By Heidi

Everyone will be so pleased that Heidi has completed a friend for her Paper Dolls Set!  Dressing Mike is here with several different outfits.

Boys and girls alike would love to open a package on Christmas morning and find Mike and his wardrobe!

Because Mike’s clothes are all applique, he can have as large a wardrobe as your scrap pieces of  fabric will allow!

As with the paper dolls, you can create clothing to match designs you have stitched out for the child receiving the paper dolls!

You can purchase (and members can download) Mike here:

http://www.DesignsBySiCK.com/details/dressingmike

Directions for Mike and his clothes are the same as for the paper dolls which can be found here:  http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/project-of-the-week-paper-dolls/

by Margaret Hancock

I have found a wonderful bottom for purses.

I use a piece of balsa wood and cut it down to fit the bottom.

I cover it with fabric so it does not show and it outlasts cardboard and foam board.

by Debbie Vechter

Christmas is just around the corner so I’m sure we’re all thinking about what we can make for our children, grandchildren, nephews, nieces and friends’ children. I think everyone would agree that education is really important to ensure success in life. This is the time when we sewing and embroidery enthusiasts can combine the talents and creativity that we have and incorporate them into creating Christmas gifts for the young ones while encouraging their actual learning.

Education, though, doesn’t begin at school. It begins at home and starts as soon as the baby is born. The baby is learning everyday and we must do all we can to provide the learning opportunities. We must make it a priority to guide our child’s and grandchild’s learning, and thus guide them towards success in life.

Providing early learning materials need not be costly. Luckily, this gives us moms, grannies and aunties a chance to get creative and use our talents in sewing to make really great quality learning materials for our early learners.

This leaves the question of ‘what can I make for my child to stimulate learning’. Well, you’re in luck! In Parts 1 & 2 of THE ROAD TO SUCCESS I will outline several quick and easy projects that you can easily make using your sewing and embroidery skills. These projects can then be used to play with and teach your early learner. These projects are designed to keep the little ones physically active with fun physical activities to build muscle, flexibility, eye-hand coordination, good judgment, accurate reactions, and quick thinking. At the same time they provide for brain stimulation and use of cognitive skills. Keeping up a conversation at the same time will help to develop language skills.

One of baby’s first toys is a ball. What could be nicer than making a cute, brightly colored LOOPY RIBBON ball for baby and what nicer way is there of using up all your sewing scraps? It is easy to make your own without a pattern as making balls is not too difficult. Simply cut 6 ovals that are pointed, not round, on each end. Sew them together lengthwise, inserting loops of ribbons of different textures and patterns into the seams as you sew the ovals together. Stuff with poly stuffing and put a little bell into the center for sound. Sew to close the opening where you stuffed it.

Another cute, but similar project is a TINY TAGGIE BLANKIE. Again it is simply made from brightly colored scraps or scraps of Minky.

(see steps at end of article)

These two early learning activity toys are designed to stimulate the development of motor skills and sensory stimulation of babies. The fun toys on the tiny taggie blankie tempt baby to explore sounds, textures and movement activities. The bright colors and patterns add further appeal in visual and tactile stimulation for baby as he reaches, touches, and explores.

Early learning CLOTH BOOKS are great. They touch on the basics of learning and encourage language skills. They relate directly to what the child is interested in. You can either make your own by embroidering the pictures and information you want your child to learn on each page, or you can pick up book panels at your fabric store or your favorite online store. With the store bought panels, simply follow the instructions on the panel and you’ll end up with a fabulous, well-loved book. Easy and so well loved by the little ones because every time they look at it they gain confidence in their own learning advancements.  Photos of an early learning cloth book is below.
[Editor's note: Designs By SiCK has two design sets for making children's books! Baby's Word Book here: http://www.designsbysick.com/details/babyswordbook and the recent Jacobean Sea Friends Book here:  http://www.designsbysick.com/details/seabook]

Toddlers soon want to learn how to FASTEN A BUTTON. What better way to do it than by making them their own button activity that they can easily practice on. Little fingers need a large button and easy fitting button hole to help them learn quickly. There are many imaginative ways to do this, such as making a good sized stuffed gingerbread child with a cute jacket. If you attach only a jacket front to the side seams of the gingerbread then there’s no way the jacket can get lost. However, you can opt to do it more simply. Just by using some brightly colored or juvenile patterned scraps and batting scraps left over from a quilting project you can design a button practice toy, such as a ‘magic’ bag, that has a ’surprise’ inside so that the child enjoys playing with it and at the same time learning a new skill. You can put a new ’surprise’ in the bag each time you decide to give your child practice buttoning and unbuttoning. The same idea can be used to for zipper, snap and Velcro practice and indeed, one project can incorporate all the different types of closures.

Another learning ‘toy’ you can make is one that teaches your little one to tie. Children around 5 years old can learn how to tie and it is a skill they should begin to learn at this age. Using two layers of Ultra Stiff stabilizer such as Peltex 70 you can cut a shape of a large shoe. Cut two pieces of fabric and sew or serge them onto the shoe form to make a ’sole sandwich’ of all 3 pieces together.  Use the same method to cover two top flaps which will serve as the parts of the shoe where the lace goes. You can use the hole stitch on your machine to sew the circles that are the holes for the shoe lace. If you prefer, you could just use a punch to make the holes and then sew around them by hand and use some Fray Check to prevent unraveling. Attach the flaps to each side of the shoe. Insert the lace and teach your child how tie. Using your serger will speed up this project a lot. Kids will love learning how to tie on this ‘cute shoe’.

I have just touched the surface of the tons of ideas that moms and grannies can do to make excellent and inexpensive learning toys that your child/grandchild will love. Learning toys like these will be passed from child to child, as each child outgrows the particular learning skill and everything is washable for cleanliness. Let’s make fabulous Christmas gifts and let’s get our children learning and on the road to success!

Making a TINY TAGGIE BLANKET

You cut 2 squares the same size and you can make it any size you like.
It is nice to embroider a cute picture on each side of the material.

Place the right sides together.

Place a piece of quilt batting, the same size as the material, on one side. Insert loops of ribbon of different textures and colors and patterns so that the loops will end up on the outside of the tiny taggie blankie. You can also attach some cute items like bells or tiny rattles on to the ribbon loops, giving baby something interesting to grab. Other ideas of items that you can attach are a safety mirror, rattle, squeaker, and small, attached stuffie. Many suitable items can be found at your local Dollar Store. However, be sure to check the safety of anything you add to your toys. Now, sew around the edges of the Tiny Taggie Blankie, leaving an opening for turning right side out. Turn right side out and sew the opening closed.

[Editor's Note:  Please be sure anything you attach to the outside passes the "choke hazard test" - you can purchase a measuring device from many places.  Here are two:  http://perfectlysafe.stores.yahoo.net/choketester.html or  http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=150788]

Created By Bonnie

Just look at what Bonnie has created for you this week!

This is just in time to make for Christmas for all of those new little ones in your lives!

What a wonderful way to introduce children to the undersea world!

Beautiful Jacobean designs of sealife will delight everyone!

You can purchase the set here:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/seabook

INSTRUCTIONS

PLEASE READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE STARTING PROJECT.
SUPPLIES:

• Fabric of your choice for front and back
• Threads of your choice
• Tear-a-way or Water soluble stabilizer(this works well so you don’t have any fuzzies around the edges)
• Cotton Batting(optional)

Color 1 – placement stitch
After stitching placement stitch, place cotton batting & fabric over top of
stitching.

Color 2 – tack down fabric & batting to stabilizer.

Remove hoop from machine and trim around stitching being careful no to cut threads. Return hoop to machine.

3 – zig-zag stitch over edges.

NEXT- follow color changes for each design and then refer to rest of directions.

After stitching design there are 3 color changes left.
You will need to remove the hoop and cut the bobbin thread so you can slide your back fabric under hoop, make sure right side is facing down.
Then stitch the 3rd from last color-this will stitch the back to the hoop.
Remove hoop and trim away fabric close to stitching and trim inside the circles like pictured below return hoop to machine and stitch last 2 colors to finish.

After stitching all pages string ribbon thru holes and tie together.

Hope you enjoy making the book!
Bonnie

by Carin Watkins

I use strong – clear table plastic, cut it in strips – about 1 inch in width and 5 inch long.

After using a colour – just roll the piece of plastic around the thread spool – and you will

see – the thread stay in place and it can be stored in your container.

It also prevent the cotton from drying out so easily.

By Mary Catherine McCoyHere’s a quick and easy project for any holiday in 10 easy steps!  It’s ideal for embroidery, and you can stitch up several at one time.  As a craft project, it does not require precise measuring.
The photos illustrate serger construction with 5/8” seam allowance, but you can make it on a sewing machine with French seams for a clean finish.

Supplies

• ½ yard of sheer fabric*
• 1 yard of ribbon (about ½” wide)
• Embroidery thread
• Sewing thread
• Scissors
• Sewing/embroidery machine
• Optional:  serger

* will make 3 gift bags (don’t forget to buy extra ribbon)

Cutting directions
Step 1
A - Cut an 18” x 14” piece from the main fabric.
B - Trim ribbon ends diagonally (to minimize fraying).

Sewing directions
Step 2
If desired, embroider a favorite design on the fabric before construction.  In this example, we embroidered the wreath design from A Bonnie Christmas.  You can see the entire collection at
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/abonniechristmas

Step 3
After embroidering, fold ribbon in half, lengthwise (so you have an 18” ribbon doubled-over).  Pin ribbon’s folded edge to the raw edge of sheer fabric, approximately 6” down from top.  Then, pin the rest of the ribbon out of the way.  And finally, fold the fabric in half and pin along the entire 18” length, as illustrated.

Step 4
Serge with a 3- or 4-thread overlock stitch (or use French seam construction with a conventional sewing machine).  Remove pins along seam line just prior to stitching to avoid breaking a needle.

Step 5
After stitching, carefully, reach inside project and remove the other pins holding the ribbon.  Pull the loose ends of the ribbon out the opening opposite the embroidery  – that’s the top of the project.

Step 6
Press seam flat, and then fold the entire project so the seam is at the center, as shown.  Pin bottom of project, then stitch or serge.  Do not sew over pins.

Step 7
Create a square-edge or box-bottom on project by flattening bottom seam.  Then, pin both ends to create small triangles, as shown, approximately 1” from point.

Step 8
Stitch or serge straight across each triangle or point.  Trim, as shown.

Step 9
Turn entire project right side out, finish the raw edge at the top with a rolled hem on your serger or use your sewing machine’s rolled hem foot (see sample of rolled hem foot)

Step 10
Insert a bottle of wine, spirits, or other favorite bottled item.  And you’re ready for the holidays.

Tip:
This is an ideal project for multi-tasking.
Embroider one bag while you’re finishing construction on another with your serger or sewing machine.

by Tanya Schlosser
I have found that sometimes I snip off the knot when I am cutting jump stitches so I  bought a Wahl beard and mustache trimmer. I cut the stitches in the middle, then I take the trimmer and run it from left to right/right to left and top to bottom/bottom to top.

By Judy Roberson

This is a pattern box that would do Mr. Clean or should I say, Mr. Gain, proud. After emptying my large Gain washing powder box, I looked at it, as I had done sooo many times before… what a waste to throw away such a good box.
My thoughts began to race. There had to be some useful thing to do with this box?? But, what?

As, I looked at it, I noticed that my sewing pattern sleeves looked about that size. I ran to my sewing room to find a pattern sleeve and to my amazement, they were the exact size. My mind began to race with the excitement of ways to transform this otherwise trash into a useful pattern container.

I went to my sewing room, and found left over scraps for my ‘Newly-thought-of project”.  I gathered fabric scraps, buttons, trims, scrapbooking paper, glue, etc.

INSTRUCTIONS for Pattern Box:
1- Find a Gain (or other brand washing powder box) large size - 63/64 load size, wipe it out to remove all washing powder.

2- Spray paint it (I used black). I spray painted the handle also. Allow to dry.

3-I used left over black toile fabric and covered the lid. I used Mod Podge glue  (http://www.save-on-crafts.com/modpodglos.html ) to adhere it. This is a very easy to use glue. First put the glue on the box and then put fabric on it, folding under edges to the inside of the box lid. Then, put Mod Podge on the top of the fabric.  It works great!

4-I took a sheet of black /cream stripe scrapbooking paper (can be purchased for less than 50 cents almost anywhere but most of us have a sheet or so stored away), I Mod Podged it to the  front of the box. I also, did a strip around the box. I then added red rick rack over the strip.

5- I had to label my pattern box. What better way than my embroidery machine. So, I got my design notebook out to pick the “just right design”.  As always, I found the perfect one in Designs by Sick. I chose the buttons and needle design from DD Love to Sew (http://www.designsbysick.com/details/ddlovetosew), and added the words, “Sewing Patterns”.

6-After finishing the embroidery work, I took my design and cut the design fabric to be 5 inch x 6 inch. Then, I Mod Podged it to the front of the box.

I couldn’t wait for the glue to dry, so I could put my patterns in it.  This pattern box is so cute and so simple to make. It was made to match my newly remodeled sewing room.

You could decorate your pattern box any way you choose. Wouldn’t it be fun to bring in the kids and let them help?
Let your imagination run wild.
And now you can feel REALLY good that you recycled this good washing powder box. And another plus that I soon discovered was, I had an instant air freshener in my pattern box.

Digitized by Rhonda
For Designs by SiCK
The new project design created by Rhonda is just what everyone needs at this time of year!

The cute little ITH Gift Card Holders will fill every need for those hard-to-buy-for family members and friends this holiday season.

The optional added ribbon and button make them one-of-a-kind!

These are the kinds of items you can make up in your spare time and have them tucked away for an unexpected last minute gift!

Gift cards or cash will easily fit into these cute little holders!

You can see/purchase (or download if you are a member!) this new set here:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/rsgiftcardholderchristmas

COMPLETE INSTRUCTIONS:

The 1st two Color #’s will all ways be the same for all designs.

The Last 3 Color changes will all ways be the same for all designs.

#1 stitch out template
glue fabric down over template
#2 stitch out template
Now it will stitch out the design area

The next two steps are optional for ribbon placement.

Remove hoop from machine and flip over to the underside.
Place ribbon across design and secure with tape on the ends.
Make sure that the ends do not get tangled in the stitching.
For a loop for the Button Options:
Attach a loop of Ribbon or elastic to the top of the design area with glue.

Last 3 Colors as Follows

remove hoop from machine and glue fabric to the “bottom” of the hoop
#1 stitch line for fabric
remove hoop from machine and cut around outside line of fabric.

Fold matching fabric or contrasting fabric piece in half and turn hoop over, glue folded piece to bottom of stabilizer with the folded edge 2″ from bottom.
#2 stitch down
remove hoop from machine and cut around the three sides.
This will form your pocket.

#3 Satin Stitch around Gift Card Holder.
Remove from hoop.

Tips:
for a nicer finished edge, stitch out on water soluble fiber stabilizer.
If using ribbon for ties, attach ribbon between layers of fabric during the beginning of the design. Glue or pin ribbon ends away from project during the rest of the stitching to prevent them from getting caught.
You can use sticky Velcro dots for closures too.
For a package look, fold a long piece of ribbon in half and attach it to the bottom between the 2 layers of cloth in the beginning steps.

You are only limited by your own Imagination!

Something new is happening at Designs By SiCK!  Our digitizers have been working around the clock to come up with some really clever ideas!  This is the very first - Project of the Week!

Heidi has been working on something she knew children would love.  She combined her new idea with her ability to create beautiful applique designs and came up with a brand new set of Paper Doll Appliqué designs.
This little girl will keep even the most energetic children occupied.
This is the perfect time of the year  - in addition to having these as gifts under the tree or peeking out of a stocking, it will be a huge help to moms and dads everywhere during the holiday season.  No more, “I’m bored” or fidgety children in the backseat as you travel to visit loved ones near and far.
Heidi has others in the works for Designs By SiCK folks.  I think a brother may wind his way into this little girl’s life!

Thank you, Heidi!

The set can be found here:  http://www.designsbysick.com/details/paperdoll

TUTORIAL FOR PAPER DOLLS

This is the tutorial for paper dolls on the site.

1.  On making the doll itself I would suggest a heavy fabric like uniform fabric which is what I use.  It is 65 % cotton and 35 polyester.

2.  For the stabilizer I used a real stiff and medium weight.  Now, if you don’t have that then I would suggest maybe 2 or 3 sheets of a medium stabilizer.

3.  Now the clothes are appliqué,  now for these a regular stabilizer will do just fine, because they are held together  real good with the appliqué and satin stitches with them and around them.

4.  After making the doll trim as close as you can without going into the sewing of the doll.  You will also do the clothing the same way being careful not to trim into the satin stitches.

5.  Now for the clothing to be attached to doll I would recommend that you get the dots of Velcro that is available at any craft store or the craft department of Wal-Mart’s.

6.  Place in the middle of the doll and if they have extras like shoes one at the feet.

7.  When it comes to them lasting over time, get a piece of plastic and glue to the back of the paper doll.  They will be hand washable that way.  My sister and I used plastic canvas that came from Wal-Mart’s.

8.  I’m sure that you will have hours of fun making these little ones for the kids in your life and feel like a kid again.  I know I did.  You may have ideas of your own to create these little ones, by all means take a chance and see what you come up with.

Make sure to also check the other set of instructions on the site as they have some really good ideas on how to make them also.

More information on appliqué can be found in the articles,  just type appliqué in the search box.

By  Jaci Speed I like to snip and clean all the threads on the back of my embroidery. I use sharp scissors and trim as many as I can, then I use a sticky roll (of tape, similar to a lint roller) and run it over the piece to pick up any strays. The ’sticky roll’ also will pick up stray thread on the floor. When the roll is filled with thread, just tear off that sheet and a new one is ready.

by Debbie Vechter

Now this is a question that you may be wondering about, but Real Men know the true answer and women truly appreciate the answer, once they know what it is.  Some men take the cavalier attitude that expresses the idea that just because they are a man, they can do anything they wish and therefore, if they want to sew, they will sew.  However, this is not the attitude expressed by most men.  So, what is the true answer to this question?

The answer is a resounding ‘YES’.  Now, let me explain.  Real Men are totally capable of looking out for themselves and are independent.  Real men sew because they know how to take care of themselves and their possessions; they are proficient in getting their clothes clean and having shoes and clothing in good repair.  Real Men rely on their own skills to sew on a button or fix a seam and they do not need to run to a department store for a quick replacement.  Real Men sew with an eye on being ‘green’ - to reduce, reuse and recycle.  Real Men can cook, iron and sew.

Certainly men serving in the military can be considered Real Men.  Men in the armed forces must learn to sew and they are issued a sewing kit so that they can take care of their sewing needs.  No one could ever say that a grenade pouch wasn’t manly.  A Real Man has no problem doing anything and they try their best at whatever they are doing, including sewing!   Real men never worry about what other people think or say.

So many professional men sew.  Some of the best fashion designers are real men:  Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Oscar De La Renta, and P.Diddy.  Most of the best tailors are men with a long heritage of bespoke fitting on Saville Row.   Custom shirt and suit tailors are very popular in Asia.  Think back to the days of the sailing ship galleons.  Sailors had to know how to mend and take care of the sails.  Today’s sailmakers are still men.

Now this brings us to the idea that men love making things and what they particularly love about it is their power tools.  Many men think that their power tools define them; the more powerful their power tools are, the more masculine the owner is.  Well, as a closing note, just let me say that the ultimate power tool is a sewing machine.  Depending on the particular machine, it can accomplish many different tasks: utility sewing, decorative sewing, monogramming, and embroidery.  In fact, jigsaws were invented because the German carpenter named Bosch decided that he could get a lot more done if he attached a saw blade to a sewing machine.  Hence, the birth of the jigsaw.

Do Real Men Sew?  The answer is “Absolutely Yes”!

–

by Alice Provencher

Want to keep your hoops together for storage use 1 1/4 binder clips works great

By Fred Lebow

As with any stretchy fabric, embroidering on performance wear can be tricky if you don’t use the right

stabilizer. It’s possible that the embroidery may look fine when you finish it, but without proper support

after washing it can pucker and even lose registration as stitches are pulled out of shape.

The best stabilizer to use for most performance styles is a no-show diagonal nylon mesh. It has a diagonal

embossed pattern that is more stable than previous versions. When this type of mesh is still in its

molten form, a giant steam roller comes over it to give it an embossed pattern. This enhances its stability

and the diagonal pattern offers the greatest degree of multidirectional stability. This means it is easier to

hoop drum tight, which allows for the tightest registration and least amount of puckering and looping.

A way to good test your stabilizer’s directional stability is to stretch it in all directions including diagonally.

The more multi-directionally stable the material is, the better the registration. No show diagonal mesh

does stretch a little, which is ideal for stretchy fabrics because it will give as the garment gives.

No-show mesh has other advantages for use on performance wear over other cutaways. It is softer,

which means it feel better against the skin and drapes better. Also, the mesh is lighter in weight and

more translucent so it’s invisible to the naked eye when viewed from the front of the shirt. This is especially

important if your performance wear is white or light colored. Traditional stabilizers can sometimes

be seen from the front of the shirt as a stiff white square detracting from the overall appearance of the

embroidery.

If your stitch counts range between 10,000 and 12,000 stitches, one layer of the diagonal no-show mesh

will be sufficient. If your design has more than 10,000 stitches or the stitches are very dense, or they are

satin stitches, you will want to pair a layer of no-show mesh with a layer of mid-weight tearaway. Put the

mesh closest to the shirt and the tearaway behind it. You will remove the excess tearaway, leaving the

soft, sheer, invisible mesh against the body. No show nylon mesh also will protect the skin against

scratchy stitches if you use a metallic thread that is a little rougher in texture.

Fred Lebow is the non wovens product manager for Cotswold Industries, a manufacturer of embroidery

stabilizers. Visit the Web site at www.lebowconsulting.com for more stabilizer articles, information, and to request free samples.

NoShowMesh

One of the biggest advantages of No Show Diagonal Mesh is that it is soft against the skin.

So it also can be used to protect the wearer against scratchy feeling stitches when metallic threads are used.

Photo courtesy of Darrell Luke,

Threads of Compassion, Fla. Orlando, Fla
Fred Lebow - Non Wovens  -  406 854-2322
www.lebowconsulting.com - flebow@lebowconsulting.com

“Stabilizing is the foundation for good embroidery. Lay a proper foundation”

By Dorothy Kregar

I purchased the 61 embroidery thread.  What a wonderful deal!
My tip for viewing all the thread is, I purchased a Hanging Jewelry Organizer”.  It holds 30 spools on one side and another thirty plus on the reverse side.  Each pocket is clear so you can see the colors.  I put all my thread into the plastic containers.  The bottom of each side also has three larger pockets.  I think it’s great.  Keeps the thread clean and untangled.

By  Gina Roberson

I decided to try and make my little girls a sweatshirt jacket from one of the Designs By SiCK articles I had read the other day.  So I started my project and discovered that I needed some miniature sized fall designs to finish it up. Being that my girls only wear a size 4T, their jackets are quite small, especially after cutting it down the center and only have the sides to work with.   I looked all over my favorite embroidery design websites and had no luck in finding any kind of fall design that was under 5 inches or so.  I even tried resizing several designs to see if it would work, but once you resize something down smaller it just doesn’t keep the quality it once had and doesn’t look as pretty.

Then I came upon a GREAT find. At the Designs By SiCK website they have designs called “Sucker Covers” in all different themes.  I had never paid attention to these before because I have no interest in making an actual sucker cover. But I noticed that these little designs were miniature and they were so sweet and cute.  So I used a candy corn out of the “Halloween Sucker Covers 2” at the Designs By SiCK website and then I just deleted the steps that made the circle around the design.  Of course you could leave the circle if you wanted to.  It was the perfect size!  And it embroidered out so beautifully.

I had a friend ask me to please make her little baby a Christmas Dress for her 1st Christmas.  I had been trying to find something suitable for a little 6 month old dress but couldn’t find a small enough design.  I went back to the Designs By SiCK website and found a set called “Christmas Sucker Covers.”  It had a design with a little candy cane on it, just the perfect little miniature size!  So again I just deleted the circle steps that went with it and used the little candy cane to make the border for this little dress. I just finished up the dress and I think the mama will be very excited to see it.

So if you need a small design please be sure to check out all of the Sucker Cover designs put out by Designs By SiCK.  They are all as cute as can be and they work so well.  I had never given them much thought because I thought I could only use them to make a sucker cover, but they have many uses!

Editor’s note:
You can find all of the sucker covers on the Designs By SiCK website here:
Sucker Covers

By Jaci Speed

I do a lot of embroidery down the side seam of jeans. Sometimes it is difficult to get the material tight at the very bottom edge. So I temporarily sew 3-4 inches of scrap material (same weight as the jeans material) to the bottom edge of the jeans. This provides the needed tightness in my hoop and makes it easy to do the embroidery.

By MaryCatherine McCoyFor the holidays or any celebration, gift cards can be the perfect solution.  To make that gift card just a little bit special, tuck it inside a personalized gift card holder.  Long after the gift card is used, the card holder can be a reminder of happy holidays, a great birthday or other festive occasion.  Following is a tutorial using just 4 pieces of fabric and 4 seams that shows how to create custom-made gift card holders.

Note:  This tutorial is shown using a serger.  It can easily be constructed using a traditional sewing machine, with a ¼” seam allowance.  The corners are turned back in the photographs to provide additional clarity.

Pick 2 or 3 coordinating fabrics to create a unique wallet or gift card holder.  In our example, we used a lightweight denim for the main fabric, and a coordinating red print for the lining.

Cut 4 pieces of fabric.  One piece should be 5” x 6”  - it forms the outside of the holder.  The other three pieces should be 5” x 5” each.  They form the lining and the pockets.

Optional:  Monogram the holder before construction, as shown.  A great little font for this project is the Adina Script Font from Designs By SiCK.  You can see it here:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/adinascriptfont

Each letter is just 1” high.  This classic font is perfect for both men and women.

With WRONG sides together, fold one of the 5” x “5 squares in half.  Then, place it on top of the 5” x 6”piece, aligning the 5” sides, as shown.  Repeat with another 5” square.

Serge or stitch both ends

Center the remaining 5” square on top of the previously stitched fabrics — RIGHT sides together.  In our example, this is the red print fabric.  Line up all the raw edges, but notice the red fabric is not long enough to line up with the previously serged or stitched ends..  Serge or stitch both side seams.

The sewing is over.  Final steps are folding and pressing.  Put your hand inside, as shown, and turn right side out.

Press side seam allowances in  –  toward the center.

Then, turn one of the folded squares right-side out.  To make sharp corners, use a point turner.  Press.

Just pop in one or two gift cards, fold closed, and you’re ready for any celebration.

By Julie KozaTo ensure my monograms are straight on the towel I use a 3 inch wide quilting ruler. With  a quilting ruler lined up against the band of towel I mark a line with chalk or soap along other edge of ruler.Then mark center of towel.  Use this straight line as a guide in your hoop / template for straight monograms with no measuring. Where two intersect you place center of design.

by MJ Lee

I used the Sunbonnet Girls Applique Designs to make both a quilt and pillow for entry into our Douglas County (Colorado) Fair in August. I am honored and pleased to say that the quilt took a Second Place in the “Tied Quilt” category and the pillow took a First Place in the “Machine Embroidery” category.

I used all 10 designs and reversed each of them to end up with 20 Girls.  I was amazed at the number of people who did not realize that each of the girls was duplicated because of the reversed design and different colors used.  I did not applique, but rather, skipped those stitches that would have tacked down or outlined the fabric placement.  I used only the satin stitching on a white-on-white fabric.  This gave an “airy” look to each of the designs compared to the actual applique design. I tied the quilt with small double-knotted bows of yarn.  I made a matching pillow using one of the designs.

Attached are several pictures in an attempt to let you see up-close views of the squares of the quilt as well as the whole quilt.

I have been delighted with all of the designs I have now in my “design catalogue” from Designs by SICK.  Some day I would love to read or hear what “SICK” stands for!

[editor's note:  SiCK = Shawn is Charles Knight]
MJ Lee
designsjeannie@aol.com
Castle Rock, Colorado

By BonniePlease Read all instructions carefully before starting

T-Shirt Tabs set can be found here:  http://www.designsbysick.com/details/tshirttabs

These T-Tabs are just wonderful for your over-sized T shirts.
They match the necklines design sets.
They quite easy to make and don’t take a lot of time.
You can use any type of fabric you like.
Happy Stitching!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

1. Placement stitch—-after stitching this stitch place fabric over hoop right side up.

2. Then stitch #2 This will tack down the fabric in place.(DO NOT TRIM YET)

3. Now follow CC for stitching design in place.
4. After design stitches slide a piece of fabric under hoop (this is your bottom, make sure
the right side of fabric is face down).

5. Stitch the tackdown stitch—this stitches the front and the back together.  Now remove
hoop and trim the fabric from the front and back as close as possible without clipping the
threads.

6. Return hoop to machine and stitch next color, this is the satin edging.

7. Now stitch last color, this is the lg satin button holes.

by Judy McNuttI have a 10 spool thread rack for my machine, but sometimes I use colors more than once.  I’ve bought some small stemmed reusable garden row stakes and marked them with numbers. Then when I need to reuse a color, I insert the appropriately numbered stake in the spool - fewer mix up’s with colors!

Thread organizing

by - Gina Roberson

It’s so hard to think of presents you can make for men with an embroidery machine! I have embroidered a lot of Polo tops for my husband and he loves them but besides that I never can think of anything else a man would like.  I wanted to make something special for my Dad using my embroidery machine but couldn’t decide what. I thought and thought on it for days and this is what I came up with.

I took some white cotton fabric and I embroidered out “World’s Greatest GranDaddy.” Then underneath that I embroidered a picture of a little boy’s head and 2 little girl’s heads with pigtails. I then added the names of my 3 children around the appropriate head.  It turned out so cute.  So  I ironed it down where it would look nice and neat and cut it to fit into a 5 x 7 double picture frame.  After I got this into one side of the picture frame then I had the other side ready to put a picture of GranDaddy with his 3 grandchildren in it.

I’m going to give this to my dad and bring my camera with me to take a good picture of him with my 3 children.  Then I’m going to get a 5 x 7 print made up while I’m visiting and finish up the gift! I think he will really like it and it will mean a lot to him because it’s a gift that comes from the heart.  He can put it on his desk at work and show it off.

by MaryCatherine McCoy

Embroidered pillowcases are a great way to enjoy your hobby and make personalized gifts.  The “Magic Pillowcase ” can be stitched in about 30 minutes, so it’s a quick and easy present.  Depending upon your choice of embroidery designs, it only takes a few more minutes to make a one-of-a-kind pillowcase – and the back of the embroidery is completely hidden.  That’s the magic!

Supplies for a standard size bed pillow:

• ¾ yard of main fabric (for the body of the pillowcase), approximately
• ¼ yard of accent fabric (for the hem of the pillowcase), approximately
• Sewing thread for the construction
• Embroidery thread for the design
• Stabilizer
• Embroidery machine
• Sewing machine (or serger)

Step 1
Select a design with an appropriate stabilizer.
Mark your preferred placement, hoop, and then embroider.
By embroidering before sewing construction, the embroidery’s back will not show.
In the example, we used the Clown design of the Baby Bibs Things collection from Designs By SiCK.
You can view the entire collection here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/babybibsthings

For this pillowcase, we centered this design horizontally about halfway between the cut edge and the fold, and vertically about 11” from the selvage, as shown.

Step 2
Place the accent fabric on your worktable with the right side UP and the embroidery near the top edge.
Then, place the main fabric with the right side DOWN, aligning the cut edges, as shown.
(Note:  Main fabric is turned back in photo for illustration purposes only.)
Pin together, temporarily, if desired.

Step 3
Roll up the main fabric from the other cut edge.
Stop rolling the fabric about 4” from the end, as shown.
(Note:  Corner of main fabric is turned back in photo for illustration purposes only.)

Step 4
Fold accent fabric up and over the rolled-up main fabric and pin.
Pin all 3 layers of fabric, as shown, to form a long tube:
A - accent fabric with right side UP,
B - main fabric with right side DOWN, and
C - accent fabric with right side DOWN.

Do not pin the loose fabric inside the roll.
(Note:  Corners of main fabric and accent fabric are turned back in photo for illustration purposes only.)

Step 5
Sew (or serge) the entire seam.
Be sure to remove pins as you sew to avoid damaging your machine’s timing.
Seam allowance is approximately 5/8”.
After sewing the first seam, reach inside and gently pull out the loose end of the main fabric roll, as shown.

Step 6
Continue easing the fabric roll from the tube, as shown.

Step 7
After pulling all of the main fabric out of the tube, press the seam.
After pressing, lay the entire project right-side UP to double-check your embroidery placement.
The embroidery should appear as shown – on the outside of the hem.
(Fold back the pillowcase hem, as shown, and note the fully enclosed seam and the covered embroidery back.)

Note:  If your embroidery is on the same side as the WRONG side of the main fabric, then rip out the seam.
Review the directions in Step 2 carefully.
Then, repeat Steps 2 through 6, carefully aligning the accent fabric and main fabric in Step 2.

Step 8
Trim the selvage edges.
Then, with right sides together, pin the side seam by aligning the hem (accent fabric) and body (main fabric).
Stitch (or serge) the side seam with a seam allowance of approximately 5/8”, as shown.
Repeat for last seam, at the end of the pillowcase.

Step 9
Turn your pillowcase right-side out.
Peek inside at your hem – nice and neat, isn’t it?
Press, then fold.  Enjoy!

Bonus tip:
If you do not have a serger, consider French seams on the 2nd and 3rd seams for a clean finish.

by Loretta Moffitt

Before cutting down the front of your sweatshirt, iron on a three inch stip of interfacing or stablizer  down the middle. The front will not curl  or get out of shape when it is cut.

By - Gina Roberson
I never dreamed that I would grow to have such a passion for sewing and embroidering like I do.  And I have my mother-in-law to thank for passing down such a love of sewing to me.  When my husband and I were engaged to be married, I had the opportunity to select any fabrics I wanted and any embellishments, etc. for my own customized wedding gown made by my soon-to-be mother-in-law.  I remember how much fun it was to go and pick out several different patterns and just use the parts I liked out of each one until we had a completed unique wedding gown.  I just couldn’t believe that someone could actually make a wedding gown at home on her own sewing machine! I had no experience with sewing and this was amazing to me.  I felt like a princess on my wedding day and prettier than I have ever felt in my life.

Well, years passed and I learned very slowly how to make curtains and little projects on my sewing machine.  After my son was born I learned how to make him some little pajama sets and I thought I was doing pretty good.  But little did I know that this would become a hobby that is very addicting! I guess I never really learned how to sew all that great until my twin girls were born.  And when they came into this world I realized that there are so many things out there that you can make for little girls.  The possibilities are endless! So many beautiful fabrics and patterns for little dresses, Capri sets, nightgowns, etc… You name it and you can make it! So I really started sewing then and through trial and error I have really grown in my sewing abilities.

I remember when I decided to try and make quilt tops for my 3 children so that I could give them a quilt for Christmas.  Again my mother-in-law sat down with me and showed me all kinds of quilting magazines and the different patterns that you can use to make a quilt.  We had so much fun deciding what I wanted the quilts to look like and what kind of fabrics to use.  We looked through all of our embroidery designs until I had decided which ones to use on my blocks for each quilt.  I did get them finished and quilted to give my children for Christmas and they loved them. In fact they still all use them to play and cover up with all the time.

But none of this would even be possible if I hadn’t been blessed with my wonderful mother-in-law.  I call her all the time to ask sewing questions and she never tires of explaining things to me and I just love learning.  It’s funny because my husband teases me now telling me that he never dreamed I would have my own sewing room full of sewing and embroidery supplies just like his mom.  Every time he comes home I’m cutting out a pattern, sewing or embroidering something! But I just LOVE it!  Sewing is a hobby that I wouldn’t want to live without now and I am going to try and pass it on to my girls.

By Kathleen Sherfey

After opening the package I end up with a label which could get lost and the roll of stabilizer, so what to do?  Our newspapers come in plastic sleeves, I save them and store the stabilizer in them with the label visible, rather than putting the label inside the roll of stabilizer.  It is great for the water soluble stabilizers, especially in humid weather.

By Rhonda

Stitchout out on opaque water soluable stabelizer.

Make 2 of each design.

make a small scent bag of lavender or herb of your choice
or you can put a cotton ball in the bag and scent it with your favorite scent.

stitch bag up…….
(you can make a bag out of any scrap of material and either hand stitch it or machine stitch the sides and then the top to close.)

Take a narrow piece of ribbon and starting at the top or the bottom, lace the two pieces together half way.

place the scent bag in between the two layers and continue lacing together until you reach the end.

Tie the ribbon in a nice bow.

If you need to re-sent the sachet….. simply untie the bow and remove the scent bag and add fresh scent.

Use Ideas:

tuck in your undie drawer
hang on a hanger in your closet
slip into a storage box
put one in your luggage
hang one on your rearview mirror of your car
toss one on the dashboard of your car
hang one on your towl rod in the bathroom

place one where ever you want a fresh scent

By Rob Newton   

The first tip, under my editorship, I want to come from our readers.  So, what I want everyone to do is finish this question:

Before I sit down at my embroidery machine, I always make sure:

It can be anything from what you need by your side, what you do in your house, whatever comes to mind.

You submit your answers in the comment section of the Tip online:

Thank you so much!

Rob

By Judy Roberson
Oh how we all love the warmth and comfort of sweat suits even though they are not the  prettiest outfits in the world.

As I was pulling out some fall clothes that were packed away, I ran into a new bag of “end of season sale” items  I had stashed away. It was a blue sweatshirt and pink sweat pants.  As I looked at them the first thing that came to mind, of course, was embroidering them.
I continued on with my thoughts and an idea was born. How about making a jacket out of the sweatshirt and then adding a T-shirt and my pants for a cute outfit? As all of you know when these brain waves hit, the excitement begins to race.
So, off I went to my sewing room to pick the perfect embroidery design.
As I was flipping through my embroidery design notebook I saw the cutest snowmen and snowflakes. I know pink and blue are not your traditional Christmas colors, but an idea was being born.

Simple instructions for turning a Sweat shirt into a Jacket:

#1-Find and mark your front center at neck and bottom of shirt.
Using a wooden ruler, mark center with a washable marking pen.
Cut open.

#2-Surge each side of opening or either use pinking shears.
Turn under 1 inch on each side and sew down .

Let your imagination run wild.  You could use decorative stitching to match your design or add buttons & button holes or loops.
Or, you can do as I have done. I found a pretty white ribbon trim that had a pink ribbon running through it. I sewed it to each side of my jacket.
I like to keep my jacket open so I left it as is..
Really cute.

#3-Fun Part: I marked places on the front of my jacket, for my embroidery designs.
On the right side I embroidered my name with snowflakes on it.
On the left side, I chose  a really cute little snowman design from Designs by SiCK called “snowmen”. Under the design I wrote “Let it Snow” in pink.
My cute little snowman is adorned in pink, to match my pink sweat pants.

#4- Take your pants and open up one leg about 12 inches. (This is very easy to do with a seam ripper and makes it easy to hoop your design. It is very easy to sew it back up when finished.
I embroidered the words “Let it Snow” on the pants’ leg.

I just love my new outfit and can’t wait for the season to  wear it.
I know it is not the traditional colors of Christmas. But a pink and blue Christmas it is!!!
It turned out so cute that it has the excitement racing to find more sweat suits and  do a fall pumpkin set.
What endless possibilities!

[Editor's note:  I did this a few years back with new sweat shirt for my sister.  It took me over an hour to get up the courage to cut the shirt!  ~rob]

by Carol1. Hoop tear-away stabilizer.

2. Stitch out the triangle design.

3. Press a 4×4 square into a triangle, open it up and lay it down
matching the pressed edges with the stitched triangle. I marked a line to
continue the long edge, made it easier to lay it with the stitched line.

4. Pressed into a triangle.

Matched the pressed edge with the stitched edge.

Secured the block with painters tape, it’s so easy to remove and use again.

Stitched the design, then pressed it back into a triangle. Remove from the hoop.

Now we are ready to stitch the back.
Hoop your tear away stabilizer in the hoop.

5. Stitch the block out.

6. Lay 2, 4×4 blocks (wrong side to wrong side) over the block.

7. Stitch the next color. Then lay your triangle in the upper right corner of the block.

Stitch the next color, and the trim around the block. The final color is the satin stitch, after stitching you can remove the bookmark from the hoop.

Remove the stabilizer from the back.
Now you can use it in your book.
Hope you enjoy this set.
The bookmark

This might help!  You can see the set here:  http://www.designsbysick.com/details/cornerbookmarks

By Candy HeadleyI tested these for the digitizer and they were just so cute I couldn’t let them just lay around as samples so I put them together in this quilt!

I live in Oregon so I went to the Fabric Depot and bought the backing material.  The monsters were so cute and went with the adorable designs Heidi digitized.

I am really not a quilter but occasionally get the bug.  I have given so many other quilts to my grandbabies i think I will save this one for my first great-grandchild since my oldest granddaughter is a senior this year.  Nothing like thinking ahead!

I have bought many of Heidi’s deisgns in the past and loved them so I couldn’t resist when she she was looking for someone to try out these designs.

The Applique Monster design set can be found here: http://www.designsbysick.com/details/appliquemonsters>

digitized by Rhonda of Designs By Rhonda

In The Hoop Pony Tail Covers

Materials needed

Tear-away Stabilizer or water solvable opaque

2 layers hooped with the grain of each piece in different directions from the other.

(Like one up and down and the other grain sideways.)

2   - 5″ squares of Material
1   - 5″ square of thin quilt batting, for example, the cotton batting for quilting and not the high loft.
or 2 5″ pieces of cut away stabilizer instead of the batting.

1 nice finished stick or thin short chop stick.

This is for holding the cover onto the pony tail. You do this by pushing the stick through one hole, under the ponytail and up through the other. I like to go through the ponytail and not under it to make sure it doesn’t fall out.

Things you can use as a stick:

• A short dull pencil
• a piece of a wooden dowel slightly sharpened
• shortened chopstick.
• I wear these and I use a crochet hook….. that way I always know where it is.
• My daughter took a piece of oak twig and carved me a nice stick.

NOTE: I would NOT use these on smaller children unless you  find a very plyable stick at a craft store.
———————————————————————————————

NOTE:  all stitchline, tack lines and satin outline stitches should be in a color to match your material or a contrast.  The stitch color are in different colors in order to tell your machine to stop stitching at that point.

Example: on design #001, color numbers 1, 2, 3 are the same color.
4,5,6,7,8 are the design colors and 9,10,11,12,13 would all be the same color.

Example: on design #002, color numbers 1,2,3 are the same color.
4,5 are the design colors and 6,7,8,9,10,11 would all be the same color.

———————————————————————————————–
Directions

1. stitch onto stabilizer for template
you can remove this from hoop and cut out for your template if you want to.

1. stitch onto stabilizer for Placement.
glue material down to stabilizer.

2. stitch line, stitch onto fabric

trim around the outside of the stitch line and return hoop to machine

(stitch out design area)

remove hoop from machine and turn over.

glue or pin from top :

1 layer of thin batting and 1 layer of material for back of Pony Tail Holder.  If you don’t want the thickness, use a couple layers of heavy cutaway stabilizer instead.

4. stitch line around outside
5. stitch small holes for stick

Trim material and batting around the outside of the  line
and the inside of the smaller holes

Remember to trim as close as you can without going through the stitch line.  It’s easier to trim a little more later, than add material…..

Return hoop to machine and finish the stitching.

1. tac down
2. satin outline stitch around outside and around the holes.

Remove from hoop.

If using tear-a-way stabelizer, jut gently tear the stabilizer away from the  Pony Tail holder.

If using the opaque water solvy stabilizer, trim close to the stitching and dampen the edges with a wet sponge.  this will leave a smooth patch like look.

by Bridgett Catron
To dry free standing lace after stitching, I cut away all the stabilizer that I can and then using straight pins, I pin the lace items to the back of used Styrofoam trays that I’ve washed and dried very well (I save the trays that come with vegetables or fruit).

At this point I rinse the entire thing, since the water soluble stabilizer dissolves in water; then I leave the tray to sit with the piece still attached in the kitchen sink for about 15 minutes or so, leaning to the side so it can drain a bit.  After this, I take it to my sewing room to dry overnight.

You can get trays in some very large sizes, they’re quite sturdy. In fact, I have the same trays that I’ve used for the last 4 or 5 years, and just use them over and over. You’ll find that once the piece is dry and you’ve removed the pins, for the most part, the FSL is flat enough that you won’t have to press it and that it is basically ready to use.

by Gina RobersonLast year around Christmas time I made so many gifts for other people with my embroidery machine.  There’s no present you can go out and buy that says, “I love you” like something you’ve made yourself and customized with an embroidery machine.

After I finished with everyone’s customized Christmas gifts, I decided to make something for myself.  I don’t know about other “Sewers” out there, but it seems like we never take time out to make something for ourselves! So I was excited about this idea of making a wall hanging to hang on my back door to welcome people to my house for the Christmas season.

On the SiCK website I found a beautiful set entitled “Whimsical Christmas” It is just too cute:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/whimsicalchristmas

So I went and bought some shiny blue fabric that looked as if it had silver glitter throughout it and embroidered several of the designs from that set onto some blocks.  I then took a block and wrote out our last name “Roberson” and added some more of the designs, placing them as if they were hanging off of the letters. They all turned out so cute.

Then I cut out some blocks of different fabrics, and some strips of fabric, and just started sewing them all together.  The best part of making the little hanging was that I got to use my imagination.  Since it is your own creation you can make it however you want to, there is wrong or right way!  This also led to my craving to learn to make quilt tops as well.

When I finished with it, my mother-in-law helped show me how to sandwich the hanging, the filling, and a back all together and then to sew around each block individually so as to connect the layers.  I was a bit nervous regarding this step because I had never done anything like that before.  But it didn’t take long to get the hang of it.  I even used pins to pin it all together first so that I wouldn’t get a pucker in it (since to a more experienced quilter this would be no big deal).

When I got through with it, I added a bit of Christmas looking rope to the back left and the back right with a loop at the top to hang it by.  I got so many compliments by everyone who came by to see us at Christmas about the hanging.  They wanted to know where I got it and I was able to tell them that I made it!

This year while you’re very BUSY making things for everyone you have on your list, don’t forget to take time and make yourself something special too! We ladies rarely think about ourselves, but I can’t wait for Christmas to come this year so I can get to hang up my special Christmas hanging again and enjoy it!

by Carol Aldrich

This is an In The Hoop (ITH)design set that will be sewn into a large block
when the 9 blocks are completed.

Block 1 and Block 2

1. Hoop stabilizer

2. Stitch out the first color

3. Lay a 4½ x 4½ piece of material in the block

4. Stitch the next color, this will tack the fabric in place

5. The diagonal line is the next color

6. Cut a 4 ½ x 4 ½ piece of material in half diagonally, use 1 piece and lay in the upper right corner, wrong side facing up.

7. Stitch the next color, and lay the fabric down, right side facing up

8. The next color will hold in place

This picture shows steps 7 and 8.

Block 4 and Block 9 are stitched out the same way as 1 and 2, just when piecing it it together they will be turned so the leaf fabric is in the upper right corner.

Blocks 3, 5, 6, and 8
Hoop your stabilizer, stitch the first color, lay a 4 ½ x 4 ½ block over the stitch out, stitch the next color this will hold it in place.

Trim all the blocks leaving ¼ inch on all sides.

Piecing the block together: stitch block 2 to block 1, then block 3 to block 2.

Do the same for the remainder of the blocks, then sew the first row the the second row, second to the third row.

Press, and your block is finished to enjoy however you wish. Make a table runner, a pillow, or a wall hanging.

Artwork by Dover

by Gina Roberson
Whenever you wash your t-shirts be sure to turn them inside-out first. Then when you take them out of the dryer and turn them right side out, they won’t have any puckers in them and the design will sit flat.

by Karen Rubsam

I admit it.  I play with dolls.  I always have.  As a teenager I was still playing with my Barbie while other girls had moved on to boys.  It’s an oddity that is usually best not discussed outside the doll world. So imagine my surprise when I spied a traditional style Raggedy Ann and Andy on my friends dorm room bed at college.

I didn’t think she had the same attachment to dolls as I do, so I avoided a full throttle discussion on the joys of dolls.  My friend’s raggedy dolls were just something her mom had made for her and they reminded her of home so she brought them back each year.  Careful not to reveal too much, I never openly coveted them, though I watched as several of her friends got their own set made especially for them by her mother.  I wasn’t sure if they were gifts or if they paid for them.  Paying for them was out of the question as a cash-starved student.  And, I guess I never made the BFF list to earn a set as a gift.  So I suffered in silence.  After graduation I moved on, or so I thought, and focused on other things.

I started sewing again about a year ago.  And yes, it was related to my doll fixation.  Though, the memories of Raggedy Ann were not in the forefront of my mind – I had moved on to Betsy McCall and American Girl types.  I couldn’t believe how expensive clothes were for them so I decided to sew my own.  Mind you I had already amassed a collection of Barbie dolls.  The Barbies didn’t need clothes as they could be fashionably attired at reasonable prices.  Not to mention their clothes are just too small for me to even attempt to sew!

Ah but the Raggedy Ann memories came streaming back one day as I was browsing a pattern book at Joann’s during their $.99 pattern sale.  I saw the Classic Raggedy Ann & Andy pattern (Simplicity 9447):

http://www.simplicity.com/Search.aspx?SearchTerm=9447&x=0&y=0

They looked just like my friend’s set!   I thought…”I could do that”…and quickly bought the pattern.  As with most sewing projects, it sat there for a while.  I was finally inspired when I found out that one of my mom’s caregivers has the same birthday as I do.  And, she still plays with dolls!  We have a big birthday coming up (I won’t say which one) so I thought I would do something special for her.  I think she might like her own Raggedy Ann doll.

The actual sewing of the doll was pretty easy.  Surprisingly it was somewhat difficult to collect all the right fabric.  I wanted to make the doll with darker skin and brown hair since this lady is from Jamaica.  I’m still not sure I got the tone just right.  I needed to look around for the red and white striped fabric for the legs.  I finally found some mixed in with the Christmas fabric.  I was thinking you might also find it with the Halloween costume material when that comes out.  My point? if you ever think you might want to make this doll and you see red/white striped fabric – buy it ‘then’ don’t wait!

I bought the pattern before I had an embroidery machine.  I am sooo glad that I waited to make the doll.  The embroidery machine made it easier and added those special touches.  Rather than using buttons and paint, I opted to embroider the face.  I think it looks even better than those silly faces on my friend’s dolls!  I embroidered a heart on her chest and a cute little “made by Karen” on her bottom (I wonder if the birthday girl will ever see it).  I wanted to personalize the doll so I came up with the idea of adding a monogram to the pinafore.   I used a frame from the Monogram Frame set which is available from Designs by SiCK:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/lettermonograms

I love how it turned out!

The hair was the most difficult to add and in my opinion there is some room for improvement.  The directions in the pattern were not really clear regarding how much yarn to use or how to actually sew it on – I guess they expect us all to be expert seamstresses.  After thinking about it for a while I decided to sew the hair on using some tissue paper on top to hold the yarn in place.  It worked okay but next time I will try to use a color that matches the hair as it was difficult to pull green tissue paper out of her brown hair!  I might try to look online for other hints as well (please feel free to comment if you have an easier solution).

I will be giving the caregiver the doll next week.  I do hope she likes it as much as I do.  Regardless, with my good deed done I feel that it is now appropriate to make one for myself!

by Marsha FordI save the waxed paper backing from sticky-back stabilizer for use when I make FSL items.  After rinsing as much of the water soluble stabilizer (WSS) from the article as I want, I can then lay the items on the paper to dry.  They won’t stick because of the coating on the paper (ordinary wax paper will do as well) and since they won’t stick, I can shape the designs if they need it and there’s no fuzz from paper or regular towels to worry about.

Judy Roberson
I recently, made the cutest little birthday apron for my grandaughter Callie’s birthday party.  Please refer to an earlier article “Simple Birthday Apron” here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/simple-birthday-apron/

Of course, her sister Emily also had to have one. So grandma made her a chef apron that turned out so cute I had a brain wave!  How about  turning the apron into a wearable Capri pants outfit?

It sounded cute, but I really wasn’t sure how to go about making it, so I got my 10 year old grandaughter Emily involved who loves to sew, to help come up with ideas.  In fact I could think of no one better to help me with my invention!

Emily thought it was a great idea, so off we went to my sewing room to pick out the perfect fabrics.  What fun and memories we made that day.  After she had gone home from her overnight stay, I went into my quiet sewing room and reminisced about the laughter and re-envisioned the fun we’d had with our project.  It was most certainly a very special time together.

Here are the simple instructions we created for you:

1.  First, Emily chose her main fabric, which was a Raggedy Ann and Andy print.  We decided on a blue chambray for the capris (note: you could also make long pants).  We then decided to add a third fabric which was a red and white gingham check.

2.  To begin, please refer to the instructions for the apron here (save for the exception listed in step 3):
http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/simple-birthday-apron/
We cut the front of the apron out of the Raggedy Ann fabric and made the lining out of the red gingham check.

3.  Using the instructions from the URL above, we made our apron but with one exception, we added a red check border to the top of the apron.  To accomplish this, we cut a strip of coordinating fabric that was 3 inches wide X the length of the top of the apron.  Fold under along one long edge 1/2 inch and press.  Now lay the strip on the top of your main apron piece, raw edges even.  At the top, stitch down the fold.  At this stage we decided to add rick-rack to ours, you may wish to do the same or add another type of trim of your own choosing.  Now finish the apron per the provided instructions.

4.  We found a simple commercial capri pants pattern that featured an simple elastic waist band.  We made those according to the pattern instructions.  We also added a red check border approximately 4 inches above the hem line; to do this, we simply cut 2 strips of the red check fabric 3 inches X the width of the legs.  We then folded down 1/2 inch on the top and bottom of the strips and pinned those to the bottom of the legs.  Note: It’s easier to add border trim if you do it before sewing the legs up (while still opened up flat).

5.  We then made Emily a matching headband using some of the red gingham check.

This cute little outfit could be made for children of all ages and sizes.  I have four grandaughters, ages 4 through 10.  I have now made similar outfits for each of them, and plan to make for for Fall & also some using Christmas designs.  There are endless possibilities.

by Margaret Lote
To stop your foot pedal from slipping on the carpet or linoleum floor, try using an old bathroom mat or car mat (the type that has dimples underneath).  Cut the mat down to size (about 6″ x 9″) place on the floor, place your pedal atop that and Bingo! No more slips!

by Barbara “Elfie” Taylor
Some of us have problems resisting the call of fabric.  Worse, we can’t seem to say no to those poor women who are looking for places to unload their own unwanted fabric, who have alas, been pushed over the edge by their own stash.  We take in their orphaned buttons, their rag-tag upholstery sample books, their vintage jeans, their thousands of dollars worth of ribbon and trim and silk and wool and velvet … after all, would can say no to silk and velvet?

Some of us have a bigger problem.  We don’t just hoard fabric, we collect sewing machines.  If we were guys, it would be computers, or cars, or Lego. But we’re “sewistes”, and we need to have good sewing machines, the way a chef needs 14 different knives to properly prepare a 5-course meal.  We admire a gorgeous 1920 Singer with all its original accessories and attachments in its original wooden case the way Jay Leno smiles at his Duesenberg.  They just don’t make them like that anymore.

But we also have to share our homes with those other people who live there (e.g. children, spouse, extended family, pets).

Some of us are lucky enough to have a room for our obsession.  Maybe there’s no door on it, but it’s a dedicated space nonetheless.  Some of us play at making the obsession pay for itself by offering our sewing services, and thereby justifying our next indulgence.  It’s a charade, everyone knows it, especially those who graduated with fashion design diplomas and have industrial sewing machines in their boutique sewing studios, but we dilettantes are humored by good natured clients.

I am a compulsive sewing machine collector, but I’m not looking for a support group!  I love being that sewing machine addict!  It’s like swinging really high on the back-yard swingset and pulling the legs out of the ground, making it thump backward and forward and you wonder when it’ll tip over on top of you, but you swing back down and get ready for the next surge anyway … and it feels like “that moment” all the time.

I didn’t start out that way.  I bought a department store cheapie, which as it turned out, served more to teach me new ways to make a sailor blush while I stitched away on my bridesmaid dress for my friend’s wedding, until that friend gave me her 1940s vintage Brother straight-stitch she’d inherited from an aunt who’d moved on to knitting.  It had only one stitch type, straight, and did it extremely well.  It served until my kids wanted stretchy fabrics and buttonholes, so I bought a basic mechanical 21-stitch sewing machine with a one-step buttonholer at a really deep discount, which served until I wanted to play with chiffon and nylon and make winter coats with ‘ultra-fray-y’ linings, so I bought a basic 4-thread serger on sale, and then I won a computerized quilters’ sewing machine with a stitch speed regulator in a drawing, and then I felt I needed a cover-stitch machine because I’d “gone pro” as a crafter…

So insidious, how the addiction crept up on me.

Even so, I have one machine named “Workhorse” who does most of the work.  Workhorse has a permanent spot on my sewing table.  Workhorse has a serger partner named “Zoom” occupying the other permanent spot on the table.  As a project called for a specialized function (a keyhole buttonhole, for instance, or a cover-stitched hem) I’d set up the appropriate machine, do what needed doing, and put it away.

And then I discovered machine embroidery, online embroidery design websites, and a really, really good sale on embroidery machines, all at the same time.

When my embroidery “Baby” arrived, we had a problem.

I needed three permanent spots on my sewing table, and had room for only two.  I was also out of storage space for my sewing machines, and my stash was crowding my creative space.  My exercise bicycle was already smothered in fabric, with sewing machines at either end, and my shelves weren’t sturdy enough to support a Jem, let alone a 1940s Juggernaut.

It was obvious what needed to be done: add a new wall unit!

But “Baby” had eaten up my entire discretionary spending budget for the year and my next Christmas gift, to boot. But there are ways to get around that (if you’ve planned ahead).  For instance, collecting ‘loyalty points’ for buying non-perishable groceries at department stores, especially stores that allow you to convert your Air Miles to their own loyalty ‘currency’.

I used department store loyalty points (plus $20) to buy a new TV cabinet for the embroidery machine.  You can also find suitably deep units at garage sales, on Craigslist, Freecycle groups, thrift stores, or just by putting word out amongst your neighbors that you’re looking for a discarded TV cabinet that’s still in good condition.  Dare I suggest curbside shopping here?  Remember though, the shelf MUST be 18″ deep, front to back, to accommodate the range of your hoop’s movements.

“Baby” now sits where the TV would go, and her cord runs out the back, just like a TV’s; the VCR/DVD player shelf is set as high as it can go, and holds my embroidery stuff in little organizer baskets and jars and binders and such.  I used cup hooks on the inside walls to hang my USB keys, so I don’t have to fumble for my designs.  There is room to the left of the machine for thread cases and to support larger projects in the hoop (e.g. beach towels).  In fact, everything to do with embroidery is encased in this shrine to the machine: no hunting for stabilizers or bobbins or USB keys.  When I switch off for the night, I just close the cabinet doors, and all is tucked out of sight of both children and bobbin-eating cats.

As a bonus, I reclaimed some floor space and my stationary bike, as the other sewing machines have been safely and accessibly stored in the cabinets below the embroidery shrine.  They’re out of the way, and they’re not collecting dust.  I gained extra storage space on top of the cabinet for more plastic drawer organizers.  Those plastic organizers freed up more shelf space for the fabric that had smothered the bike, and lo!  My bad cholesterol levels are falling as a result!

Truly, a sweatshop is born.

by Diane BriggsI have physical problems that make it really difficult for me to reach anything on the floor, my solution is to keep a pair of needlenose pliers near my machine.  When I drop a piece of fabric or a spool of thread, I use the needlenose pliers to help me reach the item, making my arms are just a bit longer with this ‘extension’.

by Gina Roberson
I wanted to share a special project that I have been working on for several months now.  For Christmas this year I wanted to give each of my 3 children a quilt made especially for them by their mama.

I am not an experienced quilter by any means, I am just learning!  Having an embroidery machine just makes everything so much more fun, especially when you have a lot of designs to select from.  I currently have a membership with Designs by SiCK so I have plenty of designs to select from to make a quilt.

First I let each one of my kids pick out a design set that they liked.  My twin girls are only 4 1/2 years old and they decided upon the same thing as they usually do.  They just love the little ladybugs named “DD Cute Ladybugs” which is available from Designs by SiCK:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/cuteladybugs

So first I went to town to find fabric that would coordinate well with the ladybug designs.  As luck would have it, I found some very cute ladybug fabrics and other coordinating fabrics that would go well with the ladybug designs.  I was so excited at the thought of how cute these quilts could turn out to be!

Then I came home and cut some squares to embroider the little ladybugs onto.  I decided to embroider some cute phrases on some of the blocks as well.  Every time I had a chance I would go into the sewing room and hoop and embroider a new block until I finally had them all completed.  Then I had so much fun just cutting strips and other blocks and arranging them all over the floor in a way that was appealing and cute for my daughters.  I’m not sure if there is a certain way to go about making a quilt or not, but my girls and I had such fun arranging all our blocks!  So we wound up with a really cute quilt for each of them.  The concept is, if I did it, so can you, even if you have no experience.

I have a lady who is going to actually quilt the tops for me to finish them up for Christmas since I don’t know how to do that yet.  But before I give them to her I have to make one for my 10-year-old son also! So we sat down together and found a design set at Designs by SiCK called “Animals of the World”:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/animalsoftheworld

Then we went out and bought all kinds of safari themed fabrics to mix in with the embroidered blocks.  It’s going to be such fun to make this quilt!  I recently finished cutting out the necessary squares for that quilt and am now ready to embroider those as well.

If you have a loved one and would like to make them a special gift then a quilt is the perfect idea.  If you don’t know how to finish it once you have your quilt top made there are plenty of places you can pay to actually finish the quilting process for you.

It’s so much fun to make a quilt top with the help of your imagination.  Trying to find just the right designs and then matching those to some fabrics is my favorite part.  I can’t wait to see my children’s faces when the quilts come back and I give them to my children at Christmas.  I just know that they will be so excited, and when I see them using their new quilts to play with and to cover up with, new memories will be made with those quilts!

by Velda Price
I have a very small sewing room and my stabilizers were always jumbled up.  My solution was to buy a 24-pocket, over-the-door heavy duty shoe organizer.

I simply cut pieces of felt to place under the medal hangers at the top of the door to prevent it from scratching the door frame.

My new stabilizer organizer has a new life now and is perfect for storing the stabilizers upright in a very organized manner.  When the door is open, the stabilizers are against the wall, out of the way, off the floor or shelves, and never jumbled up again.

by Kay Kirkpatrick
After experiencing the joy of sewing out your designs, what do you do with them if you don’t have a specific project in mind?  For me, when it comes to single designs, I opt for pillows, though I do have to address the issue of stuffing. After all it can be costly to stuff a pillow.

To cut costs, I save all my leftovers from quilting, including backing, fabric and batting.  I layer both the front and back of my pillow with a piece of left over batting and backing.

For this pillow the design can be found here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/openworkflorals

First, cut the pillow front and back to the desired size, including seam allowance.

Layer the pillow front with a piece of left over batting and then a layer of backing at least 1/2″ larger than the pillow front.

Sew around the outside of all 3 layers with a 1/4” seam and trim the batting and backing down to the edge of the outside pillow front (don’t forget to save the cut away batting!).  I stabilize the 3 layers by sewing up next to my embroidery design through all three layers with clear thread, having my feed dogs down.

Repeat the same process when layering the back.  This reduces the amount of stuffing you have to insert, as well as making the pillow look smoother.

Sew cording around the pillow front, beginning at the center bottom of the pillow. Place the front and back, right sides together and sew around, leaving a place at the bottom to turn.

Turn with right sides out, stuff with batting and hand sew the opening together.

Bonus Tip:  I keep a tote bag on the back of my sewing room door to collect all the scrap batting that I cut away from my quilts.  Pull the pieces of batting apart to fluff them up before stuffing the pillow.

You get the joy of embroidering and your friends get the pillows for gifts!

by Jodie Marquis
Making our tools fit our hands as they age is important to lessen pain, make our tools easier to use, and to help avoid hand fatigue.

Here’s a hint for those who do a lot of cutting with a rotary cutter.

I make the handle larger by adding a foam rubber grip (this is the same as the foam rubber often added to hand tools available online http://www.gripworks.com/rubber-grips.htm or from some of the hardware or home improvement centers) which are soft and inexpensive.

As an alternative, you can also use a piece of foam that is meant for covering water pipes because it has a slit in it and will often fit the handles as well (dependent on what type of handle you have).

by Gina Roberson
A newer style dress that I just love to make for my girls is the T-Shirt dress.  I embroider the little t-shirt before I make the dress and that really makes it cute! It’s so simple and easy to make.  I thought I would share the instructions with you along with some pictures of one I just made.  These instructions will work on an infant size up to a girl size 6.  On an infant you could use a Onesie as the top. The pictures you see of the cupcake t-shirt dress I made is for a girl who wears a size 4T/5T.

Step 1 – Embroider something pretty on your little girls
t-shirt. I used an Appliqué Alphabet letter “A” on this dress to stand for my daughter’s first name.

Step 2 – Take the shirt and cut it off to be an empire waist (you can serge around the bottom of the shirt if you would like a finished edge).  Select a pretty 45″ wide fabric that will compliment the color of the shirt fabric.  You will be attaching this fabric as the skirt.  In my case, I used a fabric with the same little cupcakes that I used for my appliquéd letter.

Step 3 – The 45” wide fabric works perfect for the width of the dress. All you need to do is to figure out how long you want your dress to be and cut the length appropriately (but leave the width as 45”).  On a bigger child it will have less gathers, and on a little child it will have more gathers.  Then simply hem the bottom of the dress and apply rick-rack, etc. while you still have the dress open.  Once you’ve hemmed the dress, you can sew the open sides together to make the side seam.

Step 4 – Gather the top of the skirt all the way around.

Step 5 – Notch the front and back centers, then turn the skirt inside out. Place the shirt down inside of the skirt so that right sides are together.  Match the side seams and the front and back center notches.  Pin.  Then sew the shirt to the skirt.

Step 6 – Turn the dress right side out again and you should have a finished dress. I like to add rick-rack where the waist of the shirt meets the gathered skirt, you may want to add some trim as well.

These little dresses are so much fun to make and look so cute on your little one ~ so ENJOY!

by Sandy Roberts

To keep long tails of used spools of thread from dangling & getting tangled I use 1” Coban cut into strips to wrap around my opened spools of thread.

Coban is the wrap vets use on your pets to bandage their paws, etc., and that we now can use for ourselves instead of the old Ace bandages.

It sticks to itself, but nothing else, and is available in rolls at any drug store. It’s very stretchy and can be reused multiple times. Just cut a strip long enough to overlap a bit and wrap around your open spool of thread (this product leaves no residue).

by MaryCatherine McCoy

Editor’s Note:  I happen to offer a free file organization system on my group that is customizable, for those interested please visit & join:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheEnchantedCottage/
and follow all the instructions there in the files area for download and before installation.

Experienced embroiderers and rookies were completely sympathetic with the trials and tribulations discussed in part one of this article.  But what if you’re not a novice anymore, but also not an expert?  Wouldn’t you like to know now what you’ll know then?

So, if you’re feeling like a ’sophomore embroiderer’, this article is intended to help you discover a few shortcuts on the machine embroidery super highway.  One of the concerns which frustrates many machine embroiderers after a few weeks or a few months is downloading and filling designs.

There are so many great designs available:  at the dealers, at the fabric stores, and online – especially at DesignsBySiCK, where you can download up to 49 free designs per day (or buy a membership and get over 15,000 designs).  But what do you do after you’ve downloaded all those designs and now you’re looking for that one really cute sunbonnet design which would be perfect for your granddaughter’s birthday party this weekend?  Where did you file it?  And more importantly, how can you find it quickly?

First things first, whether you’re a rookie at machine embroidery or a seasoned veteran, the most important question about filing designs is where will I look for it when I need it?  It’s doesn’t matter where or how your best friend maintains her embroidery files.  Downloading and filing designs away is NOT about storage; it’s about retrieval!  It’s all about where and how ‘you’ will look for a design when ‘you’ want to retrieve it.

Once again, you may be saying, “That’s great but if I knew now, what I’ll know then, I wouldn’t be frantically searching for that sunbonnet design at midnight.”  The solution is in 2 parts.  First, try using your computer’s operating system to find that elusive sunbonnet.  If you’re using a PC and you have at least a vague idea of the design’s name or the folder’s name, then click on the Start button in the lower-left-hand corner, when the pop-up menu appears, click on the search button (next to the magnifying glass).  A dialog box should appear titled Search Results that looks like this:

In the dialog box, enter a search word like “bonnet” after the prompt:  All or part of the file name:  OR, after the prompt:  A word or phrase in the file:  Then, click on the search button at the bottom.  The system will start searching for everything with the word “bonnet” and begin creating a list of results.

If you only have a few designs with the word “bonnet” in the title, then you may be able to recognize it from the list.  If you have quite a few designs with the word “bonnet”, then it may take a little longer.

Of course, if you have a MAC or are not using Windows on your PC, then use the search feature on your system.

The second part of this solution is even easier.  Going forward, set up a design retrieval system (remember, it’s not a storage system) based on where YOU will look for it.  Don’t worry, at this time, about all those designs you’ve already saved somewhere.  Whether you’ve downloaded 2 dozen, 200, or 2,000 designs, start your new retrieval system with designs you download today.  Otherwise, you may be overwhelmed with trying to organize all the designs you have PLUS all the designs you’re downloading today, tomorrow, and forever.

As you create your retrieval system, you (and only you) can decide whether you want to store designs in files by category (animals, alphabets, etc.) or by website (DesignsBySiCK and others) or some other methodology.  There are no “right” categories; only categories which work for you.  Still not sure what the “right” categories are?

There are various software systems and packages available to help us organize our designs.  Many software packages offer a free trial offer.  Spend a little time before you spend a lot of money on a great system that doesn’t work for you.  You can ask for opinions about software packages on the DesignsBySiCK Forums.  Remember though, it’s like a recommendation for a movie or restaurant.  Just because an embroidery expert likes Chinese food, it doesn’t mean you will.

After you’ve established your own retrieval system and filed about 200 – 250 new designs, give it a test drive.  Can you find that bonnet design easily now?  If not, then it’s time to tweak your system.  You don’t want to file 5,000 designs and then discover your retrieval system doesn’t work for you.  After a successful test drive, then you can go back and get those 5,000 designs and put them in your retrieval system.  But, just as we discussed in the first article, take baby steps.  Give yourself a reasonable goal or schedule.  For example, “I’m going to organize 100 designs each week until I catch up with all those old designs”, or “I’m going to spend 2 hours each week organizing my old designs into my new retrieval system.”

Don’t over-schedule yourself in your attempt to get everything done or get everything perfect.  Our goal is an excellent retrieval system, not a perfect storage system where you can’t find anything.  Take baby steps.  More importantly, have fun with your machine embroidery hobby.

Digitized by Rhonda

CD Holder Designs:

http://www.designsbysick.com/details/cdholder

Gather all materials needed. Thread, material, Tear-Away stabilizer.

Stitch out color 1.
This is the outline for the template
Remove hoop and tear out template.
Stitch out color 2.
This is the outline for the template for the CD
Remove hoop and tear out template.

Cut 2 pieces of material out of the rectangle, I like to cut it a bit larger.
Cut out the CD cover out of felt, plastic, a piece plastic table cloth cover or
even use an actual CD cover.

Hoop your stabilizer and stitch next color. This is a guide line.
Glue 1 piece of material on top of guide line.
Repeat this color step to stack down material.
Continue and stitch out the design according to the color chart.

Remove the hoop and turn hoop over. Glue the 2nd piece of material to back
of design.

Turn hoop over and attach to the machine. Stitch the next color that will go
around the entire design.

Remove hoop from machine, turn hoop over and apply the CD cover in
place.
If using clear plastic, you will need to tape this securely in place.
If using felt, you may pin it in place, making sure that the pins will NOT be
close to the stitching line.
Turn over and attach hoop back onto the machine and stitch the tack down
line for the CD cover.

The clear is hard to see in the pictures, but you will be able to see later.
Continue with the next color.
Remember, the design is the only actual color change.
The rest of the colors should match your material or be a contrast.

The next color will be a tac down for the CD cover
Then a double line down the end of the cover
Next will be 2 single stitch circles. Remove the hoop at this time and
carefully trim holes in the inside of the circles as shown.
Do not trim close, the satin stitch will cover the rest of the material.
Re-attach the hoop to your machine and stitch the satin stitches around the
circles.

When finished, remove finished CD Holder from the hoop.

Cd Holder back using Clear Vinyl

]]> http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/cd-holder-tutorial/feed/ http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/ez-pillow-form-insertion/ http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/ez-pillow-form-insertion/#comments Fri, 24 Jul 2009 17:14:27 +0000 rob http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/?p=1159

by Judy Roberson
My granddaughter Callie, will be eight years old on July 24th.  Her mom and I searched the birthday books for just the right  birthday party theme. We were searching for something that  would make occasion extra special, yet nothing seemed “just right”.

Eventually we decided to make a list of the things Callie enjoys doing, and while we came up with several things to add to that list, we soon determined that the activity she enjoyed the most was cooking!  Yes, Callie loves to come in the kitchen when her mom or I are cooking, in fact she has mastered several easy dishes all by herself.  Callie particularly enjoys decorating cupcakes, etc.

With this in mind, we decided a cooking/decorating “Cupcake Birthday Party” theme was the order for the day, so off to the party supply store we went to search for items such as a tablecloth, napkins, plates, etc. with the hope of finding a cupcake design on them.

While we were there, we saw the perfect addition for Callie’s party!  “Ratatoulli” (in case you don’t know, this childrens movie came out a few years ago and is all about a rat who wants to go to cooking school) Callie loves this movie so A “Ratatoulli” birthday party idea was born.

We were thrilled!  Not only had we found something for her party regarding the activity she loves to do most, but we’d also found her favorite movie theme as well!  In fact the store had everything we would need for the best party ever for Callie, even a paper chef’s hat, well nearly everything, as we could find no apron.

Never fear!  Grandma to the rescue!  My daughter simply asked me to make all the little girls a plain little apron to wear while cooking their cupcakes and decorating them.  Now, as you all know, anybody with an embroidery machine doesn’t understand the word ‘plain’. Of course though, I readily agreed and set out to find a simple apron pattern, and while I did find one, I looked at it and it was so simple I knew I didn’t actually ‘need’ the pattern and really neither do you (though purchase a simple one if you feel you need to, as ’simple’ is all you need for this project).

For the aprons I made, I decided to cut out my own and so can you! This is the simplest project I’ve done in a long time.

Helpful information for a successful project:

*  I used a cotton fabric (45″ wide).

*  The instructions I’ve provided below will make an apron
that will fit a child from 4-10 years old (note: length adjustable per your needs).

*  You could use coordinating fabrics for a more custom look.

*  If you choose to buy a pattern, some instructions will advise you to cut one piece and hem all the way around that piece for a finished edge, but that is very time consuming in my opinion, so I opted to just cut two pieces instead and use one for the front and one for lining, which I happen to think looks better as well.

*  The instructions I’ve provided will make a darling little apron project that is quick and simple to make.  This apron takes just minutes to stitch and I guarantee you, you will thrill your little cooking helpers.

Here are the instructions:

Step 1:  I cut out 2 rectangles. 19″ wide by 21″ long. One rectangle is the apron front, the other rectangle is the apron lining.  Fold them in half length wise and cut out a half moon shape for the top of the apron approximately 7″ deep (lengthwise) and 5″ inwards (note: though ultimately you can cut in any depth you want or need, there is no set amount, if in doubt, simply purchase a simple apron pattern to assist you).

Remember to make the birthday girl or boy’s apron special so it stands out from the others!  How I accomplished this by simply going along with the planned theme, which lead me to Step 2.

Step 2:  I then visited Designs by SiCK to search for the perfect design.  I found it in the set entitled “Happy Birthday Cakes”:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/happybirthdaycakes
I chose the design with the smiling balloon on top the little
cake wearing a party hat; then I added the words,”Ratatoulli Cooking School” beneath the cake.

Having made my design choice, I hooped my project and embroidered the design.  I must say, the resultant stitched design turned out to be just as cute as could be!

Step 3: Cut 4 strips of 7/8″ wide gross grain ribbon to make your neck and waist ties.  Cut them each 20″ long.

Step 4: Take two of the 20″ ribbons you just cut and pin them on the right sides of the top of your apron (pointing down and out of the way).  Now pin the other two 20″ ribbons on each side to make your waist ties (point these inwards).

Step 5:  Take the second apron piece you cut out. Place that second piece (lining) on top of the embroidered apron piece (right sides together) and stitch all way around the apron leaving a 4-5″ opening at the bottom of the apron for turning being careful all the while to keep the ribbon ties out of the way so they will not get caught up in the sewing.

Step 6:  Clip curves.

Step 7:  Turn right side out; sew opening close.

Step 8:  Optional . . . add rick rack or trim of your choice to the apron if you wish to.

Step 9:  Iron.

Additional notes:  I made different colored aprons for each of the girls attending the party, using the same technique. I embroidered the words “Ratatoulli Cooking School” on each of them. They were cute as could be, but it was the birthday girl who stood out because hers had an additional special embroidery design on it.

Happy sewing and embroidering.

by S.M. Timmiss
I save all my cut-away stabilizer scraps until I have enough to cut into strips, then I join the strips together with a large zig-zag stitch.

The end result provides a large enough piece of cut-away stabilizer to work with for making new projects, and I’ve found it has no adverse effect on the resultant embroidery.

by Paulette Daoust
I save the scraps from water soluble stabilizer (WSS).

Whenever necessary, I then put the scraps into a spray bottle, add water, then swirl to dissolve the scraps inside the bottle.

To use this mixture on projects, I first wash my fabric, allow it to dry, and then spray the fabric with the liquid WSS.  Then I allow the fabric to dry again.  Once dry, I iron the fabric.

I use this starched material for my table runners, table cloths, or endless lace or borders.  It retains it’s crispness during the embroidery process.

Once the project is finished, I then rewash the item.  No commercial starch on the market is as stiff as mixing up this handy WSS solution and it saves money by re-purposing your WSS in this manner.

I hope this will help other embroiderers in finishing their projects and the making new projects an easier process.

Editor’s Note:  Some people who make similar solutions add a bit of alcohol to keep their solution from molding.  However; Paulette doesn’t use alcohol because it’s never been necessary in her case (she currently has some liquid WSS made that is more than 6 months old, yet is has no mold or foul smell).

So the use of alcohol is optional, probably dependent on a myriad of factors (i.e. localized environment, weather, etc.).  As Paulette pointed out too, there are usually so many scraps, you could just mix it fresh whenever necessary.

by Amanda StephanWhen I’m test stitching a new 4×4 embroidery design for the first time, I hate to use up my expensive stabilizer on it.

Instead I recycle used fabric softener sheets that I’ve ironed out and saved just for this purpose.  Just hoop as you would a regular swatch of material and stabilizer, stitch your design, trim the fabric softener sheet and you’re finished!  It’s never given me a bit of trouble, and even washes well!  Happy embroidering!

by MaryCatherine McCoy
Remember the thrill of bringing home your first embroidery machine?  Remember the frustrations of trying to choose the right stabilizer, trying to hoop properly, or just trying to transfer a design to your machine?

Perhaps the only folks who understand the thrill of the purchase, and the agony of the practice of machine embroidery are other embroiderers.  Whether you’re a complete rookie or a seasoned veteran, following are a few helpful hints to get the most out of your machine – including the most fun!

First and foremost, make friends with your machine.  In our excitement, many of us just want to hoop and embroider.  If only it were that easy!  If you got a new machine recently, then let’s have some fun and enjoy your entire purchase.  You may have bought a brand new top-of-the-line (TOL) machine from a local dealer or you may have purchased a used machine online.

If you purchased from a dealer, then take full advantage of all those free lessons, they should be included with the purchase of your machine, if they are not mentioned, ask.  If they offer a paid embroidery club or classes, investigate those too.  It’s one of the fastest ways to make new embroidery friends, who can also be great resources, as well as great sounding boards for those inevitable embroidery challenges.  And it won’t be as scary when you’re in a class where everyone feels a little ‘lost’.

If you purchased from eBay, CraigsList, a friend, or some other outlet, you still have resources available.  If you purchased online, e-mail the seller and find out if you can ask a few ‘getting started’ questions.  Machine embroiderers are among the friendliest and most helpful people in the world (just don’t take advantage of the situation.)  And remember, while a previous owner may know her old machine inside and out, she may not be as knowledgeable as an authorized dealer about every aspect of machine embroidery.

Don’t forget the resources we all have available to us at no charge:  the owner’s manual, the manufacturer’s website, sometimes a video or DVD, and of course, the Designs by SiCK Forum plus its archives of articles and tips.

Owner’s manuals are notoriously dry reading, and we all learn differently.  But you may not need to read the entire manual from cover to cover.  Like a good summer novel, you can skim through it and just read the ‘juicy sections’ highlighting as you go.

Part of making friends with your new machine is learning to thread it, learning to wind a bobbin, and learning how to change a needle.  A Best Friend Forever (BFF) doesn’t become a best friend overnight.  It takes a little time.

And that brings us to our second step, which is just that:  take baby steps.  Learn one thing at a time.  It’s so-o-o tempting to buy every stabilizer, embroider Free-Standing-Lace, and digitize your dog’s photo in your first week.  But, please, resist that temptation.

Instead, look at all the cool tools and notions that came with your machine.  Play with those and make a wishlist of all those other things you (or someone else) thinks you just have to have.

Practice on ordinary items at first, learn how to master towels or T-shirts before you buy the latest digitizing software.  You can save yourself a lot of money and a lot of aggravation if you take it one day and one stitch at a time.  Plus, you’ll be having fun from day one.

by Connie Colley

I save all my tiny scraps and the excess thread from my
serger, sewing machine and embroidery machine.  When I have
a project that requires stuffing, all my snippets and tiny
scraps are recycled as stuffing for a pillow blanket or
whatever.

I also save my stablizer scraps. I tape or sew pieces
together to cover the hoop for a new project. The water
soluble stabilizer can be lightly moistened and brushed on
to a new project.  Happy recycling.

by Glenda Lambertson
If you have a sewing machine which does not have a "white"
area behind the needle, you can create your own in a variety
of ways.  This white area makes seeing the eye of the needle
so much easier, thus easing eye strain.

I have found the best method for myself is to use a simple
strip of white card stock or an index card.  I cut mine about
1/2" wide and 2-3 inches long.  This is especially helpful
when using dark thread. Just prop or hold the white strip
behind the eye of the needle, making it much easier to see &
"hit" (when the thread goes through your needle eye). If the
paper gets dirty or limp, simply cut a new strip.

Another method I have used is painting the ankle which holds
the pressure foot with a paper correction fluid or a paint
pen.  Remove the pressure foot first and let the liquid
completely dry before replacing it.  I don't recommend this
method unless you intend to keep the machine for a long time.

These methods are also wonderful for threading a serger.  The
needles are close together and much harder to get to as well
as not being as well lighted in relation to some models.  Also
an absolute must, is a pair of bent nose tweezers for holding
the thread.

These are great aids for tired eyes, older eyes, or bad
bifocals.  Let's hear it for easy threading and happy
stitching!

by Jaci Speed

I use a thread rack to store many of my threads. It hangs on the wall in front of my machine on a pegboard, which is also handy to hang many items on such as scissors, etc.

One problem with the spools is that the end of the threads seems to always hang down.  My solution for this is to apply a small piece of tape on the ends of the spool to keep the threads from hanging loose. Thus when I’m ready to sew, the spools are handy and neat.

by Sandra Grannis

If you’re are like me you probably have many embroidery designs and love your embroidery-sewing machine.  I’ve been machine embroidering since 2001, and for me it’s still a magical experience to create a new embroidery design.

I also have other hobbies.  I’ve made a lot of quilts, and I also knit and crochet.  Like many of you, I love fabric, and hate wasting the leftovers.  It’s important that sewers and crafters organize their sewing rooms to work and craft efficiently especially when brain storming!  For instance, I hate throwing away trims and broken costume jewelry.  So I’ve begun saving and embellishing cans to re-purpose them not only into storage containers but also to serve as gift containers.

The process is simple, wash the can or cans you’ve saved.  After it’s dry you’ll use use your choice of adhesive methods to add fabric scraps, rick-rack, ribbon roses, photos, whatever you wish & more importantly the design of your choice.  For the embroidery portion, I use cut away or heavy stabilizer when I decorate my cans.

Now the fun part begins, before decorating, think of a theme.  As one example consider holiday themes, there are so many such as Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter and more.  In fact, you can embellish a can for each season for home decor and gift giving.

I have used many of Designs by SiCK designs to make such cans, here are some of the sets I’ve used:

Applique Veggies:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/appliqueveggies

DD Tomatoes:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/tomatoes

Babies:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/babies

Embellished cans make special gifts.  For example, you can add yummy candies to your cans.  For Mother’s Day you could add a plant.  For the 4th of July, try a candle!  Or consider personalizing the cans by adding monograms.

For professionals, you can decorate cans using a professional theme, such as themes for teachers, nurses, secretaries or whatever you need.  But because you took the time to make it, this is the sort of gift that is a particularly nice way to say “Thank you.”

You can select any embroidery design that will suit your needs (don’t forget the frames or borders that came pre-installed on your machine).

Felt also works well for decorating cans, you can add additional pieces and add more interest by trimming with pinking shears or other decorative scissors.

Once you’re ready to attach the base fabric to the can, you can use either peel & stick adhesive or craft glue to attach it to the can.

Then you can just enjoy yourself with the rest.  Don’t be afraid to get a little crazy with it.  Use your leftover scraps and craft bits.  I’ve even used leftover crochet squares; in a way it’s like making a crazy quit with fabric scraps.

The reason I love these particular projects so much is because they’re fun and fast to make.  Best of all, nothing gets wasted. For instance, since I love making quilts and find it’s a little sad saying good bye to my beloved project, I’ve found that a decor can embellished with the quilts scraps is a pleasant reminder of the project as well as being useful!

Judy shares her project!I thought I’d send a picture of the Outline Skiers I did on a T-shirt for my stepdad as a Father’s Day gift!

The Outline Skiers can be found on Designs By SiCK here:  OUTLINE SKIERS

by Nishea Sipley
I just recently started embroidering and as I’ve been building my ’stash’ of fabrics I’ve run into a dilemma!  My closet out of necessity is my ‘embroidery suite’ and only has one row of shelves about six feet off the ground.

I thought about going to the local home supply store to buy more shelves but then I would be spending my fabric stash money, so I decided to gather up all the pants hangers I could find and proceeded to hang all my fabrics, stablilizers and items to embroider on the pants hangers instead.

by Gina Roberson
Editor’s Note:  Word of caution when embroidering identifying information on children’s clothing; if you embroider identifying information onto a child’s clothing or accessories, please make sure they are in safe and familiar situations only; it is of paramount importance that we guard our little ones to help avoid dangerous strangers possibly seeing and using such information to lure your child into an unsafe situation.

I am a very blessed mother of 3 with a boy who just turned 10 and twin girls who are 4 years old.  I have owned my embroidery machine for a little over a year and it’s so much fun to have an embroidery machine when you have twin girls.  There are so many things you can do, it’s just finding the time to do it!

I have made nearly every dress my girls wear to church on Sundays.  I have been sewing since they were born and just love it.  I also love to put my girls names on their dresses. This helps their Sunday school teachers to be able to tell them apart.  And it keeps people from constantly calling them the wrong name or asking them “who are you!”. Believe it or not one of my twin girls has learned to write her own name just because she has read it on her little shirts and dresses so much where I embroidered it!

Then there’s always the age-old question with raising twin girls, should you dress them alike or differently? Everyone has an opinion on this and they gladly share it with you everywhere you go!  I do a little bit of both. It’s so cute for them to look just alike but then I want them to be individuals as well.

What I have started doing is letting them look at all the singles in a particular design set and then they select a favorite design to be used.  For example, I made my girls a cowgirl themed dress and used the “Little Cowboys” from Designs by SiCK: http://www.designsbysick.com/details/littlecowboys

I had each one of my girls select their favorite little cowgirl to go on each of their dresses.  Even though my girls look a lot alike, they do not think alike at all! They will always pick a different one.  Then when I made their little dresses I put the single that they picked out on their own dress and then they know which dress is theirs which helps them to feel special and unique since they selected the design themselves yet they still ‘match’ because they are both wearing a design from the same set.

Another great thing about embroidering with twin girls is that it saves me money.  When you have to buy clothes for two little girls it gets very expensive (though this is applicable to anyone with more than one child).  Still though, you want your kids to look cute! So I have found that with some creativity, I can take a plain t-shirt and embellish them with embroidery, rickrack, ribbons, buttons, etc. and wow! Soon you have a beautiful little outfit that is personalized and nothing like you would see in a store.  My girls always get many compliments everywhere we go regarding how cute they look.

With my 10-year-old boy it’s harder to embroider shirts for him.  He doesn’t like anything that is ‘girly’ looking. But since I have become a member of “Designs by SiCK” I have found several things that he likes.  I don’t want to leave him out, so I try to make him a t-shirt every so often for school.  He is still at the age that he feels it’s ‘cool’ to wear something mama embroidered; I’ll miss those days when they’re gone!

I know that every lady who has an embroidery machine loves to use it for her children or grandchildren. But the best thing about my twin girls is that I get twice as many hugs & kisses for all the special things I embroider for them!

by Diane Auriemma
As I get older and busier I tend to forget things so I’ve made it a practice to take digital pictures of whatever I make and add it to a folder on my computer.  This way I can see who got what and when. This can also be used in the future as a portfolio of your completed works for when someone may want to know what it is that you do with your embroidery and what you have accomplished so far.

For instance if someone wants a tote bag or purse, I can now show them the ones I’ve made in the past to give them an idea of what’s available.  It’s always fun to go through this process with someone and also very satisfying to look back on your work.

by Jodie Marquis

Did you know your serger can crochet?

Well almost, you can get a crocheted ‘look’ with just a plain 3 thread serger stitch by using the crochet thread your grandma used to use to crochet her doilies, table cloths, or bed spreads with. That fine thread comes on a roll and threads easily through your looper eye. You’ll be amazed at how much this technique resembles a simple crochet edge.

I use one needle but you could use 2 if you want too.  I really only have my serger set up as a 3 thread serger: one for the needle and 2 for loopers. Tensions are set to normal mostly depending on your fabric. You’ll have to ‘play’ around with this a little to find the variation to fit your fabric but it should not be too far from your normal settings. The differential feed is not really used. The stitch is the plain old regular serger stitch. The crochet thread is only in the top looper and regular serger thread in the needle and bottom looper to match. So you see it will not take as much crochet thread that way either. I used variegated crochet thread on one project and found the results exceptional.

The first time you serge around the fabric the blade cuts the edge of the fabric. The next time around you want to put your blade down or be very careful to NOT cut the edging since essentially you are ‘building up’ stitches upon stitches to achieve the crocheted look you’re seeking.

The third time around you need to gather it by holding your finger behind the presser foot and allowing the fabric to bunch up a lot occasionally letting go and doing this over and over again. This will put the gathered edge on it (editor’s suggestion: practice on a simple scrap first until you get the hang of this technique).

Originally I had just decided to try using the crochet thread I had purchased previously because it was too small for me to crochet with. I had used the variegated colors to couch with before so I tried it as an edging first on flannel and fleece baby blankets. I had been using wooly nylon for the edging which was getting too expensive. I was looking for an alternative to use for an edging so I tried the crochet thread and this idea was born!

Extra pictures:

by Candi Amsler
Many people use sticky lint rollers to pick up snipped threads and fabric bits, but in addition to this I tie rope or yarn through the handle of the lint roller, long enough to reach the ironing board, the regular sewing machine, the embroidery machine and the serger, then it’s handy to clean up all my little bits and pieces that find their way around my workspace.

by Julie MuellerNeeded in a hurry: One quick gift ;0)
Materials: One yard of fabric and thread
Time: Less than half an hour
Result: Spectacular!

My sister Jennifer is the pillowcase queen.  She makes pillowcases for every single person she knows or meets.  At work, her staff all received birthday, Christmas and springtime pillowcases.  All her friends and family have a beautiful collection of pillowcases for every season and reason.

For a long time she made them out of satin but then her supplier changed manufacturers and she doesn’t like the new satin (bonus tip: a satin pillowcase will protect your hair from getting tangled at night).

Now she’s discovered quilting fabrics and is making some really beautiful cotton pillowcases.  My sister doesn’t really have time to sew; she has 5 kids, home schools a few of them, is active in her church and works full time.  But she loves to sew whenever she can.  Pillowcases are a perfect panacea for her sewing addiction.

If you’d like to start your own pillowcase addiction, here are some tips and techniques to get you going. Let’s start with the fabric selection:

1.  Pillowcases do not have to match the bed linens, each other or anything else in the room so don’t feel constrained by color or pattern.

2.  Fabrics must be machine washable in hot water.

3.  There are hundreds of choices in fabrics.  My dog Jack has dog themed fabrics, my cousin sewed some fish themed fabrics for her husband, and last Christmas I sewed a skull and candy cane pillowcase for my daughter.  There are Halloween fabrics, Christmas fabrics, political fabrics, baby fabrics and so on.  All make good choices for pillowcase gifts.

4.  If you plan to embroider, be aware that your message (Sweet Dreams, Good Night, Best Friends, King and Queen or a personal name) may get lost in the pattern of the fabric unless you go bold with your embroidery font and color.

5.  You will need exactly one yard of fabric for a standard bed pillow.

The size of the pillowcase is a personal choice.  I like big roomy pillowcases that are easy to slip on and off.  My sister likes tighter pillowcases that are the same size as manufactured pillowcases.  Here is a breakdown of finished pillowcase sizes.  This article will help you make a standard pillowcase, if you want to make a different size be sure to add hem and seam allowances to your measurements and yardage calculations:

Standard:  20” x 26” that seems a bit narrow to me so I use the full width of the fabric (finished size is usually 22.5″).

Queen:  20” x 30”.

King:  20” x 36”.

European Square: 26” x 26”.

Travel:  12” x 16”.

How to make the pillowcase:

1.  With right sides together press the bottom edge up 1/2″ and again 1/2″ and sew.  That will leave a nice clean bottom edge.

2.  Cut or tear off the selvage of the fabric (if you leave it on, it can distort the final project).

3.  Continuing with with right sides together, press the side edge over twice as in step 1 and sew.  Press the seam flat.

4.  On the open edge, turn under 1/4″ and press.  Then, using a ruler or sewing guide, fold down 4” for the hem.  Press and stitch.

5.  Turn the pillowcase to the right side and press again.  Done.

Now you noticed that we turned down a 4” hem and, as luck would have it, it’s the exact size of our smaller embroidery hoop.  Let’s get ready to personalize this quick and easy gift.

1.  Fold pillowcase in half and mark center using a pin or chalk.

2.  Select your thread.  Now is a good chance to try some new threads such as glow in the dark, solar, variegated or metallic (you’ll love the look in your kid’s eyes when they first experience glow in the dark thread).

3.  Choose a design. Choose a font.  That’s the hard part since there are so many choices.

4.  Hoop and GO!

Yes, you can buy a set of pillowcases from the store for under $10 but where’s the fun in that?

by Roxanne Schnitzler

I keep a notebook near my embroidery machine to write down thread colors that I use on designs that I know will be repeated during the design stitch out (especially if they’re for orders because I want to maintain consistency).

I also write down what I put the design on in case a customer wishes to reorder so I have the information at hand.

by MaryCatherine McCoyMost types of machine embroidery have their heritage in hand embroidery.  Redwork and counted cross-stitch are familiar examples of manual embroidery stitches which have made a successful transition into the world of computerized machine embroidery.  However, some techniques are unique to the digital embroidery world.  One of these is free-standing-lace (FSL), also called stand-alone-lace (SAL).

At DesignsBySiCK.com, there are many FSL designs and collections.  You can see them here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/search?firstword=fsl
In a previous article, the basics of FSL were discussed with step-by-step instructions.  Discover it here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/articles/guide-to-fsl/

If you’ve read that article and tried some free-standing-lace designs, you may be interested in exploring other applications of FSL designs.  For example, two questions frequently asked about FSL designs are 1) can I re-size FSL designs? and 2) can I embroider FSL designs on regular fabric?

The answer to Question #1 is usually no.  FSL designs are digitized to stand alone, that is, the finished FSL embroidery stitch-out does not need any fabric support.  During the digitizing process, the designer programs some stitches that are purely decorative and some stitches to provide support after the stabilizer is completely dissolved.  If you enlarge most FSL designs, then the supporting stitches may be spread too far apart to provide a complete network.  In layman’s terms, an enlarged design might fall apart when the stabilizer is dissolved.  In our earlier article, our writer described how to use tulle or netting for faux FSL.  Tulle is great insurance.  So, if there’s a FSL design you really want to enlarge, consider using the tulle suggestion.  It may provide support for an enlarged design, but it may be too visible for your personal preference.  How can you be sure?  Do a sample stitch-out.  Remember, though, if you decide to use tulle or netting for any FSL design, then the tulle needs to be cut or trimmed away after stitching.

On the other hand, if you reduce the size of most FSL designs, then all the stitches (decorative and supportive) may be crammed together too tightly.  The result:  potentially broken needles during sewing, and a very stiff embroidery stitch-out. Some say it’s almost ‘bullet-proof’.  If you have software that allows you to adjust the design’s density or edit the stitches, then you might consider removing some of the stitches to reduce that stiffness.  A cautionary note:  if you reduce stitches on a FSL design, you may accidentally remove the supporting or underlay stitches.  If you do remove those critical stitches, then the design will not be free-standing when the stabilizer dissolves.  Again, in layman’s terms, it might fall apart.  Solution:  tulle or netting may provide support.  Embroider an entire test stitch-out for complete assurance.

The answer to Question #2 is usually yes.  Even though a design was created and digitized as free-standing, it may also be stitched directly on fabric.  The embroidery police are not coming to your house, so feel free to experiment.  If you’re embroidering a FSL design on fabric, then, as a guideline, select a stabilizer based upon the fabric; not the design.  For example, if you’re stitching a FSL design onto a knit T-shirt, then a cut-away stabilizer is probably the best backing choice.  To illustrate, we selected a FSL Dragonfly from DesignsBySiCK.com
See the entire collection here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/details/fsldragonflies

Then, we paired this very delicate lace design with a heavy-duty woven denim tote bag.

Since it’s a woven textile, we choose a tear-away stabilizer.  And another departure from the usual FSL set-up:  we used embroidery thread on top and bobbin thread in the bobbin.  Here’s how the inside of the unlined bag looks after FSL embroidery:

Finally, here’s how the finished tote bag looks:

In conclusion, free-standing-lace (FSL) is a great technique.  Have fun with FSL basics, but don’t stop there.  Use your machine, your designs & your other resources to discover even more embroidery fun.

I completed by Garden Alphabet quilt and thought about sending you a photo.

I made the quilt last year when I became a lifetime member.

I used a garden print pborder and added applique flower pots.
Joanne

by Jacquelyn Carter
Here’s a tip for quilters.  I use clean pizza boxes to store my quilt blocks for ongoing quilting projects.  They’re the perfect size.

by Judy Roberson
After many requests, here without further adieu is how the pillowcase dress came about & how to make it.

Pillowcase dresses are so easy to make, as well as being fun to wear. I originally got the idea from my mother, who is 80 years old.  She told me, that they originated from when she was a child, since so many folks back then had a hard time clothing their children, they often just used what they had on hand due to shortages of supplies, funds and time.

One such instance is that of the pillowcase dress.  People would cut the sewn ends off of their worn pillowcases, then cut arm holes, turn under, stitch and add strings, thus a pillowcase dress was made.

Today, the pillowcase dress has returned, but with many more  options for us than there was in our parents day. You can still make them out of beautiful pillowcases or you can make them from purchased fabric, it’s your choice.  If you use a pillowcase, you will be cutting the sewn end off.

My granddaughter loves Curious George.  When I found this fabric, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it!  A cute pillowcase dress for Callie.

Here are basic instructions for this simple dress using purchased 45″ wide fabric:

Step 1)  Determine the size  you need for your child by measuring from her collar bone to the knee (or whatever length you want the dress to be) this measurement is the length you will need to cut your fabric from 45″ wide fabric.  Don’t forget to consider how deep you want your hem to be though.

Step 2)  Right sides together, sew up the open side using a 5/8″ seam.

Step 3)  Keeping fabric folded, you are now ready to cut out your arm holes, so at the top of the fabric, on each side, cut out a strip of fabric to form a backward L (in other words, from the top of the fold, cut in about 2″ and down about 7″.  Once the armholes are cut out, clip the curves.

Step 4)  Now cut 2 strips of fabric 2″ wide x 18″ long (this is to bind your armholes with).  Around each arm hole, pin one of the 2″ strips of fabric to the armhole area (right sides together) and stitch together, clip curves again, double fold the raw edge of the strip over to the inside of the dress and sew, easing in as you approach curves.  Congratulations!  You’ve just finished binding your arm holes (note: you can use pre-packaged bias tape if you prefer, in place of making your own binding).

Step 5)  Fold the top front down 2.5″ and stitch (this is going to be the front casing for the shoulder ties).  Do the same on the top back to create the back casing for the shoulder ties.  Now insert gross grain ribbon in the casings for the front and back (hint:  you can attach a safety pin to one end of the ribbon to help you feed it into and through your casings).

Step 6)  You’re now ready to hem your beautiful little pillowcase dress.  Or you can take it one step further, as I did on this cute little Curious George dress.  I added a matching yellow check border and topped that with red rick-rack.  I then found a cute generic embroidery design from Designs by Sick from a set named Fruit”.  I chose design no. 02 (bananas):
http://www.designsbysick.com/buydesigns/fruit
and then added the words Curious George above the banana design (we all know George has to have his bananas).

This  adorable little pillowcase dress is so easy to make.  It can be worn in the summer as a sun dress or in fall with a long sleeved t-shirt and leggings for another adorable look.  So  you see, our ancestors stretched their dollar and so can we.

by Pat Cady
Sometimes spools of thread have a rough edge that can catch the thread.  My solution is to keep a coarse emery board near my machine and file the rough edge until it’s smooth enough to no longer present a problem.

by Gina Roberson
I love to embroider and every time I see a new pretty color of embroidery thread I want to buy it and see how it looks on a finished project.  But I had never tried the variegated thread until one day when my mother-in-law, who also loves to embroider, gave me some spools of variegated thread to try.  I still wasn’t sure what to embroider with it since I’d never used this kind of thread before.  And it’s hard to sometimes difficult to tell what color they will be just by looking at them.

So first I embroidered some names with each spool just so I could see what colors they actually were.  I had one that was a really light pastel blue, green, yellow and pink.  Then I had another that was a dark blue, green, yellow and pink.

After I embroidered the names they looked so totally different comparatively in the stitch outs as compared to looking at the spools themselves.

To help me remember the actual colors that were on each spool, I numbered the bottoms of my spools with a corresponding number that I wrote down on a sheet of paper.  Then I labeled my numbers on my sheet of paper with the exact colors that were in that spool.  This way I will be able to reference what colors each of them are.

I decided it was time to embroider several different types of designs with the variegated thread.  At first I thought that names would be about the only thing you could use such thread colors for.  It looked great on names but when I tried it on more elaborate design it didn’t work as well.

Then I tried the variegated thread on some red work and blue work designs and it was then that I discovered how really beautiful such designs could be when one used a variegated thread.

I liked the results so much that I made pillowcase dresses for my twin girls and used Designs by SiCK “BW Unicorns” (http://www.designsbysick.com/details/blueunicorn) designs on the bottom near the hemline.  I used a blue variegated thread on one and a pink variegated thread on the other.  They are soooo cute!

The moral of the story is…don’t be afraid of trying something new, including variegated thread; it may take some practice before you find the right design to use with it for your needs, but when you do you’ll be pleased with the beautiful results just as I was.

by Paula McDownWhen I need to keep material out of the way during the embroidery process, as an alternative to the commonly used hair clips or pins, I choose to use clothes pins instead, they’re particularly good for small amounts of material.

by Julie Muellerhttp://www.julies-acorn-press.com

In my never ending quest to organize and contain my sewing room, I’ve discovered a wonderful way to recycle and upcycle tissue, checkbook and cereal boxes!  As you may have read earlier in my “Sew Down” articles, I have a lot of projects going all at once.  I still like to keep them organized and all the parts together.

I proposed the plastic bag idea where everything is thrown into the plastic bag, zipped shut and put away.  Practical, neat, but the bags were always slipping and sliding on my shelf and ironing board and ended up on the floor.  Then I got some baskets for the bags Next I explored purchasing clear plastic bins with lids in which to keep UFOs.  Again, practical, neat, easy to use but they got expensive.  Plus, having all the projects stored did not create the sense of urgency to finish the project. Bags, baskets, bins slipping, sliding, sloppy – aargh – a mess.   My pile of UFOs grew, rather than shrank.

I’m one of those people who has a box of tissue in almost every room so of course I buy the least expensive box I can find.  Well the last box was so pretty that I wanted to keep it so I simply cut off the top and stuffed my bills into it.

Then I got the idea to make file folders from cardstock and I had a great recycled bill organizer!  The next empty box of tissue’s top got cut off and became a storage container for CDs over on the bakers rack.

That’s when I decided to upcycle and recycle boxes in my sewing room.  Any size box is really fair game, but I’ve found that the best sizes are tissue boxes, checkbook boxes and cereal boxes.  I especially like the checkbook boxes for their low profile and small size so lots of little things can be organized in them – see the picture of my button drawer, now neatly organized by type of button.

Larger cereal boxes can be used for quilting projects or embroidery project boxes where I can throw in all patterns, threads and notions.

Upcycling is easy.  On the tissue box, using your paper scissors cut into each corner and along the fold line at the top.  You basically cut off the top of the box.  On the cereal or rice box, tape the open end shut and cut off the front or back.  If you’d like, you can hit them with some spray paint, but I just leave mine plain.  Occasionally you need to staple or tape a joint closed.  I label the boxes with 3×5 cards so I can see what’s what.

When the box is no longer stable or breaks you can throw it into your recycle bin!  That’s a re-recycling and after all, we are responsible sewers, aren’t we?

by Jodie Hanzelka
I like to keep my bobbin and thread together, so I slip a common cotton swab in the thread spool and pop my bobbin on top of that; they stay together and I always have a bobbin ready to match my thread.

(Place Mat Variation)
by Carolyn Dzoba
Placemats lend themselves quite well to making little purses because of their size, available colors and durable fabrics. I had, however, been disappointed with the structure and usefulness of the simple bags, sewn up the sides with ribbon tied for handles. I wanted a deeper bag that would hold more of my necessities. I decided to make a variation of my own and try and improve on the original design. Here’s how to do it:

First, choose a pretty place mat. Mine was already embellished with sea shells, but the plain ones make a great background for your favorite designs or letters from Designs by SiCK for a classy look.  Embroider your design before assembling the bag to make hooping and placement easier.

A pocket cut from some contrasting fabric and sewn to the inside back of the purse gives me a place for small items like a lipstick or phone.

Next, cut a 2” strip of contrasting fabric. I used 2X9 inch strips to make a gusset on each side, giving me a roomier bag.  By sewing across the corners of the bag when it is inside out, you can create a square bottom for your purse.

A 24 inch strip was used for a strap. I sewed store bought ribbon in a coordinating pattern to one side of my strap, but it could also be easily embellished on your embroidery machine.  I attached the strap to the gusset panels on each side using a reinforced stitch on my sewing machine.  If your machine doesn’t provide this option, simply go over the stitching several times for added reinforcement (which is very important for a strong strap).

Once your strap had been attached, choose a closure for your bag. I find that Velcro or snaps work well and are easy to attach.

Now I have a great summer bag that I can use and enjoy.  Give it a try with your own style!

by Dorrie JonesTo customize your sewing area or cabinet, consider turning old wooden sewing spools into drawer or cabinet pulls!  Wooden spools can still be had at flea markets, thrift shops & yard sales.  You can even decorate them for added personalization with bright paints and whatever suits your fancy!

Editor’s note: I am sew doing this! Race you to the thrift store!  Last one eats lint!

by Judy Roberson

I’ve been in the process of re-doing my sewing room. I knew I had to get rid of some of my left over fabric scraps. Like many of you, I have lots of fabric, in fact I’m obsessed with fabrics. I love the different colors and textures and the feel of the fabrics. I craft & sew many different things, which means I have a lot of left over scraps. Time doesn’t allow me to make quilts, but all those scrap pieces are just too pretty to throw away. As each of us fabric collectors know, this problem plagues many of us. I began to think of something to do with all my beautiful scraps of fabric.

While surfing the Internet, I noticed strip skirts, dresses, etc. They’re just cute as they can be. I was inspired by what others were making, and while those sources suggested buying this or that new fabric, my own ideas began to form in my head and I knew I’d found a solution for using my own beautiful scraps.  I decided to make a little skirt and want to share how I did it with you.  This little skirt is so simple, it needs no pattern, just follow the simple instructions I’ve provided and you can make one too.

1)  Look through your scrap stash and find several good sized scraps of fabric that coordinate well together.  Length and width of your scraps can only be determined by the person who will wear the skirt, but as you read on you’ll begin to understand how this will all come together. NOTE: Remember this is a strip skirt, so you can always just add more strips if necessary.

2)  Lay out your strips and decide which order you want them in.

3)  Measure the soon to be owner of the skirt from their waist to the knee (in my case, this person was my little granddaughter) now to that measurement, whatever it is, add 1.5″ to allow for a hem (make note of this final measurement, you will need it to cut the strips).

4)  You may have to make some adjustments as to how many strips you need here, but as an example, for my granddaughter’s skirt, I cut out 6 strips that were 7 inches wide x the final measurement in step 3. I tapered the top of each strip a small amount, so the skirt would be a-lined (note: this is optional also, just cut straight strips if you wish).

5)  Right sides together, sew the strips together. (corrected 6/16)

6)  Now it’s time to make the waistband.  For this cut a strip long enough to accommodate the waist of the wearer that is also approximately 3″ wide.

7)  Right sides together, sew the band to the top of the skirt.  Now you’ll need to make a casing (for elastic) everyone has different ways of finishing their edges, use what works best for you on the top edge, then fold the waist band in on itself and stitch along the edge on the wrong side of the skirt to make your casing, making sure to leave the ends open so you can insert the elastic (the length of which you will measure against the waist of the wearer).  Note: a simple way to insert elastic is just to attach a large safety pin to one end of the elastic and gradually feed that through the casing, then adjust to fit.

8)  At this point, there is only one seam to sew the skirt together, once that is done, hem using your favorite method.

9)  Time for the fun part now.  Select an embroidery design and embroider on your skirt wherever you wish to. For my granddaughter’s skirt I selected a design from a set at Designs by SiCK called “DD Cute Ladybugs” http://www.designsbysick.com/details/cuteladybugs and added the words “Cute as a Bug” below the design.

We were not disappointed, as this adorable little strip skirt from my scrap bag was a big hit! My granddaughter just loves it. So, the lesson for today is: Never throw those beautiful scraps away because, there is always a cute project waiting to be sewn just for them.

by Wanda Thompson 
I use many different types of stabilizers but had trouble keeping  them organized. My solution was to purchase two collapsible metal wine racks which work wonderfully.

I can place them on my work surface if I need to, though I usually hang mine from the ends of my shelves.

by MaryCatherine McCoy

Many embroiderers are generous folks who happily give away embroidered gifts.  In addition, many family members and friends frequently request a personalized item, either paying for the item or asking for such as a favor.

Some embroiderers use their machines to supplement their income by selling their hand-crafted items at consignment stores, online, at craft shows, etc.

But how well crafted are all of those embroidered items?  Does that baby blanket hold up over time or does the embroidery thread bleed?  Does that T-shirt still look special after repeated washings or has the wrong stabilizer caused the embroidery to pull too tight or worse stretch out of shape?

Regardless of whether you’re stitching for pleasure or profit, make time for quality control.  It’s tempting to say to ourselves, “Well, I’ve always used stabilizer X when I do T-shirts and I’ve never had a problem.”  But if you’ve never embroidered a T-shirt for yourself and washed it a dozen times or more, then how can you know for sure? 

Not making the time for quality control can be similar to calling a florist, sending flowers & feeling like you’ve been a good friend.  Your flowers said “Thank you” or “Happy Birthday”.  But what if those flowers arrived wilted?  Or dead?  How would you know?  Maybe your Mother will tell you, but many well-intentioned friends won’t say a word as they don’t wish to appear ungrateful.  After all, it’s supposed to be the thought that counts, isn’t it?  And it’s the florist who’s at fault, not you.

So, if you knew about the poor quality of the bouquet, you’d probably do something.  Call the florist and complain, or perhaps switch florists.

The concern over quality control is even more critical for home-based embroidery businesses.  Perhaps you sold a lot of embroidered items at a craft show and gave out lots of business cards, yet there was no ‘repeat’ business.  There are various reasons for success or failure in any industry.  Quality control – or lack of quality – can be but one reason.  With this challenging economy, and many of such businesses depending on the ever shrinking disposable incomes of their customers, poor quality is not acceptable.

But the point is:  if you don’t know there’s a problem, then you can’t do anything about it.

With embroidery projects, there are various solutions:

1.  Use tried and true products.  If you’re tempted to sample a new thread or stabilizer, ask other embroiderers before you spend your hard-earned money.  The forum on DesignsBySiCK.com is a great place to ask and get specific product reviews and recommendations.  You can find one example of what I’m referring to here:
http://www.designsbysick.com/forums/

2.  Be your own ‘test kitchen’.  If you’re one of those embroiderers who doesn’t have any embroidered towels, then it’s time to treat yourself to a few.  Not embroidered guest towels.  Towels you will embroider, use, wash, and use over and over.  Wouldn’t it be nice to be treated to embroidered towels in your own home?

3. Create your own ‘board of advisers’.  Enlist the aid of your family and friends.  Be candid.  Ask for their help.  Say, “I’m trying a new backing on your T-shirt.  Please let me know if you have any problems with it.  If it’s scratchy or doesn’t wear well, I really want to know about it because I’m planning to use this backing on all your shirts.”

In summary, professional embroidery results are long-lasting. Make sure your embroidery projects are as well.

by Gina Roberson 
You can take any sweet design such as a kitten, puppy, little girl, etc., and simply mirror (flip) the design to face one another, then include the wording “Twin sisters are the best!” (as one example of usage).

This sort of design ensemble yields such a cute result.  You also have the option to use the exact same colors on both the designs facing one another for an ‘identical twin look’ or change the colors for a ‘fraternal twin look’.

by Barbara Klink

I keep a box in my living room just to store gifts I’ve made until I am ready to gift them to others.  In this way they’re ready when I’ve decided or found someone for whom I would enjoy giving a gift.

My gifting box can also be a lot of fun as witnessed recently when I had the thrill of watching a visiting cousin select her gift from within it.  Until now, it was just ‘my box’, now it’s much more than just a box.

In my gift box, I keep little sewn gifts such as wallets, lip balm holders with key fobs, and bookmarks.  Many people have this sort of concept.  I was inspired to create mine from Lish at 25 Weeks (a Yahoo group) who started a similar gift box concept where group members sew or embroider gifts ahead of time and place the gifts in a box so there is an appropriate gift ready whenever needed.

I am a random gift giver, very unpredictable and never on time for holidays or birthdays.  I sew a gift when I need to do something with closure; something that I can start and finish.   Sewing is a gift to me in and of itself.  Sewing and embroidering a simple thing that takes just a little fabric, a little thread, and a little time gives me a feeling of being productive.

Some people keep a PIOG (People I Owe Gifts) list in their box.  The list contains the peoples names and possible projects for those people.  Personally, I don’t keep a POIG list.  

This is a photo of my gifting box, it's quite pretty. It even looks like there's something good inside, so you can see its potential to both contain and offer joyful things

I have a lot of fun when I make wallets to store inside my gifting box.  Often I use quilting cotton with batting to start a wallet.  I hoop a flat fabric sandwich with finished edges on top of water-soluble stabilizer and stitch my chosen design through the fabric sandwich.  Then I make the flap, add the closure and stitch a pocket.  I can vary the number of pockets, add a strap with a clip, and choose a Velcro, button, snap or zipper closure option.

Every wallet that goes into my box has unique design variations and unique fabric.  I have also made very simple leather wallets.  While I have embroidered some in-the-hoop wallets, I prefer to design them myself which allows me to more readily select the embroidery design before I stitch the wallet together with whatever varying features I choose to include.

Inside of lizard wallet

Front of lizard wallet

A lip balm holder complete with key fob is quite similar to the fold over wallet.  I usually make this little gift with a 2″ wide by 10″ long scrap of double-sided quilted fabric and a D ring.  The D ring fits in the fold of the flap and holds the keys while another fold holds the lip balm.  A three thread serger stitch or over-the-edge zigzag stitch can be used to finish the raw edges.  The lip balm holder with a key fob is the quickest gift I make.

Mama's lip balm case with key fob

The book marks at Designs by SiCK are fun to make and personalize.  One can select from freestanding lace or in-the-hoop designs:
www.designsbysick.com/search?firstword=bookmarker

While there is no end to the number of ladies’ gifts I can imagine or dream of making, I do have trouble finding specific embroidery designs for men and boys.  Designs by SiCK offers a good selection of designs that can be personalized for men and boys.

The design in this photo is suitable for any of the men and boys in my family

Just thinking about them makes me want to start another small project for my gifting box.

by Margaret Lote

When you make a material bag, whether it be a handbag, tote or your own shopping bags, you can save them from getting soiled by treating them with Scotch Guard fabric protector available at many supermarkets and department stores.  You may need to re-treat occasionally (just follow the directions on the can).  This method even works well on white bags.

by Nina Banks

Need a quick and easy project for that favorite someone? This simple apron only takes about 3 hours from start to finish and uses a 4×4 hoop for the embroidery portion.  Pick the favorite theme and colors of the recipient and go with it!  For instance, my daughter loves birdhouses, so I chose some nice birdhouses to embroider on an apron for her. One size fits all, but you can cut the ties shorter if needed.

Supplies list:

* 5/8 yd (45″ wide) of a main fabric choice (A)
* 1/4 yd for a contrasting fabric to match above (B)
* 1 piece 8 x 8 white fabric (or complimentary solid color)
* 1 piece 8 x 8 iron on stabilizer
* Embroidery design (I chose a Beautiful Birdhouse from DBS)
* Sewing thread to match A
* Embroidery thread colors of choice
* 1 Large safety pin

Note: Use a 1/4″ seam allowance.

1. Iron stabilizer to 8 x 8 white fabric, set aside.

2. From the top of A, cut two 3″ wide strips (each 45″ long) these will be the ties and waist band, the remainder of A will be used for the rest of your apron.

3. Sew around each piece of fabric, and the white material with a zig-zag stitch.

4. To make the ties and apron band, sew short ends together of the two 3″ wide strips you cut previously and press the seam flat.

5. Mark 10″ on each side of the center seam.

6. Sew the ties shut from this mark to the end, leaving the ends open for turning. Repeat for other end. Press seams flat

7. To turn the ties, fasten the large safety pin at one end of the tie, then insert the pin into the tie ‘tube’ and push the pin to the center, pulling out the tie (note: the open center is for the apron). Repeat the same procedure for the other tie. Press seams flat.

8. If you need to shorten the ties, this is the stage to do it.  You can accomplish this by holding the band and ties centered in front of you, now tie them . . . do they seem too long?  If so, cut them to the length you need.

9. Now turn down 1/4″ on each side of center of the band and press flat. Set aside.

10. Now with right sides together, sew fabric B to the bottom of the apron. Press seam down.
 
11.  Hem: Turn up 1/4″ at the bottom of the apron, press, turn up again, press again, then sew in place. Sew the side seams the same way. Set aside.

12. Now embroider your design on the 8 x 8 white material (this is the pocket on the apron).  When finished, turn under 1/4″ around the pocket, press, then turn down the top and press again.

Sew across the top of the pocket only for now. Pin the pocket on the apron 4.5″ from the side, and 7.5″ from the top (below the gathering) then sew the sides and bottom of the pocket.

13. Gather the top of the apron and pin to center opening on the open part of the band, sew with a 1/4″ seam.  Follow by removing the gathering threads, press seam up. Pin the back of the tie to your apron to cover the gathering and sew in place. Now sew the ends of the ties closed and you’re done.

Front

Back (I hand stiched this)>

Finished!

by Barbara McCraw

When doing machine applique embroidery I’d like to suggest sewers check into a gadget I used made by Clover called a “Fabric Folding Pen”. It can be used for easier folding of fabric when quilting.

Another use is after a machine embroidery design has gone around the outside and stops to trim the fabric close to the stitches, run the fabric folding pen outside of the stitches and they trim closer and easier.

Clover’s URL in the USA: http://www.clover-usa.com/
Fabric Folding Pen:
http://www.shopatron.com/product/part_number=4053/181.0

by Kathy Kellerman

All quilts should be labeled, but many people don’t know how or even where to begin. But it’s easy.  There are several different types.

 
The first type is preprinted, available for purchase in quilt shops or online.  I cut mine out, iron freezer paper to the back, this makes writing on it with a permanent fine line marker, much easier.  Then cut it out with pinking shears or pinking blade before stitching to the back of the quilt, remove freezer paper before stitching.

 
With another type, you use preshrunk muslin and embroider a design, again, press freezer paper on it before writing (or use embroidery for the words).  I like to make mine on a large piece, then fold in half, right sides together, stitch it closed except for a small space to turn it right side out. I then edge stitch all the way around, this makes it look like I stitched it on the quilt by machine (ha ha, fooled ‘em) after that I baste or glue the label on the quilt, then hand stitch all the way around.

 
Finally, last but not least is my personal favorite; I love to draw, or trace, a picture of something related to the quilt or recipient, I use the fine fabric markers to trace and the thicker fabric markers to fill in and shade.  Again, I press freezer paper to stabilize the fabric before starting the tracing and coloring.  I then do the same thing with folding the fabric, turning and top stitching, glue, hand stitch.  This type of label is so personal and nice, you can make different sizes, there so many ideas, what fun!
 
What should be on a label you ask?
 
This depends, but always put your name, where you are from and the date.  You can also include the name of the recipient, reason for making the quilt, etc.

by Janet Riness

There are times when you will need to use a topper stabilizer on your projects when embroidering on towels, velvets, or anywhere where you’re trying to insure that the stitches won’t get buried in the loops or nap of such.

But how do you hold the topper stabilizer down?  There are several methods, but my solution is to hold my piece of stabilizer on top of such projects with blue painters tape because it’s so low tack that when it’s time to remove it, it doesn’t pull the loops on the towels and you can use it several times before having to discard it.

by Carolyn Dzoba

With summer fast approaching and school getting ready to let out in many areas, our thoughts are turning toward ways to occupy little hands and minds.

Perhaps you have a child or grandchild, perhaps a neighbor child who will need some time to fill this summer?  In our
ever busy world, many children are lacking “one on one” time with adults who care.  I can’t think of a more rewarding
activity than sewing with a child.

There are a few things to keep in mind up front, but spending that time together is sure to be rewarding for both teacher and student.

First, it is not just about the finished project, but also about the time spent together.  This is something perfectionists may struggle with, but we have to remember that it’s okay if a seam isn’t perfectly straight, thus creating a learning friendly experience for the student; the result will be a child who will experience great satisfaction in being able to say “I made this myself”.

Some of my fondest childhood memories are of learning to sew with my sister, who taught me, and celebrating the successes as well as laughing over the mistakes. I can vividly remember sewing two pant legs together down the middle and learning all about the seam ripper!  The key is to choose something simple to start with, such as embellishing a ready-made bag, or following a simple pattern available from the Internet, and just have fun. Let the child choose colors and fabrics.  Summer projects that come to mind are beach bags, beach towels or T-shirts, but any simple project can work.

Use the natural affinity our children have toward computers to introduce them to machine embroidery.  The steep learning curve many of us have had with our machines, is by contrast, a breeze for the children growing up in this computer age.  My own children have actually taught “me” some things about my embroidery software that I didn’t know!  It can spark the interest of a child who may not otherwise be very excited about the thought of a straight stitch machine.  I find too, that the steps for finishing projects often lend themselves well to lessons on the more mundane tasks like sewing on a button, snap or sewing a hem.

Some say that sewing is becoming a lost art, I prefer to think of it as an “evolving art”.  While nothing compares to the beautiful hand stitching of our grandmothers, what can be accomplished on these newer machines is really quite amazing.
 
Other things to consider are safety issues.  Set safety guidelines before you begin and reinforce them often to help better ensure a good experience for everyone involved.  Teach the student to keep their fingers clear of the needle area and to respect the sharp objects in your sewing box.  Also teach them to be careful with a hot iron and to turn off and/or unplug irons and sewing machines when not in use.  Plan your projects ahead with special attention to steps which might pose a safety concern.

Another factor to consider is the age and maturity of the child, which will determine what they can do themselves and that which they need closer supervision with, but the more you work together, the better you will have a “feel” for their ability.  Remember, everyone learns at their own pace. 

Keep sessions brief and tailor them to the attention span of  your student.  They will let you know when they need a break and will be all the more excited to resume the project at another time.  Being available for a child to work on a project over a period of time can be a priceless gift to them, as well as yourself.

Don’t forget the boys!  Sewing is not just for girls.  I have found while volunteering at our local elementary school, that boys have just as much interest and ability as the girls, in fact oftentimes more so.  Many boys are fascinated with sewing because it’s something they’ve never had the chance to do before.
 
So why not share your passion for sewing and embroidery with a child this summer?  Not all children will love to sew, and that’s okay.  Some will make one project and be done, others will ask for more and more instruction, but each and every child will remember the time you took to work with and encourage them, and who could ask for more than that?

Editor’s Note:  Please pass along our legacy.  Add this to your summer “to do” list.  Please, teach someone to sew, child, adult . . . anyone who is willing to learn.

by Kathy Kellerman

Are you in need of fabric scraps but can’t afford fabric packs?  Being a quilter and embroiderer, I have lots of scraps of all types and sizes. 

My suggestion to you is just ask your friends who sew for scraps, none of whom enjoy throwing them out (that’s why we usually have so much).  Most of us would be thrilled to give them a good home.  Just ask us!

Editor’s addition:  I would also like to suggest locating your local Freecycle group, most areas have one, where you can donate free items or ask for free items.  To find a Freecyle in your area, please visit:  http://www.freecycle.org/ then enter your town name and state for a freecyle group near you (Yahoo groups is usually their forum of choice).

by Miranda Mueller

 (a poetic writing)

Editor’s note:  Here’s a little something different for our readers submitted by Julie Mueller’s daughter.  A sort of poetic form of what the relationship of a mother and daughter would be, over the years as the mother teaches her daughter to sew.  I respect artistic license, thus I’ve made very few changes. 

“Go on!  You can thread it with your little fingers,”
she said to baby-me giving up on pushing thread
through a hole with fewer nanometers than I had years.
Three more tries until I could finally tear
my eyes away from the slim metallic form
that would finally allow me to sew.

“Knot the end and pierce the fabric just so,”
she said to me before the needle pierced my finger
instead, the blood staining her new sewing form.
I was handed the empty needle to rethread
although staining my face were unuttered tears
that would have to come out later, not stopping for years.

I whined and complained “later”, in these teenage years.
Perfection cried out that every fault of mine was so
violently wrong the life that held it would rip and tear.
The machine chewed the cloth, threatened to eat my fingers,
while the rips in the cloth were mended by the thread.
But my frustrations never had a repair in any form.

From the closet, we pulled out the smelly dress form,
dusty from having been locked away for so many years.
Practice helped; the fabric now weaved in and out of the threads, the dress jumped onto the mannequin, and I barely needed to sew.  Onlookers touched my attire with their long, sticky fingers, while yards of work and fabric nearly drove me to tears.

She spoke in musty terminology as I continued to tear
into trendy designs and create original forms.
I heard “darts”, “folds”, “zigzag”, when my fingers
were already on basting and turning, ahead by light years. 
Her words floated past my ears telling me to keep sewing,
suggesting stores that would take my original threads.

I used to smile at her politely as I watched my thread
fall into the needle eye looking at me with tears.
Her advice is not modern enough for her to sew
with me, her daughter, in this strange, new form.
She taught until the day she realized the years
that separated us were wider than the width of a finger.

The tears finally formed in her velvet brown eyes,
‘til her oh-so-tired fingers brushed away
the drops – the years – threaded to her heart.

by Carin Watkins

When an article is too small to fit in your embroidery hoop,
just stitch a block of cutaway around the article, hoop in your frame, embroider and when finished, just remove the cutaway.  Voila!  Your small article has been embroidered without difficulty.

by Julie M. Mueller
http://www.julies-acorn-press.com

I look around and see the that the world is full of sewing!  I see it in the clothing I wear, the bed I sleep in, the chair I sit on, even in the upholstery of the car I drive to work in.

As I see these everyday items, I started to wonder about the history of sewing. As I ponder this idea, I think back to our ancestor’s earliest activities and I realize sewing is old.  It predates the wheel and was necessary even before fire.  Sewing is ancient!  Sewing is primitive!  Sewing is fundamental!  Sewing fulfills a basic need like food and shelter; without which we would have been doomed as a race.
Is it any wonder we feel drawn to it?  That we take comfort in it?  No.  We’re hardwired for it.

Cavewomen must have used gut and bone from roughly tanned hides to provide their families with garments.  If we imagine ourselves a dynamic group of cavewomen, who among us would not take that hide that we tanned ourselves and embellish it with bones and shells?  We might have scrubbed it with some colored earth as well.  We were creative then.

As women in Ancient Egypt we would be first to try the newest weaving looms or hand spinning the local cotton and flax into threads.  Since we are trading with our neighbors we find that their cotton is slightly different in color and suddenly there are striped fabrics and some plaid like materials.  The needle has now been invented so we are able to embellish with drilled stone, flakes of metal, shells and feathers.  We were creative then too.

Along with invading armies comes trade with distant lands like China, Africa and  South America.  New fibers like silk and wool, new ways of spinning and weaving discovered, and new dyes from plants and the earth and oceans arrived.  We expanded what we wore, what we lived with, what we gave to others.  We began to be called ‘craftsmen’ and our work became Renaissance art.  And we were creative beyond belief.

Industrialization brought on machines and now our routine was replaced with speed and uniformity.  Now our drudgery was replaced by embellishment.  Mechanized spinners and looms, commercial dye baths all replaced our cottage industry and we went off to work for someone else.  The basic hand wheel was electrified and Singer introduced the first payment plan.  And we discovered leisure. 

History shows that it is all a beautiful slide from the Cavewoman with her gut and bone to our computerized sewing machines.  Sewing, embroidery, sergers, presses, patterns, magazines and online websites all offering a rich collection of tutorials, patterns and ideas to spur us ever onward.  But are we more creative than our Cavewoman sister?  Is our work better than a cottage worker making lace by candlelight?  Is anything really new or is sewing still the oldest work on earth? It makes me wonder if Eve knew, as she twined those leaves into the first garment, that she would be the original seamstress and sister to us all.

by Cynthia Roberts
When I have been away from my machine for awhile, sometimes I forget whether I have left a ballpoint needle or a regular needle installed.  My solution is to mark the ballpoint needles with a little bit of red nail polish.  I am then able to tell at a glance which kind type of needle is currently installed (it’s difficult to see those tiny etched numbers).

by Gina Roberson

One of the best things about having an embroidery machine is being able to make gifts for people on special occasions. I’m a Pastor’s Wife so I have lots of opportunities to make things for different people and they are always so appreciative for their gifts. There’s nothing quite like an embroidered gift!

One young lady in our church was expecting her second child (the baby is also their first little girl). She was so excited about expecting a girl that she started decorating the little nursery early on. The theme was butterflies. She had butterfly curtains, crib bedspread, little rug, etc. She even had a friend come over who hand painted little butterflies all over the wall in purple, pink, and yellow colors. It was so sweet looking.

I wanted to make something special for this new little addition to their family and I also wanted it to match well in the little butterfly room. So I looked around on the Designs by SiCK website and found a design set entitled “Jacobean Butterflies” which is such a pretty set. I decided these were the perfect designs to use on something for her nursery. I just love all of the Jacobean designs offered at Designs by SiCK. (Note:  Jacobean Designs at Designs By SiCK can be found here.)

I went to Wal-Mart and found some white material that was already quilted. I bought 1 yard of it and then I came home and started embroidering the little butterflies all around the corners. I couldn’t believe just how beautiful it was after being embroidered. I then decided to put the new little baby girl’s initials in the center of the blanket. It turned out so dainty and pretty, just perfect for a new little baby!

I’ve never actually made a baby blanket before so I wasn’t sure how to finish it up. I talked to some friends and they suggested that I buy some pink material and make a ruffle to go all the way around the edge and then buy a different shade of pink material to use as the blanket backing. So this was what I did, and it was so easy. Now I can’t wait for another baby to come along so I can make another little blanket with different designs. The possibilities are endless when it comes to making a little blanket and using embroidery designs on them.

By the way, the mama liked it sooo much that she decided to hang it up on the wall instead of using it! But she did promise me that once her little girl was old enough, she will take it down and let her play with it! And she will always know that her Pastor’s wife made it for her.

~

by Kay McKean

When I need to embroider on a small space or stitch on top of an overlay, I use green painter’s tape to hold down the swatch rather than pins (pins get in the way and one runs the risk of hitting them with the machine needle).  The green painters tape can be peeled away without leaving residue, thus . . . no fuss, no muss.

by Barbara Klink

Mama is 84 now and she has never sewn.  She’s a professional, an entrepreneur, deep in her soul.  Mama doesn’t believe in sewing anything, ever.  She would also prefer that I not sew, since she believes sewing is a not a good use of time or energy and if I don’t earn money sewing then I really should be doing something else, like going to work or dusting, but I do neither.

Mama didn’t read Julie Muellers article entitled “Solving Personal Problems with my Brother” illuminating just how much sewing means to some of us.  I will have to print it for her.  In fact, mama is the reason I sew to this today.

Mama bought me my first electric sewing machine in the 1960’s.  I had been sewing on grandma’s treadle.  My 4-H sewing teachers needed me to reverse stitch at the end of every seam to go to the county fair and they wanted me to zigzag stitch to finish the inside of my seams.  Mama thought I needed a top of the line Kenmore to do that, at age 12.

When I was 54 and looking for embroidery machines, mama said “I hate to see you wasting your time embroidering by hand, why don’t I just buy an embroidery machine for you? Just pick out what you want.” I didn’t let mama buy my embroidery machine, I bought it.  Because of mama, I have become addicted to sewing and embroidery.  I actually do more stitching and embroidery for my mom than I do for any other person on earth.

This photo is mama in the first shirt I designed and sewed for her

The sewing is always a challenge, but the embroidery is always fun.  Mama never weighed more than 113 pounds in her entire life.  Over just a few months of being ill she weighed just 73 pounds, so I needed to alter her pants and bras, then make some shirts and underwear for her.  She was pleased and surprised that I had made her clothes fit.

When she got bleach on her shirt and blue jeans she told me she’d ruined them.  My embroidery machine made the ruined clothes the prettiest clothes in her closet when I covered the bleached spots with embroidery designs selected just for her.

When her walker bag got raggedy and too small, she got a fashionable new walker bag for Spring when I made her a bright red walker bag with lots of pockets.

Here is mama with her walker, her favorite walker bag and her embroidered Teddy Bear

Isabel Teddy Bear has come to mama’s rescue on more than one occasion.  Another woman in mama’s senior apartment complex claimed that a rolling basket full of clean laundry belonged to her and started walking away with it, a fellow resident said, “Do you have an Isabel bear on your basket?” since Isabel bear, who is the size of a postcard, has mama’s name on the front and her name and address on the back quickly proved that the clean clothes and rolling basket belonged to mama.

Yes, Isabel bear does wear purple earrings.

My mom continues to believe that clothes should be purchased and not sewn.  She continues to suggest that I go to work at this or that place.  Nevertheless, she wears the sewn and embroidered things that I make for her with pride.

When my single mother, with her own business, arranged for me to have a new sewing machine, get rides with other moms to 4-H, helped me to enter my projects in the fair and offered to buy me an embroidery machine to save time, she was actually nourishing my desire to sew, embroider and create, thus since I began to understand what mama has done for me, sewing and embroidering for mama has become very important to me.

by Jennifer Padden

I have an empty glitter tube taped to the side of my embroidery machine.  It’s about 6 inches long and about 1/2″ in diameter.  This tube is perfect for keeping my bent tip trimming scissors handy and within reach.  Now not only are my scissors protected, but I always know where to find them.