Sewing for Dummies

My dear, sweet Oma (that's "grandma" for those out of the loop) has bestowed upon me her sewing machine! I'm on the track, but I've had it now for two weeks and have not opened the case. I have however opened the manual and was tickled when I saw the following...

Congratulations, Madam! I love it! Makes me feel like a 1950's housewife, but in a good non-anti-feminist way.

The sewing machine is from 1974, purchased on Christmas Eve by my Opa (grandpa) for my Oma. I should probably take it in and have someone look at it since it hasn't been used in years. Now where does one do that if one is so inclined? Joann's, maybe? I don't know of any other stores that sell sewing machines around here.

I've also picked up a copy of Sewing for Dummies. All it is doing is making me nervous. So much to remember, and it all seems so complicated. But I'm determined! I will learn!

Next step... taking her out of the case. I just know she's a girl too.

Sew Now What?

I have always been interested in making things. As a kid I loved art class. I loved to get my hands sticky with glue and glitter. I would work hard on my drawings, even though I had no talent. When I was around 11 or 12, we took a camping trip with a bunch of other kids and one of the girls was making bracelets out of embroidery floss. I LOVED it, I got myself a clipboard, a rainbow of colors, and a little plastic box to house them in. I could spend hours making those friendship bracelets. As I got older I put more of my creativity into writing and performing. Then my senior year of high school I took Clothing 1, mainly because I thought it would be an easy A. Not so much. I made a really horribly put together pair of cow boxer shorts, and for my final project a pink bag with a long strap and contrast blue stitching. I think I still have it somewhere. In college I channeled my creativity into singing in a band, and got into the rave scene. That led to my roommates and I spending hours making bracelets out of brightly colored beads to go along with our obnoxiously large pants. Flash forward a few years and here I am, a stay at home mom of three crazy little girls. Now I channel the creativity into making hair bows and tutus, but lately I've been wanting to do more, and it's all their fault.

Who's fault, you may (or may not) be asking? Quilt Taffy. A blog I frequent every day run by two incredibly fabulous women, who just happen to be my Aunts. I read and marvel at all the things they are able to make, and think, "I want to do that!!!" So, I blame them. I blame them for this sudden urge I have to learn to sew. I also blame them for the dreams I now have of making cute little animals, and clothes, and maybe one day a quilt. I blame them for my new obsession with Japanese fabrics. And one day (hopefully) I will be able to thank them for all the inspiration they provide, and say, "Hey, look at what I made for you!" And (hopefully, again) they will say, "WOW, that's wonderful!" and not "Oh, that's....nice?"

So, I'm now embarking on this new journey, and I'm sharing my journey with the blogosphere in hopes that maybe the people who find this blog and read it will be able to offer advice, suggestions and maybe even some more inspiration!

Sew...here we go!