Just like everyone else, I love a bargain. I found this great sweater, without embroidery, marked down from $48 to $9.  I knew the addition of an embroidery design would take it from plain to pretty.
The lacy knit sleeves make it cool enough for Florida weather and yet, with a green or purple shirt under it, it is warm enough for our few cool days. Continue reading
Posted in embroidery blanks, ladies, machine embroidery
Tagged Connie Palmer, embroidery on knits, grape embroidery, KO Designs
Maybe I should have a whole category dedicated to Swiss flannel projects. This is yet another of the many items I have made with this luscious fabric and I don’t ever seem to tire of it.
Earlier, a similar white blanket was made, using regular Swiss flannel and featured in the post Antique Carriage Blanket. This one was made in anticipation of the birth of my second grandson, Alastair. I enjoyed using the bold dark blue in the flowers. Continue reading
For the 50+ out of town guests for our daughter’s wedding, we planned a Saturday afternoon cruise down the St.Johns River.
In our area, the wedding pre-ceremony activity is most often a guest golf tournament, usually for the men, with balls or some other minor golf equipment for favors.
Our out-of-town guests ranged from the groom’s 85 year old grandmother to young mothers with 6 month old babies. We wanted something they all could enjoy before the 6 p.m. wedding ceremony.
 For some time now, 5 year old Laurel has been begging to sew.  Yesterday, with Christmas behind us, we finally had a little free time.
Next week she will be going to our family cabin in the mountains of North Carolina so we thought a polar fleece scarf would be useful. She serged the 8″ x 50″ edges with a three-thread wide stitch. This was her first experience with my fabulous Babylock Evolve serger and she took to it like a duck to water. She loved the speed and ease of control.
For many years, I taught sewing to children. There are so many things that I learned about teaching skills and generating enthusiasm. One of the most important considerations is selection of the project, which should be quick and easy, and, in my opinion, foolproof. An earnest junior sewist cannot be allowed to fail. So the scarf seemed to be a safe choice. Continue reading
Posted in girls, Kids Sew, machine embroidery, Nana fun, serger
This blanket was part of Alastair’s coming home ensemble. When he left the hospital wearing his tailored boy bonnet, a Maggie’s Classic daygown and wrapped up in this shawl, he was the quintessential old fashioned baby. His Gerber Baby good looks added to the overall pleasing presentation.
Swiss flannel is such a wonderful fabric, especially for babies. Invariably, the mothers have reported that the weight and texture make it the ideal fabric for their little ones. The weight is just slightly heavier than batiste, but the little bit of nap offers a tad more cuddliness.
The weight also makes it very suitable for a nursing cover up. It is not too heavy and when folded is compact enough to fit easily into even the most chock full diaper bag. Continue reading
Posted in baby accessories, machine embroidery
Gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly merry Christmas.– Peg Bracken
Those same basic ingredients of time and love are stitched into gifts from those of us who love to sew. This gift set of 12 monogrammed linen napkins were embroidered with both time and love for my daughter.
Rebecca loves to entertain, especially if the occasion warrants use of china from her grandmother and sterling silver from her godmother. She was delighted to be hosting the family Christmas day festivities and began planning and decorating just after Thanksgiving. I knew these napkins would give the finishing touch to her holiday table.
The napkins themselves are “blanks,” ready for embroidery.  I have to mention that the scalloped edges are really very rough. I’ve never been fond of cutwork because there are always eyelashes poking out from the button hole stitched edges. Continue reading
Posted in home dec, linen blanks, machine embroidery
At last, it finally happened. I had all three of my grandchildren in the same place at the same time wearing their matching outfits. Getting a group shot that includes a 9 month-old baby is dicey at best, but the two older children were very cooperative and patient. Maybe that whole Elf Watch threat still hangs over their heads.
Alastair in Glenn suit with his paternal grandmother, Oma, after church
The details of each outfit are in previous posts, but in summary the plaid is Viyella, the button-on bibs are a linen blend, the pattern for the boys’ suit is Glenn by Children’s Corner and Laurel’s dress is an extended yoke pattern. The embroidery designs are all from Bernina’s Current Critters Continued collection. Continue reading
Posted in boys, clothing, girls, infant clothing, machine embroidery, smocking
This stocking was made for Laurel’s first Christmas. For years before Laurel was on the way, her mother had fostered hundreds of orphaned squirrels. As a safety precaution, she had taken a short break from handling rodents during pregnancy and nursing. So she particularly enjoyed the squirrel theme.
The Woods Stocking cross stitch designs from ABC Embroidery, www.abc-machine-embroidery-designs.com are absolutely charming. The cross stitch looks exactly as if it were done by hand.   The collection includes the actual stockings pattern, sized for the designs to fit perfectly. Continue reading
Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.~Laura Ingalls Wilder
I love holiday pillowcases. Christmas, being the most special holiday of all, is reason enough for several sets of pillowcases—for my bed, for the guest room, for my grandchildren’s beds at my house and at their homes, for our cabin in North Carolina, for the guest rooms in my children’s homes, for special little friends……. I could go on and on. Continue reading
Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone. – Charles Schulz
There are so many people who touch our lives, though they are not major players. “Something extra,” can be a small remembrance, a gift to acknowledge but not to oblige.
For our family, fresh fruit from our citrus trees has often filled the bill for small presents. But this year I wanted to focus a little more on presentation.
I thought the addition of an embroidered dishtowel would be something extra. I could have just slipped it into the brown paper bag in which I normally pack the citrus. But then I thought of this specialty thread and decided that a washaway bag was just what I needed.
Posted in bags, Holiday Projects, home dec, machine embroidery, serger, techniques
