Sew Inspired

Perhaps it's just been the recent discovery of DIY blogs but I've been pretty inspired by other people to start making and creating things for myself...and loved ones.  Other relating factors like my occasional disappointment in store bought clothes and their lack of a "perfect Erin fit" also pushed me to become a bit more sewing savvy and less Gap Store dependent.   Plus, nothing beats making something for myself that fits perfectly and/or costs less than a pair of jeans at Banana Republic!  So I've decided to become more self reliant on how I obtain my clothing and make a few pieces here or there on my new sewing machine!

Now, to give you some background information, I really am not a master seamstress.  Actually, far from it.  I've personally never sewed a piece of clothing using a sewing machine.  But I do have a lot of initiative and drive to accomplish something, so I hope that eventually I'll be using my seam ripper less and various new functions on my machine more.

The machine I happened to buy is a Brother CS-6000i.  When I was younger, my mother had taught me some basic sewing on her old Singer, so I've had some basic know-how on sewing machines, how to set them up, etc.  I can say with absolute confidence that my Brother is a great machine for a once again beginner sewer like me and will also give me the growing ability to become a [hopefully] master sewer one day.  There are a lot of stitches to choose from (over 59) and has some really nice computerized features that make back stitching a breeze.

A lot of people put down newer sewing machines like mine, since a lot of the parts are now plastic instead of metal.  Well...I have sewn on an old HEAVY DUTY Singer and I don't think having a huge 50lb machine is the best for a youngster like me, who seems to move every single year or so.  It would, without a doubt, become a tedious task.

And also to comment again on my purchasing decision, I was initially interested in buying a Singer, since that it was what I had already known.  But after some in-depth research, I found that the company was actually sold to one overseas in China and now all the parts were made of cheap plastic resulting in a short life span for the machine overall.

Over the past weeks, I've successfully accomplished making a couple simple pillows with an applique leaf design and a small crafty project for my darling 1-year old nephew back home.  (Can't wait to give it to him!)  This weekend, I am hoping to start a simple A-line skirt pattern.  Eventually my goal is to make a dress...we'll see about that.

 Horray for 2 day shipping!  (Thank you to Thomas)

My new Brother CS-6000i

Connor is more interested in my discarded box...

My machine. You can probably see my slide film project tossed to the side in the upper right hand corner. I was too excited to sew, which is why the slide film project took me so long to finish...

A look at one of my unfinished pillows with the leaf applique

Leaf detail. I found a woman make a quilt out of this design and after talking over it with my mom and figuring it out a bit on my own, I was able to sew the pattern...without buying the book.

Finished Pillows

Cute little owl project I made for my nephew, Oliver. It was really simple to do and make. I only regret not making a post out of it since I did not take any photos during the process.