Everything Applique Conference (and Sewing Room)

The neatest thing has happened! Right now there are 8 embroidery/applique website owners who have come together to put on a first ever APPLIQUE CONFERENCE! Yes, we are all competitors. We’ve put that aside and are working together to make this happen. This Everything Applique Conference (EAC) is the brain child of Kathy at Applique Corner. She has graciously enlisted us to come along side her and make it work! Did I mention this was going to take place on Saturday, April 28th? Yes, like 2 months away! Luckily it’s taking place in Birmingham, AL which is just up the road for me. While it started small, it has grown quickly and the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC) is being secured for this event. The 8 of us are messaging day and night, brainstorming, coming up with vendors, door prizes, etc. There will be a website up SOON to register, and more info will come as far as vendors who will be there and classes/breakout sessions that will take place. Stay tuned, and check out and *like* the Facebook Page in the meantime! Click on the link or logo to go there.

Believe it or not, I am making progress in the ole’ sewing room. We have decided to PAINT it (after months of deliberation) and lose the white (which is what we painted it when we moved in last July). I am going with Benjamin Moore Elephant Tusk, which is also the color of my son’s room upstairs. It’s a pretty neutral color and I think it’ll look mucho better than the white. So… this weekend I got out our can of Elephant Tusk and painted several areas to be sure this is what I wanted. I painted in one of the Expedit cubbie spaces to see how it would look. It was then that I realized that my Expedit is (creamy) white as opposed to a High Gloss White, which evidently is now being offered by Ikea. As of last week they did not show it in the 25 Expedit, but did in the smaller ones (16, etc).

 However….. this is the picture they show of the 25 cubbie. Doesn’t it look bright white?? I may just have to make another trip to Ikea, or try to call them and gain clarity on this matter. Not even sure if bright white would look any better? We shall paint first and see! 

Here I had to see what my thread stands would look like on the ET paint. I can always paint them as well (the stands).

 And… seeing how my makeshift valance would look w/ this color. I met w/ my sewing lady a couple of weeks ago and she is going to make me 2 cute valances for the 2 windows. I just need to find a trim fabric for the pleats (green, orange, blue??). For now it’s thumb-tacked over the window.

Can’t leave out the bulletin board.

 I think this color will look much better and break up the white! Someone did email me this morning and mentioned rearranging the furniture. I might see if that is even possible when we unload the room to paint and then have to reload. The dilemma is that there is a TV mounted in the corner for Jeff’s pleasure so I’m not sure how we could rearrange with that. And, the way things are, I have my machine and (Craftsman Tool Chest) work surface all within reach. We’ll see though! I’m not ruling anything out! Hopefully the paint thing will happen in the next few weeks. I believe he’s a couple of weeks out, and is also going to do some painting on our stairs (which is another post in itself).

Please check out the EAC Facebook Page! New info will be coming SOON and as I said, the website to register should be ready any day!

Colors

Hola! Here is a quick post with a few photos of things I’ve done recently. I’m 25 minutes from hosting 11 other girls at my house for Bunko. I have been slaving in the kitchen all day (for realz) cooking chicken tetrazzini, marinated green beans, homemade salad & dressing (homemade too), Valentine cupcakes and a yummy cheese bake dip. The house is spotless and I’m ready!

Virginia’s Cross ~ I did this on a burp cloth for an event at church ~ this was a door prize. Most of the attendees are moms of preschoolers or pregnant or have infants at home. I didn’t know the sex of course so I went with neutral! It looks really pretty and makes a great “church” burp cloth. I’d also love to see this on towels or hand towels or something!

 Raggy Snail ~ I LOVE these colors!! I also love the floral fabric and have seen it quite a bit lately on Facebook (those people who sell outfits on FB).

Helicopter ~ I like the colors, but also love the Daddy’s Co-pilot! This was on an infant onesie. I wonder if the dad will melt when he sees his little girl in this?

Watermelon ~ Nothing too fancy here, but I like the placement of the name. Sew What Pro people!!

My goal for the week was to survive tonight (hosting bunko). I will then move on to surviving all of the Valentine parties next week (and a field trip on Monday). Then I will move on to Sissy’s 4th birthday!! Am I the only one who operates that way?

In sewing room news, I did have my “sewing lady” come by this morning to measure for valances for my sewing room (and for a window seat cushion for G’s room). I just have to get a contrasting fabric for her and we’ll get going on that! Still have not ruled out painting….

Have a great weekend! 5 new designs were listed today. While the sale ended this morning, these guys will be on sale through Sunday. Cute girl stuff!! www.appliquecafe.com (featured designs)

Sample Sale

I have not fallen off the face of the earth. I think most bloggers agree it’s easy to get in to a blogger’s slump. A) Life in general is so busy = lack of time and B) a general lack of anything interesting to share. Other than samples I have barely turned my machine on, which is nice! I AM working on some onesies today for a customer. Speaking of samples, I did my last batch of boy samples on size 5/6 (I’d say = 4T or 5T) Kiddy Kats white short sleeved t-shirts. I sold one already and have a few left. The price on these is $12/each and I’ll add a name for $3. I might also be willing to strike up a deal if anyone wants 2, or all 3. Any shipping would be extra.

I really love the new birthday designs! We need to come up with some girl ones, eh?

 

This is also a sample tee but for some reason I don’t have a photo of the shirt. It’s the same 5/6 Kiddy Kats white, short sleeves.

If you are interested in any or all of these, please email me: rosemarygulledge@gmail.com.

We have been super busy lately with several things, including furniture shopping for our den. I have been to the furniture store about 6 times. Picking out a couch is not easy! We’ve had our den furniture since I was a single gal living apartment life across town over 10 years ago. We’re also installing a bookcase (today) in our den and a wall of desks in our “mystery room” aka Browder’s office off the kitchen. Did I mention that our washing machine broke a couple of weeks ago? On top of all that “house stuff”, registering the kids for school next year. My “G” will be in Kindergarten!! Both boys playing soccer = a crazy calendar!! Would you like a sewing room update? Well, there is none!! The piece of fabric that was pinned above the window is still there. Still pinned there. One day….

Have a great weekend! All designs at Applique Cafe are 30% off through Wednesday (Feb 8th)! We have 5 new ones to work on over the weekend too! Hopefully my next post will be a little more exciting…

Brother PR650 Applique

Here is my followup post on APPLIQUE on the Brother PR650. This is a simple (new) Bunny Applique Cafe design I sampled this past week. I get asked a lot by newbies if I include instructions on my applique designs. The answer is THREAD CHART! We include a thread chart which includes an image of each step. I ignore the thread colors because I am going to pick out whatever thread colors I want to use based on the fabric I pick out. You would typically use the same color thread for marking, tackdown & satin, but in digitizing, these colors MUST be programmed (digitized) differently. This tells your machine to STOP!

You see below 1. Marking, 2. Tackdown, 3. Satin and 4. Inner stitching on the bunny (which could be left off). This 3+ step process applies to all applique designs ~ 3 steps per fabric (marking, tackdown and satin). Then factor in eyes, nose, inner stitching like this, etc. 

 Here I have saved my Bunny design on to my machine via the USB Cable connected to my computer (E:/ drive on my computer). As you can see, I use Sew What Pro on every single thing I sew! Even if I’m NOT editing or merging, I LIKE to see what I’m doing on my computer screen, so I always pull my designs up using SWP before I save to my machine. Note that the bunny is upright ~ later I will rotate it to the left so it will fit in my 5×7 hoop.

 I have chosen a green/white dot fabric for my bunny and I want to use a pink inner stitching on him, so I have put my colors on needle 1 (pink) and 2 (celery green). I have “told” my machine that I put pink and light green on it, as you can see I anchored these colors below on needles 1 and 2. This is how I was taught, so this is how I assign colors on my machine. Now my machine knows that light pink is on needle 1, lt green is on needle 2, red is on needle 3, etc. Needle 5 is black and is not anchored ~ the machine will only allow you to anchor 5 colors and the non-anchored needle is a free agent.

 Now we go through the steps to tell my machine which colors to use when sewing each step. Step 1, I assign the same light green color that I told my machine was on needle 2. Step 1 will be my marking stitch, which will be an outline of where my fabric should go (the shape of the bunny). I then press the “+” button to move on to step 2.

 Step 2 is tackdown and I want it the same light green as Step 1 and needle 2. Since I am laying fabric down before the tackdown stitch, I press the HAND, which tells my machine to STOP before step 2. This will give me time to lay down my fabric. I will then press the “+” again to move on to step 3.

 Step 3 is our satin stitch, which is the finishing stitch around the design. I want it the same light green and since I’ll need to TRIM my fabric before the satin stitch, I press the HAND again which will tell my machine to stop before Step 3. I press the “+” button again to move on to step 4 (our last step).

 Step 4 is the inner stitching on this design, and I chose light pink which I assigned to needle 1. Since there is no need to stop before this step, I do not press the hand, and my machine WILL NOT STOP after the satin stitch. It will change to needle 1 and stitch the pink inner stitching. *During this 4 step applique design, the machine will stop FIRST to let me place my fabric down and a SECOND TIME to let me trim my fabric.

As you can see, the bunny is still upright and it’s showing it will only fit in my biggest hoop. Now that I’m done assigning colors, I can rotate it to fit my 5×7 hoop.

Press CLOSE after assigning colors! PS. This machine has a touch screen, so you simply press each color with your fingertip to assign the colors. I had a PR600 that was NOT touch screen, so you had to arrow up and down, left and right to get to the chosen color.

Now I rotate the design 90 degrees to the left so it will fit in my 5×7 hoop. As you can see, the design is 4.88″ X 6.90″. Press CLOSE when you are done rotating.

 You are now ready to SEW, so press the SEWING button (not shown). It will pull up this SEWING SCREEN. As you can see, this design is 5,299 stitches and should take 10 minutes of sewing time (does not include preparing fabric or trimming). My machine is set to 900 SPM (stitches per minute). The max is 1000. You can also see which colors are assigned to my machine (right side) and each step and the needle my machine will use to sew it (the list on the left). If I have accidentally chosen the wrong shade of green or pink, there will be a line on that step telling me I’ve chosen a color that is not anchored on my machine. It will default to the free needle (black) which is not anchored if I don’t correct it. If I’m paying attention, I will go in and fix this and select the correct color! I think the machine also beeps and says something as a warning.

Step 1 – needle 2 (green), STOP Step 2 – needle 2 (green), STOP Step 3 – needle 2 (green), Step 4 – needle 1 (pink). It will STOP before step 2 and 3, giving me time to lay my fabric down and also trim before the satin stitch.

Time to SEW! To sew each step, you press the LOCK button to unlock the needles (safety feature) and the button below it (which is red in the above photo) will turn green. You press it to start your machine. In the photo above you can also see other buttons: needle -/+ is your back up, go forward feature if you ever need to back up. You can back up or skip ahead by complete steps or by stitches (1, 10, etc).

As you can see, there is an image of each step on the machine sewing panel.

After marking I’m ready for fabric, which has HEAT N BOND LITE on it.

 Peel the paper away (of course) and lay down your fabric. The machine has stopped because you told it to (the HAND) before step 2 (tackdown).

 

Ready for satin stitch (step 3) so time to TRIM. Your machine has stopped since you programmed the hand = stop before the satin stitch.

 

 

 

 Time for that inner stitching which I’m doing in PINK. My machine will not stop after the satin stitch since I did not program in the HAND/STOP, but will keep going with the pink inner stitching. ***This is a wonderful feature of any multi needle machine! When doing an applique, once all fabric is down, you can program your machine with the thread colors and it doesn’t have to STOP for you to change colors! If this bunny had eyes and a nose, it would keep on sewing, changing needles/colors automatically!

 

Here is the finished BUNNY!

 I hope this helps! It really is EASY and once you get the hang of it you can program all this in a matter of a few minutes. There are other features of the machine, but I don’t want to get too confusing. For example, if you are in the middle of the design and decide you want to use a different color, you can either 1. STOP the machine and change out the thread color on the needle you’ve programmed or 2. use the MAGIC WAND to change needles/colors. I’ll save that for another post!

This is a follow up to these posts: Brother PR650 and Brother PR650II. All of these posts can be found under HELPFUL POSTS on my blog tool bar.

Brother PR650 II

Here is my first followup to my PR650 post. I did Applique Cafe samples Wednesday and took like 50+ pictures doing a 5 step logo and 2 simple applique designs. I’ll try to work on the applique post over the weekend and will also do one on the logo since it is a non-stopping embroidery design. I planned to do it yesterday but had carpool at 7:30, got my niece at 7:35, carpool again at 9:00, then recess duty (with Mallory and said niece) from 10-10:30, lunch and “killing-time” with those 2 til 12:30, carpool again, drop 2 friends’ kids off, carpool again to get G and his friend, then for the remainder of the afternoon I had 6 or so kids running around. Needless to say I needed almost had a glass of wine before Browder’s program at (church) school last night.

Here is a super fast post on changing thread colors on your PR650. If you have one, certainly you know this! But, if you don’t, you may wonder how long it will take you to change thread colors on this machine with all the guides and knobs all over the place. Here is a pic from my other post showing you the setup of the machine. There are lots of holes and guides to stick the thread through, but don’t fret… there is a shortcut to changing your thread colors.

 When you take the “old” thread off that you no longer wish to use, tear it (or cut it) right where it hits the spool. Next, put your “new” thread spool on the machine that you wish to use for your next project. Tie the old thread to the new. A simple knot will do!

 Now you just un-thread those needles (the ones you are changing thread colors on) and pull the old thread (from way down by the needle). Pulling the old thread will also pull and guide the new thread through all of the holes, around the tension knobs and guides, etc. since they are tied together.

The teeny knot will pull that new thread all the way through down to the needle (but not through the needle hole).

Don’t try to pull it through the needle hole. The knot, however tiny, is too big to go through that hole. Again, I UN-THREAD the needle before I start pulling.

This is when you press that NEEDLE SELECT button in the lower right corner of your screen.

 It will pull up this screen, which shows you your needles. The numbers are backwards because needle 1 is actually the far right thread on the top of your machine and the far right needle on your needle bar. If you are changing out the thread colors on needle 2 and 3 only, then just select 2 and your machine will move needle 2 to the center of the machine.

 This photo is blurry, but there is a guide (see next photo) that you wrap the thread around, and then you wrap the thread up and to the right around the white button with the curved arrow on it (below). This will also cut the excess thread off (including the previous color thread hanging down). You then press the THREAD NEEDLE BUTTON (see ABOVE photo) and it will thread your needle. Then you would select needle 3 and your machine will move needle 3 over making it the center needle. Same process ~ wrap the thread around the guide, then up and around the white button which will cut the excess thread off. Then press the thread needle button again.

You may see better the metal guide/clip to the left of the needle. You wrap the thread around it to the left, then up and around the white button.

 The automatic needle threader sweeps down, threads the needle and pulls the excess thread to the silver bar behind the needles.

 Here is another shot of 2 thread colors tied together. Red was the old thread and I’m changing it to yellow.

 I think I mentioned before that I typically KEEP black & white thread on my machine at all times. Since I’m right handed, I also use needles 1,2 and 3 the most. I don’t think I’ve ever done a design in which I needed more than 6 thread colors. If you needed to, you could change out the thread during the sewing process.

I don’t want to get too technical. This is just a quick shortcut in case any of you are thinking of getting this machine! I know when I first looked at it I was thinking it was going to take me all day just to change thread colors!

This also goes back to my other post regarding assigning thread colors to my machine. When I change my thread colors, I then “tell” my machine what colors are now on the machine. I had a couple of people comment that they do this differently, but this is how I was taught and seems the most logical to me, so I’m going to stick with it (because it’s also like 2nd nature to me now). There seem to be other shortcuts (magic wand) but this method makes the most sense. There is a video on Sewingmachine.com on assigning colors: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zElZLt2l3fU&feature=player_embedded. I believe it’s a PR620 so it’s not exactly like my machine and my screens. But, one blog reader said it helped.

I will work on the PR650 applique post this weekend!

Starting your own business?

I am working on a follow-up to the Brother PR-650 post I did the other day. I did 2 appliques today and took 50+ pictures along the way. Hopefully I can get that post up tomorrow, but in the meantime here is a guest post from Rock Bottom Tees! You can see my guest post on RBT HERE! Look for that PR650 applique post tomorrow ~ I hope to address many of the questions and comments from the last post.

Starting Your Own Part Time Applique Business

Are you considering turning your applique hobby into a part time business?  If you are, then you’re going to enjoy this YouTube video.  Whether you’re a stay at home or work at home parent who’s looking for a little extra income or whether you’re looking for a full time income, the applique business can represent an amazing opportunity.

However, as with any business the boutique clothing craft business does take time and effort.  But as you will see in this video, if you have resilience, resourcefulness, business savvy and balance, you’re poised to do great things in the boutique clothing craft and applique industries.

You can see the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fvi4G07t9ko&feature=youtu.be

Guest Author Summary

Rock Bottom T-Shirts is an online retailer that offers near wholesale priced stylish casual wear for the entire family.

As a thank you for watching this video, Rock Bottom T-Shirts has prepared a complimentary eReport for you entitled, “Seven Things to Know before Starting Your Etsy Craft Business“. Click on the link for more info!

Brother PR-650

I posted on Facebook a week or two ago asking for blog topic suggestions. Someone mentioned my PR-650 (or 6 needle “professional”) machine ~ an intro of sorts for any of you saving your pennies! I personally started with a Brother PE700 single needle machine, taught myself, and used it (and a 2nd machine ~ PE770D) for a good 3 years. I always said “I don’t want a big machine“. I certainly didn’t want one until I had my ‘dream’ sewing room. At the time I was in my dining room right in the middle of our foyer and den. Long story short I broke down and got a used PR600, and then soon after upgraded to a new PR-650 (August 2010). Yes, it was in the middle of our dining room until we moved in to our new house this past July where I now have the sewing room that I’m forever trying to decorate…. I haven’t looked back and have loved every minute of using it! Now they have the PR1000 coveted 10 needle, but honestly I’ve never needed over 6 needles on a single applique. Not that a brand new 10 needle wouldn’t be nice, but I’m perfectly content with my PR650.

This is a very brief overview, as I only took pictures today while monogramming a simple hand towel for Sissy’s bathroom. I will try to work on an APPLIQUE post using the 6 needle soon. I recommend seeing a dealer or your local sewing/embroidery store ~ I got a demo and a short lesson before I bought mine. And, I’m posting about the Brother machine because that’s what I have! I’ve owned 4 Brother machines so that is all I know. Babylock is similar (BMP) and I’m sure there are other brands/machines out there!

First of all, you obviously have 6 needles on this machine = 6 spools of thread capability, so when you put your spools of thread on your machine, you  need to assign the colors of each thread to the respective needles. The anchor (see below) means that color is “set” on the needle. The machine will not allow you to anchor all needles ~ one is always left “free” and will be your default needle if you  happen to program in the wrong color, or if you don’t program in your colors at all. It will default to that needle. I usually keep white and black on my machine and one of those is that non-anchored default needle. A little confusing I know! I just chose the closest color from the 64 choices (color chart) below. You just have to remember which color you programmed, because when you load your design you’ll have to assign the right colors. I don’t know that all people assign colors each time they change out their thread, but I do (for each and every design). This tells my machine that light pink is on needle 1, taupe is on needle 2, red is on needle 3, etc. This might make a little more sense down below. (p.s. later you’ll see black thread is actually on my needle 5, but since that needle is not anchored it doesn’t really matter that it says blue.)

p.s. These screens are all touch screens, so you simply press the buttons on the screen and press the colors you want (the squares are really tiny too so it can be tricky). My used PR500 was NOT totally touch screen so you had to use the arrows to move around to the different colors, then SET.

Here is the HOME MENU below. I don’t use the machine fonts or motifs that often (the diamond font on occasion), so I basically use the lower right button which brings up any designs I’ve saved to my machine via my USB cable cord, which connects my computer to my machine. When I have a design on my computer (in Sew What Pro or Monogram Wizard Plus) I save to the E: drive which is my machine. It puts it “inside” that folder (the lower right folder). I only save designs ON my machine (machine memory button) if I’ve loaded a design but want to wait until the next day to sew it. In that case I might save it to my machine memory and would then press that lower left button to retrieve it. You can also use a thumb drive but I use the USB cable cord connection.

Bottom of the picture – you can see the button you press for all machine settings – looks like a check sheet (this is where I assign colors to my needles). Other settings (and there are 5 “pages” of settings): chose background color of your screen (mine is white), screen saver time, lights – off/on, etc. (like I said, 5 pages of settings) This is also where you can see what your machine time is ~ hours of sewing time on your machine, total stitch count, etc. 99% of the time I ONLY click this button, go to page 3, assign my colors to my needles and that is IT.

Bottom right – needle selector. Press this and it will show you needles 1-6. You can move back & forth to whichever needle you need to (to thread each needle, etc). This is used when threading needles when you change thread colors.

So I’ve pushed the button to retrieve my file saved to the machine via my USB cord, and I’ll select the monogram file (Mallory’s initials) and press SET.

 The file (monogram) is ready to edit. I can adjust the SIZE (most machines will adjust 10-20% smaller or larger), ROTATE (90 degrees, 10 degrees, etc), MIRROR IMAGE (flip flop the design) and most importantly – COLOR! You also may notice ADD, DELETE ~ you can add in a design, etc. Since I do all of my “work” on my computer (Monogram Wizard Plus or Sew What Pro), I do not use this feature. The arrows on the right are used to move the design around, and I guess you’d use this if you merged in something else. I don’t use the arrows at this point.

 I’ve selected the COLOR button (looks like a spool of thread w/ the 4 color squares). Since this is a monogram it’s 1 color/1 step. If it were an applique, there would be a list of steps and colors to assign. I select pink – the SAME pink I assigned to my needle #1. Remember, if you select a different shade of pink, the machine will default to that unanchored needle, which is probably black or white on my machine. The good news is, your machine will warn you before you start that a color is assigned that is not assigned to a needle IF YOU PAY ATTENTION!! I have left the room and sewn the wrong color before! Again, if I were doing an applique, I would assign step 1, then press the “+” to go to the next step and assign the next color and so on and so forth. When you’re done press CLOSE.

** You might also notice the HAND button. This is used when doing applique ~ if you want your machine to stop before a step, then you press the HAND! I would program stops in between the steps so I’m able to lay my fabric down, trim my fabric, etc. If you don’t program any steps, the machine will NOT stop!

I hooped my towel and wanted to monogram upside down so the towel excess hangs to the front of the machine, so I rotated the design 90 degrees. (When the hooped towel is placed on my machine, it’s upside down, so I want to monogram it upside down.)

 When you are ready to sew you’ll see this screen. After all the editing you’ll press EDIT END. You can then move the needle around to line up with the center of your garment. You will also see below your needle is assigned to pink, needle 1. If this were an applique you would see a list of colors and steps! You can also see to the right my computer screen with the monogram on it in Monogram Wizard Plus. P.S. This is Master Circle MWP alpha pak 14 font – LOVE it!

I’m ready to sew, so I would then press the LOCK button to unlock the needles, then START on my machine!

Top of screen ~ the size of this monogram is 3.70″ x 3.70″ and you can see it shows you which hoops you can use. I’m using the 4×4, but you could use any of the bigger hoops too. The hoop looking button shows you what your design looks like IN THE HOOP ~ there is actually an image of the hoop and your design in it on the screen. The HOUSE is the HOME button!

 Here’s a shot of the thread ~ they are intricately run through all of the guides and tension knobs. When you change thread, an easy shortcut is to tear or cut the old thread off right at the spool, put the new spool on, tie the old & new thread (ends) together in a knot and then pull the thread through the guides/knobs and then rethread the needle. Pulling the old thread will pull the new thread through since they are tied together. Huge time saver! I’ll try to take a picture of that next time too.

Tension ~ there is an excellent video at www.sewingmachine.com on how to do a tension test, which is a feature of the machine. Once your tensions are right, there is no need to adjust them. I rarely ever fool with the tension knobs! The only maintenance I do on this part of the machine is the occasional cleaning and dusting ~ wax from the thread sometimes builds up on the guides (alcohol and a Qtip will clean them off – the guides are the silver sticks you see) and also dust can build up or get under the clips.

Any piece of lint can cause the machine to not work properly!! Your machine might stitch a few stitches and then STOP and tell you to check your upper thread and bobbin thread. It’s important to keep the machine clean and dusted.

Now… I’ve sewn my towel and this is the finished product! I used iron on tearaway stabilizer on the back and solvy on top!

My FAVORITE thing about this machine is that it clips jump stitches UNDERNEATH the item! A major time saver!!

 This was a very basic overview of the machine! I’ll try to do an applique post on the 6 needle soon! There are other features of the machine that I simply don’t use or I forgot to cover. It’s a little different doing an applique too (mainly programming in ALL of the thread colors and programming in the stops so the machine will stop). I will work on that post soon! If you have any other questions, please comment and I’ll address them next time!

This all may seem confusing or complicated, but I promise it is super easy and once you get the hang of it you will wiz through all of the steps in lightening speed! I can now set it up for an applique with my eyes closed!

My “PROS” of this machine:

  • Of course, being able to use 6 needles and 6 thread colors at once! I remember changing thread on my single needle machine for every color of an applique. I could do it in my sleep, but having the option of 6 colors is great!
  • Clipping the jump stitches underneath! Huge time saver ~ sometimes small embroidery jobs (small names, etc) jump from one letter to the next w/out clipping, but for the most part you can do a monogram or a name or applique and not have to clip a single jump stitch!
  • Very low maintenance ~ other than keeping it dusted and clean, there is very little maintenance! If your tension is off, you simple adjust the knobs. If your tension is off on a single needle machine, it usually means a trip to the shop! On these machines you can usually make all adjustments yourself. It’s recommended you get your machine serviced every so many hours of sewing time.

Please email me with any questions or comments! BTW, this machine came from Sewingmachine.com! AND… if you know any short cuts that I am not aware of, please share! This is how I learned the machine so this is how I do things!

Sewing Room Update

Not a whole lot to report. I DID go to the fabric store today (Montgomery is seriously lacking in this department). I also DID find the below fabric (from my dream) after someone told me they had it at the fabric store I usually have to go to because it’s all we got!! (OK, it’s King Cotton). But, I’m afraid the green didn’t jive so much with my green desks (I took a green knob with me). I spent a good 45 minutes milling around looking at fabric and left without a single sample to bring home. Greens are hard!

 So…. I’m back to this fabric, so I decided to “pin” it up above the window with 2 thumb tacks to see if some type of valance might work for the 2 windows and add some somethin’ somethin’ to this room. This wall is pretty small, so I’m thinking curtains might be too much and too bulky. They would have to be very thin panels if I went the curtain route. So, I am going to look at this for a day or two (or a week) and then go from there. I am still considering painting the room. With that being said, this room is pretty small so I’m afraid to do anything crazy! Plus, this is the room to the right as you walk in our front door. I don’t want anything too nuts. I’m leaning towards a creamy or natural color paint color ~ something with just enough color to offset the white trim and enough to make the creamy-white Expedit stand out. Maybe something along the lines of the natural basket color was suggested. The background of this fabric is actually a little creamy so I think it would work! Browder’s room is painted Elephant Tusk so I might even try some on one of the walls. The jury is still out on that!

Here is a current view of this wall. If I do the valances hopefully the TV can come out from the wall/corner a tad!

 I have to say I’m feeling the guilt after stating that I threw my applique samples away after new designs are listed. I USED to keep them, and then found that I had 2 drawers full of pieces of stabilizer with designs on them that I never looked at or used. I’m thinking of what else I can do with them!

I have also been feeling guilty that a year ago, all I wanted to do was sell our house so I could have a sewing room. We sold our house and moved (twice) and I have my sewing room, and all I do is sit around whining about how it’s not decorated the way I want it to be!! I BLAME PINTEREST!

On another subject I finished Catching Fire last night, which is book 2 of the Hunger Games trilogy. I have not bought book 3 yet, Mockingjay I think?, but plan to do so this week! Can’t wait for the movie to come out!!

Thank you again for all the great suggestions and comments that came in! They are all still stored in the back of my head!

Thank You!!

Thanks for all of the comments and emails and suggestions as to my Sewing Room! I got tons of great suggestions, most of which said to get out the paint brush! I’ve just removed the “junk” (camera bags, piled up artwork, kids games, etc.) from the top of my Expedit and in some of the cubbies. I was thinking step 1 might be to hide said junk and maybe that might help. Step 2 is going to be to visit the fabric store next week and rule out any other fabric. I LOVE the fabric I got and posted, but I honestly didn’t look much so I’d like to make sure there is nothing else out there that might not limit me to yellow and blue.

Here are some of my favorite Pinterest pins ~ sewing/craft rooms and all have the Expedit. These are all from my Sewing Room Ideas Board on Pinterest.

Black/brown Expedit ~ I’m not 100% sure what black-brown looks like in person, but I like it in this room! It looks good with the green (my desks?).  I also noticed the ribbon and tags (??) tied on the baskets. Someone suggested that!

 Again, green, black & white – colors similar to my room. p.s. my floors are a khaki carpet.

These walls appear to be white or a very light gray?? I like the decor up top – this is what made me clean off the JUNK! I like the baskets and lighting and pictures on top!

 OK… last night we took my mom to eat Mexican (surprise surprise) for her birthday and I drank 2 glasses of (caffeinated) sweet tea. After that we enjoyed some Nancy’s Italian Ice for dessert (side note: if you click on the Nancy’s link, that’s my Browder front & center – the top half of his face anyway, and those are his friends). We were home and in bed by 9:00, and I was comfy in my bed all night with my eyes closed most of the night, but I think I may have slept an hour or two. It was one of those nights where I looked at the clock and it was 10:00, 10:45, 11:30, 1:00, etc. all night long. I drove Browder to school at 7:00 and didn’t think I was going to make it home. I had 2 hot flashes and felt like I was going to puke!! After I got home and showered I was fine!? ANYWAY….. in my delusional half awake sleep I dreamed of the below picture. I decided I was going to find this or a similar fabric and I was going to paint my sewing room a lighter gray (someone on Pinterest also suggested this). Problem solved!! I had figured it out!! This is partially why I’m going to look at fabric one last time next week before I make any decisions, due to my dreams!!

I think everything lies in the fabric, so next week I’ll go check out my other options! Several people mentioned curtains. The room (or the wall w/ the windows) is really too small for curtains, but valances might be an option! Thanks again for everyone’s input! I really really appreciate it! Have a great weekend and I’ll update asap!

Samples and Fabric…

First of all, I think most of you know I do my own samples. I typically test the 5×7 design in PES format. This is to make sure all of the steps are right, in the right order, the design is laid out efficiently (can I cut out any unnecessary steps?), etc. I have, in the past, subbed out my sampling. Now that I’m not so busy with customer work, I usually just do them myself so I can guarantee the steps are right and that I get the fabrics I want and a good web photo.

Every now & then I get an email from a customer saying they are sewing a design and the stitches aren’t lining up. I had a girl ask me this week if the design she was sewing had been tested. They are, of course, and they are also sold to hundreds of people! I usually resend the design and that fixes the problem. Since these are digital files which are emailed and downloaded and sent here & there, anything can go wrong! Any little thing can corrupt your file or make it not sew correctly. It doesn’t happen often, but if it happens to you (my design or anyone else’s), simply request that the design be resent and try that! 99.9% of the time that works.

Anyway, I usually sample mine on 2 layers of cutaway stabilizer if I don’t have a blank t-shirt. I try to take my web photos outside on a sunny day. When the designs are listed these usually go in the trash! I thought I’d take a picture of these today before I dumped them. These 5 designs were listed yesterday BTW!

 Every now & then I get a surprise UPS package from TJ’s Fabric in Opp, AL. Today was one of those lucky days!! Is this not a picture of beauty?? By next blog post I will try to photograph and share some of my favorites! P.S. If you go to LINKS on my blog, you’ll see a list of fabric websites ~ TJ’s is #1. I hope to get by there again this year when we go to the beach! I assure you it is fabric heaven! You can see more photos of TJ’s in this post!

 I know you are SOOOO SICKKKKKK of hearing about my stinkin’ sewing room. I am sick of it too! I wish I could just snap my fingers and it be Pinterest-picture-perfect!! I keep going back to Pinterest, and back to Pinterest, and back to Pinterest. Just trying to figure out what I can do to this sewing room/office to make me walk in it and SMILE!! ;) I’m happy with the green desks, matching bulletin boards, new black chairs ~ basically 1/2 of the room. What I am buggin’ about is the white Expedit on the white walls (I think?). I keep wondering if I should paint the walls. I think that might be cheaper than buying a black/brown Expedit?? Below is the fabric that I ordered. I’m not sure if it is too busy to recover the chairs in. Or find something that compliments this and recover the chairs?

 Do I chose a color and paint my walls?? A pretty yellow?? The room is not that big. I like the blue too but that might be too much. If I don’t use this fabric on the chairs, then what do I do with it? There are 2 windows, both with plantation shudders. Simple valances? Ironing board cover?

 Anyone have any suggestions? Or just send Candice Olsen my way!! Please!! Someone!! Help!! :</ While I LOVE Pinterest, I get so frustrated with myself because I see what I like but don’t know how to achieve it! Arghhhhhh!!!! I won’t get started on the rest of the house! While the kitchen was completely renovated and I love it, we have done NOTHING since it was completed. It’s 2012 and time to get to work!!

Any ideas are appreciated! Here are a few pics of the rest of the sewing room…

To the right of my desk – the 2 windows. I have since hung a shelf, peg boards and my “Take Chances…” sign in between these 2 windows.

 The wall-o-desks. The left wall with the golf ball display is totally blank.

 The wall-o-Expedit. My thread is to the left of the Expedit, and the door is to the left of my thread.

 THANK IN ADVANCE!!