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BROWSE NEWS

| Posted by Carmon Henry

Chain, Chain - Snip, Snip

I am teaching my daughter to chain stitch piece, and she was fascinated that you could just “keep going” after stitching each small section without having to stop. So, when my close friend came over last week to do our weekly sewing and quilting day I caught her using her Thread Snips after chain stitch piecing several of the pieces for our Quilt-Along (the type of quilt along where your friend calls you up and says “let’s sew this quilt together”). There is something so satisfactory when you get to the end of the pile of pieces and they’re all...


| Posted by April Henry

Best Sewing Machine for Young Child

A fellow Stitchery Friend of ours shared this picture of her granddaughter who had received her first Featherweight for Christmas.  If that isn’t the best smile of excitement over her new sewing machine, I don’t know what is!  I am certain this little girl will remember this day for the rest of her life…. and will hopefully have the special experience of passing her love of sewing (and Featherweights) to her granddaughter, too, someday.     That’s one of the things that makes these Featherweight Sewing Machines so ideal.  They are a great all-around portable sewing machine that will sew...


| Posted by April Henry

Happy Valentine's Day "Cards"

  Last year my daughter and I worked together in making these little Valentine's cards for her class*. We are homeschooling now but the idea still lingers as we think of family and friends for this year.   The end product was a melding of two patterns. One was like this one from Orange Bettie and the other, an adorable pattern by Kim Wallace from Moda Bakeshop.  SweetPea would pick out the fabric and buttons to accommodate each person on her list depending on the relationship and then she and I came up with some generic phrases for her to copy using a...


| Posted by April Henry

Bias Cutting Tutorial

    This bias cutting technique has actually been around for quite some time. It wouldn't surprise me if it was something Mary Brooks Picken discovered all on her own when she assisted with the writing and publication of the old Singer Sewing Book. It's a simple trick, really, and makes use of small pieces for fabric conservation! Sometimes I have a little piece of fabric leftover from a project, but not enough to cut long strips for bias trim - and it would be tedious to sew several small strips together. Other times I want to conserve every last...


| Posted by April Henry

Seam Finishes - Bound Seams

Press the bias raw edge towards the seam allowance raw edge, leaving a little gap between them. Bias Binding is a strip of material cut on the bias for extra stretch and often doubled. It is used for binding hems, interfacings or for edge decoration and is very useful for many sewing projects. It adds a touch of embellishment to set your garment or project apart for a more professional appearance. You can purchase ready-made bias or make your own. Bias-making tools are helpful and efficient, but a good steam iron is the necessary tool! I personally prefer to make...


| Posted by April Henry

Want Smooth Corners?

<!doctype html>   Pockets can be tricky sometimes. You can take the time to cut perfectly but when trying to fold the excess seam allowance for rounded or curved corners, an angular edge can sometimes result no matter how detailed or careful you press. A long time ago I learned a trick for stitching rounded pockets which helps to eliminate the angular-ness of the edges. Recreating the Pocket step from the recent Ice Cream Dress pattern (by Oliver + S) that I made for SweetPea, I have made a simple tutorial to share the trick with you, too!    ...


| Posted by April Henry

Feedsack-Style Ice Cream Dress on a Cold Day

Last day of school was Friday. Cowboy finished 4th grade and SweetPea finished Kindergarten. The weather was probably the most uncooperative I have ever experienced in my entire life of last day of school days - even my own childhood memories of the last day of school were always warm, sunny and comfortable (if not down right hot!). It just so happened to be Field Day on Friday, too (of course), and I just so happened to volunteer for such Field Day. It was cold, windy and somewhat wet.   I am allergic to cold. I get anxiety just thinking...


| Posted by April Henry

Oliver + S Bubble Dress Placket Tutorial

  When my daughter recently asked if I would make her another "Bubble Dress" (you know your sewing has influence when your children begin asking for garments by their pattern name) I knew the timing was perfect to create a photo tutorial of the placket process. This photo tutorial will show you how to sew a perfect Oliver + S Bubble Dress placket without any open gaping. Also, if you are careful with the cutting, marking and final hand-sewing, you can create two dresses in one! Follow along and I'll show you how.....   ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~...


| Posted by April Henry

Infant Baby Gown

  This was a shower gift I made for a friend from church. She's due in May and having a little girl.  The pattern is a Kwik Sew 3090. If using binding I recommend trimming the seam allowances by 1/4 to 3/8 of inch first. I'm in love with my Babylock Coverstitcher. in. love. I am no binding expert, believe me. I'm not even all that experienced with knits, but just look at what this machine can do!!!!! It makes me feel like a professional! Thank you little Babylocky - I love you for it and must give credit where...


| Posted by April Henry

More Valentine Goodness

Catch up on the previous Valentine's Day Card Blogs Here:Happy Valentine's Day "Card"Valentine's You've Got Mail I finished SweetPea's Valentine Holder and her teacher's Valentine Holder (notice the 'To My Teacher' Valentine on the front). Peltex has become a welcome addition to my sewing room since learning this new trick.  Truly... take notice of the seams (compared to the first one I made) and how they are smooth and evenly distributed along the edge - and no bulk! I could have hugged Liesl at 2:00am this morning from my Peltex delight. Not one speck of bulk - NOT ONE!     Anyway, kids are off...


| Posted by April Henry

Valentine's You've Got Mail

*** UPDATE *** All your Peltex troubles are over.  Achieving beautifully smooth seams using Peltex is now available after learning this trick (blogged in 2007 under the term Timtex - which the market term has now been replaced with Peltex. So, if you're doing a Google search for over-an-hour using the term "Peltex Tips", it will get better results by plugging in Timtex.)   I found this pattern on the Moda Bake Shop blog. I have plans to make three: one for SweetPea, one for her teacher and one for Cowboy's teacher.  However, after the war with Peltex, that plan may...


| Posted by April Henry

Sweet

<!doctype html> I would have to say that this outfit is probably one of my favorites. It's more casual in the detailing, but the hand on these two fabrics is so soft and the blouse is just sweet, wouldn't you say? The print is small and feminine and just plain sweet.     Patterns used (I bet you can't guess...): Oliver + S Jump Rope Dress & Sandbox Pants. Dress, you say? Why yes, dress.... only I got a bit adventuresome and made a blouse instead. Fabrics used: Baby Nay floral stretch corduroy for the blouse and designer sueded twill...


| Posted by April Henry

Red Corduroy Christmas Outfits

First, I'll start out with the necktie. I am beside myself with the fact that I made a necktie. A NECK. TIE. Seriously - who would have thought that a necktie could even be made! I decided to use the red, fine-wale corduroy fabric - the same as what I used to make SweetPea's Christmas dress (so the children would coordinate).   It's almost entirely handsewn, but I promise it's not as intimidating as it sounds. Really. I finished nearly all of it within an evening from cut to finish.     My husband, who is the master at necktie...


| Posted by April Henry

Little Girl's Sewing Machine (or for Little Boy's, too!)

  I am often asked, 'What child's sewing machine would you recommend for my 4-5 year-old?'... Well, each child is different, of course, and while some may actually be ready to go straight to a regular sewing machine (which I would without-a-doubt recommend the Singer Featherweight 221 for any child's first regular sewing machine!) some little ones need a baby step to get them used to the concept and mechanics of actually sewing. In that case, then I highly recommend the Singer Sewhandy model 20. It is a small table-mount handcrank sewing machine that creates a lovely chainstitch. You will...


| Posted by April Henry

Jump Rope Dress

  Another school uniform made from the Oliver + S Jump Rope Dress pattern. I used a heavier-weighted twill - the same as I used for the Tea Party Dress uniform jumper.   Placket instruction was ingenious - step-by-step teaching all along the way. It's Home-Ec class in a pattern envelope! The only thing I did a bit different was to edgestitch the collar where the pattern actually instructed to 'set it aside for the moment' - only because my fabric was heavier and I knew I couldn't edgestitch the neckline through to the opposite side as straight as I...


| Posted by April Henry

Oliver + S Sunday Brunch Skirt Pattern

  Who doesn't love a classic navy skirt? This is the Oliver + S Sunday Brunch Skirt made with a navy twill. I basted some fun Japanese import novelty fabric to the front and back skirt pieces before sewing pattern together (essentially treating them as one fabric during garment construction) to add more stability to the skirt as well as adding some more fun for SweetPea.     And what little girl doesn't love one with pockets and a secret lining for fun?     This one is probably my favorite uniform garments to make - it's so simple to...


| Posted by April Henry

Piping

Today I had a bit of fun embellishing my daughter's latest uniform jumper. As you know, SweetPea and Cowboy are required to wear uniforms at the school they attend. So, to make the sewing and wearing a bit more fun, using the Oliver + S Tea Party Dress (jumper) pattern, I added some embellishments and a "secret" lining. (SweetPea picked out "Sleeping Beauty" as the fabric for the lining - let's just hope she doesn't decide to use it as the subject for her next show-n-tell.)       I used a designer cotton sueded twill fabric throughout. The size...


| Posted by April Henry

Uniformity for Back to School

  The public charter school that our children [used to] attend requires a basic guideline for uniform wear. Solid top with khaki or navy bottoms. So, with my daughter starting Kindergarten this year I decided to incorporate some of the sewing I do for her by making a couple of short-sleeved cotton blouses with skirts. I will make jumpers and probably some long-sleeved blouses later, but our weather stays warm for another couple of months here.I used a vintage Du Barry pattern with a pima cotton (absolutely the BEST!) that I bought from Bessie Mary. This pattern was a size...


| Posted by April Henry

Trip to Vermont

Blueberry Hill Inn Built in 1813 and set amidst the National Forest of Vermont, this place was like living in a storybook for the weekend. I will forever remember the sweet gift my husband gave me by sending me away on a sewing weekend to Blueberry Hill. I truly hope to bring him back with me one day. This was my room, shared with a friend.From the front of the inn, it would be the top left two windows. My friend looking across the way at the barn where everyone gathered to sew in the upstairs loft. View from the...


| Posted by April Henry

Sewing, Sewing & More Sewing

Christian has taken an interest in fabric combinations. After we purchased some shorts at Target, he came home and asked if I would make him some shirts to match. He then proceeded to put colors together and label/number them according to the order of which I was to sew. How does a mom resist that!?! This pattern is from Ottobre 03/2009 - the Jungle T-Shirt. While best results would be achieved on a coverstitcher for this particular pattern design, I was still pleased with my little Featherweight 222 and serger.Such a sweet boy - he's definitely beginning to keep track......


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