So, I wanted a “table runner” for my headboard.  I thought about scrapy blocks that make me smile, traditional runners, appliqued vines and flowers, and then I saw the picket block and decided to switch from applique to embroidery.  It’d give a hint of primitiveness which appealed to me.  I wouldn’t do specialty stitches… just a basic back stitch, a running stitch, and a couple of satin stitched centers and a lazy daisy or two.

Voila!  The completed project.  Man I need to paint my wall!!!

Part of why I chose the style I did, was because I was using what I had on hand.  The backing/batting is a quilted bedspread that I’d purchased to make window warmers and then never did.  The fabric I all had on hand and I was trying to keep the project to a “zero cost” adventure.  I think it worked well.

At least once or twice a month (and sometimes a day!), someone asks me, “What is a good, cheap, beginner sewing machine?”

Well the first rule is, good and cheap in regards to sewing machines are pretty much oxymoronic.

For years, I sewed on all kinds of cheap machines.  My first was an old singer with cams for button holes.  I sewed on a treadle, an old Kenmore, a Brother, several newer singers, a white, a Riccar, a New Home, and a Babylock.  There may have been more, but those are the ones I remember best.  When I wore out my second Babylock, it was time to indulge in a life-long dream.  A Bernina.  I wanted a mechanical machine.  I didn’t want a computerized model, but after comparing the functionality, considering resale, etc, I opted to go with the computerized.  I bought the Bernina 1080.  Best move I’ve ever made.  Four years later, I got a GREAT deal on an 1230.  When Challice got married, she took that one with her.

Now, a couple of years ago, I got stuck in my recliner, so my husband generously bought me a little Janome Jem.  It was a lightweight, inexpensive machine from a brand that I’ve heard nothing but excellent things about.  The object was to have a little machine that I could sit in the recliner and sew with it in my lap.  It worked beautifully.  I loved the little thing (sans the whine which I’ll get back to later)… until…  it jammed.  When it jammed I got an error message.  The manual has a list of error messages and what to do for them.  However, there was one slight problem.  The error message I got wasn’t in the manual.  It was a number that the manual didn’t address at all.  I took it to the store where I bought it and they called, looked it over, talked to the company, and finally determined that I’d dropped it.

Um, no.  I did not.  And, as was strongly suggested several times, my children did not drop it either.  The machine was. not. dropped.  The broken pieces they found inside (PLASTIC PIECES) broke when the machine jammed.  Period.  I had the machine six months when it broke.  It’s been two years since I purchased it.  I haven’t seen it since it was six month’s old.  Janome may be a great product and I so still recommend it for people demanding a “cheap” machine, but I have to say, I’m not impressed.  PLASTIC PARTS DO NOT IMPRESS ME.

When that machine broke, I went to Walmart and bought a $200 dollar oh Brother sewing machine.  I knew it’d be lighter than my workhorse Bernina and I could keep it on my lap too.  It worked.  It did have quite a few things that I truly despised.  First, the needle always ends in DOWN.  Always.  That’s a pain.  It has a drop-in bobbin.  I don’t like those.  The whine…. oh the whine….  And then there was the inability to make a good buttonhole.  Yeah, it has special feet, buttons, etc… miserable.  Absolutely miserable.  I’ve never made such ugly buttonholes in my life.  I finally spent a few hours figuring out how to make them with their crazy buttons and sizes etc fully free-handed.  I hated it.

So, after over two years of not touching my trusty Bernina, I found a new foot pedal and cord, cleaned it up, plugged it in, and started sewing.  I’ve sewn more in the past month than I have in the past year and a half at least.  I LOVE my Bernina.  L.O.V.E.  Just a few little things that I have to point out that makes a huge difference in the enjoyability of sewing.

• Rocking needle down.  With my machine, when I take my heel and rock down on the foot pedal, it puts my needle in the down position or if it was in the down position, it puts the needle back up.  Just a rock of the heel and my needle obeys.  They told me how great that was when I bought the machine, and I didn’t get it.  I thought it was just a silly little extra that might be nice but wouldn’t make a long-term improvement.  I was wrong.  It is one of those things that makes work go so much smoother!
• Bernina’s patented hole in the hook.  The bobbin case has a hole in the hook.  You take the thread and loop through that hole and voila!  Perfect applique zig zag.  I forgot how beautiful their zig zag is.
• Speed control.  I can put it on half speed if I like!  That’s great for letting my younger girls learn how to sew!  I can put it on and it makes it much easier to control when you’re new to judging curves and such.
• Buttonhole that can use a cool beans foot for you or you can punch the button and free hand it with excellent results every time.
• Smooth operation.  Oh it’s smooth.  I love that.
• No whine.  Most new machines (even some of the newer Berninas) have a high-pitched whine that send me through the roof.  I seriously can hear like a dog and I go nuts.  My Bernina is quiet.

There are many other things that the machine does and is that make it preferable to a “cheap” machine.  I have to say, when it comes to sewing machines, you get what you pay for.  I remember the hours of frustration dealing with tension problems in older machines or broken plastic parts in newer ones, and it’s my opinion that you should buy more machine than you think you need if you expect to sew much at all.   Now, if you’re just looking for something to mend a tear now and then and maybe sew a craft thing once or twice a year, I wouldn’t worry about spending more than $200 dollars on a basic machine from Walmart.  It’s just not necessary.  However, if you have a desire to sew… to create something at least once a month or so, then I’d invest in a tool that you can use for years to come, without dealing with the hassles that a low end machine can cause.

I know that you can buy a machine for under $400.  I understand that.  I also understand that a lot of people use them happily.  I just know that especially for people learning to sew, it is nice not to have to fuss with the mechanics of the machine while you’re learning the basics of construction and then later, the finer detail work.  It really is the difference between having a quality made car in top running condition (even if it isn’t new) vs. an old clunker or even a new low end economy car like a stripped down Hyundai.  It’s nice when you drive it off the lot but after much use, you’ll see little things breaking here and there in a relatively short amount of time.

So, when people ask me what kind of machine to buy when you want a “good, cheap, beginner, sewing machine,” I tell them to save a little more and get what you pay for… and then some!  Go to eBay and invest in a good METAL Swiss Precision Bernina.  I recommend the older models 1080, 1090, 1130, 1230, or 1240.  The 1080 and 1090 do not have an alphabet, but the others do!  There are lots of decorative stitches, most of which a lot of people will never use, but if that tickles your fancy, it has them.  It has the wonderful foot pedal with the rock back feature, and runs like a dream.  Any Bernina dealer can see  how many hours it has been sewn on and you can get them from anywhere from $450-750 dollars on eBay.

Take your time, save your money, and buy something worthwhile.  I’ve sewn on almost every brand of sewing machine out there and when it comes down to it, these are the only machines that I can recommend without reservation.

NEW Machines to avoid?

• White
• Singer
• Simplicity
• Elna

All of those machines have a reputation for falling apart quickly.

Other Machines I won’t buy (again)?

• Brother
• Janome
• Kenmore (they are supposedly made by Janome)
• Viking  (I know some people love them but the two I’ve sewn on were nightmares… and newish!)
• Pfaff   (If for no other reason than the company’s lousy customer service issues… but I didn’t like their machines either.  Problem after problem!)

Older (over 25- years old) machines that are probably good quality?

• Singer (avoid anything made after 1970)
• Kenmore
• Montgomery Ward
• Elna

Why am I so sold on Bernina?  Well, my Uncle STILL has the Bernina that he had when he made my cousins their doll and church clothes back in the sixties and seventies.  It’s still an amazing machine and works like a dream.  When I went to buy a good machine, I remembered that and bought the Bernina that I own.  I’ve tried almost everything out there and I’ve WANTED to find other machines that I could recommend as highly (not everyone wants a Bernina!).  For a while, due to high recommendations by owners, I recommended Janome too.  I try not to now.  Broken parts from jamming, dealing with actually getting it repaired, and the rest is just a nightmare and I can’t honestly recommend it to anyone.

Do yourself or the person you’re buying for a favor.  Get them started (or upgrade a beginner from the machine they’re struggling with– assuming that’s why you’re looking for a new machine!) on a machine that makes sewing a delight.  No painter wants to be stuck with finger paints in order to create their art.  Chefs don’t want to be limited to a hot plate and coffee pot for their “kitchen”, and neither does a “sewist” want to fight to do their “art.”  Invest in a good machine and should you discover you don’t enjoy sewing as much as you thought, resale is most likely to be highest if you bought a good used one and kept it in good repair.

Jenna's Birthday Outfit

Ingredients:

Patterns:

Simplicity 4255

The Mc Call’s I used for the bottoms and the Simplicity I used for the top but I altered it quite a bit obviously.

Fabric: Plaid 1.00 yard stuff from Walmart.  It’s a nice crinkle gauze and it washes amazingly well.  YIPPEE.  I love it when I find GOOD stuff on their dollar table (let’s face it, most is garbage but for 1.00 what do you expect.  I always look though because some of the nicest fabric I’ve ever bought has come from them.    For the shorts, I went and bought basic cotton print from the Walmart wall.  I had the perfect twills in a tote somewhere but I don’t know where and I wanted it done.  I wanted them cool so I went with this cotton.

Notions: 2 zippers, 1 button, and thread to match.

A close up...

One of the alterations I did on the top was to add sleeves.   I just cut the basic  “mini puff” sleeve shape out of fabric and voila.  Sleeves.  I bound them in self bias binding that I made.

I also added a full bodice back instead of the straps from the pattern.  I used the pattern front and laid it along the selvedge 5/8″ away from the “fold” and cut it straight up instead of in the sweetheart neckline and then scooped it a bit to acomodate the back neck.  Voila… everythign I wanted in a pattern.  I cut it off where the ruffles would be added… but I didn’t add them.

For some reason, I got into the binding mood because I bound the edges of the capris AND the edges of the top.  I was a binding fiend!

So, as everyone can see, I’ve kind of been on a skorty kind of kick lately.  I thought I’d share a bit what pattern I use and how I do it.   In order to show what they look like without the panel change I usually do, I made today’s skort exactly according to pattern width (I still lengthened them because we really don’t “do” shorts around here and they’d definitely be shorts otherwise.)

Ingredients:

Simplicity # 2910

Pattern- Simplicity “It’s So Easy”  2910

Fabric- Well, it’s either lightweight twill from fabric.com a couple of years ago or from Baby Nay fabric I bought on an eBay buy a couple of years ago.  I’m starting to doubt myself.  If anyone knows, I’d love to correct myself.  The selvedge isn’t very um… illuminating.

Fabric of slightly unknown origin

And from those, I made…

Andra’s new skort set!  As I said, the skirt flap is exactly to pattern.  I added 7″ length to the pattern, and cut out left over fabric to applique onto the shirt.  It looks really cute.  Now the flap, on Andra, goes all the way to  the side of her bum cheeks so it is well covered but I’d prefer it almost hitting the side of the shorts.

Panel widened 3"

So, normally, like on this picture, I would add 3″ to the width of the panel in order for it to come around the sides a bit better.  And, as previously mentioned, on both girls, I added 7″.  Jenna needed more like 9″, but I was running out of fabric so I decided the world needed to see her knees.

I also didn’t have enough fabric for a back flap on Jenna’s but I did on Andra’s.

Back flap present and accounted for!

The back flap looks like this.

Now, seriously, these are the fastest and easiest things in the world to make.  I didn’t take step by step pictures but I can give step by step instructions.

1. Cut out all three pieces according to the pattern.  If preferred, lengthen the skort to just below the knee (much longer and it really does restrict movement a bit requiring more alterations than I want to go into right now.)  Also, if preferred, on the front edge of the panel, widen 2-3″ all the way down that side keeping it STRAIGHT.  If you want a back flap, cut 2 instead of one like they say.
2. Serge and hem or just hem the straight side and bottom of panel.
3. Sew the front and back crotches.  Remember that the deeper one is always the back.  Mark it if you’re afraid you’ll have trouble seeing it once the panels are on.
4. Serge those crotches.  (That just sounds so wrong but I’m tired and hot and not about to rethink how to word it.)
5. Sew the panels to the front and back along the side seams and the top where the waist is.  Serge or finish the seam in some other way.
6. Sew the side seams and finish the edge.
7. Sew and finish the edge of the inseam
   

   Ease of activity!

8. Hem the bottoms of the shorts.  I always start at the side seam, stitch around to the other end, and stop just short of the flap.  I hand whip a bit if it has more than 1/4″ of open seaminess.  (That also sounds just so… seamy.  Wow this is a racy blog.  Oh yeah, the boat fabric.  Regatta.  Gotcha.)
9. Serge the edge of the top (or stitch down 1/4″ and 3/8″ from the top and use pinking shears to stop fraying.
10. Fold over 1″ and sew close to the edge leaving at least 3/4″ for the elastic.
11. Thread 3/4″ elastic through the casing.  Overlap the elastic ends, zig zag and then straight stitch well, and stitch up the opening.  I prefer to stick a smidge of grosgrain ribbon in there in order to show which side is the back.

Voila.  One finished skort.  Enjoy!

I need coasters for my new sewing nook.  I can’t have sweaty glasses ruining my pretty little counters.  So, I need help.  For help, I come to blogland.

Here’s how this contest/giveaway will work.  You submit links to where I can see a picture of what you think I should make.  As long as I can make it, you can submit it.  I just don’t want to buy it.  They can be sewn, woven, crocheted, decoupaged… you name it.  I just need a stinkin’ coaster or four.

IF your suggestion is chosen, I’ll send you a set in whatever colors you like.  If I find something I like before someone sends me a link that I want, then I’ll make a random commenter a set in whatever colors they like.  Even if you don’t want them yourself, they’d make a great “Thinking of You” gift or something to add to a Christmas basket.

Bring on the suggestions!  I must see pictures.

Say that ten times fast!

I made Jon-Jons for my friend’s little boy out of this adorable “slides and ladders” fabric….

VOILA!

Cute eh?

I’m putting this in a new category.  “Stash-Buster”.

Including Jenna’s skort again… cause I think it’s cute.

The skorts were adapted from Simplicity 2910

I added 7″ in length to it.

For Lorna’s “skort” I took pants pattern, cut it off as short as humanly possible, added two tiers of ruffles, and voila!

Jenna got a new outfit today… she doesn’t know it yet, but she did.  (Updated with a picture of her in it… she now knows she has it!)

I’ll add a picture of it on her when she gets home.  She has another skort that I made today, but it isn’t hemmed yet.  I didn’t have enough fabric to make the front panel the full length so we might have to shorten the skort.  EEEK.

I also cut out stuff for Lorna and will sew later.

This is a duplicate post from my Paradoxology blog.  I thought it applied here too.

Ok, it’s a lie.  I confess.  I hardly use pins, don’t like them, and find the whole thing a bit of a nuisance.  However, needles need a home and so I made this “needle cushion” for my new Craft Nook  (blog forthcoming).

Ingredients:

Ice Cream Dish-  Purchased for $1.50 from Rite Aid in their “Dollar Dayz” type aisle.

Steel Wool-  I used super fine.  This is to sharpen your needles as you put them away.

Fabric-  I used a piece that’ll match my duvet cover and my Roman shades since this corner is in my bedroom.

Thread-  Lorna kept bringing me more “fun” colors, but I stuck to plain white.

Button- Purely ornamental and therefore, optional.

Alene’s Tacky Glue-  Or any other craft glue to keep the cushion stuck to the bowl.

Directions:

First, assemble your ingredients.

Draw a circle on your fabric.  I used a salad plate… at first.  Use a DOUBLE thickness of fabric so the steel wool doesn’t come through.  Cut out the circle.

Sew a running stitch all around the edge of the circle.

Shred the steel wool pads to look more like polyfill stuffing.

Stuff  “steel fill” in the circle and draw up around it into a fat ball.

Sew on the button…

Isn’t it cute!

Try it out…

At this point, I thought it was a little small in there.  So, I cut out another circle the size of a dinner plate.  It was a little too big, but I stitched around it a bit until I got it fitting nicely enough.  Then I grabbed the trusty glue…

Swirl some around in the bowl… keep it low enough that it’ll hold the cushion without showing above it though!

Pop the cushion in, put something heavy on it for a bit, and voila!  A very inexpensive pin cushion.

Now you can do this with any kind of dish or container.  It’d work great with a tea cup, sundae cup, old tiny varnish can (clean well though)… seriously, anything small enough not to be cumbersome that is closed on bottom and sides but open on top will work!

No, this isn’t the most adorable  pin cushion on the planet.  You can buy boutique quality pin cushions that are absolutely stunning.  But, if you want something cute, to match your decor, and in a next to nothing price range, this’ll do the trick!