Volunteer to teach a survival sewing class at an after school program or to a scouting group. Teach students how to thread a needle, how to sew basic mending stitches by hand and how to sew on a button.

Volunteer to mentor a young person at a sewing/quilting camp held during summer or school breaks.

Lead a beginning sewing group in the maker space at your local public library.

Start your own neighborhood or  “sew with friends” group.  The focus can be whatever strikes your fancy – garment sewing, knitting, cross stitch, embroidery, EPP, machine sewing, Featherweights & vintage machines. See if you can use a room at a public library, the clubhouse of your apartment/condo or neighborhood or open up your own home to host the group.

Share your knowledge with newer sewists at sew-ins and retreats.

Be an enabler. Sewing & quilting has a higher cost of entry than many other hobbies. Gift excess stash, patterns, notions, machines, machine feet, tools, etc. to someone who’s really been bit by the sewing bug, but doesn’t have a lot of cash to invest.

Be generous with your praise and gentle with your criticism. Try to remember what it was like when you first learned how to sew. Don’t point out every little mistake. Be sure to step in if you catch something major, but sandwich that criticism between two positives if at all possible. Example, you notice the cross seams are twisted on the back where the rows are sewn together. You’ll want to bring it to their attention, so they can fix it now. Mention how hard they’re working/matching points nicely, etc. and you noticed that some of the seams are twisted on the back. Explain that they need to be lying flat and explain how to use the seam ripper to unpick and then restitch the seam so that the seams are going in the same direction.

Today was exactly how I imagined retirement would be! My quilty peeps and I were together again for a few hours of stitching and fellowship. It’s been almost four months since we last met for a sit & sew. It was wonderful! Hubby even remarked how happy I looked when I returned home. The group meets every Friday at an area library. This was my first opportunity to join them. It’s a come as you can and bring your own project to work on. A few of the ladies are also part of another biweekly group that meets on Wednesdays. It’s much more structured with everyone working on the same project. I do like the accountability piece. I’ll join them one Wednesday to see what that group is like.

After my trip to the vintage sewing machine museum in Tulsa, I was inspired to pull out a Featherweight and take it to the sew in with me today. Jane went along for the ride. Yes, she’s missing decals, has a compromised clear coat and several pin scratches on her bed. It’s all good. It’s amazing how smoothly she sews after a few minutes of operation. She’s also the machine I’m planning to take to the Sew Purty workshop in August. I’ll tear her down, clean her up and reassemble her under the watchful eye of someone well versed in vintage machine restoration. (I’ve learned how to service and adjust my own machine. I simply want to take it to the next level.) Jane has character. I like that I don’t have to treat her with kid gloves when we travel, or be afraid to let the kids try her out. Can’t say that about the others in my collection!

Have a happy, safe July 4th weekend!

When it comes time to shop, I have 3 basic rules:

1) Shop local first.
2) Buy quality.
3) Consider both new and used options.

I’ve always tried to support independent and local businesses whenever I can. I prefer that my money stay in my local community. There are times when I need to shop from an online retailer or via Amazon, but I do try to source things locally first.

Buy quality. Even if it costs you a bit more in the beginning, higher quality items wind up costing you less over the long term.

Visit a local thrift store, Craigslist or even Facebook Marketplace before buying a new item. You may be able to pick up something used for a fraction of the “new” cost that will meet your need. This is how I outfitted my sewing room – all used furniture, except for the cherry sewing cabinet that was made by my father-in-law. Every sewing machine I own except for one (Baby Lock Jubilant) was also purchased used.

If you are in the market for a sewing machine, consider buying a vintage metal mechanical sewing machine rather than the shiny, new plastic $100 model from the big box store. The vintage Singer Featherweight I picked up at an estate sale still sews perfectly nearly 87 years later. I seriously doubt my computerized Janome 8900 (purchased used in 2016) will match that!