I'M GOING TO LEARN HOW TO SEW LIKE A PRO!!

I signed up for an intermediate level sewing class entitled SEW LIKE A PRO at the Marguerite's Sewing School in Nashville.   My first class was tonight.  We will meet each Thursday for the months of June, July, and August.  When finished, I will be the proud owner of a new blouse that includes a yolk, long sleeves with cuffs and a continuous placket, a notched collar and a shirttail hem.  I'll also be making a lined skirt with a waistband and a zipper. In  making the skirt and blouse, I am supposed to learn how to fit a pattern to my body shape --- we shall see.    It reminds me of what we made our second year in home ec in highschool.  Hope I end up with a better product :)  Tonight was fun and I'm looking forward to next week.  There are only two of us in this class so I'll have all the attention I want and then some.


I finished quilting my  "modified" yellow brick road quilt tonight.  I really like how it turned out.  I was going to try some free motion quilting but after doing the first couple of blocks, I took out what I had done and went for plan B which I really like.  I chose a decorative stitch -- looks like chicken feet and just did straight lines on the diagonal.  I did the lines in pairs and then put about three inches in between.  Here is a picture.

I really like how it turned out.  Now tomorrow I can add the binding and get it washed before I go to MS on Saturday and I'll be able to deliver it.  I also made a leaf for the newest Kirkbride so G'ma can add it to her family tree quilt.  That makes a total of four leaves that have been added since I finished and gave her the quilt.  I  put all the leftover leaf fabrics in a ziploc along with the color numbers of the embroidery threads I used so it's been easy to make leaves as needed.

I have a lap quilt ready to be quilted and will get to that as soon as I get back from MS.  I'll work on it when I finish my HOMEWORK from my sewing class.

I think I have found someone who is going to make me a sewing table.  I haven't quite worked out the dimensions yet but I think it will be 72" x 40 inches and will be cutting table height.  I'm going to have the sewing machine opening more to the right so that I'll have plenty of room for quilting. The table will have a lift so the machine can be moved down and I'll have a large area for sandwiching quilts and such.  I have a small folding table that is height adjustable to make an L when I'm quilting.  It will be very simple without drawers but I'm thinking about getting a "seconds" cabinet to be one end of the table for some extra  fabric storage . It will also have casters so I can roll it out from the wall when I want to have access all the way around.  The nice tables are well over a thousand dollars and I think I can get mine for a good bit less and be able to  invest in a nice drafting chair so I can sit up high enough to sew on a tall table.  This is the table that I'm kind of patterning mine after.

 Just think no drawers and  a slightly bigger top. I am looking forward to a table that will be the right height for sewing (thanks to an adjustable chair) and will have lots of "level" workspace too.  I'll be a lot braver with my free motion when the quilt will be on a flat surface.  I'm going to work on the smaller table runners and topper kits I 've accumulated to practice free motion quilting when I get my table.  Hopefully some time this summer. 
I'll know for sure after I get my estimate.

Got to go to bed if I'm going to be bright and bushy-tailed in the morning.