, and definitely not one taken lightly as I’m trying to eek out new product information. The booths are fun, colorful and often laden with elaborate displays of not only quilts, but garments, small projects, and of course innovative tools, trims and notions that will be available to us as consumers in a few months. The companies are now taking orders from store buyers, and some things will be shipped in the next few weeks.

With this many booths, it’s sometimes hard to soak everything in, so I find that it’s helpful to take some time to stop and visit with friends along the way and ask what they’ve seen that’s new and that I shouldn’t miss. I reciprocate and share new things I’ve seen as well.

So, what did I see that’s new? Lots of things and I’ll be writing about them in future blogs. In general, I saw lots of crocheted trims–on garments, quilts, aprons, bags, etc. If you can crochet, you’ll be able to put this skill to some fashionable use this coming season. If not (I can’t), look for these great trims by the yard in your fabric store.

I also saw lots of rickrack–mostly the very GIANT version that you purchase by the yard, as opposed to being pre-cut in a package.

Kits were also a popular item–whether pre-cut strips in a “jelly roll” package (narrow strips rolled up), or pre-cut triangles or squares, the manufacturers really want to help those of us with limited time so they’ve taken some of the work of the cutting process for us. Good idea…and perhaps a bit more accurate as well since they’re die-cut.

Animals seemed to be a theme of many booths–from bugs, fish and butterflies, to bunnies, chickens and zoo inhabitants. Another popular theme in fabrics was fairies.

I went to a class on making fabric beads, and I’ll share some of that information with you soon. For now, I’m going to put my feet up for awhile, and then be happy to sleep in my own bed!

By LindaG | Posted in Sew & Craft Industry News, Sewing as a business

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Creative Embroidery Conference - Las Vegas

October 28, 2008 – 2:47 pm

Hello from Joyce! This is my very first blog entry, but I have loved following Linda’s posts here. Even though we usually know in advance what Linda will be blogging about, I find that I always stop what I’m doing to read a new post. Since I haven’t been able to sew as much in the past few months as I’d like to (that’s going to change!), sewing vicariously through her helps to feed my need and add creative ideas to my list. I also get a kick out of her adventures. If you ever have an opportunity to meet Linda in person or take one of her classes, you’ll quickly find that not only is she a wealth of information, she is pure FUN too! (did you catch in one of her previous posts that she took a CSI class? That’s CSI for Crime Scene Investigation)

On to the reason for my post though… we’ve received many questions asking if the Creative Embroidery Conference will be returning to Las Vegas. The answer is a resounding YES. After a 1 year hiatus to add to our sewing family with the purchase of sewing.org from the former Home Sewing Association (by my sister Janice - the other half of the Sewing & Craft Alliance), as well as launching the new Trained Sewing Instructor program and partnering with the American Sewing Guild to relaunch and revive National Sewing Month, plans are now in the works to return to Las Vegas with the Creative Embroidery Conference in 2009. We are still working out the location and date details and will let everyone know via this blog as well as our monthly SEW-lutions newsletter when the information is ready. Hope to see you there!

By SCAJoyce | Posted in General Information

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Sewing Show Smarts

October 22, 2008 – 11:03 am

This time of year there are often lots of sewing and quilting shows happening. I leave tomorrow for Quilt Market, which is the BIG trade show for the industry–only those with a business can get in to it and this is where shops buy the products and fabrics you see in their stores. Since consumers can’t attend, I’ll give you a full report when I return early next week.

Whether you attend a local guild sewing event, or travel to attend a regional or national show, here are some helpful hints for maximizing the experience:

Make a plan

Usually the show information is posted online, so you can see what vendors will be attending and who will be teaching classes. There might also be a discount coupon available for reduced admission. If you want to attend classes, register early online to ensure a space if that option is available.

Take both money and credit cards

Not all vendors take credit cards–some smaller companies may take only cash or perhaps checks. It’s a good idea to have both with you, and also access to an ATM if there’s a “must-have” item you can’t live without. If you need to limit your spending, it’s easy if you pay for everything in cash and when the set amount is gone, that’s it for purchasing. Read More »

By LindaG | Posted in General Information, Sewing as a business

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Celebratory Sewing Events

October 18, 2008 – 10:12 am

Did you know that today is National Chocolate Cupcake Day? Yes, really. It was a theme for a cooking segment on the Today Show.

October is also National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (hope you all got your mammogram), and it’s National Caramel Month.

Who makes up these things? I don’t know, but I’m suspecting that some council somewhere dreams them up–some just for fun, others to support and raise awareness of worthy causes, and still others so retailers can have sales with a theme. There are several celebrations related to our beloved hobby that perhaps you want to note for the upcoming months.

February is National Embroidery Month. March is National Craft Month. April is National Decorating Month, and of course we all know that September is National Sewing Month.

If you belong to a sewing or quilting guild, these special commemorative months make for some interesting meeting or special event themes. Or you can note them just for fun or silliness, or an excuse to do something you might not do on another day. Personally, I’m looking forward to National Candy Corn Day on October 30, and I shall do my part to indulge! I LOVE candy corn, and am extremely resentful that it’s usually available only for a short time each year.

It’s OK to make your own special day, week or month and share it with others. Hmmm…I wonder if there’s a National Fabric Buying week?

By LindaG | Posted in General Information

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Serged Edges

October 16, 2008 – 12:09 am

Since I’m having company at the end of the month, I’m working on my Halloween decorating…right down to the celebratory scarves for our 3 dogs. I’m making a holiday tablecloth and fabric napkins as well. Today I put up a fall wreath on the front door and a ghoulish goblin to entice my trick-or-treaters. (And it amuses the girl who delivers our mail!)

Did you know that Halloween is the biggest sewing season of the year for pattern companies? If you’ve been to a fabric store lately, you may have seen some folks who don’t normally frequent the place wandering around looking as if they need help. Non-sewers flock to fabric stores this time of year in search of the perfect angel wing fabric, or the ulitmate in pirate attire for their special youngsters. Patient salespeople help those who may only have a vision for the final result and absolutely no idea how to achieve it.

Since I have no children, other than the fur children mentioned above, I concentrate on decorating for this annual event. I’m using my serger to roll hem all the napkins and to finish the tablecloth edges. It’s also perfect for finishing the bias edges of the dog scarves, as I can use the differential feed to keep from stretching or rippling the cut edges.

I personally love Woolly Nylon for roll hemming, as it fills in to create a solid looking edge without any fibers poking through the stitches. If you’ve never tried it before, thread it through only the upper and lower looper and use matching serger thread in the needle. Woolly Nylon is texturized and it’s a little fuzzy on the ends, so if you have trouble getting it through the looper eyes, use a needle threader to help. You might also need to consult your serger instruction book for the proper roll hem settings for your particular machine.

I always feel like I’m in a factory when I do serger roll hems, as I can go so fast and it creates such a wonderfully professional finish. I like to stitch continuously, so when one edge is done, I simply feed in the next one without cutting the thread between. I keep going until I’m forced to cut the pieces apart and start again in the other direction, so I can whip up lots of edges in no time! Sergers were used in factories long before they became available to home sewers.

If you only use your serger for seam finishing, get out the book and read up on the other things it can do–from flatlocking to seaming and many things in between. It’s a versatile little machine.

By LindaG | Posted in Home Decorating, Sewing, Quilting & Embroidery Tips & Techniques

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Sewing Events

October 13, 2008 – 11:27 am

Linda Griepentrog

This past weekend I had the pleasure of presenting an all-day workshop for the Salem, Oregon American Sewing Guild group–the topics were Inkjet Fabric Printing and Needle Felting by Hand or Machine.

I LOVE teaching (OK, I might have mentioned this in an earlier post)! It’s not just the sharing of the skills, but also the energy that develops when sewers are together–in this case 45 of them in one room. You can see from the photos that the students were intent on their felting work, as their samplers had to be done before lunchtime because another presentation was coming their way.

On the flip side, I also love going to classes, no matter what the topic (I try to avoid exercise classes, but almost any other subject is fair game). This year I’ve taken classes on jewelry making, chocolate truffle making, CSI and creative closures for sewn garments. No matter how smart you think you are, there’s always something to learn from the teacher and other class members. Between my two ASG classes was a wonderful presentation on apron history.

Perhaps you too love teaching, and you also love going to classes. If your not sure about selecting classes, check out this Sewing & Craft Alliance Guideline How to Find a Sewing Educator for some great ideas on where to look and questions to ask before you get there. Thorough research will assure that you get the information you expect. If you’re a teacher, check it out as well as it offers some helpful hints for class preparation.

The ASG event where I taught also had a “craft market” where members could rent a table to sell their wares–from scraps and fabric “overstocks” to patterns and finished projects. I actually had two tables to sell some of the projects I’ve made for magazine stories and then they’re returned to me. They pile up in my storage room with no future use, so many of the guild members did some early Christmas shopping. If you’re a guild member, think about this idea as a group activity–everyone benefits from the sales and things go to an appreciative home.

If you have ideas for other successful sewing events, send them my way and I’ll share them in future entries.

By LindaG | Posted in General Information

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