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!

Don't miss out!

There is one spot left in the Cute Skirts class!

Class will be held Tuesdays, September 25th and October 2nd, 7pm-9pm.

Call Bolt Fabric Boutique at 503-287-BOLT (2658) to sign up.

Here's your last chance to get a fall skirt started! These skirts look great with tall boots or with tights and the cute shoe of your choice! They also look fantastic in light wool, which would last you through the winter in this area!

Have I mentioned that I can even ride my bike in this skirt? It's just the right length for decency and just full enough to allow me to easily pedal! This skirt is awesome!

Which sewing machine to purchase?

I was just over at Whip-Up where they allow readers to submit questions and someone asked what machine to purchase. After typing up my comment in reply, I realized it's a question I answer frequently. So I'm re-posting my comment here.

My advice is to buy from a sewing machine dealer!

You can find all sorts of cheap, unreliable, and unpredictable machines from Target or Sears or Jo-Ann Fabrics or Costco. That's not to say that all of them are bad, but most of the machines under $250 simply aren't worth buying.

I see a lot of different machines when I teach, and the least expensive machines I endorse are the Huskystar machines made for Viking. They are made in China, so not the highest overall quality (compared to machines made in Europe), but they are good machines. They currently have four models of regular sewing machines, of which two are mechanical and two computerized. The mechanical models are fine, but have very few features. The computerized ones have speed control, a drop-in bobbin (making them quieter), and are very simple and easy to use.

By purchasing a machine from a dealer, you can take the classes they offer. I really recommend these, so that you learn the ins and outs of how to care for your machine properly and you can develop a relationship with the dealership so you can fearlessly have your machine serviced there when needed. Those folks will know your machine really well and can teach you all the tricks!

If you buy a Bernina, the dealer will likely offer Bernina Club, which is an amazing resource of monthly classes, each month teaching a new use of the machine. My mom has been sewing for 45 of her 55 years, has taught sewing and fiber arts classes for close to 30 years and attends Bernina Club down in Eugene and still learns new things (and has a lot of fun!)

Once I have daytime child care (aka preschool), I will totally go to Bernina Club!

I have a Bernina 1080 that I have mixed feelings about and a 1970s Elna that I also sew on. Both have great features. You just have to find the machine that you like and can afford!

Things to consider shopping for:

-Speed control (especially handy when doing small work quilting)
-One-step buttonhole (see the demo to confirm it really is one-step)
-Walking foot attachment (for quilting and for working on specialty fabrics)
-Symmetrical zipper foot (most machines have these, but low-end ones don't always and an asymmetrical zipper foot makes zipper application much more difficult)
-Portability (if you'll be taking a lot of classes)
-Large work surface or a table that fits your machine to increase the work surface.

Locally, the places where I have had (or witnessed) good service are:

Montavilla Sewing Center (NE Portland)
Sewing Center West (Beaverton)
Aloha Vac and Sew (Aloha)
27th Street Fabrics (Eugene)

Happy Sewing!

More Cute Skirts!

If you are one of the many on the waiting list for the Cute Skirts class at Bolt, rejoice at the addition of two more sections of the class!!!

The Cute Skirts class will be held:

TUESDAYS September 25th and October 2nd, 7pm-9pm

and

WEDNESDAYS October 10th and 17th, 7pm-9pm

Call Bolt Fabric Boutique to sign up: 503-287-BOLT

This is a bit later than other weeknight classes I've offered at Bolt. We've changed the time to make it easier for me to get to class on time without causing crazy stress at our house at the changing of the guard... If I have to be in Portland at 6:30pm, my sweet husband has to hurryhurryhurry home and then we barely say hello as I dash out the door. The last time we did this, the little one was bawling at the front steps. So this should make it much easier. And if it works for everyone involved, I may be back in business for weeknight classes!

It's not that I don't have things lately that I've made, but this fort that I made today for my son is the most interesting this afternoon! This is a quilt my mom made for me for my birthday this year (if you zoom in, you can see how old I am!) and my son has just discovered the fun of building a fort and hiding in it!







Here's a little "then and now" on our garden also... The first photo was taken in May. The second one today while little O was playing with our friends who were visiting from Norway (!!!). It was so good to see them. And good to take a break from the never-ending processing of the harvest from the very bountiful garden!!!

I've hardly had time to sew for all the canning I've been doing! I've put up another peck of pickles (we don't have a scale large enough for the pickles, so all I know is that I filled five 2-quart jars of pickles. This is in addition to the 20 or so quarts already in the fridge! We are in pickle heaven around here!!!

I've also made a few preserves from this book:
It has a really varied selection of recipes, which I especially needed in dealing with the zillion pounds of plums from my parent's tree! I've made Amaretto Plum jam, Orange Plum Marmalade (with Cointreau in it!), Orange-Blueberry Jam, Plum-Raspberry Jam, in addition to spaghetti sauce from our tomatoes/leeks/peppers/herbs and today we're working on harvesting our grapes and turning them into grape jelly. The juice is so good I'm tempted to just drink it, but I bet it will make superb (if a bit cloudy) jelly!

Eventually I'll get back to that solid color quilt I'm supposed to have done at the end of the month!

What's that, you have more time to spend at the computer?

Here it is folks:


It's like Etsy, but out of Europe. Germany or the UK, as far as I can tell.
You can read it all in German if you like... ;)

Zippered Coin Purse

There has been a lot of blogging about zipper pouches lately, and I wanted to add my two cents about how I teach my coin purse! This is the pattern that comes with my Farmer's Market Tote Bag pattern!

I interface the fabric, to make it a bit more rigid, and I make mine about the size of my driver's license and debit card, since that's what I carry. You could make it just about any size. And if you wanted, you could fuse two fabrics together (or quilt them together) and then treat the finished fabric like one piece. Because of how I install the zipper, you have limited scraggly edges, especially if you serge the side seams!

Place the zipper face down on the fabric. The zipper should be slightly longer than the fabric is wide. Here I've used a 7" zipper and the fabric is about 5" wide. Center the zipper on the fabric, aligning the edge of the zipper tape with the raw edge of the fabric. Sew down the center of the zipper tape, using a zipper foot.

Bring the other raw edge of the fabric up to the other side of the zipper tape. The right side of the zipper should be touching the right side (not the interfaced side) of the fabric.


Sew the zipper to the fabric, again aligning the zipper tape with the raw edge of the fabric. Make sure the side seams will line up for the next step!

Here's where my zippered coin purse is different.
Instead of having the zipper at the TOP of the purse, align the side seams so that the zipper tape can be completely flat! This means the zipper will lie on the FRONT of the purse.

In the picture you can see I've already sewn one side seam. I had the zipper mostly closed to sew that side, just to make it easier.


Be sure you OPEN THE ZIPPER before you sew the second side seam!

I sew across the zipper teeth a few times, to be sure it is secure!

Once you've sewn both side seams, cut off the excess zipper tape, using sharp scissors. It's important that you've used a nylon zipper, not a metal zipper or you could really trash your scissors. In the picture I'm using applique/embroidery scissors, but only because they were closest to the sewing machine that day!

Trimming the corners before you turn the coin purse right side out removes the excess fabric (and zipper tape) that causes rounded corners.

Here it is finished!

The photos don't show the ribbon being inserted, because it is put in the side seams. But here's how to do it:

On the side with the zipper stop, take 1 1/2" ribbon and fold it in half. Tuck the ribbon under the zipper teeth, with the raw edges of the ribbon lined up with the raw edge of the fabric. At this point, the zipper tape will be extended beyond the raw edge of the fabric, thus hiding the ribbon. Pin the ribbon in place and sew the side seam.

On the side with the zipper pull, take 6" of ribbon and fold it in half. Tuck the folded ribbon under the zipper teeth with the raw edges of the ribbon lined up with the raw edge of fabric. This side is trickier, because the zipper has to be open. Pin the ribbon in place and then place each side of the zipper teeth on top of the ribbon, holding the zipper teeth as close together as possible.

With the long bit of ribbon, you can wear the purse around your wrist or you can attach it to your Farmer's Market Tote Bag! That way your money is close by and doesn't fall to the bottom of the bag!

Summer sewing

Wow. What an absence. Sorry 'bout that!
Between hosting three different sets of family this week (including dinner for 12 one night) and having the contractor no-show on us to schedule the kitchen remodel, it's been a crazy busy week!

But that's not to say I haven't been sewing and teaching!
I'm wrapping up my teaching at Jo-Ann Fabrics for now. This shirt above is from Sewing II. I'm taking a break from teaching there during the fall and winter. For the student who called the store and specifically asked for a class from me, I'm so sorry to disappoint!

This week was full of birthdays, including a dear friend of mine who got this apron. The fabric has been in my stash for a long time, and I was worried that I didn't have enough of the blue to make an apron, but with a little Amy Butler inspiration, I was off to the races!


Little feet wanted to join me on my perch on the chair for photos.

Another birthday was for a little boy and it crossed my mind to make him a little hoodie like this one. It didn't get done quite in time, and then I figured that it was too cute and too much my son's size for us to give it away.

I did a little trick with the tails of the serger threads on this. I'd serged the hood to the body of the jacket and had long serger tails at the top of the zipper. The pattern called for twill tape to cover that seam, but I figured I could just top stitch the seam down. When I did, I tucked in the serger tails. That way there aren't any scraggly edges by his face. They wouldn't have been scratchy, just unsightly. And we don't want any of that!

Keep checking in

In other news, the class schedule for September/October classes at Bolt will be ready soon! Check the Bolt website at http://boltfabricboutique.com for details. As soon as the list is finalized, I'll have my classes listed in the sidebar!

Not much

Anyone else tired of seeing the same old post?
I don't have much for you, seeing as how I've apparently forgotten how to use our camera and haven't captured much at all lately, much less something blog worthy.

But I will share this photo of my son at my brother's wedding. Pretty cute, eh? In the corner you can see I'm wearing the skirt I made for the wedding. The green shirt didn't get finished in time, and still only has one sleeve cap, but the flower skirt and the green skirt got done, along with a ton of household-y things at my parents house (where the wedding was held!)