Happiness Through Sewing
You know that word “free”. So eye-catching. Free patterns are great except when they’re a horribly frustrating waste of your time and fabric. I’ve sworn off free patterns with their unclear instructions, haphazard construction methods and unflattering results. Oh, but this one is different đ The Trail Tote pattern by Noodlehead (for Robert Kaufman Fabrics) […] Read more…
It is the end of my self created, self-imposed, Use-It-Up fabric challenge. I went one year, October 31, 2015 to November 1, 2016, with out buying any fabric. I began the challenge to use up fabric I had. I mean I bought it to use it, right? I never bought fabric intending to never use it. I saw it, […] Read more…
Do you ever think you know what youâre doing and then mistake after mistake your confidence slowly erodes away and you think, geez, Iâve been fooling myself and everyone else. I know nothing. My hand is raised. This happened to me, surely more than once in my life, but definitely recently when I realized that […] Read more…
There are many, many times when you will need to fold over and press up a certain width of fabric. You may be pressing up a hem, pressing over fabric for a casing or pressing in the raw edges of a patch pocket. Your directions will simply state to fold over X inch(s) and press. (or […] Read more…
Where your dress or skirt falls on your legs impacts your overall look. Even just a couple inches longer or shorter can change the entire an outfit from off to great. Since most of us benefit from a longer looking leg it’s handy to know how to shorten your skirt or dress. There are two ways. You can stick to […] Read more…
There are times when you need to sew quite a ways in from the edge of the fabric. Further in than any seam guide marked on your machine. How do you know where to line your fabric edge at to sew 1.5 or 2 or more inches in? And if you measure over from the needle and […] Read more…
Ever have a skirt (or dress) that’s just too big on the sides? The fabric sticks out in an odd bell like shape? Having no crotch seam to stop us we wear our skirts at different places on our torso out of comfort or habit than the designer intended. This is why you may find many […] Read more…
We’ve all heard you should take your clothes to a tailor for alterations; have them fit to you. But you got sewing skills. You don’t need no stinkin’ tailor – well, not for every alteration and besides, you always want a good smelling and talented tailor when you do need one. Shortening a dress, skirt, […] Read more…
As a kid when I needed to transport small toys out to the back yard, I would place them in the center of a bandanna and tie the opposite corners together. I thought it was the perfect little tote and even used it high school (and beyond) as a purse. The bento bag is a sort […] Read more…
I love it when things come together. And I really love it when they come together in an easy manner like this baby quilt I just finished for my cousin’s grandchild. This cousin wasn’t in my life much but her daughter made a special connection with my son when he was young and […] Read more…