Sew What?

This is one of the display boards from Leadership. The "fabrics" on the models are all Designer Series Papers (DSP) paper pieced to represent a dress pattern cover.

It reminded me so much of my heritage. I've seen LOTS of patterns over the years, and this display just hit home.

When I was a kid, my mom sewed most of my clothes. As a little girl, it thrilled me - and my mom was a great seamstress, so everything she made was well done...

As a pre-teen though, I hated that I didn't have many "store bought" clothes. So, I was ENCOURAGED to learn to sew for myself, OR, find a way to make money so I could buy my own clothes.

Of course, living out in the country as we did, meant finding a job wasn't easily accomplished.

So, I joined 4-H and learned how to sew. It took me a long time to get really good at it (isn't that true of most things?), but I eventually got to the point where I was capable of sewing clothes for both myself and my husband.

I'm talking the '70s when the disco look was in. Sheer fabrics for both men and women - which meant double felled seams, so that they'd last through more than one wearing.

I made him shirts and trousers. I made mix and match outfits of scooter skirts, blouses, and jackets for myself. And I really enjoyed doing it. I loved shopping for fabrics - I still enjoy looking at fabrics.

But somewhere along the way, sewing got left along the wayside. Something about trekking around the country for 6 months, having to find jobs to feed ourselves, getting divorced and finding the dating scene again, buying a house and having to put time, energy, and money towards something besides fabrics and sewing...

I still have my old sewing machine. I don't think it's seen the light of day in over thirty years. And, when my mom passed away, I brought her machine home with me.

Hers was so much newer than mine! It was probably a much better machine! And it hasn't seen the light of day since I brought it out from Pennsylvania over 10 years ago either.

Stampin' Up! has started featuring fabrics in our mini-catalogs. It's wonderful fabric!

It's made me yearn to do things with fabrics again. But these days, I'm using my Big Shot die cutting machine for them.

Did you know you can cut up to EIGHT layers of fabric at one time with our "Mr. Big"? It's true!

I've made quite a few fabric flowers using Mr Big. When you can cut eight layers, and there are three or four different flowers on a die, you can make a LOT of fabric flowers with one pass through the machine!












I've also made a "card holder" using fabrics. The idea is to make it large enough to fit a couple of cards into it, then you can carry them around in your purse and not worry so much about them getting all mashed up.










I hand sewed the two I made. And I REALLY wanted to get my machine out - it would have made the whole process SO much faster. But I didn't. No where to leave it out just yet...

And we mustn't forget the quilters among you! With Mr. Big and fabrics, you can die cut a LOT of patterns for that quilt. My upline has been making quilts with the dies for about 2 years - and maybe that's why Stampin' Up! has started featuring fabrics.

And finally, just last week I showed you the banners I'd made by adhering fabric to paper.









Whatever the reason, I'm enjoying the fabrics, the matching DSPs and all the stamps they've provided us lately that have to do with sewing, quilting, fabric piecing, and any other thing you can think of to do with it!

Do you like fabrics? Would you like to play with some and Mr. Big? Give me a call - let's PLAY!