Oh Sew Kat Sunshine Dress...Sew Cute!

 
I realized I had cut this out in June. Good grief. Sewing this up the other day with my PS500 was a breeze. This machine doesn't try to pull fabric down inside and starts at the edge of the fabric without any issues. The ZZ foot that is standard and used for much of our sewing is, in this machine, a longer foot and seems so very much better at holding fabric than many a foot on another brand of machine. I love my Brother machines!  The fabric in this little dress was a gift from a friend, and it made a nice contrast! Next time I would make a full lining, as this is another pattern with just a bodice lining. It is a nice touch to add a full lining. :) But Britney looks very Summery in this....meanwhile it is cold outside and almost Christmas. Merry Christmas to everyone!!

Mask Redo and Flannel New...

 

It looks like we will be masking up pretty much into the last part of 2021. So - I had made a few masks about a month ago with a nose flap thing. I had figured it out myself from a pattern online, and really - it was not a great design. So I redid those four masks and then decided to make some of the Deaconess style, without the tucks, with MimiG elastic style. Flannel will be warmer for winter, and wearing one should help keep the cold away as well. :) So I cut out and made 6 flannel masks.   What you see here is the four I redid, in the top of the top photo as well as the photo following this paragraph, and the six flannel masks in the football, grey with diamonds and red. I am waiting for feedback on the flannel still from family.  This has been the extent of my sewing lately. Getting cold and when it is cold I like to veggie out on the couch. 

Clover Flat Head Pins 2: Thicker Flower Head Assorted Colors and Teal Heart Shaped...and Hedgy...

 My multies in my new Dritz velvet pincushion and my Heart Heads in a pincushion I made years ago from some fabric I quilted to make a tea cozy. It's pretty non-artistic but I like it!  Yes, I bought pins again at The Fat Quarter Shop.

First, the Multi-olored Flower Head Pins. This is Clover No. 2506, and they are thicker than the lovely pink/red flower heads No. 2505 in my first post. These are 0.7mm in thickness and 54mm long, whereas the No. 2505 are 0.55 thickness and 50mm long! SO - the multis and stronger, thicker and a bit longer. They are so pretty.  I guess I went on a pin jag here and now I have to make a few more pincushions!

Close up of the pins - since there are 100 pins in the little nice box they come in, I did not put them all in the cushion.  Just a sampling of each color. I used these in mask making yesterday and they are going to pop into any fabric I think. :) You can really tell the thicker pins. I think for everyday these are fine, but for delicate fabrics or use in doll clothes I am going to use the 2505.

AND of course I couldn't leave behind the i Sew For Fun by Nancy Zieman lovely teal heart shaped head pins. These are like the No.2405 Pink/Red head flower pins. 0.55mm thickness and 50mm long. So pretty. :) They are Clover No. 9604. They are now in my quilty pincushion but when I make another one they will go in the new one I think. Meanwhile I do have my little Hedgy the Hedgehog I made with the Superior Threads pattern a few years ago. :)  He has regular metallic ball head pins from Dritz. I have loads of those and he has only a few handy for me.

 

Two Little Oh Sew Kat Dresses...and a Pincushion Book...

 

My little 14" Inch Ursula has her own dress now. Still looking like Summer to the dolls! :)  This was Oh Sew Kat Bloomer Buddies but no Bloomers. :)  Little piece of remnant from another dolly dress and some left over from Connie' dress  - this time I got the chicks right side up!
 

And then it was time for Oh Sew Kate's Suger and Spice Dress in pink for Cassy. Also had little shoes I got from AMAZON that matched. SO happy with the result. Yes, I also got a nice backdrop for the photos, although I do like the window and my Pfaff as a backdrop too! 

I bought a little book to make some fun smaller things. I have a lot of scraps to use up! At this point I am trying to "shop my stash" as we say. I bought this book:  Pincushions & More

 

 

It has so many cute little things in it and I am interested in a round pincushion first. I am going to simplify one of the patterns, the one with the segments in the round.  I would love to make that turtle but we'll see. HAHA. 

 

Clover Flat Head Pins 1: Fabulous Pink and Red

 Clover Flower Head Pins #2505 at .55mm thickness and just the nicest smoothest pins!

Beautiful, smooth and just the best pins ever. A friend gave the first set to me some years ago now, and I didn't open them until a week or so ago. WOW....what a spectacular pin set! I had to order a few more sets, and retire my old metallic colored ball head pins even though they are certainly nice pins. These Clover pins are just the best.  Clover makes several of these flat head pin sets - and they are different. They are different thicknesses and meant for different purposes.  This particular set is the red/pink heads and they are for medium weight fabrics - they pin anything - I used them on light cotton and also on fleece, and they are smooth and just slide into fabric. These are NOT the ones for quilting that bend (blue head ones I think the quilting ones are),  these are .55mm in thickness and there are twenty in a package. Yes, they seem expensive, but again, worth every penny. I would call this set the "all-around" pin for home sewers.  I bought these online from The Fat Quarter Shop.

After I tried these I just had to put them in a nice pin cushion, I have one a friend made me awhile ago - several years! It is a lovely panda. :)

If you are a garment sewer, these pink/red flathead pins are a treat!! For quilters who use straight pins, the blue head ones are I think the ones of choice, but I have not used them and won't buy them because I only use safety pins on quilts.

So far the pins have been used on a fleece project and a tiny doll dress, and soon they will slide into a few knit tops! I will put away my other pins in case something befalls these sweet Clover pins!

Kwik Sew Patterns are a Treat...

I sewed up this really practical, warm and cute Kwik Sew pattern yesterday on my sweet 1034D serger. Sewed like a dream, and the fabric, oh the lovely pink sweatshirt knit - it sewed up like a charm!  Kwik Sew was so well drafted in the old days, and the instructions here were so very good - I didn't need them until the collar, and then I reviewed the collar instructions. I wish all pattern makers had the skill to write really clear instructions that make sewing seem easy. Kwik Sew did. I do not know if whoever does them now has the same skill.  I found this pattern on ETSY, like so many other patterns lately, and I love it. I highly recommend it. I had bought the fabric last year on AMAZON after not being able to find anything I wanted around here. It is all cotton, and that was my preference. 

 

I used pink OMNI from Superior Threads and the bobbin was a DecoBob from Wonderfil in a lovely pink - but just in the sewing machine and used that only for the serger thread ends to secure them, and for the hem on the poncho.  On the serger I used four cones of Maxi-Lock in my set I call Lights. There is one a light sky blue, one in pink, one in beige and one in another very light shade of baby blue. All together they do a nice job of blending in with all light fabrics I have used. I also have a set I call my Darks. I mix dark colors like navy, dark brown, black and even dark pine green. I have a lot of Maxi-Lock.I had cleaned and oiled my serger first, changed the needles, and rethreaded. Runs like a top which makes me very happy. Brother 1034D that I bought in 2005 from AMAZON. :) I think I am getting my money's worth. 

 

 

I did have enough left over to make that nightgown as well.  I drafted a pattern on one of my own RTW nightgowns that I like and is so very simple. I serged it up yesterday as well.  The serged edges of the sleeves were so nice I left them like that, and the same for the bottom of the nightgown, but I finished up the neckline with one fold over and stitching. The fleece is just so nice. Because it is a sweatshirt knit - one side has the knit fabric look and I used that as the inside, and put the fleecy side out. So soft, and then I won't get fluffs on my turtlenecks I wear under the poncho. :) 

Seahawks Lap Quilt in a Hurry.....

 Well, yes!!!! I entered the Warm and Cozy Contest to my surprise!  I realized I had done it in the time allotted in the rules, and everything fit, even though I had not thought if it before. HAHAHAHA...Generous gift of the lime NFL Seahawks fabric from a PR friend, and I had the dark blue which is the other side - it is reversible. Binding also the dark fabric, batting is Mountain Mist Cream in a double layer! I wanted to really be cozy.  I did not want to cut this fabric up and lose the amount seaming would have taken as the piece of lime fabric was so nice and this is all I had. I did use this quilt on my lap on the sofa last night and it *IS* cozy!  Thread for the top - the green, is Mettler Poly Sheen, also a gift from the PR friend. Color Lime Green Neon.  Bobbin thread was Superior Threads So Fine #60 pre-loaded bobbin. Love those pre-loaded bobbins. They are really a good buy and they hold more than your own bobbin winding can hope to hold. 

 

 

 I will be enjoying this all Winter. Not always enjoying watching my team - they lost last night, but that's how it goes - they need to stop getting themselves flagged because of committing egregious fouls. Sigh.  I have lots more projects cut out to sew now, so there should be movement on the blog from time to time in the coming months.  I am not done cutting out though. I have more tops to cut out and then I think maybe it will be time to sew.  

 

Please be good to your machines - I have been trying to remember to clean and oil mine regularly now because it is a distance to get them serviced and during this time it is also hard to get into the tech's list of tasks because of this virus. Take care and be safe. Wear your masks and be careful. :)

Two Masks and Planning with Cutting Out...

 

 

Made a little bag I made into two masks a couple weeks back. Cute lizards! Had been fabric left over from jammies a few years ago. Used a cute fat quarter in checks for the linings.  Used the rectangle mask pattern with the MimiG elastic method - love that hybrid. My family likes that too. 

 

 

 

Planning to sew these five projects - have cut out 2 of these plus a poncho and two doll outfits. I like a pile of projects cut out - a large pile. Cutting is not my favorite part of sewing, so doing it over a couple of weeks and then sewing at my leisure is my way of countering that. All are just the tees except the New Look with the jacket - that is going to be the kimono jacket in a lovely red with floral Asian fabric I bought from the classifieds on PatternReview.  Four tees are from the fabric I bought from Girl Charlee.  

 

 

Here are the two dolly outfits and the poncho. Good old REAL KWIK SEW pattern with the nice white paper. Extremely easy poncho pattern. The doll outfits are one for 18" and one for 14".  But I am not sewing at all until I get everything cut out. I have enough pink cotton sweatshirt knit left after cutting the poncho to make a nightgown, so I am going to draft a pattern for that from one I have that I really like - very simple.   Stay tuned and stay safe!

 

 

Little Asian Quilt #4 Finished and Two More Masks...

 

 

 

Bound and finished. Now it is covering the extension table on my Brother Pacesetter PS500.  Scrappy quilts might be something I do a lot more of over time, but not any time very soon.   Somehow I ended up doing a couple more masks, one is a bit smaller than the other, so we'll see how that fits the wearer! These are from a pattern I drafted from my Vera Bradley mask but somehow they don't look the same. But the fabric is cute. Lined with white cotton. 

 

 

So now there are four more masks to make - two like these and then two others, and my cutting out has progressed to two doll outfits, and then I need to cut out some tops from the knits I bought. Two are silly prints that will light up my mood when I pull them out! :) 

Kitty Quilt #4...Masks and Kitty Quilts with Cat...

 

 

See? They are kitty quilts. ;)  He seems to like them a lot...

 

 

 

Now here is the last batch of masks and the next kitty quilt ready to be quilted with deco stitching again this time. 

 

 

 

That's about it for an update. No more masks for awhile anyway.  The quilting on the little Quilt #4 will commence very soon. Other planning going on - planning is always fun, even when changes are made. :)

Looking Back To Nurses Training...

Here is my finished Student Nurse Uniform. Based on my own Junior year outfit back in the day, some differences exist. The blue checks are the right value of blue but not the plaid we had, and the collar and cuffs were separate then and we had to put the uniform together every day. :) I purchased the white tights and little white shoes, but the dress and Bib-n-Apron and cap had patterns. However, I redid almost everything about some of the patterns and combined them in this outfit. The patterns I used were all Rosie's Doll Patterns.  The dress is a reworking for front opening of the Vintage Dress. The Bib-n-Apron is the Pinafore Dress, the sleeves on the dress are from the Drop Waist Dress pattern. Cuffs were self-drafted.

If I make another one it will have a small scale plaid, and a redesigned collar - one piece collar all around. This has a two piece collar. :) I sewed little buttons on the front of the dress but it really closes with hook and loop tape. As does the bib-apron. Our bib and aprons back then were separate as well and we had to assemble that piece of our uniform too. That was very practical in terms of staying clean - the apron helped a lot. They deleted that from the uniform in the year after ours. Glad I wore the traditional uniform and had the traditional cap. :) This was a challenging and fun project.

Doll Sized Pressing Tools From Love U Bunches...

 

 

This pattern is available on ETSY. I could not resist. Such tiny pressing tools. I made them in a couple of hours a couple of days ago. I had left over flannel from boy PJs years ago and I have a stock of leftovers from battings for quilts. I made the little tools, stuffed them with batting I chopped up into bits, and firmly packed into these little cuties, and sewed up the gaps by hand.  I am so pleased with them. :)  I can see the seam presser roll as a shoulder seam presser as well for garments much larger than dolls.Working on that little student nurse uniform now. Slow going and I may make another basic dress. There is a basic dress, with starched cuffs, a cap, and a bib'n'apron combo that I have not done yet. I have put together this outfit with 4 patterns and then a cap pattern that I heavily redid because hardly any of the doll caps really look like nurse's caps and I wanted a real little nurse cap.  All four patterns for the outfit are from various Rosie's Doll Patterns that I own. Such nice patterns. I watch her videos - they are great and I follow them. She has a great voice for teaching.  When the outfit is done I will delineate the procedure and the patterns used.

Knits from Girl Charlee...

 

 

So, I ordered from Girl Charlee.  I am satisfied and more! Two pieces of cute "bullet knit" which is a spandex blend and very cute - sort of kid prints there, but I am going to use them for dolls, and maybe even get a little Summer top for myself out of each piece - we'll see. I bought four pieces of about a yard each - two have a bit more. The other two fabrics are soft cotton jersey blends with nice soft hand - lightweight fabrics. Those will make cute little tops I think and scraps for the dolls. I know I will be ordering again!  Here are close ups of the two types of fabrics I ordered. 😄

 

Reorganizing and Storage as End in Itself...Part III

 

 

 Above is the top drawer arrangement in my Sullivan sewing table drawers. Below in order is drawers 2,3, and 4.  I change these around sometimes...depending on what my interests are over time, but mostly they stay the same. Mostly sewing essentials. In drawer 2 you can see card stock I use to make either cards I draw on and color, or sometimes make fabric quilted cards. You can see the ArtBin bobbin boxes I use - labeled for various types or brands of thread. I love prefilled bobbins, so there are DecoBobs from Wonderfil, Superior Threads Super Bobs and So Fine #60 prefilled bobbins, as well as Brother prefilled bobbins that you can't see here - they are on the bottom.  And poly and cotton thread bobbins I have wound myself. My Pfaff 1222E cannot use prefills. Although some sites say it can, the hole in the bobbin is never large enough - so I have to load my Pfaff bobbins myself which is OK. It is the best machine to thread a bobbin anyway! SO easy and smoothly done.

 

 

I store foot pedals here too - I like to use the Start/Stop button on machines that have them, at least most of the time.   I have some cleaning brushes in there - I use makeup brushes for cleaning the machines a lot of the time.

 

 

Yes, I have overbought on Tailor's Chalk!! HAHAHAHA....oh well. And I love to have things plugged into surge protectors, so coincidentally that one shows here. I always unplug my machines when they aren't in use. It saves money and heartache - you do not want to lost a machine to a lightening strike. 

 

 

 

Needle storage - this bin is actually am embroidery floss storage case from Michael's because the ArtBin cases were not deep enough for needle cases. I love the way I can have them by type in this case.

 

 

Just to top it off - here is how I collect threads snipped off and small bits of fabric as I sew and trim. I never toss them around or on the floor. And the small basket - I have one by each machine for notions and supplies I need for projects, as well as extra filled bobbins and maybe even another spool of thread. 

 

 

 

Each of my machines has its own ArtBin box for accessories.  The Elna has a large version of this one, but each has its own. When I donate or sell a machine I also add the manuals and the accessory box.  

That about wraps up the storage trio of posts, and I hope it isn't too boring...but I think most of us are fascinated by storage! I like things neat in the sewing area. Years ago I sewed in the kitchen and had to put everything away neatly, and that's how I was taught - when you were through it was all put away and not in view.  Now that I have more space, I try to keep it as neat as I can as well.  HAPPY STORAGE and ORGANIZATION!!

 

 

 

Reorganizing and Storage as End in Itself...Part II

 

 

Starting with my shelf arrangement.  Two bins for Misc. Storage and 2 bins for Projects.  So far the two bins for projects is working well.  I should add that the purchase of a Brother Labeler goes a long way toward a nice storage look. HAHHHAA......I got my labeler after years of dithering, and I am glad I did. I even labeled my oatmeal can in the kitchen. Well, my pictures will usually have a label or two in them in the sewing area.  The following pictures are the insides of my ArtBin Super Satchels and reflect some years of accumulation.

 

 

The following two are thread boxes you can buy a few places - Joann's is one and then Superior Threads and so on. Two sided and hold regular spools well.

 

 

Ans another ArtBin Super Satchel!  This one holds quilting and thread accessaries and cotton quilting threads.

 

 

Here is my Brother labeler which I think may have given me the kick for all the reorganizing I do in here. SO FUN.  It has been a great accessory and is one of several models still around - although probably a newer model is out now.