Since I've started knitting, I've been working my way through the usual projects - scarves, shawls, mittens, hats, baby sweaters and the like. One of the projects I really enjoy is making bags and purses. You can make something more more interesting than you can ever buy in a store. The only problem is that purses really need to be lined. It's the best way of keeping things from poking out even through felted fabric and it allows the creation of non-bulky interior pockets.
The problem is I don't sew. Well... I haven't sewn in 30 years.
As a kid, I was in a sewing and crafts 4-H club. My best friend Sandi's mother was one of the leaders. There were usually about 8 or 10 girls in the club at a time. The age range was from about 5th grade to about 10th grade. Mrs. Snyder and Mrs. Rice did a great job trying to pass their skills and love of sewing and crafts onto us. Most of us stayed in the club for several years, so they were doing something right.
No knock on their teaching ability, I didn't take to sewing as much as the crafts. At that time I was more interested in cross-stitch and needlepoint. I made the obligatory first 4-H project, a tote bag. Then another couple simple projects, but my attention span and motor skills were not quite good enough for me to enjoy sewing. With high school activities getting started, band, choir, cross-country, and theater, I lost interest completely.
So, I want to sew, but how do I get back on that horse. I bought an affordable Singer on sale at Jo-Ann a year or two ago, but after I did I realized, I really didn't remember what the heck I was doing. A friend at work mentioned that she wanted to learn to sew, too. Now I have a buddy, but where to start.....
Luckily, Albuquerque is home to Hip-Stitch. It is a small fabric shop and sewing lounge. Fabrics and notions for sale in the front of the store, work and classroom space in the back. We signed up for Hip Stitch Basics, which is just that - how to thread your machine, how to wind a bobbin, how to adjust stitch length, tension, stitch width, etc. When I say "your machine", you can use a machine provided or bring your own. It's a two hour class - perfect for and evening after work. I did review my machine manual before I went, so the class went pretty smoothly and I remembered much more than I thought I would.
Between Hip Stitch and a couple of the easy classes on Craftsy, my skills should quickly progress enough to make the simple things I have in mind. Maybe I'll take a purse with me next time I go back home and drop by to show Mrs. Snyder and Mrs. Rice. Hopefully they'll be proud.
What skills have you acquired or re-acquired? Have you let any skills go that you wish you hadn't?
1 comment:
Thumbs up on your blog, Andrea! I am trying to tame my STASH, since I keep pulling things out for potential projects, and then find I have twenty baskets, each with three balls of yarn...Then of course, there's the fuzz stash for spinning, and the needlepoint bin, the sewing box...I took the sewing machine to the cabin last summer and sat on the porch making pillow covers. It was great to sew again--I don't have my machine set up here, but it is a goal worth attaining. I just dove in. My machine was new in 1977, so it's all mechanical; no electronics to piss me off. Tension, stitch length and all that seem to come back with practice. Other than that, I have no advice to offer, except to go to the shop and hang out with the sewing mavens. Up here, we call that the Hutterite Colony; my friend Eileen sews better than I can describe. Have fun! Let me know if you need yarn. Still spinning. ---Amy.
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