Remodel Mayhem

In the midst of this crazy remodel, I managed to crank through a whole load of sewing! I got a baby blanket started AND finished (sorry no photo, it's a gift not yet given. To a baby, not yet born...). And I got some small Christmas gifts finished. Yes, the F-word. I haven't used it much around here lately, as I've gotten very good at starting, and not so good at finishing things. And I got a darling coat cut out for my little one. Photo of that soon.

But I'm sticking my head in here to say that there are two spots open for the upcoming Apron Class at Bolt. You will have your choice of a very cute and feminine apron with a bib OR a waist apron. There have been some amazing apron patterns coming out, and we've grabbed TWO of them to play with!

The apron could be made to be worn at the holidays, so you look super cute in the kitchen OR it would make a fantastic gift - one size fits most!

Happy sewing and I hope to see you in class!

New Classes at Bolt

I am so grateful to teach at Bolt. It is, by far, the coolest shop I've ever shopped, has the greatest owner/person I've ever worked for, and has the most wonderful clients that sign up for classes in the most record time ever! I've wanted to post the class list for a couple of days, but the classes are all nearly full. If you aren't on the Bolt mailing list, you can sign up in the store. That way you'll get the email notice of the new classes as we add them.

For those of you patient enough to be on a waiting list, it's worth a try to get into:

Zipper Clinic Sunday Nov 18th, 4:30-6:30pm
Cute Skirts Tuesdays, Nov 6th and 13th, 7-9pm
Aprons Tuesdays Nov 20th and 27th, 7-9pm
Learn to Sew: Swing Bag Sundays Dec 2nd, 9th, and 16th 4:30-6:30pm

Call Bolt at 503-287-BOLT. If the class is full, you can ask to be added to the wait list. That way, if we add another session, you'll be the first to know. But each time we send out a new class list, the wait lists start over from scratch. Basically, if you still want in the Cute Skirts class, get on the waiting list. At some point you'll get in!

And if it all just makes you crazy and you want the class r.i.g.h.t.n.o.w. , I am resuming giving private lessons in Portland. Right now I am limiting it to Sundays, prior to teaching class at Bolt.

Happy sewing!
-- and that photo up top is an apron I made for a friend for her birthday! It's roughly the apron pattern from Amy Butler In Stitches. I like her method for the waistband and ties. Instead of handstitching, I just did stitch in the ditch from the front, and it worked nicely.

Sister's Retreat 2007

I've been back from the Sister's Retreat for about a week now, and am finally recovered from the sore abdominal muscles! Wow, we had some serious laughs! I have such a great family, and when the women get together, we have SO MUCH FUN!

We got a lot of sewing done, and I'll post some snippets for you. None are all the way finished (except maybe one), but you'll get the idea. ;)

We worked on fabric postcards, and mine was originally going to be that project that you just jump into, thinking you'll toss it in the trash and move on to an attractive version of what you started... It might still get replaced by a better version, but I was aiming to a) play with my new machine (eeeeeek! yay! it's so gorgeous and wonderful. More about that later!) and b) sew myself a reminder of the view from my sewing machine for the weekend. I could look out the window, and beyond the deck rail was a beautiful view of Hood River, the Columbia River, the railroad on the Washington side of the river, and Mt. Adams.


First I backed the fabrics with Wonder Under (or maybe Steam a Seam?) and fused them all together. You'll notice I forgot to add the mountain. The day I worked on this, it was cloudy and I couldn't see the mountain. Out of sight, out of mind!
Then I sewed some fancy stitches to be the "train" and played with thread colors to make the muddy embankment on the far side of the river.
I spent way too much time trying to get the deck rail just right. I played with the paper backing on the fabric and using my ruler, drew the rails. But after I cut out the deck rail, it was way too big. And the scraps left over from the cutting looked better. So now I still need to sew it all together.

Oops, gotta run, more photos tomorrow!

Off I go...

To the 2007 Sisters Retreat! I'll be gone until Tuesday and then will have all sorts of delectable photos to share, hopefully one of my solid color quilt! So far it looks like this. Have a good weekend!

p.s. Be sure to keep your eyes out for the November/December class list from Bolt! We'll be offering another slew of great classes!