by Sherri Sylvester | May 6, 2016
This post was going to be a re-cap of the Spring Creativ Festival (which was amazing!) but instead I’m feeling inclined to talk about why the blog has been so quiet for the past few weeks. I’ve included a few photos of things I got at the show, because this is a sewing blog after all! Aren’t they pretty? I’ll do a proper re-cap (with a fun giveaway!) early next week.
Love these Japanese fabrics from Kallisti Quilts! I’m going to make something for me with them 🙂
Going backwards first, a few months before the Creativ Festival Janome emailed and asked me if I would like to do a trunk show. I was super excited and honoured that they asked, but also super (super) afraid! I had never talked anywhere before – much less on a stage, with a microphone, for 45 minutes – yikes! It took everything in me to say “Yes” and take the amazing opportunity. All the while trying I was trying to believe that you should do things out of your comfort zone to grow as a person.
In short…. I got the chance to find my passion and prove to myself that I am stronger than I thought!
Long story?
The whole thing began with the idea to name the talk “Be Brave and Sew”. This topic provided an amazing basis for me to discover what I really love to do. I am so grateful to Debbie from Janome for suggesting it. As I thought about what to say about my sample projects I found that a lot of them were beginner-based free tutorials I’d posted. Simple projects – the Fat Quarter Skirt, World’s Fasted Pencil Case, the Super Hero Cape. I wrote my talk around hopefully inspiring everyone to begin with simple things and move on to more complicated projects as they felt ready.
My youngest chose Wrap It Up from Fabric Spark for a new dress that goes “to the floor”!
I don’t have an easy going personality and push myself way too hard to be “perfect” in absolutely everything blog-related that I do. Of course as a result, I pushed too hard on this and spent so much time worrying about the unknown that I am still recovering 2 weeks later! (Hence the quiet blog.) I was absolutely exhausted – emotionally and physically – afterwards.
On the day of I was (quite literally) feeling sick. Thankfully I didn’t actually lose my lunch – but I was pretty much a wreck. I knew I was going to be “ok” once I got up on stage because I needed to be, but before-hand? Yikes… I was so grateful that my husband was there to help, he was able to talk me through my tears and nerves – love him so much for being amazing and supportive.
I got miked up (is that a thing?!) a few minutes early and was so excited to see my friend Lisa in the audience. It helped a ton to have a face I recognized in the audience. When I actually walked up on stage and started talking, I realized the mic wasn’t on, and it took a few seconds of inward-panic until I got it working. Despite the crazy start, the time flew by and amazingly ended on-time, even though I could have easily talked for a couple more hours.
After a rush of meeting so many great people that came up to say “Hi” (my favorite!), I got a few minutes to think and realized that I really actually liked speaking. This new revelation was so surprising to me! I started this blog thinking it would be “safe”. Somewhere I could express my introverted self’s love of sewing to the world without fear of interacting and actually talking to other humans. Through the past almost-four years I’ve found that humans are what I really actually want. Looking back I think I’ve become a lot less introverted as a result.
Saturday’s talk was so much easier in comparison. I got to meet a few more online friends in person (Yay!) and felt much more comfortable. I was able to relax a bit, hang out and talk to everyone and my kids even got to come visit as well! It just reinforced what I had learned the day before.
The passion part? The need to share what I love with others runs so deep. I fount out I am most passionate about doing my best to inspire sewers to sew more, and beginners to start. I want to help others understand that sewing is not scary or hard. That there is a solution to everything, it’s called practice (and a seam ripper!). I want everyone to sew with the next seam (or step) in mind – not the finished project that looks “too hard” – because with enough desire to learn, you can sew anything!
I am so grateful that I have been allowed to realize all of these things. I am already doing something I love to do by writing here, and now I can go farther with it. This blog is so much fun, but I would love to do more – and I’m realizing that I am ok at being a people-person too! I’m hoping a day comes when I’m able to do multiple sewing-related things – talks, workshops, writing here… and whatever else comes my way.
Last but not least…. I am so glad that I have been allowed to share space with this amazing creative community. I am so grateful that I’m literally in tears while writing this. You are all so kind to come back post after post. I have so many positive experiences to look back on and I’m so excited for where this is taking me.
I would be remiss not to especially thank Janome for taking a chance on inviting a newbie to speak. They truly have been so supportive, amazing and so nice to work with. Without them I would not have learned all of these things and I will carry that through the rest of my life for sure.
I wanted to write about my experience to hopefully inspire you to go farther in whatever it is that you love – it is never too late or too scary. And I hope all of you are granted the amazing gift I’ve gotten to find your passion in life. I hope I don’t sound high on myself, or sound like I think I’m the best at everything, because I’m not – I have just been allowed to learn about this part of me and I’m excited to see where it goes. Here’s to the future!
What do you think? What is your passion?
My youngest sewist was gifted this super cute fat quarter bundle from Fabric Please! She said Rita wanted to see a picture of her blue sewing machine, so here it is! I’ve got a mommy-daughter project all picked out for it 🙂
As a little P.S. for you since you are still reading! (Thank you!)  I’ve gotten feedback that I am likely speaking once or twice more this year in the Toronto area. Yay! I’m so excited and hope that if you live in the area that you might be able to come out so I can meet you. 🙂
by Sherri Sylvester | Apr 27, 2016
I’m a bit embarrassed to show you this project today… I love taking pictures of perfectly sewn products and posting them here. Of course, it’s not a realistic view of how I live – my house looks like I haven’t cleaned in a month right now! (Which might be right – argh!) But it sure is satisfying to make everything look pretty.
I promised everyone at my Creativ Festival Trunk Show over the weekend that I would post the quiet book that started my free 12 page Quiet Book patterns. The one I made my oldest for her first birthday, about 8 years ago now! This Quiet Book is anything but perfect. I had so much to learn about sewing and was working it out as I went along. It has so many things I’d change now, least of which are my fabric choices. Pattern & character overload – wow!
This book’s unperfectness (#itsaword) is exactly what I want to share today. Things don’t have to be perfect to be loved and given away. My oldest was thrilled when I found this book in storage. She spent time looking at each page and laughing at the photos. Her smallest cousin isn’t even in the book, and everyone is 8 years younger. Crazy how fast things change. She doesn’t care about the overuse of the zigzag stitch and fraying edges. She just likes it because I made it just for her.
So here’s my unPerfect Quiet Book. I’m hoping it might inspire you to go ahead and make that project that you’ve been putting off – because you “don’t know enough” or “won’t get it exactly like the Pinterest photos”. Comparing is not allowed when you are doing what you love!
 I’ll be sharing my Creativ Festival re-cap later this week and the lovelies I brought home on Instagram as well. See you again soon!
by Sherri Sylvester | Apr 21, 2016
So there’s thing called an isogram, which I didn’t know about until my sponsor Fabric Spark emailed to see if I wanted to make a project with a Nature Walk Alphabet Panel. It’s gorgeous, but right away I was worried… my kids are too big for alphabet projects, no matter how amazing the fabric is! Of course, I now *needed* the fabric, so for a couple of days my husband and I thought of things to write with one panel of the alphabet until I Googled it and found out what I needed was an isogram: “a word or phrase without a repeating letter”.
Moving ahead for a second, this project is the last thing I need to finish before my Trunk Show at the Creativ Festival in 2 days! Wow! I am running around like crazy person over here. If you are in the Toronto area, I will be presenting a Trunk Show – “Be Brave and Sew” on the Fashion Arts stage at 2:30 on Friday and 9:30 am (gulp!) on Saturday. You can also see the original sample projects from the Sewing Diaries, other past projects and the girls’ Easter Dresses. I’m so happy to be working with Janome to present this!
But, back to isograms, it turns out there are tons of these things! I got a few from this website – “Stand By Me”, “Rocket Man” or “Rhapsody in Blue” (plus lots more) if you are a music enthusiast and Playground, Trampoline, Ambidextrous or Subdermatoglyphic (!) according to Wikipedia. I also found a great example of a sewing isogram after I finished my project, from Sherri Noel (great first name, btw!) – she wrote “Sew Crazy” on her sewing machine cover! Of course, you could always think up another phrase and buy two or three alphabet panels.
One last thing still bugged me – cutting up the panel without a use for the leftover letters. But, I’m in luck and know a whole bunch of people with first and last names that start with each of the leftover letters – so, if you know me – you “might” be getting a pillow or zippy pouch (or other sewn something) with a letter on it for your next birthday/Christmas or other random holiday!
This project, however, is for my oldest daughter. I thought the isogram “Quick on the draw” was perfect for her bedroom wall. She does not stop drawing – and you rarely find her without a drawing implement of some kind in her hand. She visits art supply stores like they are candy shops – she needs this mini quilt! Fabric Spark was amazing and sent me the alphabet panel and some of her other fabrics from Tamara Kate’s Nature Walk collection for Michael Miller Fabrics. I love that this Tamara Kate art can inspire my little girl!
I’ve made up a little mini tutorial for the project below, with links to all of the fabrics I used, plus the gorgeous Little World in Amberthat didn’t make it in – vetoed by the fact that after it was pieced in it didn’t really match my daughter’s room so well.
Keep in mind that the amount of fabric you need will drastically change depending on the phrase/word you want to spell! This mini quilt is actually quite large at 35″ x 23″. If you are coming to the Creativ Festival, it will be on display in the Fabric Spark booth, #248!
As a gauge I used this much fabric:
1) Cut alphabet rows apart. Measure the halfway point between the rows, mark first, cut after!
2) Cut letters apart with 1/4″ seam allowance on both sides, making sure to keep the sides parallel. We will trim the top and bottom after sewing each line.
3) Sew the letters together into words with a 1/4″ seam, I pressed my seam allowances open. Make sure to align the letters so they line up side by side before sewing, don’t align the top/bottom of the white space or they will be uneven.
4) Cut and sew 2 1/2″ wide strips for spaces between words and sew words into lines. Trim the top edges, including a 1/4″ seam allowance on each, so everything is square. My letter rows ended up about 7 1/4″ tall each. Make sure each row is the same height.
5) Add 2 1/2″ strips to each row end, then the top and bottom and between your rows. I pressed these seams open as well.
6) Sew all the rows together to make the center of the mini quilt.
7) Cut & sew 2″ strips to the top, bottom and sides to create the border.
8) Piece your backing if desired, make a quilt sandwich and quilt your project. For lack of more experience, I mostly stitched in the ditch around the letters. Then did a few border rows around the edge.
9) Add quilt hanging sleeve if desired.
10) Make enough binding with 2 1/2″ strips to go around project. Then bind with your favorite method.
I hope you love your new mini quilt! My daughter is so excited to hang this in her room.
by Sherri Sylvester | Apr 14, 2016
 We are talking about quilting on this last Sewing Diary entry. As most of you know, this blog doesn’t talk about quilting as much as I’d like it to! I’ve got grand plans for at least 7 different stacks of coordinated fabric in my stash – and those are only the ones I can think of off the top of my head! Of course, my first love is quick projects and apparel. But I have actually finished the occasional quilt, and will always own a machine with the capability to make quilted projects.
Today I’m sharing tips I’ve found helpful as I learn about piecing and quilting, link to some great quilty tutorials and I’m even going to share a potentially embarrassing mug rug I made. Yikes – taking “professional” photos of something I’m not terribly proud of is hard! #perfectionisoverrated?
Before we head into the post, here’s a re-cap of the Sewing Diaries posts, since, amazingly we are already at week 6 of 6! Each post covers a different topic, by the end you should now know your sewing machine inside and out! Plus I hope you’ve found a few tips and tricks on how to make it sew what you want like a pro.
Week 1: Unboxing Your New Machine Part 1/Part 2 ~ Week 2: Closures ~ Week 3: Heavy/Uncommon Fabrics~ Week 4: Knits (without a serger!) ~ Week 5: Embellishing your Projects (ie. Stitches and Machine Feet) ~ Week 6: Quilting/Piecing (today’s post!)
Disclaimer: A Skyline S7 has been loaned to me for the purpose of writing this series. Â As with all products I write about, I will always tell you my own honest opinion. I purchased and loved Janome machines long before they contacted me. Janome has not asked me to qualify my opinions in any way. Also, the fabric for this post was given to me by Fabric Spark. Thank you for supporting my sponsors!
Today’s main project is “the Herringbone Runner” – a table runner pattern from Carolyn Friedlander – in Carolyn Friedlander-designed fabric no less! The selection of fabrics are from her last few collections and were provided by my lovely sponsor, Fabric Spark. They have also put together kits for this runner so you can make one too! Her well-curated collection is always amazing to browse through, I know you’ll find something you love.
These fabrics play so well together and I’m really pleased with how the table runner turned out. It was a surprisingly fast project – about 6-7 hours. Four of those for the paper piecing alone, but not because it was hard, but because I was thinking way too much about making sure the colours were evenly distributed. My brain likes everything to be super symmetrical, so this was a stretch for me! The pattern includes a really great explanation of how to paper-piece and I love how precise the final product is.
This leads to my first quilting tip: Remember, sewing is your hobby. If it’s not fun, don’t do it! Don’t get hung up worrying about quilt police. Make something you love, following the way you want to do it and it will be perfect! Of course, like anything, if you want to be more knowledgeable about how to do your hobby that’s ok too. Here’s a great article I love from Sew Mama Sew about keeping your hobby fun.
Keeping all of this in mind, here are some important things you should know when learning about how your sewing machine handles piecing and quilting.
Check out your Feet:
Piecing a quilt can be done on any machine but you will need at least one type of special machine foot to quilt a project on your sewing machine. Take a look at the feet that came with your machine. If they are specific to quilting, look them up in the manual. Find out what they do so when you come across quilting lingo you know what it’s talking about!
The Skyline S7 is great for quilters with lots of extras including the AcuFeed Flex, several Free Motion Quilting Feet and a 1/4″ Piecing Foot. I have found that even basic Janome machines (my first SUV1122!) tend to come with an included Walking/Even foot, which is a huge bonus for beginners.
If you happen to have a Dual Feed option like the Skyline S7’s AcuFeed Flex (more about this foot in the Sewing Diaries: Week 4) or an Even/Walking Foot count yourself lucky! These feet are the key to producing an evenly sewn and quilted project. They move the top and bottom fabrics together, keeping all of the layers in line. When quilting, this lets you move the fabric around without accidentally creating  sewing wrinkles in the unseen underneath layer.
Check your Tension:
Tension is especially important when quilting your pieced project because a layer of batting adds a lot of extra thickness.  If you are using different spool and bobbin colours, it is especially important that the tension is set properly. The two threads need to cross in the middle of the quilt layers so they don’t show on the other side. I used cream bobbin thread to match the backing and multiple colours to match the top and the Skyline S7’s automatic tension did a great job. Find out about adjusting your tension in the Sewing Diaries: Week 3.
Have a perfect seam:
Find out how to sew with a super-precise 1/4″ seam allowance. This is so important! Without a precise seam you will not be able to follow most quilt patterns. A piecing foot comes in really handy for making sure you sew your seams accurately. The Sewing Loft has provided a great article about how to simply find your machine’s perfect 1/4″ seam.
Basting your Quilt:
I still find it tricky to figure out how to get large quilt layers straight and basted before quilting them. Generations Quilt Patterns has some great detailed information on how to
Successfully Layer and Pin Baste Your Quilt. Of course if you don’t mind watching for the quilt police and your project is smaller you can use straight pins. I have had good luck doing this and am too cheap (
so far) to buy curved quilting pins to make the process easier.
Machine Quilting
I generally tend to default to straight line quilting in my projects, just because it is simple and easy to do. Plus, there is little to no learning curve, which helps! Mark straight line on your project, attach a Dual Feed or Walking Foot and start sewing. If your machine happens to have a quilting guide bar attachment, even better. Mark one line on the quilt and follow your seams with the guide bar to continue sewing evenly placed lines. I used it on my table runner to help follow the herringbone lines with my quilting.
I also tried out the included knee bar while quilting as well. It’s works so well it’s disappointing that I sew standing up and can’t really use it properly. You would have laughed! I’m balanced on a bar-stool with my knee in the air working the thing. Great for my abs, though! And so easy to turn pivot at corners, move the bar to the right to lift the presser foot, turn the quilt, let go to release it and lower the foot again.
Free Motion Quilting
Here’s where I “show off” my lovely mug rug.
As you can see free motion is not as yet a skill I pull off easily! It does take practice, and the nice thing about the Skyline S7 is that it sets everything up automatically so a lot of the guess-work is taken out of the process.
Sew Mama Sew has some great Tips on Beginner Free Motion Quilting. One thing I’ve read that is not included in their list is to practice with a pencil and paper. I’ve found this really helpful when figuring out how to get the shape you want. Practice putting your pencil down on the paper and don’t lift it until the shape is finished, just like when your quilt is in the machine!
Clasp Stitches
I used a few of these automatic stitches on my mug rug to try them out. It’s like tying a quilt, only by machine. I can see this being really cute and a great alternative to all-over quilting. I like the star shape best, but couldn’t resist adding a snowflake or 3 since our “springy” April has been full of them!
Bind your project:
Ideally it is best to hand sew your quilt binding. And it does look nicer – but I usually don’t want to take the time to do it, so I machine bind my projects. So far I’ve been happy with the results, but I can see it being really relaxing to sit and hand-bind a quilt. I always use
Cluck Cluck Sew’s Machine Binding tutorial. It is well explained and easy to follow.
I hope you have enjoyed the Janome Sewing Diaries series! I have (of course) been spoiled rotten using the amazing Janome SKyline S7. It really is a fantastic machine. Great for advanced sewers and beginners alike. If you have any questions about your machine, please let me know and I’d be happy to help find answers for you!
Happy Sewing!
by Sherri Sylvester | Apr 11, 2016
Hi, how are you doing? Well, I hope? I feel like it’s been a rollercoaster of prep-work over here since I started the Janome Sewing Diaries. Can you believe it’s already the last week of the six weeks?! That means next week is the Spring Creativ Festival in Toronto!
I’ve been going to the Creativ Festival for quite a few years now. This year I was thrilled when Janome Canada asked me to present a Trunk Show once each day! I’m excited to pull out old and new favorite projects to show you and I’ve got a list of tips and tricks to share (and some sneaky things I do to save time!). My amazing sponsors have provided giveaways and exclusive discounts for show attendees! Plus, anyone attending the show can enter for their chance to win a Janome Skyline S7! Woo Hoo!
Best of all, I am really excited to get to meet Thread Riding Hood readers and say “Hi”. If you see me, please introduce yourself – I’d love to meet you. (Just look for the pink hair!) Now that it’s so close I’m ready – but so nervous! Normal-nervous, but nervous just the same. Getting up on a stage is not as natural for me as I’d love it to be! I’m so fortunate that the sewing community is full of lovely people – that makes it so much easier!
If you are in the Toronto area. I will be on the Fashion Arts stage starting at 2:30 pm on Friday and 9:30 am on Saturday. I can’t say enough about how fun it is to walk around these fabric-full Creativ booths with so many like-minded people. Plus, I’ve got “a few” things on my shopping list to look for!
Before I go back to Creativ prep… We have two giveaways that need some winners!  Have a wonderful week. 🙂Â
Giveaway Winners!
Congratulations to both of our fabric bundle winners! I can’t wait to see what they will make with their new fabric. And a huge thanks to both my sponsors’ Canadian online fabric shops for providing these giveaways!Â
The winner of this lovely Acorn Trail organic canvas from Birch and Carolyn Friedlander Architextures Cross Hatch in Poppy combo from Mad about Patchwork is…
#518: Erin! Who won by visiting Mad About Patchwork on Facebook.
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The winner of this 9 Fat Quarter bundle of Michael Miller Cotton Couture Solids + a $25 Shop Credit from Zoey & Bean Fabrics is….
Entry #308: Michele! “I love the Sashing Stash fabrics in all the colourways! This fabric would be fun to play with!! Thanks!”
Don’t miss out! The Zoey & Bean discount code expires tomorrow, April 12th at midnight. Make sure you get 15% off your purchase with code: TRD15
