I have so much to learn when it comes to computers.  I am trying to upload pictures of my new Roush P-51 to facebook and it's not working out.  So let me see if I can post the pictures here.

For Friday, January 20, 2012

Cindy and I met for a back-to-back session today so we got a lot accomplished.  the dust ruffle has three long parts with finished edges.  Now all we need to do is gather from the top edge, one side the other on each part.  I suggested to Cindy the idea of gathering the fabric with a hand-held needle, because I think you get a better looking ruffle.  As long as your stitches are consistent, it is a quicker and easier way to do the task.  Right now I have a friend who is gathering fabric by hand for school-play costumes, so that just reinforces my advice.  I watched Cindy mitre the corners of each part.  She was really good at it so I commented "You'd make a great quilter!"  Her response was "I used to teach quilting once upon a time!"  So now I have all the more respect and awe for her work! 

I have some great news as of last evening. I will be able to teach a sewing class at "Close to Home" sewing center in Southington.  Hooray!  I brought in the skirt with pleats that was my test to see how well I can sew.  I could tell that Janet liked my work so when she started to look at dates for the class I was elated.  Now I have to make it "fly" as she said.  Yes, indeed.  At least 5-6 people  have to sign up in order to have the class.  Thank you for this opportunity, Janet!

Last Friday I met with my first sewing student, Cindy.  She has a new sewing machine to uncover and explore.  What?  It's a contemporary, silver, and almost all-metal Singer?  I've  heard of them but never saw one.  Cindy wants a machine that is very durable and equipped to handle sewing projects such as curtains, bed skirts, quilts, furniture restoration, etc. so she is on the right track.  First, I showed Cindy how to put the machine together and to thread the machine.  She is an excellent learner so far, so we just delved into a first project; a bed skirt.  We took another bed skirt that fit her queen-sized bed to use as a "pattern" for the new bed skirt (ruffle attached to sheet).  Our math skills came into play as we measured and doubled for the amount of material we needed; measure three sides of the bed and then doubled the number to find out how much fabric we needed to form the ruffle along three sides of the bed. We also planned extra inches for overlapped edges on two of the corners.  I advised Cindy to wash, dry, and iron her fabric before cutting and stitching anything.  This way the dust ruffle won't shrink when it's washed again and the fabric will be softer to work with.  We want it to be soft so that the gathers turn out as ruffles not pleats.  After an hour and a  half, we headed out the door to get sandwiches at a local restaurant.  It was a great learning time on Friday!

My first post

     Welcome to my blog!  Bien vienu a tous.  I hope to gain a lot of friends with my new mode  of communication.  I have my dear friend Elisa to thank for the inception of this blog; she can be found at the postpartumquilter.  Elisa is a fantastic friend, writer, seamstress and photographer among many other great things.  So, thank you, Elisa!

Thank you for tuning  in now and then to my blog.  Today I added a new sewing student to my list! She is starting next Friday between 10:00 - 11:30.  I decided that I can blog about my teaching experiences and give "Turret Tips" now and then.  So now you have a good reason to tune in!