Sara's Blog

Hello Now Sewers!

As you know, we were in the studio a few weeks ago filming another 12 episodes of the show!  What a blast we had with some very clever and talented guests!!  We are very excited to share with you the schedule of dates for the next 12 webisodes to air:

September 13 Marsha Kirsch - Quilting in the Hoop featuring the Yarn Couching Foot
September 27 Linda MacPhee - Slinky Knit Wrap Dress
October 10 Debra Danko - Oversized Flower Power
October 24  Londa Rolfing - Not Your Average Sweatshirt Jacket
November 12 Julie Mallory - 4D Family Portrait
December 3 Beth Wheeler - Altered Photo Artistry
December 19 Vanessa Dyson - QBOT
January 2 Marie Seroskie - Scallops and Home Dec 
January 23 Linda MacPhee - "Green" Bag
February 6 Andrea Bishop - Embroider with Electric Quilt
February 20 Karina Hittle - Busy Baby Accessories

Some of these talented guests are relatively new to the industry while others may sound familiar to you.  I hope that you enjoy this latest list of Sewlebrities!
Sara

It's that time again, another new guest from our most recent taping of Behind the Seams!

Every time I am with jared Collins, I learn something new.  He knows so much about what a sewing machine can do, and how to set the stage for successful embroidery!  In this weeks webisode, Jared shares with us how he comes up with some of the designs he uses on his embellished shirts.  Even better, he gives us some helplful information on choosing stabilizer, needles and thread.

You'll notice that the needles and stabilizers we featured this week are from Inspira. Lately, I've been using these stabilizers and needles with superior results.  As you know, I'm a Pfaffie and the new Inspira needles have been designed with our machines in mind.  They come in all different types and sizes and have been producing exceptional results.  The stabilizer has been newly redesigned with a color coded labeling system so  you can easily determine wether the roll you pickup is a wash away,cut away,or specialty type stabilizer.

As a new embroiderer, One of the things I struggled most with was figuring out what kind of needle and stabilizer I should be using for each project.  Lately, I've found a couple of tools to help take away some of the confusion.  First, the "Needle Genius."  This helpful tool has two discs that are labeled with fabric type and thread type.  You simply line up your fabric and thread and a display window will show you what type of needle will yield the best results.  For stabilizer, Inspira has created the same type of guide wheel on which you align fabric and thread type and the best stabilier will appear in the display window. It will also tell you if you should be using a stabilizer on type of your fabric as well as behind it.  Be sure to stop by your local Pfaff dealer or sewing store and ask about these two products.  I am sure they will help you achieve fabulous embroidery results!

Until next time!

Sara

OK, so all of the really great bloggers (who I aspire to be like one day!) give recipes in their blogs... So I thought i'd share my new "recipe."

Admittedly, my brain generally isn't running at full operating speed until I've had a couple of cups of coffee!!  Some of my worst sewing disasters were the result of me turning on my machine before turning on the coffee pot.  Tragedy struck today - I ran out of cream and milk!!  One of my favorite things about a visit to London was that each time I ordered a cup of coffee, they asked if I wanted it black or white.  White = lots of cream, yes please!!  I don't prefer black coffee; however, being heavy into a quilt project, the last thing I wanted to do today was to run out to the store for milk...time to experiment.

I made my normal 4 cup pot of Kona, but to the grounds I added about 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder and a couple healthy shakes of cinnamon.  Ooo, the smell as it brewed was delicious!  It's pretty hot today, so I chilled the coffee and then poured over ice - YUMM-O!!!  How delicious, i've now discovered my new summer drink!  I did make the coffee a little extra strong thinking I might ice it.  Try it and let me know what you think!  It would definitely still be good with cream, or ice cream maybe a little Baileys in the blender - Oh yeah!

I know, I know, this is a sewing site - not a coffee site!!  I'm currently working on the "Garden Globes" quilt from Jason Yenter's Floragraphix II collection, check him out at www.inthebeginningfabrics.com.  Jason and his mom own the fabric company and I am really digging his latest collections.  You'll be seeing this quilt in the background of one of the upcoming episodes of Behind the Seams!!

A tip - Jason suggests using freezer paper for the appliques, I really like using Sulky Totally Stable.  It does iron on to the fabric nicely and can be re-used.  I really like the weight of it.  Also, the book has us hand sewing the applique.  You know that's not my style!!!  I'm thinking I will play with some of the decorative stitches on my machine and use several coordinating thread colors... we'll see!

Try my coffee drink (whichever version you prefer!), check out the site, and have fun sewing!

Sara

Hello Again!

I love it when I get to bring Lori and Karla in to Westlake to meet me for our pre-taping BTS Sewing Boot Camp (sometimes called our Sweat Shop!!).

The three of us got together to work on projects for the upcoming taping.  We find that we come up with much more creative ideas when all 3 of us put our heads together - I'm sure you come up with your best ideas with a little help from your friends!  We had a blast - it's always long hours with lots of sewing, but never feels like work because the three of us really are great friends.  We each have a slightly different role... Lori is our analyzer.  We joke that she is slightly compulsive because no detail goes without being attended to when you are working with Lori!  Karla is our problem solver.  When Lori and I get wrapped up in a project not working quite as planned, Karla always comes up with a quick solution.  My role??  What ever they tell me to do!!  Really, I'm busy coordinating ideas with the girls and our guests, developing and organizing content for the show.  Then, I just let Karla and Lori bounce ideas off of me and do what ever they ask!! 

Here is a sneak preview of a couple of projects in the works...

Again, just the beginning of a few projects, but I think you'll have a lot of fun with all of them!

Ok, so a picture of us worn out toward the end of the week...

Yes, I know, not quite as fabulous looking as we are on set.  This is us with out enough sleep or the help of Kylee, our fabulous BTS makeup artist!!  What do you think of my new glasses??

Back to work now, hope you have had a chance to sew with your girlfriends lately!  Time spent together certainly does wonders for the creative soul!

Sara

Hey There NowSewers!

Wow, what an exciting month I've been having!  It all started with a visit from my nieces.  It was their first time to see my newly re-organized sewing room and I had been promising them some of my scraps for the paper dolls they like to make.  I handed them a big bag and before I knew it, they were laying out a quilt!  Piece by piece they were creating rows of my left over fabrics.  I decided, "Let's put these together!"  The girls had never sewn before and we had a blast!  I snapped on my quarter inch foot and manned the iron as they sewed the scraps they found into strips.  Once each strip was constructed, I helped them sew it onto a piece of batting.  A sort of quilt as you go.  By the end of the day, they had a quilt!  I put a piece of backing fabric on, right sides together, sewed around the edges, turned it and steam-a-seamed the opening closed.

The girls really got the bug!  We went through all of my projects and I showed them what I had made with most of the scraps they were having so much fun with!  Maddie loves texture, so I couched funky yarns on the quilt.  While I was helping Maddie on one of my machines, Mary Beth was playing on my Creative Vision.  It was so amazing to me how quickly she figured out how to navigate the machine!  She was doing lettering, created a little pillow with eyelets on it, so clever and creative!  By the end of the weekend, the had a cute quilt to take home along with a few other little projects.  To top it all off, I went into my sewing room after they left to clean up and found the thank you card Mary Beth made for me.  She had pieced together a few pieces of fabric and stitched two lines of text, "Thank you Aunt Sara, Love Mary Beth and Maddie!"  How cute is that?  Talk about touching my heart and renewing my passion for sewing!

I used to teach kids classes in my mom's quilt shop and some parents would drop their kids off and say, "I'm so glad you offer this class so my daughter can sew on your machines.  I don't let her touch my machine, she might brake it!"  Every time I heard that I felt a twinge in my chest.  My mom taught me how to sew when I was four years old, thank God she wasn't afraid to let me touch her machine.  Come on, is your child really going to do anything to your machine that you haven't already done?  Be honest, we've all jammed up our machines a time or two!!  The other story that hurt to hear was when a parent would let their child sew, but only on the 25 year old boat anchor that had been replaced, you know what I'm talking about!  If we don't enjoy sewing on that old thing as an experienced sewer with lots of tricks, how can we expect a novice to enjoy it and want to keep on sewing?

I really think that we sewers have an obligation to spread the joy of our hobby.  Since sewing isn't really done for necessity anymore (how many of you sew because it saves you money? HA!), we need to let people in on why we do it!  I sew, because it relaxes me and I still think that a hand made gift means more than what I can buy in a store.   How about you? 

Hopefully, each of you has had the opportunity to share your passion for sewing with someone new and found it as rewarding as I did.  If you haven't, try it out!  And, please don't be afraid to let that person touch your "Baby!!"

Until next time,

Sara