You may have noticed that the Twitter feed has been removed from my sidebar.

Yep, it’s true. I broke up with Twitter. I canceled my account. It’s not like potential customers find me via Twitter. Most of my referral traffic comes from search engines, followed by FB.

Why did I cancel the Twitter account I’d had since 2011? There are simply too many trolls out there. A colleague from another work site is currently being investigated for potential “ethics” violations because of a mainstream news story retweeted to a personal Twitter account. Apparently, another employee reported it to HR. What do you bet this person found the retweeted news story “offensive”?

Not. worth. it.

Several of my friends are turning off their social media accounts completely. They definitely seem happier. Definitely food for thought. I find value in the sewing/quilting groups I belong to on FB. Wonder if there’s some way I can access the content without FB? Worth looking into.

I

You bought a sewing machine so you could do something to help with COVID-19. You made many, many masks which are still being worn by grateful family and friends. Frankly, you’re masked OUT!

You discovered you actually enjoy sewing and are now wondering, “What else can I do with this thing?”. Wonder no longer, my new sewing friends. I’ve got your back. Today, I’m going to highlight 3 resources to assist in expanding your sewing machine knowledge.

• Sewing machine manufacturer websites and social media
  The big brand names all have websites with machine info, manuals and support links. Even if your machine is slightly older, you may find a manual under “retired” machines on the support page. Educational content produced by machine manufacturers varies. In my opinion, Baby Lock, Bernina and Janome do a really nice job of producing instructional videos/tutorials and project ideas. Be sure to check out your sewing machine company’s Instagram and Facebook pages for project ideas and additional how-to videos.
  
• I spy a similar machine with a different name
  As with cars, sewing machine companies make machines with different models and brand names. Take Brother, for instance. Brother machines are sold through dealers and mass merchandisers. Brother even makes computerized machines for Baby Lock. A Brother SE625 purchased from Wal-Mart is an economy version of the dealer level Brother Innov-is NS1750D. The Innov-is is equivalent to a Baby Lock Verve (also a dealer only machine). It’s still a great machine, but comes with fewer stitches, fewer accessories and fewer bells & whistles.
  
  What can you do with this knowledge? Head over to the Baby Lock site and watch the instructional videos on the Verve. Take the time to find a local Baby Lock dealer, who will usually be more than happy to answer basic questions you might have, especially if you purchase extra machine feet and accessories from their shop. Yes, Baby Lock feet fit Brother machines and vice-versa. Hint #1: Baby Lock Category G feet will fit the SE625. Hint #2: Non-branded accessories made by Brother may be cheaper than branded ones. All it takes is a little time to educate yourself and comparison shop online.
  
• YouTube it!
  Many sewists share videos about their sewing machines from unboxing to advanced techniques. Sure, some are better than others, but I always manage to learn SOMETHING. Simply search by manufacturer and model name.
  While you’re at it, check out these YouTube channels:
  Missouri Star Quilting Company
  Sewing with Nancy (search “Sewing with Nancy full episodes” in YouTube search box)
  SewVeryEasy
  Crafty Gemini
  Professor Pincushion

Note: Your local fabric store and sewing machine shops are also excellent F2F resources for sewing instruction and machine questions. I compiled these resources because so many of us are still at home. While sewing machine shops and some fabric stores have reopened in my area, very few F2F classes appear on the local class schedules. Most events are held virtually and I’m told they will be virtual until at least January 2021.

Until later – happy sewing!

Teresa

Last week a co-worker asked me shorten some of her daughter’s pleated school uniform skirts. When I agreed, my plan was to replicate the existing hem by finishing the raw edge by serger and then using a blind hem stitch on my sewing machine to complete the hem. Great plan in theory, but not when it came time to execute the plan.

I hemmed the first skirt by hand and will probably do the same for the remaining skirts. Why?

Well, besides the fact my mom and home ec teacher drilled into my head that a hand-sewn hem gives a quality look to a garment that no machine can ever match – there’s simply too much fullness in the skirt that needed to be eased in at the hem. I practiced my blind stitch by machine many times before I gave up and pulled out my hand-sewing needle. Why? the practice blind hems by machine weren’t that great.

I completely stitch the entire hem by hand in less than 45 minutes. I cued up a favorite podcast, threaded the needle and quickly found my zone. Surprisingly soothing and really relaxing – just what I needed after a day spent dealing with technology. The finished result was much more to my liking.

Don’t think this means I’m going to start binding all my quilts by hand. Nope! Only the ones destined to be displayed in a quilt show. But garment hems – absolutely!