So FINALLY we get to the Sheep in Sweaters Tote!  When I started the previous post, I discovered I’d never blogged about the turquoise tote, which is the forerunner and partner of this one!  I will say now that I have finished this post (Part 2), it is LONG–but I wanted to be sure you got ALL the good info. If you’re here for just the totebag part, skim the embroidery bits! Thanks for reading!

Those of you who get my newsletter (sign up in right sidebar on this blog or the bottom of all the other website pages–if you prefer enter 12345 as your zip code when it asks) or follow me on social media (@sarahannsmithq and @sarahannsmithartist on FB and @sarahannsmithdesigns on IG), may remember that in 2022, older son Joshua, daughter-in-love Ashley and I spent two weeks in Scotland.  While there Ashley spotted a hilarious totebag with this illustration.  It was a soft, squishy tote, but inexpensive so I bought it and vowed I would convert it into a bag I LOVE!

I forgot to take a photo before I picked out the side seams, but you can tell it is pretty supple.  Great for packing flat into a suitcase, but collapses and not so comfy when full.  In a minor miracle, it has only taken about a year to re-make it.  In the last post, I mentioned that I really like bags that stand up on their own, and that I wanted at least one pocket large enough to hold a knitting pattern in a page protector and/or an iPad.   FYI:  links to supplies / info on products is at the VERY end of this post.

The overall size of this tote was determined by the size of the image in the photo above and the width of the fabric I purchased to go with the colors of the illustration.  At Fiddlehead Artisan Supply (online shop, but if you EVER get anywhere near Belfast, Maine, you MUST go–quilting and garment fabric, books, art supplies galore, craft supplies…. LOVE), I found a Rifle Paper Company fabric with just the right colors.  Since it was about 43-44″ wide, that determined the circumference of the bag (didn’t want to buy a whole extra 27 inches to get just a short side panel!).  As with the turquoise onions tote, I quilted the fabric first, using cream thread and going around the motifs in the print.

I DO recommend clearing the area of stray stuff, like paper….that you really didn’t intend to quilt into the bag.  Ahem. Another truth-in-teaching moment……

At least you can see the lovely quilting pattern?

This year, as a Janome Artisan, I am one of the very few who was unbelievably fortunate to receive the new, top-of-the-line Janome sewing, quilting and embroidery machine, the M17 Continental.  I was determined to overcome my trepidation and learn machine embroidery.  OMG–yes I am affiliated but I’d say it anyway–the fact that I could get this outstanding a result on literally my first attempt says a lot of very good things about the machine and software as my skill level was way low (but I’m learning!).  I purchased an 18-color-change Tula Pink design from the Moon Glow collection at OESD.  I adjusted the colors very slightly (my blues are darker) due to the bazillion threads I already have and to better blend with the fabric colors.

The Janome software now works with both Apple and pc-based platforms.  You can use the Janome software to digitize your own designs and such on the computer, buy designs etc., then air-drop / send by wifi to your tablet AND to the SEWING MACHINE!  No thumb drives!  No compatibility hassles!  Just boom–you input your WiFi info into the sewing machine, and it talks to your iPad, which you can carry around the house with you as the design stitches!   There are also several free Janome apps for sketching, monitoring, accessing manuals and other helpful info.  Anyway…. here’s the screen

From top to bottom you can see

• the recommended hoop size for the design
• the proper embroidery foot
• the dimensions of the design ( I think you can also change the settings so it displays in inches, not cm, but that may be a function of the design)
• that tension is adjusted to manual
• automatic cutting is on
• speed of stitching is set to 600 stitches per minute (you get tension issues sometimes if you go too fast depending on the design)
• minutes remaining until stitching is complete
• Below the image, you see how many stitches have been sewn out of the total of 38,665 stitches.   The + and – sign are helpful–if the thread breaks or bobbin thread runs out, you can back up a few stitches so there aren’t any gaps in stitching!
• To the right of that section, are the thread color (sequenced) and the thread color number if you are using a color supported in the software.  It is displaying the Janome thread colors but also supports major embroidery thread brands (but not alas the Superior Threads trilobal poly of which I have hundreds of colors, so I just winged it and chose colors, marking out which color corresponded)
• A progress bar for stitching is below that.
• In the very bottom you can see a square with arrows–that is to baste near the outside of the hoop to secure the stabilizer and fabric before stitching, and the brown box with a needle pointed at an X is to help you precisely position the design within the hoop.

Yes, as a total newbie to embroidery, I had to learn what all those things were, how to adjust this and that, but the fact that *I* could do it successfully on my first outing is a testament to good planning and design on Janome’s part.  Here are some photos from the embroidery process:

First, the design stitches a grid in a thread color to match the background fabric.  I am assuming this is to stabilize the fabric and prevent directional distortion from the way the stitches are programmed.   The first two layers were the dark gray, which is a pebble texture, then the darker blue in an extra long satin stitch that looks oh so lovely when all is done.

A lot of the stitching is now complete.  Having offset, duckbilled scissors (these were a gift from my dear friend Marie Z) helps a LOT when trimming threads close to the surface while still in the hoop).

The design is now completely stitched out and I am releasing the hoop from the carriage (on the left).

This is the back of the design… which frankly I think looks pretty good.  I used a soft shot-cotton plus one layer of sturdy stabilizer. I was a little concerned at some buckling despite hooping very snugly, but it pressed flat very nicely.  However, on a design as large as this one, about 4×5 inches, I might add a second layer of stabilizer next time.  I used the triple-stretch stitch to decorate the rest of the pocket background–this is a common utility stitch on many machines.

Next was assemble the parts.  In the photo above, you can see that I used a strip of print fabric cut 1″ wide, with edges folded to the center, to appliqué the Tula pocket (and also the front of the original totebag to the front of the bag).  The Tula Moon Garden Flower 3 (link at the end) embroidered pocket is on the side that faces my body…sized to hold my cell phone and safe from pickpockets by being on the inside.  I like the idea of a wipe-clean base for my bags–there is a lot of scuzzy, icky stuff out in the world.  AND by having something sturdy cover the bottom 1/2-1″ of the sides, it protects the corners from wearing out.  I used cork fabric from FabricFunhouse (a wholesaler, but they also sell retail–click on the link in the name).  The inside pockets were sewn on first (see photo below).  There is a single patch pocket behind the sheep-in-sweaters that is slightly narrower, so the stitching doesn’t show on the outside.  On the other part of the interior, I used leftover canvas from the original bag and the pretty selvage as a trim.  You can see my chalk-,asked guidelines.

It was on the printed pocket that I had my brainstorm!  I wanted the pocket to stand up and not flop, but if I had used the Soft And Stable all the way to the edges of the pocket it would have been way too thick and lumpy and hard to sew.  SO!  I cut the Soft and Stable about 2″ narrower than the full width of the pocket!  That meant I would have just the fabric on the edges, allowing me to sew the pocket in place, making a little pleat on either side.  Easier to sew and lets me slide my iPad inside without bulging. Mo’ bettah! (see second photo)

Here’s that side of the bag after it was completed:

Then I added the outside pockets.  The Tula flower pocket was sewn on so that the stitching created divisions in the interior pocket.  Here’s what it looked like when done.

Once the pockets were sewn it was time to add the cork on the outside/base and close up the bottom.

All these layers on the bottom made an extremely thick base, but a good sturdy machine like the HD9 from Janome (does only straight stitch, reasonably priced) or models like the 6600, M7 and so on, are all plenty strong enough.  See some caveats below though for safe sewing!

When sewing on cork, use a longer stitch. If you use a short stitch, it can perforate the fabric and it will tear like paper in a spiral notebook!  I think I used 3.5 length.  Notice that the right side of the Acufeed (Janome’s integrated dual-feed “walking” foot) is just OFF the cork.  I am using the inside edge of the foot and the precise positioning possible by moving the needle to one of the 19 positions to get perfect stitching alignment along the edge of the cork.

Once the cork is applied, I folded the bag so the vertical seam was in a corner. Boxing the corners is a bit of a heart-stopping effort for me.  I folded the corners to “box” it, making sure everything was squared up correctly.  That is a crazy thick amount of fabric on those corner triangles:   two of lining, two of the Soft and Stable, two of the linen-cotton light-canvas print, two of cork).

Here I am starting to sew from the outside edge to the center at the corner with the vertical seam (which extends to the center of the bottom of the bag).  I like to put something like a needle case or folded fabric about where my finger is pointing to get over the thick hump.  Clover Wonder Clips hold things way better than pins and don’t bend and distort.   I work from the outside to the center on each side of each triangle to avoid having to sew through the impossibly thick center seam.  Just sew up to the seam, HAND WALKING THE NEEDLE as you approach the center seam.  The machine is plenty strong enough to send the needle through, but needles are actually flexible and can BEND and “deflect” (get pushed sideways) just going through all those layers.  If that happens, then they hit the throat plate, break, yada yada–you don’t want that to happen!   So just hand walk those last stitches, then push reverse and hand walk going backwards.

PHEW… always exhale when this part is done.

A close up to show how snugly I have the foot up against the seam.  Gulp. Onward to finishing!

I trimmed away about 1/4″ of the carpet binding tape and put that raw edge next to the top of the bag on the inside and stitched it in place. I turned the tape to the outside and sewed it down using a cream colored thread which matched the zipper flaps.  But looked awful elsewhere.  Pitt Artist Pens (like Pigma but more colors–I get mine at Dick Blick online or at Fiddlehead) to the rescue!

Once again I used that carpet binding tape (think for rug hookers and such) as the straps.  I had the fun idea to use a strip of the print, just as I had used to appliqué the pockets in place, down the center of the handles, which otherwise were very brown and kinda overwhelmed the bag (no other color available at the time worked as well).  I LOVE the final look of them.  I stopped the strip up above the hardware to make it easier to sew.  In the photo above, I am using the other end of the handle to hold up the back of the presser foot and level it out, making it easier to sew to the very edges of the straps.  I used folded print fabric to make the tab that holds the hardware in place.  I could have sewn the straps directly to the bag, but if anything is going to wear out, it would be the handles.  This way I can replace the straps easily.  AND they hang down nice and flat by being attached with hardware instead of being sewn directly to the bag–that may not matter to you.  Do what works for you!

And Sorry this is SO LONG–want to get it all into ONE post.

You can see how I stitched the handle to the hardware, and the hardware to the cloth tab to the bag.  The cloth tab is partly hidden by the large outside pocket.  The top of the pocket gapped, so I used magnets again just at the center top of the bag.

For the closure I only had one yellow zipper and wanted to finish the bag in time for a trip, so instead of the double-zip I opted for this:

The ends, unlike the turquoise bag, are open.  I left the zipper tail LONG so that when full unzipped the flaps fold flat inside the bag and the tail hangs down out of the way (look at the pocket photos above).  I used a scrap of the cork to cover the end of the zipper.  Lesson:  it is good to have a stash of zippers on hand!  Time to order more from byAnnie— by the way Annie Unrein is one of my favorite people in the industry.  I love her patterns and the quality of the items she sells is top notch.

Final thoughts:  I still prefer the East-West orientation of the turquoise tote–the overall size and shape I like better.  But this tote size was dictated by the fabric and original tote, and it works also.  I LOVE the variation on the pockets on the sheep-in-sweaters totebag and will definitely use that un-padded edge trick again.  I prefer the two-zipper closing because …well… CATS chewing yarn is not fun.  Or healthy for them.  But for most folks the simple version I used on the sheep tote is just fine and dandy.

THANK YOU if you actually read all of this marathon of a post.  I hope you got some good ideas! If you design your own tote, do send me pictures!

SUPPLIES AND LINKS:

I used the following supplies–note, you can find hotlinks to some of these products on Amazon by going here:

• Fabric from Rifle Paper Company and purchased totebag
• Cork fabric for the base from Funhouse Fabrics
• byAnnie Soft and Stable for the “batting”–it is a foam with a peached (softly fuzzed) fabric that looks like nylon tricot but soft and grippy
• Polyester and cotton threads
• Carpet binding tape–I folded this in half, sewed at the edge and presto, nearly perfect handles that are soft, sturdy and comfortable.  Purchased at Fiddlehead Artisan Supply but not on their website alas.
• Bag rings/rectangles–I bought mine from byAnnie but Sallie Tomato also has a good selection
• Zippers from byAnnie –these zippers have wider tape and sturdy teeth that are perfect for bag-making
• Magnets from byAnnie
• OESD Tula Pink Moon Garden Flower 3
• Corrugated plastic:  looks like cardboard but made of plastic, available at art and/or craft stores.  Cut to size to make a base for the bag.  Cover in a tube of fabric or leave as is.  Fabric is nicer, but…..life happens and sometimes that tube happens later!  Makes a fairly sturdy base, inexpensive, easily found.  You could also use cardboard or mat board, but they are more likely to bend eventually.

Confession:  I love boxes, bags, baskets….   the more, the merrier.  I still wonder what happened to that plaid and a little bit of leather bag I had when I was six!  And I love having my bags work for me, offering the perfect combination of color, print and cloth, and function.

Over the years I have learned that I HATE rummaging around in the pitch dark bottom of a deep bag.  I think of those as North-South bags, taller than they are wide.  I vastly prefer East-West–where I can actually FIND stuff inside.  It also means black and other dark linings are a big Nope.  I also like a bag that stands up on its own–no having to fight collapsing sides!

When in England in 2014 on a once-in-a-lifetime trip with younger son Eli, then 16, we stopped at a grocery store.  The store-brand totes were fun, sturdy, not bulky to pack, and inexpensive so I bought one for grocery shopping on the trip (he learned about frugal AND the occasional splurge method of travel, where I alternate thrifty lodgings and take-and-make meals with comfy hotels with hearty breakfasts).  That is the Waitrose tote bag you see in the photo above.  Once we got home, I decided it was just about the PERFECT shape:  wide, not too deep, a sturdy removable base so I can wash the bag but have structure to hold the stuff in it.  The Waitrose bag collapses though, so I vowed to make one that checked off my must-have items:

• sturdy base
• stands up by itself
• comfortable handles
• pockets, inside and out, including one large enough for knitting pattern, magazine or ipad
• washable
• base that is easily spot cleaned and more durable than woven fabric (I made an all cotton tote once, spent eons quilting it beautifully, and then the corners wore out in nothing flat and spill out white batting… BUMMERS)

Fast forward eight (OMG…gulp) years and I finally made the Turquoise Onion Tote.  Why turquoise onion?  Those round circles on the fabric were made from printing with an onion!  By late 2022, COVID had happened, things were starting to open up, and I wanted to pitch my ideas to fabric companies (alas that didn’t succeed, at least not at this point and likely not ever), so I printed some of my own designs at Spoonflower and made the turquoise and lime bag to carry and show off my fabric while meeting with company reps at Quilt Market.  The tote is pretty close to PERFECT. Alas, I apparently did not blog about it, just the ever-vanishing social media posts.  That means this post just turned into two parts, this one about the turquoise and the next about the sheep in sweaters!

The turquoise bag is the same width as the Waitrose bag, but not quite as tall.  It has two flat outer pockets of different sizes (for readily grabbing the cell phone or business cards), assorted interior pockets, a removable base, and a zippered top that completely encases the contents, meaning cats and puppies cannot access and chew a knitting project inside of it!

I used the following supplies–note, you can find hotlines to some of these products on Amazon by going here:

• Fabric from Spoonflower (my designs, not currently available but maybe someday) and commercial fabric
• Synthetic suede for the base
• byAnnie Soft and Stable for the “batting”–it is a foam with a peached (softly fuzzed) fabric that looks like nylon tricot but soft and grippy
• Polyester and cotton threads
• Carpet binding tape–I folded this in half, sewed at the edge and presto, nearly perfect handles that are soft, sturdy and comfortable
• Bag rings/rectangles–I bought mine from byAnnie but Sallie Tomato also has a good selection
• Zippers from byAnnie –these zippers have wider tape and sturdy teeth that are perfect for bag-making
• Magnets from byAnnie
• Corrugated plastic:  looks like cardboard but made of plastic, available at art and/or craft stores.  Cut to size to make a base for the bag.  Cover in a tube of fabric or leave as is.  Fabric is nicer, but…..life happens and sometimes that tube happens later!  Makes a fairly sturdy base, inexpensive, easily found.  You could also use cardboard or mat board, but they are more likely to bend eventually.

I started by measuring my desired size. I quilted the main body (and base) of the bag–the linen blend with the onion print (darker turquoise) is an extra wide fabric, which meant I needed only one vertical seam which I placed on the corner.

Left photo, above: I made and placed the pockets on the outside and stitched them in place first. Then I put the plaid inner pockets inside and created separate pockets avoiding sewing through the outer pockets.
Top right, above: I used my AcuFeed zipper foot for edge stitching
Bottom right, above: boxing the corner: after sewing up the vertical side seam, I sewed the bottom edge together, then boxed the corners making sure to get the seam exactly in the center (which gets you perfect 90 degree corners).

I made the top zipper panel so that three sides would be sewn to the top of the bag and subsequently covered by the synthetic suede (purchased EONS ago and wish I could find a source for fun colored ultra suede now!).  The curved end will wrap up over the end of the bag and hold together with magnets sewn to the under side of the rounded end and the inside of the bag.

There was a lot of sewing, and some ripping out, to get it all together.  Glue stick and WonderClips are my friends!  The UHU brand glue stick (link will be on store page soon) is archival, acid free, and washes out.  Makes life SO MUCH EASIER.  Top right photo shows sewing the narrow side strips of the zipper panel to the bag.  Bottom right shows that I zigzagged over the raw edges to compress the foam (USE a WALKING FOOT or AcuFeed in my case) before adding the binding.

Oh UHU, how do I love thee, let me count the ways!

A large close up of sewing the synthetic suede binding to cover the raw edges. More durable than cotton!  Getting the edges on top and underneath lined up perfectly is a tad fiddly–using the UHU glue really helps.  And that deckle edge is from a Fishers scrapbookers blade that fits in my Olfa cutter.  Sometimes these blades are hard to find and stupid expensive… straight or pinking blade also work well.

Close up of the bag top.  I used ribbon to create a handle to pull both zippers open at the same time.  The center flap tucks nicely into the end of the bag if you want to leave it open.  On the left you can see the magnets (still in plastic) as I was testing to see if they are strong enough to hold through all the thicknesses: they are!  I used small squares of scraps to create an appliquéd shape under the round tab and on the corresponding spot on the side end of the bag.  I sewed three sides, slipped the magnets in—with the correct orientation to grab and not repel the other magnet!–and sewed them shut. I’ve used this bag a ton in the past year and it is still working brilliantly.

And the zipper pull in action.

Here’s the piece of corrugated plastic I cut–note the rounded corners.  I got the idea from Joan Hawley of Lazy Girl Designs who used to (maybe still does?) manufacture plexiglass bases for her bag patterns.  But those are expensive, getting one custom made even more so, and hard to find.  I made a tube that is about 1″ too long out of the pink fabric, then tuck the open ends over the short end of the plastic to enclose it.  Below:  tucks right into the bottom of the bag!

AND that brings us to the new “Sheep in Sweaters” tote bag!   Come back in a day or two for Part 2!

First, hi everyone and welcome to new readers!  I’ve actually been piecing…set-in circles no less!   Above is the 74″ square top.  Each block will finish at 12 1/2 inches.  I used Latifah Safari’s 12″ Clammy to cut the circles, half circles and the corner quarter squares.  Her instructions have you cut the outside from a single piece of cloth, but in addition to wanting to mix up the colors I felt that used too much yardage.  I do have a nice stack of the background fabric “pumpkin seeds” from the leftovers to use in something, though!    Need a title…not Crop Circles! Going in Circles?  Nah… maybe Hither and Yon? My newsletters readers have come up with a few really good ideas… I’m narrowing in on a title but Help me here! Suggestions welcome! And if you’d like to get my newsletter, look in the menu bar on the right of the blog page (or at the bottom of any other page on this site) to sign up.  If you live outside the US or prefer privacy, when it asks for a zip code just type in 12345 as a place holder–it works.

#latfahsaafir ‘s clammy and some grip tape made cutting the circles easy peasy!

I love many modern quilts because of the large scale of the blocks (for a graphic impact rather than ease of construction, though that is a bonus too), the room for quilting and/or the use of straight line quilting, the color and, frankly, for a change of pace.  I’ve also fallen for Latifah Saafir’s Clammy and Muffin Top quilts so I bought both the 8″ and 12″ templates.  What I didn’t realize is how incredibly versatile her templates are, allowing you to make clamshells, half circles, muffin tops (about a generous 1/3 of a circle), quarter circles, background pieces, pumpkin seeds (that elongated football shape you see in the top right, and all the really useful markings to cut on the fold, add seam allowances and what not. In going to collect the hotlink for you, I noticed she has bundles that save on cost and also some seconds that are less expensive.

You can see that I used highlighter tape to mark where I needed to cut for my background.  Her instructions have you cut a square, then cut from the square for the clamshell or circle.  That gave me more odd leftovers than I wanted, so I cut the circle from the edge of my fabric and then cut four corners so I could mix up the background as well as save on scraps.  Still, I’ve got a use for the leftovers….stay tuned (probably in a year LOL).

A longarmer recommended the Gator Grip tape to me; got it on Amazon to use for ruler-work machine quilting rulers, but it works for cutting rulers too.  I found that I wasn’t able to hold the template without making it slip sometimes, so I cut four small squares of the grip tape.  You can’t even hardly see it in this photo.  See the next one for a close up.  I LOVE THIS on the templates! You can still see the lines on the mat beneath the clear grip tape.  It works better than the sandpaper dots and other products I’ve tried, and a roll of this stuff will last forever.

The scissors are pointing to the 1/2″ square of grip tape on the under side of the ruler. You can even (slightly) see the markings on the cutting mat through the tape! Also notice the helpful makings on the ruler for various extra ways to use the template for cutting things other than a clamshell.

Cutting and Precision

Let me just say “perfectly precise” are two words that have never been used to describe my work.  But I am trying and learning.  An online master class in International Quilt Festival’s Virtual Festival  (it was in either December 2020 or 2021) with Philippa Naylor showed me I really COULD be precise if I tried. First, slow down.  Second, cut as carefully and precisely as you can.  If the pieces aren’t exact, then nothing else will be!

Pressing is also super important.  To avoid tucks when pressing seams to one side, use the tip (or toe if in the UK) of the iron, NOT the side of the iron. Astonishingly, it really is more precise at getting the entire fabric pushed away from the seam without an inadvertent little fold or tuck.  Sometimes, though, it is better to press seams open, and that takes a bit of learning when and how.  I’ve taken Philippa’s online Garment Makers’ Question Time workshop, and think in a year or so (if/when I get caught up on everything else) I may take her Quilters Question Time, even with as many years of quilting as I have–egads coming up on 33+ years!

It’s amazing how nice and a FLAT I got the blocks–precise cutting, careful sewing, smart ironing for the win!

Use the tip/toe of the iron to press seam allowance–here the allowance is under the green fabric.

• Stitched blocks front and back.  I used my alphabet and number pins to keep track of column and row.  I placed a pink pin (Taylor Seville’s Magic Pins…the pink are the LONG ones) in the top left background quarter to help me keep track of placement.  The letter/number pins are pinned vertically with the flower toward the top of the block, also to help me remember which way is up. Pressing:  the background sections are pressed open.  The stripe inserts are pressed under the strip.  The background goes under the circle.

• 

  Front and back of the blocks. Although the cross-cut on the circles creates thicker bumps, I opted to press under the circle to “raise” it above the background. Here you can see the top and the under side of two blocks.

• I used a Sharpie to mark A,B,C etc. on some flower head pins, and 1-12 on even more.  Each row is A, B, C etc., then each block going across is 1, 2, 3 etc.

• 

  My DIY numbered pins help me keep track of what goes where–and a photo on the phone is a MUST!

•   Fold the circle in half exactly and press a crease on the edges.  Open it back up.

• 

  Fold circle in half. I am careful to align the strip so it folds directly on top of itself.

• Turn the circle 90 degrees, fold in half the other way aligning the first pair of crease marks, then iron in the second set of creases at the fold.  At first I just quartered the circle and pressed, but I got more accurate alignment after I tried marking the spots in two steps.

• 

  align the creases you made (above), bringing the top all the way down–it’s offset here to show you the crease marks on both edges.

• I pinned the background (sewn into a circle) to the center circle on the creases at the top, bottom and sides. In other words, the concave (innie) curve goes on top of the convex (outie) curve.  As I stitched I added a pin about  1 1/2″ before each of those pins–the fabric doesn’t ease in as well where the grain is closer to on-grain.  In the rest of the quarter circle arc, I use my fingers to ease in and hold the background in place.Being as accurate as you can at all steps helps!

• 

  This is a do what works best for you thing. I find that just a couple pins and using my fingers works better and more accurately (along with sewing reasonably slowly) than using a thousand pins.

In the studio I love my Zirkle magnetic pin minder, but this Clover magnetic pin “cushion” with a lid (that fits on the bottom when you don’t need the pins covered) is perfect for retreats and travel.

You can never have too many pins. For hand appliqué, you want them short so the thread doesn’t tangle. For machine piecing, I prefer really LONG so the head of the pin doesn’t get caught under the foot. ALWAYS pull the pin out before it reaches the needle–sometimes that maybe when it is one stitch away, but don’t sew over it. If you hit the pin you can knock the machine out of timing (expensive repair!).

My sets of homemade ABC and 123 pins are on the bottom, along with some of my Taylor Seville pins.  Taylor Seville reached out to me when I was teaching at a couple shows in the past year or so, and sent me some to try (I hadn’t used them before but now I do!) and more to share as classroom giveaways.  The pins come in different lengths and thicknesses.  The mint green ones are the shortest of the ones I have, the blue are a finer metal (makes pinning seam allowances open flatter and therefore sew up more accurately, but they bend more easily so choose your usages wisely), the pink are longer.  I prefer the longer as the grippy ends don’t get snugged under the presser foot.  Best of all, Taylor Seville is coming out with a BOX of ABC 123 pins with SLOTS for each one… no more pinning into cloth or having a muddled mess of pins….. I always figured why spend the $$$ when I could make my own cheaper, but that organizing box is Da Bomb!  Will be ordering as soon as they are available!  I saw maybe September 2023 for them…..

PERFECT intersections!  

Pinning is the key, with a big helping hand from seams pressed OPEN:

• first, put one pin through the Very Center of the seam of the pieces on the top,
• then poke that pin through the seam of the pieces on the bottom.

LEAVE the pin in the seam vertically–don’t bend it sideways or “pin the seam.”

• Place two more pins in the seam allowances on both sides of the seam.

The pin through the seam stays poking up!

• Slide the fabric under the presser foot and try to keep the vertical pin in place.

In the photos, below, you see that at a certain point you need to let the vertical pin pivot out of the way.  The photo on the right shows me holding the pin still IN the seam to keep it aligned until the very last moment.

Sew SLOWLY when you approach all those pins. The finer the pins (in this image I’m using glass-headed pins that have a thicker shaft -metal part). The thinner the shaft, the more flat the fabric remains and the easier it is to get a perfect match. The drawback to finer pins is they bend more easily. Do what works for you. For me, I’ll sacrifice a few pins (and use them bent for a long while too) to get flat and perfect and not have to rip out and re-do.

I counted up on the horizontal seams that joined the rows (see top photo) and counted about 50 intersections.  I only had to “fine tune” (i.e. fix) three, and even before fixing the perfect match was off by only a thread of two!  Since I am nowhere near a perfect or precision sewer, that is nearly a miracle!  I mean look at the next photo…SWOON!
Since I wrote my newsletter, I got the backing made from leftovers (hooray…about 2″ of stash used up…sigh…..).

I LOVE my long closet. When we moved in in 2011, this room was awful and unfinished. I had a carpenter make me sliding design-wall doors and I love them. They hide clutter (teaching stuff, storage for mixed media, paper, ribbons, etc., and all my quilts, rolled). Use the search box at right and enter “state of the studio” to see the transformation pictures.

And because we all need cute AND perfect intersections in our lives, I’ll close with Percy, who hopped up on the top the instant it was done to approve of the design!

#thetalesofpercivalwulfric

It’s time for some summer fun–in this case a lightweight summer jacket that has languished since last summer!  The pattern is the Moss Jacket from Helen’s Closet Patterns and the fabric is this one from Blackbird Fabrics in Canada.  I’ve ordered from Blackbird before and luckily had no issues with US customs.
I love a super light jacket–I don’t care for the feel of 99% of sunscreens, but I burn very quickly.  This type of garment is my solution.  When making a garment, the first thing I do is figure out my fabric layout.  Invariably, fabric is not any of the widths for which yardage is offered on the pattern envelope.  In this case, I think the fabric was 54″ wide, and pattern layouts were generated for the more widely available 44″ and 58-60″!  I bought three yards of the 54″ and figured it would be whatever length I could fit!

The Moss Jacket comes short (high-hip length) or tunic length, as seen here.  The collar can be fold-over, which I chose, or half that width and rests flat.

The first thing I did was to cut the fronts (at the top) and the back (with the white tissue folded back) so the horizontal bands in the plaid match perfectly.

When I cut plaids, I am meticulous about pinning the fabric so that it doesn’t wibble-wobble on the cross-grain… I pin through to make sure it is precisely lined up before placing and cutting my pattern pieces.

Here’s how I double check that the fabric lines up: pin it at the near edge, then fold back and see that the design matches. I like using pattern weights…this little pyramid is a small, rice-filled (I’d maybe use shotgun pellet next time) bag–my free pattern is here! You can find all sorts of goodies including this one on my Resources page (up at the header click on Resources).

My next task, supervised by Yoda, is to determine layout for pattern matching. You all know I LOVE a perfectly matched design! I had already cut the back and the fronts to match horizontally; the folded back is placed on the fabric above to determine where to cut the yoke so the center darker red vertical aligns perfectly.  I then fit the smaller bits in the leftover spaces.  Luckily, I was able to get the collar pieces to align perfectly, too.

This is how I slide the pins in on the edge of a line or motif.  I check both sides to make sure it is even.  In this photo, I am folding over the collar to prepare it to sew down the second side.

This sort of perfect matching makes me giddy–I LOVE watching this happen!

My favorite new presser foot from Janome is the bi-level foot. There is just a bit more room under the left side than the right side of the foot. So far this is giving me the best combination alignment and visibility for edge-stitching.

Here’s the foot in action–the right sides rides OFF the edge; the left side rides ON the fabric, then you set the stitching distance from the edge by adjusting your needle position. I understand that at least some other brands have similar feet. Also notice those pins holding the plaid in alignment.

And here are a few more photos of the finished garment on one of this summer’s rare lovely days:

I have several more clothes projects in the pile, so I’ll be back with more before winter hits!

Hard to believe the ninth and final lesson is here already!  Thank you for following along.  Links to all nine of the posts in this series are now listed at the bottom of each lesson and on my Resources page!  If you remember this down the line, the fastest way to find it is put “Plaid” in the search box at right on the blog OR look for a link to the Plaid Top Tutorials on my Resources page, here.

To recap, we have:

• Lesson 1:   Choosing a Pattern and Starting Tips
• Lesson 2:   Making a Muslin, Fitting and Sleeves
• Lesson 3:   Matching Plaids, Cutting out Your Garment Pieces
• Lesson 4:  Overcast Seams, just like Serged Seams
• Lesson 5:   French Seams
• Lesson 6:  Lapped and Flat-felled Seams
• Lesson 7:  Hong Kong Finish for Seams
• Lesson 8:  Lined Patch Pocket Tutorial
• and today’s Lesson 9:  Hems and Scarf

Please note:  I am affiliated with Janome as a Janome Artisan and am compensated.  However, my reviews are honest and I would say what I say whether affiliated or not.  I’ve also chosen to be affiliated with Janome since 2003 (!!!) because their machines are so good and they are so responsive to the interests and needs of their customers.

Hems!  We are nearing the finish!  For the side seams, I opted to use a flat felled seam on the body, but on the arms instead I sewed the seam, press toward the back and use the overcast edge from Lesson 4.  That means that when you fold the hem up, turn under the raw edge, you would have 3 thicknesses (outside plus two seams) times THREE all stacked up in a big wad.  Ick!  So you can, carefully, clip the seam allowance where the hem folds up and press the seam allowance on the turned-up hem portion the other way to distribute the bulk.

My thread matches so well it is challenging to see, but on the bottom the seam allowance is to the left of the seam and above the bottom edge/fold, the seam allowance is to the right of the seam. The arrow shows where I clipped the seam.  You will also need to finish the raw edge in some way–overcast, Hong Kong finish, hem tape, of just press under 1/4″ (for the quilters, think “like an appliqué”) as I did here.

If you have a free-arm sewing machine, you can choose to remove the extension table and run the sleeve or pants leg around the free-arm.  With a narrow sleeve or a child’s garment, though, that is tricky if not impossible. The old-school way is just as easy and works on everything:  you sew “inside the circle.”  That means just what it says.  You can turn the sleeve inside out and sew on the outside of the garment (if using a twin needle to get parallel stitching lines you’d do this) or, as I have done here, sew the hem on the inside.  I chose that option so I could keep my stitching on the hem (!) and at a consistent distance from the folded hem edge.

I use my various presser feet in many different ways.  The F2 is designed for appliqué and satin stitch, but with the bazillion needle positions and good visibility I use it for many other things. I like to place the folded edge of the hem just to the right of the left arm of the foot, which then acts as a seam guide.  I’ll position the needle so it drops into the hem about 1/8″ to the right.  Then just sew all the way around, overlapping by about 4 stitches.  You can knot and bury the threads or just trim the tails and live dangerously LOL! 

Maybe I shoulda bought a lottery ticket that day…

SCARF:

As luck would have it, I was able to lay out the pattern in a way that left me with a long strip about 12 inches wide.  Because I like the fringed selvage (the edge with the white line), I left that side as it was.  On the other side I straight-stitched a line 1/4″ from the long cut edge using a short stitch length.  Then I unraveled the lengthwise threads up to the straight stitch (which prevents it from unravelling further). I use a pin to tease the threads out and remove.

Then I overlapped the ends and ran two lines of stitching from edge to edge.  Sometimes an infinity scarf looks lovely if you put one twist in it lengthwise, but with the thickness of the flannel, I just kept mine flat. Then I fringed the edges of the seam, also.

Above you can see the overlapped seam and the side of the scarf with the nearly invisible “stop it from fraying more” line stitching. After washing, this frayed bit is likely to curl bit, but I’m fine with that.

And there you have it!  I hope you’ve enjoyed this series of lessons that can be applied to virtually any garment and many home dec projects.   Let me know what you’d like to learn and see here on the blog.  Cheers and thanks, Sarah

Lesson 1:   Choosing a Pattern and Starting Tips

Lesson 2:   Making a Muslin, Fitting and Sleeves

Lesson 3:   Matching Plaids, Cutting out Your Garment Pieces

Lesson 4:  Overcast Seams, just like Serged Seams

Lesson 5:   French Seams

Lesson 6:  Lapped and Flat-felled Seams

Lesson 7:  Hong Kong Finish for Seams

Lesson 8:  Lined Patch Pocket Tutorial

Lesson 9:  Hems and Scarf