Hi there! Today in the sewing room I made a couple starts of potholders. I have been making potholders all my life, but I've always crocheted them, never sewn one. Now, I say starts because I only put the batting and fabric together, so the back and edges are still raw and unfinished. I am missing an important material to finish them which is called Insul-Brite. What makes it so important is that it is heat resistant and keeps the hand holding it from getting burned. It is not expensive, and I plan to purchase some next time I get the chance. 

These two above are the 1st and 2nd potholders I made today. I made them from scrap strips and batting using a tutorial I found on YouTube by a lady named Jeni. Here is the link, if you are interested in checking it out. (486) Scrappy Pot Holder Tutorial // Sewing With Jeni - YouTube

In the meantime, I do have regular batting, so I am putting 2 layers of that to strips of fabric and later when I get the Insul-Brite, I will put that and that backing together and bind it all with, well, binding. 

I am going to make several of these unfinished potholders. I really messed up the one shown above. I cut the strips too short and missed the seam in one place.. ugh! I was going to toss it and then I decided to just go ahead add a 3rd piece of batting (to stand in for the batting I don't yet have) and a backing square and practice adding the binding and also to see if my little mending machine will even be able to do all thos layers. I've never done it before, so Ill practice on this throw away piece. Fingers crossed that it doesn't frustrate me totally. That is a job for another day though. For now, off to watch some videos and go to bed.

 

I have had quite the creative sewing adventure! My 6x4 square top, cut at 4.5 inches, turned out beautifully, with all the points matching almost perfectly. It’s no wonder I'm feeling proud and doing happy dances! 😊

Now, let’s explore the delightful journey of this piece:

• Initially, I was torn between making a dish drying mat or a cat bed for Trixsy, my cat. But fate intervened when my husband expressed a desire for a pillow for his computer chair. I added another row and backed it with the same Peanuts fabric, and generously stuffed it. His verdict? It’s incredibly comfy, and he might even take it to bed!
• Speaking of Peanuts, my husband initially chose that pattern for a pillowcase. However, my first attempt didn’t quite fit his king-sized pillow due to some greenhorn cutting mistakes. Fear not! I've learned from the experience and plan to give that pillowcase another shot. Maybe I'll end up making one for myself too—!

I think my sewing journey is a testament to progress and creativity. I plan to keep going. I'm even planning another more involved quilt pattern for a near future project. Stay tuned for that!  🧵✨

Summary: My successful sewing session has me feeling a little more like a quilting pro, even if just a baby one. Progress is progress! 🌟

I have really improved in my sewing skills! I am really very happy with my own progress. Lil' toot of my own horn there. 

I spent the day piecing four blocks and sewing them together. I am making it a baby quilt for a new baby in our family. I hope he will love it. 

Today I put it together, tomorrow I will add a 2" border around the outside with a single 2" color block in each corner of the border. I will have to wait to quilt it, because I have to go buy the backing fabric, which I have not done yet. Honestly, I thought it would be a minute before I needed it. 

Anyway, after I get the backing fabric, I am going to quilt the thing myself. I think I will do a diagonal line through every block in each direction. I will also bind it in black. I'd rather make the binding a mix of all the colors, except black, but I'm sure I do not have enough fabric in the colors. Black it is. 

I'm so excited!

Now, let's talk about the quilt! First off, it's a baby quilt. It will measure approximately 33" square when it finished.  I wanted it to be bright and engaging on one side and dark and calming on the other side, so I'm going to back it in the same black fabric as the black blocks in the top. I think that will be nice. 

I found the blocks very easy to put together. A simple 16 patch. I got a 1/4" foot, so that makes a big difference in the look of the blocks. Almost all the points match up, but there are some that are off. I'm not gonna sweat it. Still looks good for a first one, in my humble opinion. Also, there is a big mistake in one of the blocks, but I left it in there. It is my philosophy that mistakes simply become part of the personality of the piece, as long as it doesn't ruin the look, or make it hard to sew together, then, why not? I'm not making showpieces here. 

My final thoughts are that it was VERY FUN sewing today. I really like how it looks all done up together so far. I am feeling very proud and accomplished. I feel like I can sew. Whodathunkit?

A new blog for a new hobby: Quilting

Hello! My name is Jori and I just started sewing! After receiving a beginner sewing machine for Christmas, I have been sewing for the last 2 months with my goal being to make quilts. I have decided to start a blog to document my sewing journey.

My sewing machine is a Singer M1000. It can do a few of the most common stitches, and at least for now, all I really need is straight stitch and zig zag stitch. But don't think I'm not already picking out my next one! It is easy to thread and easy to set the bobbin, easy to wind bobbins. It has a light and reverse and a thread cutter. It also has a super small working area and is not marked for measurements, except 10, 20, 30, which I assume are millimeters, but doesn't matter anyway because all are bigger that 1/4". I have also been gathering notions - I love that word, notions.😍 Along with the machine, I was also gifted a set of notions, including thread, pins, clips, seam ripper, scissors, and a lot more. I still needed to get a cutting mat for measuring and also for the rotary cutter I got at the same time. I also got several rulers, of different shapes and sizes. I got a new seam ripper because the ones I had where super short and not very sharp. I got a cute little tin of 100 clips. I got a tool to turn tubes inside out, an iron, and a big-ish table. 

Right now, I am learning how important all the different elements of quilting are. How a consistent and straight 1/4" seam is vitally important. How ironing, ironing, and still more ironing is important to the outcome of the blocks. How important accurate cutting of the strips and squares are. I am learning that I am not very good at any of these things.. yet. I am also convinced that if I keep at it and practice, I will get better and better and one day I will make a quilt, maybe even a quilt where I design the placement of blocks and colors, instead of following a pattern.

For now, I am just learning. At first, I had all sorts of starry-eyed ideas, but then the reality of needing some basics practice set in while I sat in front of my machine. 

Thats it for this post. More later on how I'm doing with this sewing adventure.