How To Make A Seam

Sarah J. Doyle | June 16, 2010

          The seam is the basic element of any garment and must be made with care.   Although 5/8” is the standard seam width, always check your pattern for required width in special seaming situations.  Some types of fabric, such as spandex or tricot will only require small seam allowances, so always check the pattern guideline.  [...]

Need New Toys For Your Customer Waiting Area?

Sarah J. Doyle | April 19, 2010

Actually, this post could be “Need new toys for your grandchildren when they come to visit?” or “Need a new product to sell at the next craft fair?”, but sometimes it seems like the toy corner of a customer waiting area gets pretty skimpy!  Not many toys, and the ones you have available are over [...]

How To Work With Waistlines

Sarah J. Doyle | March 31, 2010

         We will be dealing with two types of waistlines this week and next – one is where the skirt will be joined to a bodice to make a dress, and the second type will be in making a skirt or pair of slacks.           Before any waistline seam is sewn, all darts, tucks or pleats must [...]

Sew Simple Felt Hair Bows

S. Denise Hoyle | February 23, 2010

I fell in love with these quick and easy to sew felt hair bows the second I saw them.  Our local county school district has a strict uniform policy for pre-k and but the girls are allowed to wear colorful hair barrettes so I’m planning to make these in every color imaginable for both of [...]

Recycle Old Sweaters Into Cozy Throw Pillows

Sarah J. Doyle | February 20, 2010

If you’d like to add a little something “extra” to your sewing business, I’ve just run across something that I think would be useful for making a few extra bucks. FaveCrafts has a great tutorial by Heidi Borchers for creating throw pillows from old sweaters. They say you can pick up old sweaters from thrift [...]

Sweetheart Pin Cushion Tutorial

Sarah J. Doyle | February 6, 2010

Two days in a row we’ve gleaned super Valentine’s Day tutorials from Jessica at HappyTogether blog.  Today we’re going to show off her Sweetheart Pin Cushion tutorial.  As you probably already know, I love pin cushions, and really need to start a pin cushion collection!  One of those small shadow boxes that people use to [...]

Gooey Hearts Toddler Shirt

Sarah J. Doyle | February 5, 2010

We’ve had the pleasure of using wonderful tutorials from Jessica at HappyTogether previously, and we found another one for you.  This one is just in time for Valentine’s Day — and I believe every little girl should have one of these Gooey Hearts Shirts!!! Isn’t that just the prettiest little girl and cutest little shirt!  [...]

How To Make Boo Boos Feel Better!

Sarah J. Doyle | December 30, 2009

If you’d like to sew something that every toddler (and older person as well) would love to have for those boo boos, try this BooBoo Buddy that Trish from Simple Up shows how to make.  The fabric looks so soft, and they recommend putting it in the freezer until you need it for a boo [...]

Ruffled Strapless Cami From Man’s Shirt

Sarah J. Doyle | October 10, 2009

A week or so ago we did a post about turning an oversized man’s shirt into a strapless dress (teenager style), and how cute it was. Well, it appears there are other things that can be made from men’s shirts, and usually the larger the shirt the better.  Sharon at SharonSews Blogspot has a really [...]

Make Your Own Pillow Cases

Sarah J. Doyle | October 4, 2009

When the “white sale” comes around, or you just happen to see sheets on sale, just buy the top and bottom sheets – forget the more expensive pillow cases.  You can purchase one twin size flat sheet and make 4 pillow cases that will end up costing you less than one third of the price [...]