Most of the sewing stuff I accomplished this month was more sewing adjacent than actually physically sewing. I did work on a few projects, but I spent a good amount of time mapping out clothing needs, making plans and working on some blog posts!
I had the opportunity to sit down with my girls to teach them some basic cross stitch and embroidery. The “opportunity” came about because we were without power for two days surrounding a tropical storm hitting our island. Our list of possible activities within the Venn diagram of “inside” and “without power” was pretty limited, but thankfully, I had all the stuff on hand for this.
I personally didn’t get any stitching in between threading needles and tying off ends. However, I’m going to call the activity a success since Wendy asked if there were embroidery classes she could take. Also the girls wiped me clean out of hoops and cross stitch fabric. So all in all, not a terrible way to spend a couple of afternoons.
I was able to work on, and refinish, these two ties for my nephew. If you recall from last month’s update, I finished five ties for my nephew, but two turned out so terribly that I would have been embarrassed to give them to him. No amount of pressing was making them lay flat.
I assumed the problem was that I had somehow accidentally cut the fabric off-grain. I unpicked the tie so that I could reuse the lining, but as I unpicked I could clearly see that the grain wasn’t the issue. The method I had used had bunched up too much fabric in too small of a space. So instead of recutting the fabric, I decided to reuse what was already cut, but this time using a different method of construction.
I used the more traditional method, which involves sewing the tips of the tie on a machine and the rest of the process is pressing and hand sewing and pressing some more. I am one of those weirdos who find hand sewing completely soothing and enjoyable, so I found the process delightful. I might be riding the high from all that hand sewing, but I’d say these ties turned out majorly better than any other tie I’ve sewn. I’m converted!
I don’t have a huge need for knowing the ins and outs of making a really great tie but I am still glad to have inadvertently gone through the scientific method to improve my skills. For anyone who cares, I also finally learned the proper term for the insides of ties: interlining! I kept googling “tie interfacing” and coming up empty handed. But searching for “necktie interlining” comes up with plenty of reasonable shopping options. Next time I sew a tie, I’d love to have some proper interlining rather than the muslin fabric I used here. And since we’re dreaming, might as well throw in twill tape for some proper tie keepers too!
Last week, I finally ordered fabric for a quilt for my (other) nephew who just got married. I spent entirely too much time debating on a pattern and color scheme, but finally just went for it. I looked at my local fabric store, but wasn’t feeling any of the options so I ended up buying from a shop on Etsy. I was shocked at how quickly my fabric came! So I was able to cut fabric and start on sewing over the weekend.
I was mildly terrified of the pattern I chose because it has curved pieces, which I’ve never done on a quilt before. Apparel sewing has me sewing pieces similar to this all the time though (i.e. sleeves!), so I was silly to be nervous. Since there is a timeline to be mindful of, I am trying to hurry. However, the pattern isn’t very complex, so I do think I’ll be able to finish on time.
In book news, when my sister visited earlier this month, she brought me paperback copies of The Housemaid series that’s been so popular lately. I hadn’t read them yet because it hasn’t been available on my Libby! I was especially happy to have them during the power outage so I could read without using up the battery on my phone. So far, I’ve read the first and second in the series. I enjoyed both, but I have to say that I’ve read at least 3 other books that had almost the exact same plot as The Housemaid (maybe I read too much of this genre ha!). I like the second one better. McFadden is very easy to read even if her novels aren’t very novel (sorry, I had to!).
Aside from the quilt I’ll be working on, I have a couple of clothing items I’m hoping to work on too. Thanks to the pregnancy, it’s been a hot minute since I’ve really spent much effort on sewing clothes, but I’m feeling myself get more excited and inspired. I’ve also been working on some blog posts that I’m hoping to post very soon. And I’m writing it here so that I hold myself accountable and actually finish and post them!
Thank for reading! Feel free to share any projects you worked on during the month!
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