The Sewing Room

natc

Oh ....my.....word, ive loads to catch up on this thread! not been on here in aaaaages!

Just popped in to see if there is anyone in the West Yorkshire area?

I am setting up a sewing group in Dewsbury, and will be bringing in a tutor every so often to give lessons etc...if anyone is near the area and would like to join in, please PM me...:D

tiamai_d

MissPixie wrote: »

Are the diaper covers easy to make? I am yet to put elastic in anything!

Easy peasy lemon squeasy! I am a novice but they are amazingly easy. The leg holes are a bit of a fiddle, on her tutorial it says you don't have to worry about it being perfect so long as the elastic can be threaded through, and she is right. You don't notice the kinks when the elastic is in.

hmo wrote: »

hi i have this

its the brother ms6nt and ive tried all ways and cannot get it to do shirring

That looks fancy!

I have a brother LS-2125, a wee cheap £80 number.

Shirring elastic is wound onto a bobbin by hand, not loose not tight just wound. Then the bobbin is put in and the needle threaded and the elastic brought up (whatever the correct terms are).

Then it's set to the longest straight stitch and the tension dial set to loose (though to be honest, I've found it doesn't actually make any difference) and sew. Practice a few times to see if the tension does need fixing. Remeber to sew correct side up so elastic is on the bottom.

Biggest tip I have found is that if the shirring is a bit loose, steam it and it really does shrink, pretty amazing to see.

I love shirring. Shirring and tutus heaven!

This tutorial http://www.favecrafts.com/Clothing/Guest-Project-Girls-Twirl-Dress# makes the cutest dress ever! And if you don't want to make button holes, use ribbon front and back to make tie straps.

hmo

Bitsy_Beans wrote: »

hey ladies, sorry to jump in but can any one recommend any sites (or indeed any where to buy patterns from) to make sleeveless sun dresses for my DD (who is nearly 3). Each year I spend a small fortune on them (even on ebay they're not cheap as chips when you factor in postage) so pretty sure we (me and my mum) could do it cheaper.

TIA

i bought my first pattern yesterday afternoon on line and it arrived this morning, i got it from sew essential on the net

hmo

ilovepugs wrote: »

You mentioned Electronic Cutters, could you explain to me what they are and where can i buy some from. Also your caddies are gorgeous, i cant seem to find the sew hip magazine, do you have a tutorial for them. Loving your blog.
Many Thanks.x

hi i sell them they are not cheap, basically they are about the size of a printer but have a small blade and anything you can put onto your pc can then be turned with the siftware provided into a cutting file.

you then load a mat with media, ie paper, card, vinyl, fabric load it into the machine and it will cut out what was on your pc.

i have a website with loads of info and videos so you will be able to get more of an idea as to what it is.

you can get to my website through my blog

hmo

well ladies just thought i would let you know how i am getting on.

first it took me longer to pull the strap through to the right side than it did to do nealr all the sewing!

is there an easy way to turn a strap inside out, i nearly gave up before i had even started.

anyway its all sewn together i just have to turn the hem but will wait till my dd cna try it.

i have to say i have no idea if it will fit, it looks small to me at the armhole and strap but we will wait and see.

will let you all know tomorrow how i get on

Kaz2904

Ooooh, I know this one! When you sew a long tube, fold the fabric in half lengthways with a piece of ribbon or something long and thin folded up inside (I suppose you could use a long shoelace too). Then stitch across one end to hold the lace in place. Pull lace from other end of tube and tube will turn inside out. You then need to get the lace out by cutting the end of your tube off (Or fannying around and unpicking it!).
I hope it does fit for your DD and I'm very envious and impressed that you've jumped to it so quickly

PootleFlump_3

hmo wrote: »

well ladies just thought i would let you know how i am getting on.

first it took me longer to pull the strap through to the right side than it did to do nealr all the sewing!

is there an easy way to turn a strap inside out, i nearly gave up before i had even started.

anyway its all sewn together i just have to turn the hem but will wait till my dd cna try it.

i have to say i have no idea if it will fit, it looks small to me at the armhole and strap but we will wait and see.

will let you all know tomorrow how i get on

Have you got a loop turner? They only cost about two quid but are very useful for turning straps, bag handles etc. If not then you can use a chopstick or a knitting needle.

irishgirl62

hmo wrote: »

well ladies just thought i would let you know how i am getting on.

first it took me longer to pull the strap through to the right side than it did to do nealr all the sewing!

is there an easy way to turn a strap inside out, i nearly gave up before i had even started.

anyway its all sewn together i just have to turn the hem but will wait till my dd cna try it.

i have to say i have no idea if it will fit, it looks small to me at the armhole and strap but we will wait and see.

will let you all know tomorrow how i get on

I do it two ways .. a tube thru the straps and a wooden stick to poke it through the tube so that i comes the right side out or if it is too thin to use a tube then i would sew a cord or ribbon (longer than the straps) to the top of the straps and continue to sew the straps without stitching the fine ribbon or cord (which would be inside the straps) then I pull the cord/ribbon through and it brings the straps out to the right side ... hope this makes sense as I am hopeless as explaining things

nykied

If you don't mind having a line of stitching on either side of the outside of the strap, you could make no-turn straps. I use these for bags http://www.warehousefabricsinc.com/blog/how-to-make-a-non-turn-strap/

hmo

Kaz2904 wrote: »

Ooooh, I know this one! When you sew a long tube, fold the fabric in half lengthways with a piece of ribbon or something long and thin folded up inside (I suppose you could use a long shoelace too). Then stitch across one end to hold the lace in place. Pull lace from other end of tube and tube will turn inside out. You then need to get the lace out by cutting the end of your tube off (Or fannying around and unpicking it!).
I hope it does fit for your DD and I'm very envious and impressed that you've jumped to it so quickly

thank you thats a great tip about the long shoelace, i will have to try that next time.

dont be envious about me trying a dress, its madness that made me do it!

also its such a simple dress all the experienced dress makers will laugh when i post my photo, but for me its daunting anyway shes tried it and it fits so when its finished i will post a photo