Indoors and Out

My new free pattern, "Cables and Herringbones," is now available in my Ravelry store.

It was fun working on it and the outfit will be good in my stories. I included the instructions for the skirt, which is made using rotary cutter tools rather than pattern pieces. The skirt can be folded any way you want, as long as each fold takes up three layers of fabric.

I also made some jeans for Billy. I used the Liberty Jane Jeans pattern from Pixie Faire, but substituted my own back pattern piece, because the pattern was made for American Girl dolls, who are much bigger around, especially in the back.

Next week's story has the dolls hiking, so I made a new hat for Mandy, using the crown pieces from the baseball cap pattern and an improvised narrow brim that goes all the way around.

Here's a shot of the top.

Mandy's cardigan is well underway. This will go with the dress I made for her last week.

The Doll's Storybook had a big milestone this past week. June 22, 2018 was the day the first story came out. I never thought when I started that I would get through a year without running out of things to write about. There are now 54 stories and one more scheduled. I'm hoping to keep it up as long as I can.

The pups went to the groomer on Monday to get their summer haircuts. They were still tired the next morning. Of course, it turned cool again as soon as their haircuts were done. It's good that the sun comes into the house in the early morning.

I took some new photos of the pups to use with the Walk for a Dog app. Dusty has matured a lot since the old photos were taken and Rocky has greyed a lot with age. Here's Dusty.

Here's Rocky. Still handsome, I think, for an old guy.

We've hiked or walked every day this week. I hope to keep it up. If we walk the Larkspur Trail all the way northward to Bear Creek Rd., then turn around and come back, it's roughly two miles, depending on how many side trips we made to trash cans along the way. (We pick up after our pups.) Here's a shot of our history page for the last 30 days. You can see Rocky's and Dusty's new photos. I'm hoping to make it to 60 miles in 30 days.

I've been short of sleep ever since about April. The sun keeps waking me up earlier and earlier. We're installing room-darkening shades in each of the bedrooms. The guest room is already done. It's very effective. You have to turn on the lights to see when the shade is down during the daytime.

Of course, since June 21st, the nights are now getting longer.

We discovered we have peonies growing in the backyard. I had to enlist the help of Facebook friends to identify it, because I didn't know its name.

We have a basil plant indoors. I made a Caprise salad from leaves harvested from the plant.

I managed to take a closeup of the flowers we found in the wilderness along the Larkspur Trail near our home. Several people identified it last week as (not surprisingly) larkspur.

It's very pretty, but I read that it's poisonous. Unlike the basil plant, I had no plans to eat this, although it reminds me of borage, which is edible.


Last night we went out to eat with Charlie's brother. We went to Anthony's, which is on the Deschutes River in the Old Mill District of bend.

Today we both get hearing aids. I've had some mild hearing loss with tinnitus for some time, but it wasn't serious enough to be correctable with a hearing aid. Now the technology and my hearing loss have converged, so I'm giving it a try. It turns out that Charlie also has a mild hearing loss, which I had assumed was just selective hearing. It's expensive, but we have a year to pay it off with no interest.
What's on my needles: The cardigan from the Church Picnic pattern.

What's on my sewing machine: Costumes for the cast of The Doll's Storybook.

What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt. No progress this week.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: Keeping up with Jonesy. Billy finds out that it isn't always cool to do what your friends say is cool.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished A Song Unheard by Roseanna M. White. Now listening to Murder at Archly Manor by Sara Rosett, a murder mystery set in 1920s England.

What's in my wine glass: Twisted Old Vine Zinfandel 2017. We've had it before, and it's a good value.

What's my tip of the week: Parchment paper works as well as aluminum foil for lining a baking sheet for cookies or roasted veggies and is better for the environment.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

The Honeymoon Is Over!

Well, it was bound to happen. I ran into trouble with my new machine.

That's why I've been spending time sewing with it, right? This is my brand new EverSewn Sparrow 15, the bottom of the Sparrow line and the only mechanical machine in the line. 

As of last week's blog post, I had wound bobbins. Easy enough, although I did find I had to guide the thread to keep it so it wouldn't pile up in one place. No problem; where would I go? I need to sit there with my foot on the pedal. Placing the bobbin case into the machine was also easy. I like that the bobbin case fits into the machine vertically, rather than horizontally, so I don't have to dig it out or use a special bobbin remover.

I found threading very easy, once I had done it a couple of times. You just loop the thread down the right side of the blue bar, back up the left side of it, around a substantial hook you can't miss at the top and back down the way you came, stopping at the needle, where you have one more hook right at the needle. It takes maybe 30 seconds, tops.

I learned how to use the automatic needle threader. It's a little fiddly at first, and you do have to remember to pull on the loop, not the end of the thread. I also found it helped to keep my thumb in front of it to keep the thread from popping out.

I had sewn on several different thicknesses of woven fabric. I learned how to adjust the pressure of the presser foot for very thin fabric, which worked perfectly. It's the little knob right at the top of the blue bar. You just turn to adjust the presser foot pressure.

I like the reverse lever, which goes back into place when you let go, so you can go forward again quickly. You can see the lever in the photo above where I was talking about threading the machine. It's right below the "Ever" in EverSewn.

I used various widths of zigzag to finish edges and seams, but only the simple zigzag so far.

Fine so far, but then I ran into trouble. I noticed that occasionally the bobbin thread would get loopy and loose. Then it would be fine again. This concerned me. I poured over the manual and found several potential causes. The needle seemed stiff going down through the throat plate, and I started to worry that I had damaged something. However, it seemed to sew fine most of the time.

The next thing that went wrong was when I decided to change to a ball-pointed needle to use on stretch fabric. The thumb screw on the needle clamp could not be budged by this puny old person. I lowered the needle a bit so I would have more room, grabbed a piece of rubber shelf liner I use for opening jars and had another go. Nothing. It was as if it had been Superglued into place. Finally I got some pliers and, still with the rubber shelf liner (now to protect the finish on the thumb screw) I had another go. I got it half a turn, tried with my finger and thumb again, but it was still too stiff.

I ended up having to make one full revolution before I could use my fingers. Then the whole needle clamp assembly fell out. I put it back in place, inserted my needle, but then the automatic needle threader wouldn't work. I threaded by hand, and sewed a little bit with no problem.

I now had enough concerns, and it was Friday afternoon, so I called Customer Service at EverSewn. I got through very quickly to a nice lady named Karen, who helped me once I had her on speaker, so I could use my hands. Here's what I learned:

1. The stiffness of turning the wheel to make the needle go down through the throat plate is normal.

2. The problem loosening the screw to change the needle is a factory issue. She promised to report it. She didn't know whether that screw was tightened by machine or by a person, but it was certainly too tight. It doesn't need to be that tight to work.

3. Even though it sewed fine, I didn't have the needle all the way in, so the needle threader wouldn't work. Once I reinstalled the needle, the threader worked.

4. The loopy bobbin thread was due to pulling on the fabric. You don't need to do that. You have to just relax and only guide your project. On stretchy fabric, even, if you're using zigzag, you don't need to pull. Just let the zigzag do the work.

No more problems for now, and I feel assured that I can get help if I have problems in the future. I told EverSewn's nice lady Karen I would love to have an online class in how to use all the features, like a Craftsy class. I was even willing to pay for it. She said they were "in talks," so maybe there will be one soon.

I'm a happy camper, but one more negative, and it's a small one. The "dust cover" has a hole in it for the handle, so at my place, anyway, dust can still get in.

I plan to make a real dust cover from these measurements and just keep this one to protect the machine if I take it to a class sometime.

So what have I made using my new Sparrow 15? First the simple straight sewing and just using the zigzag for finishing the raw edges. Some pajama pants for Mandy. This is a simple, one-pattern-piece design with a faux drawstring. I wrote up the pattern and a tutorial to make it really easy here.

Then I made a play outfit for Jolena, based on Simplicity 1484, but with a lot of modifications. I altered the neck, shoulders and armholes. I cut the skirt on the bias, because then it doesn't fray when you gather it and I like the drape better. The pants are similar to the tights in the same pattern, but made wider by 1/2", because I was using woven fabric, not stretchy, and 1" shorter, so I could add a folded band of contrast around the bottom, also cut on the bias, so the fitting would be easier.

Then I used a very thick fabric. I think this is duck. It's a very dark navy. I made a beanbag chair for the girls.

I found this pattern and enlarged a screen shot of the pattern piece so it filled an 8 1/2 X 11" piece of paper.  (It was designed for a toddler, so you would have to enlarge the pattern piece much more.) For the round piece, I picked out a plate to use for a pattern, once I had the six wedges sewn together and could see how big my circle needed to be. I stuffed the beanbag with plastic bags. Vroni thinks it still isn't full enough.

The bags will come out. After we get moved, I'll probably fill it with a bag of rice and sew it shut. Unless I can find some polybeads that are cheaper.

Then I jumped into using stretchy fabric to make a couple more swimsuits for the girls using socks.

The hats are Matilda's Closet's Bucket Hat pattern from Pixie Faire, but I didn't use interfacing, and instead of leaving an opening on the edge of the brim, I left one in the lining, where the brim and band meet, about 2". That was I was able to get the brim nice and smooth. I closed the opening when I topstitched around the bottom of the band.

I wrote up a full tutorial with the new bathing suit design here. It's funny how I had no trouble with the stitching once I stopped pulling on it. This was pretty easy.

Stanzi came out of hibernation. I set her up in the almost-empty loom area of my fiber studio as-was and loaded her with some Merino/Tencel roving from AlohaBlu. The colorway is "Frog Prince."

Common Threads met at my house, since I finally got it clean. We had a nice time together and some pretty projects to see. Karan was working on this Idaho Lilly quilt.

Susan, one of our part-time residents, came with some knitting and this woven dish towel to show.

Margareth was working on an appliquéd wall hanging. I snapped this photo before I knew it would be displayed vertically.

The Doll's Storybook blog for children came out as scheduled on Friday. In this one is called What Do Dolls Do on Their Day Off? I hope it isn't too scary; it has a bear in it.

So the honeymoon is over, but it looks like the marriage will last.

What's on my needles: Still the Kisu Cardigan for Jolena. Just starting the Kitty motif. Also the Coastal Skies shawl for me, no progress.

What's on my Sparrow 15: More doll clothes. Working up to things like sewing on buttons and making buttonholes.

What's in my hoop: Still the Spring Flowers quilt, no progress at all this week.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi is finally set up and at work. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Still listening to The Secret Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams. No progress this week.

What's in my wine glass: Lindeman's Cawarra Shiraz-Cabernet 2017. 

What's my tip of the week: A fleece bag filled with rice makes a great microwaveable heating pad. I have a couple. I make them longer than they are wide, not over full, so it will wrap around whatever part of your anatomy you want to use it for. I find I can often avoid using aspirin for joint pain. Midwinter it's nice in bed while I brush my teeth so I can climb into a warm bed.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Revisiting the Sweat Shop

Rebecca is at it again.

Vintage Stitchers met at Janet's on Thursday, and Rebecca had this pillow for show-and-tell. She colored the image with crayons, and then heat-set the image. Finally, she embroidered it. She found the image here.

Rebecca and Brenda are also working on a free design from Crabapple Hill Studio using the same technique. 

Rebecca said she will teach us how to do this process. It should be interesting.

Carol had made this baby quilt:

The back is almost as interesting.

Marilyn was finishing up this interesting quilt.

This was the back, a good use for the large bird print.

Barbara had this one to show from Jelly Roll Jambalaya Quilts by Jean Ann Wright. It's a nice break from the 1600 quilts she has made.

I love the fabric she used for the border and the backing.

The knitters were busy, too. Diane had brought this shawl for show-and-tell.

...and Janet was working on this shawl, a mystery KAL with a designer she likes.

She picked from her stash of Knit Picks Palette for this project. Janet was also finishing this  cross-stitch to commemorate her anniversary. She's almost done, or at least coming down the home stretch.

The Habitat for Humanity sweat shop was busy. Dolly is standing in for the Habitat girl, but Carter is wearing his own overalls. The Habitat kids will wear overalls to the Overall Ball September 22nd where they will be part of a silent auction, along with their wardrobes. The overalls pattern was The Oh My Gosh Overalls pattern by QTPie from Pixie Faire.

I love the detailing on the overalls, and the pattern design and instructions made it fairly easy to do. Here's the back.

There is a loop to hold a hammer (right below Carter's thumb).

On the other side, there's a special pocket for a screwdriver.

I also made Carter a surfing outfit: trunks and a shirt.

We don't do a lot of surfing here in the mountains of Utah, but he can pretend, and his hat, the Summer Camp Bucket Hat by Matilda's Closet, also from Pixie Faire, can be used for any outdoor activity, like hiking.

Carter still needs a couple more shirts and more pants, so I'm not done yet. Until I get the Habitat girl, I don't know which outfits she'll be taking from my growing girl collection. I'll need to try them on and see which ones to add to the wardrobe of donated knitted and sewn clothes. I added a few items to the assortment last week, though. I finished the green (Palette "Macaw") French Back-to-school Cardigan, modeled here by Vroni.

I also made two new dresses. Here are Mandy and Vroni modeling them for us.

The pattern is Simplicity 1484 (with easy modifications) for both. I'm making another Gracie Cardigan in Palette "Cyan" to go with the dress Mandy is wearing.

You might notice Mandy's new reading glasses. They're from American Girl.

The house exterior has a new coat of paint and the portico has fresh stain. We paid a neighbor, who is a house painter, to do those jobs. DH painted the mailbox. We're going through our "stuff" to see what we can dispose of. MS is coming to pick up on Saturday. 

Dusty had his annual checkup and shots on Wednesday. We've been busy, but somehow we managed to find time to hike with the doggies. I had just finished taking this photo when DH threw the toy and hit me in the face. (An accident, he says.)

That's what I get for looking at the photo I just took.

Retraction: I misunderstood about Johan's time in the cockpit during the family's return flight. It was while the plane was on the ground. Everyone can relax now.

What's on my needles: The Gracie Cardigan in Palette "Cyan" for Mandy.

What's on my Featherweight: Still clothes for the Habitat for Humanity dolls.

What's on my loom: Still waiting.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi has been busy with the Woodland Woolworks, Carlton, OR. Merino Combed Top Multicolor, 4 oz, Mojave Heather. I should have something to show next week. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished listening to Dark Witch by Nora Roberts. Then listened to Lord Grenville’s Choice by G. G. Vandagriff. Now listening to another Rachel Abbot mystery, Stranger Child. On the Kindle app, still reading Undeniable by Laura Stapleton.

What's in my wine glass: Corbett Canyon Merlot in the big bottle. Very nice, good value. I must tip the wine steward. (As soon as he stops throwing things.)

What's my tip of the week: If you have one of those magnetic pin dishes, you can use it to find pins and needles you drop on the floor. Just empty it, turn it upside down and wave it over the area where you think you might have dropped the pin or needle. As an alternative, I often wait until DH walks through in bare feet. He always finds them.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.