Best Oliso Iron Review by Pat Sloan

I have had an Oliso for three years and I have never regretted the price! It is the best iron I have ever owned and it will be the one I stick with because I have very bad arthritis in thumbs and wrists. This iron never has to be lifted up on its bottom. I just iron and let go! Take a look here: Oliso® Pro™ Smart Iron with iTouch® Technology TG1600

Fun with Zippers: My first Sweet Pea and a couple Triangle Pouches

Just thought I'd post a few pictures of little projects I am making for friends and family. These little pouches are so handy and fun to make. I need to acknowledge two amazing teachers for their wonderful patterns and instruction. First is Vanessa Vargas Wilson aka The Crafty Gemini. My very first project was a pillowcase that I learned to make when I found Vanessa's tutorial on YouTube. Since that video Vanessa has gone on to become a sewing and quilting world sensation. YouTube tutorials, fabric designer, handbag club, quilting club... She's amazing! The triangle pouches are made from one of her YouTube tutorials. Her instruction is clear, concise and her attention to detail is unmatched.

Second is the Sweet Pea Pouch. This little cutie is from Zippered Bags With a Twist: The One-Zip Way. Joan Hawley is the owner of Lazy Girl designs and is a fantastic and generous instructor, sharing her many years of garment sewing and quilting expertise with her students.

Here they are. Let me know what you think, but even more important, make one yourself!

Thread Painting Class with Joyce Hughes

This was the class that was going to help me reconnect with my Bernina 750QE. Indeed, it was an excellent start and I am so happy I chose this class to begin our couples therapy. I really didn't know anything about the instructor. Of course I checked out her web site and blog, looked over her beautiful designs and work and really admired her work ethic. But nothing prepared me for her amazing story and the journey thereafter. I won't repeat it here because I would rather you hear it from her lips and hopefully be as moved and inspired as I was. In addition, seeing her work in person is surreal. She's self-taught, broke every rule and now has her own unique techniques and is in my estimation one of the greats in the quilting/sewing world. She is a natural teacher and does the work right along with you so you take your thread painting journey together. In fact, I am attending the multi dimensional thread painting course this summer. Look her up at www.JoyceHughesOriginals.com Here is a before and after picture of my work. The applique was done by Joyce and she even did the FMQ'ing around the flowers to save time. Big thank you because it was deliciously beautiful.

Re-falling in love with my Bernina: Part 2

Hello Sewisters! This weekend I am taking a thread painting class. Me and my Bernina are attending a class given by Joyce Hughes at my LQS and Bernina dealer. This comes after I placed a phone call to them telling them I wanted a divorce from my 750QE. After receiving an intervention call from the head instructor at my LQS who talked me off the ledge I signed up for the course based on her recommendation. I'm excited to learn new skills and also for the opportunity to spark a flame with my "nina". For information on the class I am taking with Ms. Hughes check out this link and pictures of her work at www.joyceughesoriginals.com Maybe I will have something exciting to post after I finish on Saturday. Happy Sewing!

Techniques new to this Vintage Kinda Girl

Quilt as you Go or QAYG isn't new in the quilting world. But, it's new to this girl. It's oddly satisfying to watch the quilt take form in only one step. Piecing and basic quilting happen together but that doesn't mean you have to stop there. You can perform more Free Motion Quilting during or after the quilt is complete. Here is a picture of a pillow I recently completed using this method as learned from a class I watched on Craftsy.com.

It was called Fast and Furious Quilt as you Go with Pre-Cuts. The teacher, Gudrun Erla, was an amazing instructor and her projects were creative and fun. Classes expose you to new things and sometimes you try techniques that spark your creativity. That's what I love about working with fabric and thread. Next up? Wait and see!

pictures of my work to date

I began this blog over two years ago but never posted pictures. Life is sometimes like an ocean. The kind that looks like its moving in one direction but the undercurrent moves you in another. Crazy thing. But, lately I am feeling more grounded than usual and I think its time I show my progress from beginning to present day. It helps me to move forward and I hope it will inspire any of you who arent sure you can really create. Well, you won't know until you actually try. Don't hesitate. Just jump in. Jump in the middle, jump in the end. Just jump.

I want to re-fall-in-love with my Bernina

I have several sewing machines. As all sewists know, every machine you own has its own special function. Because I may still be a hesitant embroiderer, I have a Babylock Sofia 2. It was well made, affordable and pretty easy to use. I also own a Brother CS6000i. This little machine was purchased from Amazon.com and shipped to my sisters house so I could sew up some items for her while visiting. I was going to leave it for her but she had no interest in sewing so I brought it home. Great machine for retreats or classes. It's light and does a wonderful job! You can find it at https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JQM1DE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. My third sewing machine is a Juki TL2010Q. I am IN LOVE with this gem! While at a Crafty Gemini retreat in October of 2015, I had the opportunity to use it for the entire weekend. Needless to say it was on my flight home. The only problem? My fourth machine, bought while in a funk in Ohio, is a very expensive, fancy schmancy Bernina 750QE. I barely touch her. She might file for divorce. She has amazingly beautiful decorative stitches, a BSR (Bernina Stitch Regulator) for FMQ and with another investment of only $2,000 (yikes!) I can attach the embroidery unit. Yeah, that's not happening any time soon. You might ask, "why did you buy the Bernina if you aren't thrilled with it." Well, at the time, I was in Ohio and just beginning my sewing adventure. I owned a Viking Emerald, which I traded up for an Opal. Then I traded the Opal for the Sapphire 960Q. I loved that machine. I took it to classes at the LQS where they sold Bernina and ... I kid you not ... I was snubbed. Not taken seriously. I eventually gave in to peer pressure and financed my little beast with little knowledge or research. I wanted to learn more about sewing and thought I needed a "serious" machine. Now, I have nothing against Bernina. But this machine has a deep learning curve and it's too fussy for my liking. So when I bought the Juki and began FMQing, and sewing nearly everything on her I began to wonder why I was paying for the fancy Bernina. Well, this week I sent my Juki in for servicing and found myself staring at ... Miss Fussy pants. My Bernina. We began hesitantly. She doesn't trust me for the moment because I have abandoned her for months. But, I didn't forget her. I actually purchased two additional specialty feet when they were 25 percent off for "future use." You all know what I'm talking about. Slowly and carefully I began my first project and by the end of the day I completed several projects including a strip quilted pillow finished with a binding. That's where we hit the big snag. Which foot should I use for the binding. The 1C is too wide and offers no real guidance or markers. I know this because I used it for the pillow binding and it was a disaster. Bindings are the most difficult thing for me at the moment and doing it on my Bernina didn't make it any better. I turned to the internet and found other methods with Bernina specialty feet. Tried Foot 71 and looked at the Bernina Bias Binding Attachment... a whopping $300. I don't make this stuff up people. Then it hit me. Walking foot. I have it and even though my Bernina has a built in Dual Feed, the extra help of a walking foot cannot be beat. The internet reinforced my thoughts on the subject. One of Bernina's bloggers also agreed that using the open toe Walking foot for binding made life much easier. After reading this I realized that I need to re-fall-in-love with my Bernina because for better or for worse, she is mine and I need to do what ever it takes to make this relationship work. What this means for my blog is ... there will be more to come on this subject, including stories and pictures and maybe a video of what I am discovering and creating with Little Miss Fussy Pants! Happy Sewing