Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Sew-A-Long Day 2


Reading!

Now is the time to open the pattern and read through the instructions! Do you read all your instructions before you start to sew?

I sometimes do, not often to be honest, but heck… this is a tutorial so lets read…

(Should I be honest here and tell you that I have already almost finished the bag, and missed this step? Hmmmmm nah! I think I will just let you think I am the perfect sewer… read first, sew later!)

Here’s what I was thinking as I read through the pattern…
  •  In addition to the supplies on the back of the instructions, here is a list of some other tools I might need.
  • By Annie has great tutorials and I might need them later. By reading through the pattern I can see where they are and go read them or watch the video's, especially if it is something new to me. 
  • Copyright info… so important... but  I can make up to ten cases for gifts or sale…. good to know. These might sell really well at our craft table for the guild, and I know I will be gifting them! If I want to make more to sell… I gotta call Annie!
  •  If I teach this… you gotta buy a pattern, which is one of the reasons I have decided to teach un-specifically. You will get lots of information to help you with other bags and this one too, if necessary 
  •  Please respect the time and energy Annie used to make the pattern and don’t copy… sorry ladies if you want the pattern you will have to buy it. I can’t share.
  • Suggested layout using one fabric. (This was very helpful, but you don't often see it in a pattern.)  I always cut carefully when there is no layout. I think it is important to read through all the cutting instructions so when you do cut, you can group things together. Lots of things can be cut out of a 5 inch strip and it just makes more sense to cut 1- 5 inch strip and get all the 5" pieces, 4" pieces and 3" pieces out of it, rather than cut  a 5" strip, a 4" strip and a 3" strip. 
  • A note about the zipper... zipper's can be easy to do. I often find a technique that I like and stick to it, then I don't have to try something new when I am doing a new pattern. SOMETIMES however, new and different can be fun too and often gives me another go to when I need to put in a zipper. byAnnie has several tutorials, written and video, that I check on when I need to. Following this particular bag pattern or not, those tutorials will be great to see, bookmark or print for future references.



  • It's good to read through the sewing instructions, too. This is a great opportunity to see whether or not this pattern is at your sewing expertise, or if frustration will occur half way through and you have wasted time and energy. I have been sewing for years and sometimes a pattern just doesn't speak to me once I get into the nitty gritty of sewing it and I have wasted money on the pattern and the fabric not to mention my time. Reading first can help... (now do as I say, not as I do!  LOL)


  • I think it is a good idea to pull it out before you leave the store if you can and read through. I know by experience that I have said to students... this is easy! You can do it! Most often I hear back from them... "Easy for you". So just because it has EASY slathered all over the front of the package  and on every sewing instruction, it doesn't mean its going to be easy for you. If you love it and really want to buy it, get a friend to come and sew with you. The old adage, that 2 minds are better than 1 works here! And if that doesn't work.. take it to your LQS ask them to run a class on it. Maybe they will put their fine team of expert quilters on it and you will have all the help you will need. 

Done the hard part!

  • I find that reading the pattern... front, back, inside, in the bathroom, in bed, in the car... helps you to wrap your mind around the process. And when you are sewing through a part that you found difficult to understand in the reading stage, most often that Ah Ha moment arrives and you see what a success you can be. 

Sew-a-long notes!

  • If you are sewing-a-long with me, I want to tell you that I read through the whole thing! Might have been a first time for me. LOL But I did see the benefits of reading it. there is one part that I will tell you about later that had me stuck during the reading, but I am one of those, never mind I will figure it out types of people, and I carried on through the sewing process and it was EASY!
  • Zippers never scare me. I love putting a zipper in and this one is quite different than I am used to. But I suspect it will be EASY too...
  • Just a reminder... I don't work for byAnnie! Just hanging out with her patterns and tutorials!



And for my dear friend Aimee, who thinks it will be too small... I am loving this bag. It's not done, still waiting for the hardware, but I think you might have liked it!


I am ready for the next step! See you in a couple of days!


I thought since this was a bag tutorial
I would show you some of the bags I have made as we go-a-long!

This bag was a Nickel Bucket Bag, which I used
KennyKreations embroidery designs on each square.

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