Kindness Matters

April 25, 2016 ~ Pamela Klingensmith ~ Leave a comment

I must confess, my new fabric shop love is Shabby Fabrics

I’m a big fan of applique

but I’m not a big fan of cutting

Shabby Fabrics offers pre-fused and laser-cut kits:

you just peel the paper backing off those perfectly cut applique shapes,

place them on your background fabric,

give ’em a press with a medium iron

and your on your way to the sewing machine (or hand needle)

before you know it, your project is ready to quilt and bind

I chose to tackle this one completely with the sewing machine

the only hand stitching was to secure the binding on the back,

which is how I always stitch my binding

the pattern included the ‘kindness matters’ lettering to trace and stitch by hand

since this was my no-hand-stitching project,

I used embroidery software for the lettering and added the Bible scripture reference

then took it to my embroidery machine and stitched it out

thank you, Shabby Fabrics, for the great selection of beautiful fabrics, kits, and notions

and, I might add, for the speeeeedy shipping

my package is usually on my doorstep 2-3 days after I place my order

let me just add, hand stitching has a unique charm all it’s own

I’m a big fan of hand-sewn projects

I’ll be sharing some hand sewing in the future

what about you?

hand stitching vs. machine stitching

have an enjoyable last week of April, my friends

Serger Ruffled Pillow

April 7, 2016 ~ Pamela Klingensmith ~ Leave a comment

Hi sewing friends!

Here’s some serger sewing inspiration for you.

Tula Pink fabric and Anna Maria Horner ribbon

give a contemporary twist to a traditional style pillow.

All the sewing on this pillow was done with my serger

The project video is on Baby Lock’s Love of Sewing member site.

The fabric strips are ruffled using the serger ruffling foot,

then they are sewn down to the base fabric.

The edges of the ruffles are finished with a narrow rolled hem.

A zipper makes for easy washing and switching out of pillow covers.

The cording foot was perfect for a serger sewn zipper,

and binding clips are the perfect substitute to use in place of pins.

Sergers and pins don’t play nice together!

The back side is the perfect canvas to showcase that awesome #tulapink fabric

The only change I made to the pattern was the addition of Spanish hemstitching

to attach the ribbon between the fabric panels.

To do that, I used my Bernina Spanish Hemstitch accessory.

All in all, this was a quick project and it yielded really professional results.

Gotta love those sergers.

🙂

Personalized RTW Apron

March 2, 2016 ~ Pamela Klingensmith ~ Leave a comment

Happy March, my sewing friends!

I wanted a new apron to wear as I’m in the kitchen

preparing Easter dinner

so . . .

rather than sewing an apron,

I chose to embroider a ready-to-wear apron

The machine embroidered designs are part of a design collection from OESD:

Retro Mod Kitchen Appliques

if you plan to embroider a RTW apron like this one (part of a 3-pack from Sam’s Club)

remove the stitches from both outer sides and bottom pockets only

the pockets are much easier to stitch back on if you leave the center pocket seam in place

I used some hearts included with the collection and

strategically placed them around my monogram

for the embroidery on the bib of the apron

the monogram lettering is a font from my computer – Juice ITC

I added two rows of ruffles to the bottom of the apron using the ruffle foot

here’s a short video to show you how I did that:

after sewing on the ruffles,

I added a row of topstitching to hold those “pleats” in place

okay, now to go put that new apron to use in the kitchen

my husband will thank me 😉

thank you for dropping in,

I *heart* visitors