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Tee Top Challenge

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  Tee Top Challenge The Lansing Clippers, a chapter of the American Sewing Guild, had a recent program where the members were challenged to fit a pattern and make a tee top.   The pattern was the ABB (Anything But Basic) tee top from Cooper Creek Patterns.   I joined the challenge and set about the task of fitting and sewing a tee top for myself, The fitting part of the challenge was relatively easy for me because I just finished an online class taught by Alexandra Morgan of In-House Patterns.   Although the class was about fitting a woven top, I still learned techniques that enabled me to fit a pattern for a knit top.   I used her information on how to make adjustments to the pattern as well as the order to use to make those adjustments.   That information was very useful to me to get the ABB tee top to fit. Although fitting the tee top was easy, I cannot say the same about actually making the top.   I chose a red and black plaid knit that I h...
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Memories

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  A Quilt of Memories To start at the beginning, years and years ago I bought my first embroidery machine.   Over time I made several baby quilts featuring embroidery designs for my grandbabies. I made others for friends and extended family.   I would show each one to my mom and after a while she commented that she wished I would embroider some designs for her to use in a quilt. I hate to admit it but several years passed and then one Christmas I was struggling with what to get for my mom.    After all I now know we all reach that age when there is really nothing that we need and if we do need or want something we probably just go out and buy it for ourselves. I ran across a set of embroidery designs featuring farm scenes with barns, tractors and various farm animals done in a single color.   Knowing that my dad was a big John Deere fan, I stitched out the designs in a variegated green thread and trimmed the blocks to 10 ½ inches and gave them to my...
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Unexpected Things Happen at Sewing Retreat

  I just recently returned from a sewing retreat in Shipshewana, Indiana for the Lansing Clippers, a chapter of the American Sewing Guild.   I love going to these retreats.   They provide an opportunity to get to know our members better and an opportunity to learn by watching what others are sewing.   And sometimes, unexpected things happen.   For example, one attendee learned to use a serger for the first time.   You should have heard her shout when she serged the first seam.   She made her first tee shirt using a serger.   One of our members, Bev D., showed her how to fit and make the tee top.   Congratulations, Elizabeth D.!   You did a great job making your first tee top and using a serger for the first time! Another unexpected thing that happened was I volunteered to give a presentation about sewing a 12-piece wardrobe.   I previously volunteered to give a presentation in September 2025 about draping.   We held an Educat...
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Ready - Set - Sew!

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  Ready, Set Sew! You’ve all heard the proverb “it takes a village to raise a child”, highlighting the benefits of community wisdom and support.   Well, it also takes a “village” to learn new sewing skills, practice those skills, and provide encouragement during the process.   That’s exactly what happened during our “Ready, Set, Sew” adventure. It all started when various guild members expressed renewed (or first time) interest in exploring the process of garment construction but weren’t quite sure how to get started.    For some, it had been years since making a garment, some had never made a garment, and others simply enjoyed the benefits of group projects.   Meanwhile, other guild members wanted to participate in a group project but preferred a quilting focus.   So, after some discussion, two simple patterns were selected: the Moss Jacket from Helen’s Closet and a quilted triangle table runner, free from All People Quilt.   Guild members ...
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