status report!

[yhlee]

I practiced with my sewing machine for the first time since my lesson last week. I had to download the manual for my Janome Magnolia 7318 (guess who cannot remember where the print one went) but it's still magic that it winds the bobbin for you. I wound SO MANY bobbins (probably very badly) for my mom. :)

Today's report is:
Me: Huh, I was great at sewing accurately and straight as a beginner, but right now it's ALL OVER THE PLACE and the tension feels weird?

Also me, five minutes later: OH. THE PRESSER FOOT WAS UP. :facepalm: :p

I'm hoping to practice some more and then book a "reading patterns, how do??" lesson Fair Fit Studio (Baton Rouge, Louisiana, local to me) as I loved the instructor's "baby steps n00b sewing machine 101, how do??" lesson. :D And then maybe I can destroy some innocent cheap muslin trying to sew a thing. :D

What are y'all working on, or hoping to try in January?

Comments

[ewt]

My waterproof split open at the zip the other day, so tomorrow I'll be doing some hand sewing to put it back. I might try inserting some triangles to prevent the same problem happening again, but I would then need to unlock the other side of the zip to make it symmetrical. Trying to decide whether to embrace asymmetry for a week or so until I get around to the second part. It splits because the waterproof fits fine when I'm standing up but not so well if I bend or squat. I'm a gardener, so this is definitely going to happen again if I don't make it larger around the bottom.

featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[rugessnome]

yes, presser feet will do that. :)

(...I missed that this was in the comm at first and so was going to mention that I started winding lace bobbins for another beginner sample/bookmark.)

I began a simple baby quilt (still piecing the top, and by hand) for a family friend in late November/December, and given the nature of babies I'd probably better finish it sooner than later.

I uh. also have a somewhat oversized shirt, for purposes of sun and/or bramble protection in summer, that has been cut out and a couple seams sewn for ...probably 18 months or something. It would be considerably more useful if I actually finished it for the summer. (I am likely not strictly at the 101 level in sewing but I haven't done much machine sewing in years and my confidence has slipped a lot.)

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[nou]

What fabric is your summer shirt made from? I have a lightweight linen summer top and a double gauze summer top, but it seems hard to get sufficiently lightweight linen in a colour I like (this one is light green, which is acceptable but not optimal) and the double gauze was a pain and a half to sew.

Would love to see a photo of your quilt if you have one handy.

I am also not a 101-level sewer but I love talking about sewing so I’m glad sewers of other levels are also welcome here.

[nou]

(Photos below — all can be clicked to embiggen.)

I’ve been fiddling around with my sleeve pattern, trying to get it to hang more nicely (I gave up on that part for now) and also trying out a new way of doing the hem that’s curved rather than straight. Photo below (there is a dart in the middle, which is not usual for sleeve patterns but it works well for me).



I’ve also been working on embroidering the second of two panels that will eventually go at the bottom of a pair of trousers. I started these panels a couple of years ago and have been working on them steadily ever since. Unfortunately I have also been steadily improving my trousers pattern over that time (making it fit me better) so I’m going to have to do a bit of fiddling to make these panels work with the current version. I think it’ll work out OK though.



The next thing I intend to sew (as opposed to embroider) is a short-sleeved top made from cotton/rayon sateen. My top pattern is fairly plain so I’m embroidering it around the neck in silvery silk thread since I think it’ll look a bit weird otherwise. I’m embroidering the fabric before properly cutting out the pattern, to avoid stretching the edges out of shape, so I thread-traced the pattern edge and then cut out roughly around that and zigzagged the edges to stop them fraying. When I’ve finished the embroidery, I’ll cut it out properly.



The embroidery is what I call “fake blackwork”. Real blackwork is done on fabric where you can see the warp and weft, and you count “squares” to see where to put your needle. This fabric is unsuitable for that, and in any case the neckline is curved, so I printed a curved grid on some water-soluble stabiliser and am counting the squares on that instead. The thread I’m using is a very similar colour to the stabiliser, so this is a bit tricky, but I think it’s going to look good when it’s done.

[nou]

Could you insert the extra fabric at the back instead? It would be a bit more work but wouldn’t involve having to undo things near the zip.

[ewt]

I could, but I still have to sew up the zip. The waterproof is also lined, which will make it more awkward.

[nou]

Lining can make things harder to repair, yes! (And apologies for the unsolicited advice — I’m still overexcited about there being an active sewing community.)

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[yhlee]

I mean. (a) As a 001-level sewer, I'm not sure I-the-mod could tell the difference between "beginner with some experience vs. 1337 SKILZ!!!" ;) (b) WE NEED Y'ALL'S HELP ;)

For example, my friend storme is probably busy/lurking but they're an expert tailor. :p

Honestly if it's sewing-related at all (or even allied things like bobbin lace!) and you're not spamming the comm 200 times a day with different individual top-level posts, it's fine. :)

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[yhlee]

Tbh, I should poll the comm as to whether allied topics are welcome. Speaking for a me, since my lace bobbin beginner kit (THE PILLOW!!!) arrived yesterday and I am dying to give it a whirl.

(In real life, the pillow will instantly be sat on by my catten and full of catten hairs...)

My mother used to love quilting, although she no longer sews due to arthritis, and my husband's Tante is an expert quilter as well. I don't have quilting ambitions (yet) but it's extremely cool! I should possibly cross-post pics from the book of traditional Korean quilts here? It's wild - the style is completely different from the Western-style quilts that my mom was doing. I have no idea about the sewing techniques but one of my Korean quilting books in English or French probably does discuss that.

[yhlee]

Good luck with the repair job! I hope your garden is growing well too. :D

[yhlee]

Oh, how cool! Your embroidery and blackwork are gorgeous. I don't think I did more than toy a little with blackwork years ago, when I learned of it through kate_nepveu, whose thing for a while was doing blackwork (bookmarks?) that worked on both sides, which is more brainpower than I've ever been able to manage. The curved grid is a great adaptation. :D

Similar color thingy: Guess who learned the hard way that cross stitch with sections of black floss on black Aida really sucks if you have terribad eyesight. XD

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[nou]

I’m interested in hearing about Korean quilting! I’ve done a bit of patchwork to use up fabric scraps from sewing (it’s not a new hobby, it’s a way of using waste from an existing hobby) and am keen to learn new ways of doing it. I found out about crumb quilting recently, which looks like it’ll be useful.

[nou]

I’ve seen the blackwork that works on both sides and it is indeed mind-bending! Maybe one day I’ll give it a go, but that day is far distant :D

I also have terribad eyesight. I actually use my old glasses for embroidery, since my shortsightedness is now so bad that my current glasses make close-up work harder. (This is definitely caused by the strength of the glasses, since I’m fine at close work without any glasses on and my optician says I’m not longsighted yet at all — so bifocals/varifocals are not a solution. But I don’t want to embroider with my glasses off entirely since I like to read/watch stuff on my laptop at the same time and I can’t see that far without glasses.)

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[yhlee]

Oh, how cool! :D Crumb quilting is new to me (via you!); I think quilting is very pretty but have never attempted it and don't really follow it. There are some Korean styles of quilting that have a similar look (and I bet it comes from the same general philosophy of waste not, want not, cf. that one barely edible pickled tree leaf dish my mom fed me once so she could tell me that its name in Korean translate, roughly, as "we ate it and lived").

Anyway, I'll try to post some of the Korean quilting stuff this week when time permits.

[onlysmallwings]

I bought some linen for SCA-Viking tunics! I also bought muslin to experiment with the pattern. So the January sewing plan is to at least get the mock-up to a place I can try it on.

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[nou]

That sounds very much like when I tried to make a pickle from carrot greens. It was just about edible, but most of it went into the compost, which is where I should have put the greens in the first place.

[nou]

Ooh linen is such a good fabric. I hope your mock-up goes well!

Re: featuring: [other] bobbin winding

[rugessnome]

It's just basic cotton fabric; I'm pretty sure it's from what Joann markets as their "Keepsake Calico" line. Not necessarily the optimal selection for summer wear, or very fashionable, just something sort of lightweight to offer protection while doing yard work or gardening.

(I don't have a photo of the quilt currently; I might take one when I either have all the rows together or the top entirely together.)

Oooh, a sewing community! Hello!

[shermarama]

Nice to be here! In January, I'm mainly going to be sewing a pair of shorts for my partner. They're the second set from a pattern that I traced from a cheap pair of shorts that he bought, which were a great shape, but wore out very quickly. The first pair I made are still going a couple of years later, in a medium-weight, slightly-stretch denim, but he's got bigger around the thighs since (mad-keen cyclist), so I'm adding a little extra fabric there in this version.

I'm also thinking of making him a flat cap, in hi-vis yellow and black waterproof nylon, as somewhat of an in-joke, but one he can still use to keep his head dry, innit. This would also be a test run for this pattern I've bought from (Waves & Wild - I've already used and been pleased by several of their patterns so I'm expecting it'll be fine, but I think this'll take more than one go to get right, especially to make something in a quality wool, which is what I'd really like to make him in future.

(I actually sew mostly for myself, but not this month, it seems.)

[yhlee]

Oh, how cool, and good luck! I don't rate linen yet, haha, I'm still sitting here with VERY DISCOUNT cotton from Jo-Ann's for sewing machine practice. :)

Re: Oooh, a sewing community! Hello!

[yhlee]

Howdy! Shorts, that's exciting! I personally would like to learn how to sew pants but I think I need to start with, like, pillowcases first. Your projects this month sound extremely cool!

Re: Oooh, a sewing community! Hello!

[shermarama]

By the way, if you're looking into getting familiar with patterns, I can recommend Waves & Wild as generally writing good, clear ones, of the print-at-home type, and they also do a number of free ones. I've made their bucket hat a few times now but that has curves in, making it a little trickier, but I think they do one for a small gift bag that might be worth a look, as the next step after a pillowcase :)

[onlysmallwings]

I'm not sure I can do the garment justice, but I can't get practice on linen unless I'm using it. Hoping for the best!