Sewing blog aimed at beginners.
Lots of tutorials and reviews .
How to use an overlocker, sewing machine , coverstitch and embroidery machine. Storage ideas and much more
I am keen to Re use and recycle.
ABOUT ME
I am Angela and I love to sew. I started sewing as a child and by the time I was a teenager I was wearing the very latest fashions to go out in. All me-made.
I am passionate about reducing the amount of textiles sent to landfill, and encourage you to repurpose fabrics and clothes
I started this blog in order to have a way in which to pass on my gained knowledge, and my professional knowledge to you,
Sewing is empowering, you can save money by making items, make money by selling then,
You can pass your knowledge on to others. What is there not to love?
Interestingly I am a direct descendant of the Flemish weavers who came over to England in the 1300's. I find that fascinating especially as most of my family from as far back as I can trace are somehow involved in the manufacturing of fabric . .
I have a degree in tailoring with a special interest in WW2 fashion.
Just suppose that you have had your Brother Embroidery Machine for a while now and you have been downloading additional Embroidery patterns from the internet, and everything is going fine but where do you go from here?
You may want to create your own designs from a photograph or clip art, perhaps you want to add lettering to a design and create your own logo, with this software you can do all that plus add colours, change colours, change hoop size, arrange several patterns to make one design and much more
If this appeals to you then this software is for you.
The software is easy to install and there are full instillation instructions in the box with step by step pictures showing each stage. You cannot go wrong.
I wanted a lightweight coat for slightly warmer days and came across this fabric in my stash which is perfect
This post was actually started a year ago and since then the pattern which I used is no longer in the current Vogue catalogue. However I still feel that there is value in releasing this post as the techniques remain the same no matter what pattern you use
In this post we will discuss
Labels
Basic tailoring using fusible interfacings
Buttonholes
Lining
Fitting
Pressing
This is my coat pictured today before its first outing.
Machine embroidery is such a massive subject that I will be coming back to it frequently.
In this post I wanted to talk more about it because I know that some of you are still undecided if an embroidery machine is something you will use.
I will be honest and say that Embroidery machines are only as complicated as you want them to be. They come with designs built into them so you are ready to go as soon as you take it out of the box. Furthermore if you are reading this then you have enough computer knowledge to download and use designs off the internet too. You may then want to further your new passion and create your own designs using specialised software - more about that later.
In this post I am making a dress and simple unlined jacket in black cotton, but you will excuse me for not going into detail about the construction of these garments as there are plenty of instructions elsewhere on my blog and the instructions inside the pattern are excellent too. If you do want more detailed information then please let me know.
It's nice to see a young designer doing well and I am certainly impressed with this pattern by Nina Lee. This Carnaby dress is very Chanel in style, the pattern is very adaptable, simple to make, stylish, fun...what more could anybody ask for?
I was given this pattern to test by Elaine of Sewing Belle. Elaine has workshops on lots of sewing projects held in her premises in Nottingham. This dress will possibly feature in a workshop next year.Sewing Belle Workshops so do please contact her for details of upcoming workshops
If you want to buy this pattern it is available on Elaine's web site, The Nina Lee Carnaby dress
I wanted to make myself a new dress for Christmas, a dress which is comfortable and easy to wear. I have a few lunches to go to and this dress will be perfect for them. I will also wear it on Christmas Day. Well,my Christmas Day will be a few days before yours as my son has to work all over Christmas and he is too far away to be able to get home this year. It will be my first Christmas without him, so we decided to do it earlier in the week, which is the only compromise we could come up with.
The fabric I chose is this beautiful wool jersey with a foil print on it. It glitters and sparkles but it is comfortable and snuggly. Perfect! I bought this length of fabric a long time ago and when I spotted it on my shelves I knew it would be ideal.
There are some metallic foil fabrics on The MinervaCrafts web site if you want to take a look Sparkly fabrics remember the fabric can be woven, it does not have to be a jersey you will find lots of other fabrics on their web site
I also really love these tartans, don't be afraid of using a tartan as these particular ones are not difficult to pattern match, some of these glitter too! What's not to love about them? Sparkly tartans and other fantastic fabrics
The pattern comes with a booklet explaining each stage in great detail. Sewers of all abilities will find the instructions very easy to follow and this pattern is therefore suitable for beginners upwards. Somebody with more experience can experiment with different fabrics and finishes, a contrast skirt would look fabulous as would a dress made in a tweed and lined.
What I really appreciated was opening the booklet and finding size charts, finished measurements and fabric requirements all on the first page. This is a major gripe of mine, hunting for measurements, usually they are hidden away on a bit of the tissue paper, if they are there at all.
Continuing my determination to have a whole wardrobe of coats to choose from I made yet another one this time with a zipper closure.
This one was not the easiest garment to make but I will explain why as we go along.
The machines and tools are from Jaycotts.co.uk and the fabric is from MinervaCrafts. The pattern is Simplicity.
I love coats and I wanted a choice to wear instead of just having one for best and one for cold winter days shopping. So I have made several.
This time I wanted to explore making a coat with a zipper. The last two coats I made have included poppers - note I have not been using buttons and buttonholes.
This is a review of the Bernina 350PE sewing machine from Jaycotts
This is my own sewing machine and I want to talk to you about why I love it.
This machine is a strong workhorse which will serve you well for many years to come. Bernina are so confident of the longevity of this machine that it comes with a seven year guarantee.
The Bernina PE (Patchwork Edition) comes with a lot of extras making it especially good value.
As you might expect one of the many accessories which are included is a patchwork foot.
Also included is the totally invaluable walking foot and an extension table meaning you can get started on your project straight away.
The machine has a vast selection of inbuilt stitches with 20 utility stitches, 52 decorative stitches 11 quilting stitches Two memory buttonholes and a full range of automatic lettering and font.
It is incredibly easy to select each different stitch in the LCD screen but what really makes this machine so outstanding is its ease of use, smooth running and accuracy whether you are a beginner or experienced sewer.
Take a look at the machine on Jaycotts web site, and if you want more information or to try it out just give them a call, contact details are below Bernina 350PE at Jaycotts
This embroidery only machine makes short work of embelishing anything from garments to bed linen and home wear. But it is not just an embroidery machine, it does free standing lace and applique too. The long arm makes it suitable for larger projects but it is equally at home with small intricate designs. Interested?
Not only does it embroider beautifully it appliques with ease and makes free standing lace. I make these bookmarks to give as gifts.
Watch this short video to see it in action
It's such a pleasure to use this machine , and so uncomplicated that within minutes of it being delivered I was producing my very first embroidery.
This is one of a set of velvet cushion covers I have been making. Velvet is notoriously difficult too work with but this machine had no problem with it whatsoever. More about how I made them later.
As you know I recently spent a day with Jaycotts to ask owners of the wonderful Brother Innov-is VQ2 sewing, quilting and embroidery machine
The post is here if you would like to read it. The Brother Innov-is VQ2 .
Many of you already own a sewing machine which you do not want to replace, but if you would like to own an embroidery machine too, look no further than the NV800E from Brother.
I have this machine at home and I wanted to tell you more about it and why I like it.
First of all it has a large colour LCD touch screen. This is the place where you select your pattern and make alterations to it.
Once a pattern has been selected you then have editing options, so you can easily change the shape, size and position of the design. Not only that you can also change the thread colours and rotate the design creating a mirror image.
Each design gives the total time to sew and the amount of time before the next thread change.
It is easy to combine patterns and to change the font on your lettering.
A useful feature is that you can easily check that the embroidery fits inside your chosen frame.
Once you start embroidering the LCD screen displays the thread being used and the minutes it will take to complete that section. The colour list and thread number moves after each colour is stitched and puts the next colour at the top of the list.
There are many other functions easily accessible on this screen, for example you may need to go back a few stitches or save a design to a memory stick. There is also a stitch counter which comes in handy if you need to turn the machine off and come back to it later
Once editing is complete the design is previewed in full colour.
I used to long for my own sewing room,and when my son left home there was my opportunity. Of course he still comes home as much as he possibly can but he is a busy man and that does not happen as much as I would like.
As I now have his room for most of the year I decided to purchase a Horn sewing cabinet so that I am able to tidy everything away neatly when I have finished sewing.
My sewing table was a rickety, very old small square table and the legs kept having to be fixed back on. I also had to keep swapping my chair from one side to the other whenever I wanted to change from overlocker to machine and back again.
It was he who suggested the table had to go and be replaced with something "proper"
Well, there was not much thought went into ordering this beauty.Yes they are not cheap but just look how elegant and beautiful it looks.Of course I needed the chair as well!
I recently spent a day instore at Jaycotts finding out from owners of this wonderful machine just what it is that excites them so much.
What became obvious very quickly was the tremendous amount of enthusiasm and passion for this machine shown by both owners and staff, so I had to find out more!
I interviewed a group of Jaycotts customers who all own this fabulous machine and have put their comments and thoughts together so that you can see it though their eyes
Quilt by Sue from Liberty Bell Chester
Ann has been sewing all her life and has not had the VQ2 for very long so she is still learning. She loves the electronic side of it, in particular the extra-large colour touchscreen which is so easy to use
All Ann needs to do is to simply touch the screen to edit stitches, customise the settings, change to one of 13 built in languages and set the clock. She also loves the on screen video tutorials and built in tutorials and help guides which recommend the perfect settings for her project.
Another feature which she loves is the lighting. This machine has ultra-bright LED lighting giving a crisp natural light, it is also adjustable, so it can turned down or brighter as you require .The lighting is not just in the needle area as usual though - this machine goes better than that as the whole arm area is illuminated.
The VQ2 with quilting by Elaine
As soon as Elaine saw the VQ2 she knew instantly that she had to have it. She loves the way the fabric is fed through easily which was instantly apparent when she went for her demonstration.
Elaine recommends that when doing free motion quilting you practise first on a small sandwich of your quilting fabric, wadding and backing until you are happy with the effect you want to create.
