Part 1 of 5 Part series Making Your Project Look Store Bought

Hi all,
What a great week! Weather in the 70's, canned the Salsa (14 pints) and tomatoes(10 quarts) and getting ready for the Sewing School to start . I am so excited!

I thought a lot about what I should do for this weeks blog. My most asked question about sewing is "How do you make your project look more store bought"? Well, this is not as hard as you might think. It is more about doing some basic things than being a great seamstress. Although the more you sew, the better your projects will look.

Part 1 in this series is Getting to Know Your Sewing machine
It will surprise you how just spending some time getting to know your sewing machine can make such a difference in your finished project. A few years ago I got a computerized sewing machine. I have been sewing since I was 12 (or there abouts) and I could use almost any machine. The Basics were the same but it had features that I had never had before, like an automatic threader. Boy do I love that! Most of the new machines have threaders now, even the basic ones. But just getting able to use it was hard. Once I mastered it, what a difference it made. It was such a small thing, but what a time saver.

So I will give you some basic things to do, and when you sit down to sew a project you will be more comfortable with your machine. Then you can concentrate on your project and not be worrying about running your machine.

1. Get out your manual and read it front to back. You will be surprised what you will learn by just reading your manual.
   
2. Buy some painters tape. Most of your projects will be sewn 5/8 ". It really helps to put a piece of tape on the 5/8” mark and line your fabric up on the tape and just sew. Cut up an old sheet and just sew. Practice lining up the fabrics on the 5/8 inch mark and start sewing straight.
   
3. Start from the front of the manual and get familiar with the parts and names of your machine. When you start reading patterns, look up help online, or take a class, you will know what they are talking about.
   
4. Keep turning pages and do whatever they do. Change the feet and do the stitches that correspond with each foot. Wind the bobbin, do as much as you can. I realize if you have never used a machine before some things in the manual can be a bit over a newbies head, but do what you can.
   
5. New machine. If you bought a new machine and they offer classes, take them. It will do what I just had you do.
   
6. Read the troubleshooting guide in the back of the manual. If you read this, then you will have an idea of what is wrong when there is a problem. You will still need to consult it each time but it will help you not to be so nervous about what is not going quite right.
   
7. Practice Practice Practice. Take a week or so and practice using your machine. Become as comfortable with your machine as you can before you start that big project.

Again, making your project look store bought is following some basic things and getting to know your machine is the first thing. Happy sewing!