Following up on our discussion of commercial sewing patterns last week I decided to contact the two major pattern companies, McCall's (Butterick, Vogue) and Simplicity (New Look, Burda Style) to see if I could hear about their patterns directly from one of their designers. Simplicity is clearly the more web savvy of the two, with…
Archives for January 2012
Review: Books by Charlene Phillips
When I began teaching people how to use their sewing machines I was nervous that I wouldn't know how particular machines worked. After all, I only know two machines very well: the Bernette 330 that I bought when I was 13 and had for 22 years, and my new Janome 2160. Fortunately I co-taught the…
Curious About Mainstream Sewing Patterns
In 2005 I bought Simplicity 5825, a sewing pattern for a teddy bear with variations to make a rabbit and a dog. The pattern cost $13.95. I remember picking it out at Joann's and bringing it home. I was curious about sewing toys and I wanted to sew a teddy bear. I remember the thrill…
New Shop Item: Hemostats
I am very excited to be able to begin selling some of my favorite softie-making tools in my shop on Etsy. Having the right tools for the job makes softie-making so much easier and less frustrating and my favorite tool of all time is my 5" curved hemostats. I use them every single day, so…
Custom Plush: From A Child’s Drawing
Update: I am now taking orders for custom toys from children’s drawings. You can find the listings right here! As part of my New Year’s goal to begin to make custom plush toys, I made this toy from one of Simon’s drawings. Simon is 5. All his friends are boys and when he draws, he…
Custom Plush: Logos
In an effort to build my custom plush portfolio (one of my New Year's goals) I tweeted a few weeks ago asking if anyone would like me to create a plush version of their logo. I heard back right away from Sarah Day whose blog is A Small Fox in a Big World. Sarah is…
forming a group of local women artisans
Last night the Wellesley Women Artisans got together to discuss our current work and brainstorm new directions. It was a wonderful experience and I thought I would share how we came to be in case you might be interested in bringing together women artisans where you live for a similar experience. Over the summer a…
sketching
It's raining and blustery in Wellesley today. I taught another session of Get To Know Your Sewing Machine this morning and now I'm home, sketching the project for chapter 13, while the baby naps. I hope this guy doesn't give me too much trouble.
Class Report: Get To Know Your Sewing Machine
Last week I taught a class entitled, "Get To Know Your Sewing Machine," at Sew Easy in Wellesley. Sew Easy has never had adult classes before, so this was an exciting first. The class was fully enrolled with eight women eager to learn to use their machines. One woman brought a Singer that has been…