Just a reminder to folks that we postponed our March SSS meeting due to Easter celebrations.
We'll meet next Saturday (2 April) at the Community Meeting Room at Gordon White Library from 1.00pm till 3.00pm.
April is a month where we have twice the fun as we will also meet on Saturday 30 April to sew, socialise et cetera!
Don't forget to bring whatever project you're working on and all the goodies you need to progress on it! If you just want to peruse library magazines and books for inspiration that is fine also!
Monday, 28 March 2016
Tuesday, 1 March 2016
So many folk enjoying a 'sew'!
We had a wonderful group turn up to enjoy the cool and to have a bit of uninterrupted time on those projects which we want to work on but somehow just find it hard to get around to when there's all those household chores shouting at us to be done.
One of our regulars had been merrily sewing away at home and then was flabbergasted to realise she had sewn too many triangles together for that part of her project, so decided SSS would be a great place to come along and socialise as she engaged in therapeutic unpicking!
Another of our social sewers is working on a king-size quilt project which requires the assembly of diamonds flanked by several surrounds as her base piece, so she was able to add a few more diamonds to her growing collection of blue, lavender and green pieces. A project of this magnitude really requires resilience and persistence as the number of pieces needed is huge while there needs to be a standard of consistent accuracy as well. We look forward to watching the construction of this quilt of wonderful fresh but calming colours.
One of our sewers is always producing wonderful clothes for her children but this Saturday it was her turn! This fabulous red fabric flowing over the table was going to be converted into a great summer dress following a pattern gleaned from the internet. This sewer is always very productive and in no time at all the fabric was cut into pattern pieces and assembly begun. A bit of discussion ensued as to how one goes about lining such a dress and then construction continued. We're all looking forward to seeing the finished product.
Several of our sewers bring along several projects as they are never sure which creative current they will feel like riding at the time and sometimes they like to change rafts mid-stream. One of our serial crocheters (it doesn't seem be a real word but it should be) has been making a series of coseys for smaller sized teapots. These delightful coseys are adorned with an assortment of multi-coloured flowers and will certainly enhance one's experience of a cup of tea. When the thrill of crocheting a cosey wore off she then continued to create these felt-centred flowers made from a circle of fabric from the scrap material in her stash. These colourful yo-yos made with the assistance of the versatile dental floss are then attached to this lavender corduroy blanket making a unique lap blanket that is not only cosy and warm but beautiful as well.
A new skirt was on the to-do list for another of our regular sewers. A nice and easy sew-up and attach elastic to the top was the plan. She chose a firm knit fabric with a sort-of check design from blue stripes on a white background. It did get cut out but there just too much discussion required to progress much further into the project.
Another of our regulars is making a valiant effort to restore and re-activate her sewing genes. She has battled and persisted with a recalcitrant lined winter skirt without a great deal of satisfaction. After deciding to sew the lining and skirt separately she still was not happy with her progress so she has decided to regroup and start on another simpler project to regain her shattered confidence - table mats! She had ironed the interfacing to the back piece and after advice from our resident in all things fabric, cut out the front piece to utilise the fabric design to its best advantage. Theoretically then, it was just (never use this term just) a matter of sewing the two pieces together, leaving a gap, turning it inside out etc but...... somehow that uncooperative back piece ended up with the interfacing on the outside not the inside! When our tenacious sewer realised her mistake she collapsed in fits of laughter. Much hilarity ensued as we have all been there, done that and knew how she felt! Many complicated plans followed endeavouring to avoid the great unpick but eventually she opted for making another one entirely! We look forward to seeing her set of table mats next time!
One of our new-comers has been a long time coming to our SSS but last Saturday she eventually made it, complete with projects to be worked on! First she toiled on all the laborious cutting that a rag quilted wall hanging requires. Then when that was progressed as far as could be, away with the scissors and out with the crochet hook to work on a multi-coloured stripey lap rug with purples, greens and whites in the mix so far.
Another newcomer to SSS brought along a long-stitch with a story, to work on. Apparently her husband started it then asked her to work on it a bit, then he decided to work on it a bit more and now she is back working on it. It certainly is a family project. It is called The Great Barrier Reef and contains all the joyous colours of the reef. It will be a stunning picture for a wall in the family home when completed.
Our resident cross-stitcher spent most of the time setting up a canvas for a new project. The edges are now taped and the half-way lines both length-wise and breadth-wise are marked with a running stitch. The colours have been separated and attached to the card but the correct colour codes have yet to be added. Then all will be ready for the real fun to begin.
Thrown into the mix of all of this sewing, crochet and conversation was a visit from a delightful journalist from The Daily Mercury. Hence, page 6 of Monday 29 February's edition has a lovely collection of photos as well as some of our comments. We certainly look and sound an industrious bunch!
As Easter falls at the end of the month and there is a local election on the Saturday before that, our next Social Sewing Saturday will be on Saturday 2 April. It'll be interesting to see how everyone has progressed by then.
Happy sewing!
One of our regulars had been merrily sewing away at home and then was flabbergasted to realise she had sewn too many triangles together for that part of her project, so decided SSS would be a great place to come along and socialise as she engaged in therapeutic unpicking!
Another of our social sewers is working on a king-size quilt project which requires the assembly of diamonds flanked by several surrounds as her base piece, so she was able to add a few more diamonds to her growing collection of blue, lavender and green pieces. A project of this magnitude really requires resilience and persistence as the number of pieces needed is huge while there needs to be a standard of consistent accuracy as well. We look forward to watching the construction of this quilt of wonderful fresh but calming colours.
One of our sewers is always producing wonderful clothes for her children but this Saturday it was her turn! This fabulous red fabric flowing over the table was going to be converted into a great summer dress following a pattern gleaned from the internet. This sewer is always very productive and in no time at all the fabric was cut into pattern pieces and assembly begun. A bit of discussion ensued as to how one goes about lining such a dress and then construction continued. We're all looking forward to seeing the finished product.
Several of our sewers bring along several projects as they are never sure which creative current they will feel like riding at the time and sometimes they like to change rafts mid-stream. One of our serial crocheters (it doesn't seem be a real word but it should be) has been making a series of coseys for smaller sized teapots. These delightful coseys are adorned with an assortment of multi-coloured flowers and will certainly enhance one's experience of a cup of tea. When the thrill of crocheting a cosey wore off she then continued to create these felt-centred flowers made from a circle of fabric from the scrap material in her stash. These colourful yo-yos made with the assistance of the versatile dental floss are then attached to this lavender corduroy blanket making a unique lap blanket that is not only cosy and warm but beautiful as well.
A new skirt was on the to-do list for another of our regular sewers. A nice and easy sew-up and attach elastic to the top was the plan. She chose a firm knit fabric with a sort-of check design from blue stripes on a white background. It did get cut out but there just too much discussion required to progress much further into the project.
Another of our regulars is making a valiant effort to restore and re-activate her sewing genes. She has battled and persisted with a recalcitrant lined winter skirt without a great deal of satisfaction. After deciding to sew the lining and skirt separately she still was not happy with her progress so she has decided to regroup and start on another simpler project to regain her shattered confidence - table mats! She had ironed the interfacing to the back piece and after advice from our resident in all things fabric, cut out the front piece to utilise the fabric design to its best advantage. Theoretically then, it was just (never use this term just) a matter of sewing the two pieces together, leaving a gap, turning it inside out etc but...... somehow that uncooperative back piece ended up with the interfacing on the outside not the inside! When our tenacious sewer realised her mistake she collapsed in fits of laughter. Much hilarity ensued as we have all been there, done that and knew how she felt! Many complicated plans followed endeavouring to avoid the great unpick but eventually she opted for making another one entirely! We look forward to seeing her set of table mats next time!
One of our new-comers has been a long time coming to our SSS but last Saturday she eventually made it, complete with projects to be worked on! First she toiled on all the laborious cutting that a rag quilted wall hanging requires. Then when that was progressed as far as could be, away with the scissors and out with the crochet hook to work on a multi-coloured stripey lap rug with purples, greens and whites in the mix so far.
Another newcomer to SSS brought along a long-stitch with a story, to work on. Apparently her husband started it then asked her to work on it a bit, then he decided to work on it a bit more and now she is back working on it. It certainly is a family project. It is called The Great Barrier Reef and contains all the joyous colours of the reef. It will be a stunning picture for a wall in the family home when completed.
Our resident cross-stitcher spent most of the time setting up a canvas for a new project. The edges are now taped and the half-way lines both length-wise and breadth-wise are marked with a running stitch. The colours have been separated and attached to the card but the correct colour codes have yet to be added. Then all will be ready for the real fun to begin.
Thrown into the mix of all of this sewing, crochet and conversation was a visit from a delightful journalist from The Daily Mercury. Hence, page 6 of Monday 29 February's edition has a lovely collection of photos as well as some of our comments. We certainly look and sound an industrious bunch!
As Easter falls at the end of the month and there is a local election on the Saturday before that, our next Social Sewing Saturday will be on Saturday 2 April. It'll be interesting to see how everyone has progressed by then.
Happy sewing!
Monday, 22 February 2016
We start our Social Sewing this Saturday at GWL!
After a few of our enthusiastic sewers had a practice run in January, we'll kick off our 2016 SSS this Saturday at the Community Meeting Room at the Gordon White Library at 1.00pm.
Just bring along a project that you are working on and the equipment you need to progress it - it doesn't have to be sewing but some association with textiles, crochet or knitting is fine.
If you're looking for inspiration the library has a great collection of craft magazines and books to help kickstart the creative juices! If you just want to chat with fellow sewers that's just fine too!
Looking forward to seeing you this Saturday at 1.00pm at the Community Meeting Room at the Gordon White Library!
Just bring along a project that you are working on and the equipment you need to progress it - it doesn't have to be sewing but some association with textiles, crochet or knitting is fine.
If you're looking for inspiration the library has a great collection of craft magazines and books to help kickstart the creative juices! If you just want to chat with fellow sewers that's just fine too!
Looking forward to seeing you this Saturday at 1.00pm at the Community Meeting Room at the Gordon White Library!
Monday, 23 November 2015
Socialising, socialising and some sewing.....
The Community Meeting Room at Gordon White Library was buzzing on Social Sewing Saturday! Nine people worked on a variety of projects while socialising and networking. It was wonderful to hear such a buzz of conversation backed by the whirr of a sewing machine.
One of our regulars was able to continue with her Knitted Knockers Project while enjoying the refreshing cool of the air conditioner and escaping the oppressive heat and humidity of our summer. She was knitting along very merrily but unfortunately socialising created a lapse in concentration and the project was cast into the unpicking category to be dealt with later. This was a very wise decision as one could then give full concentration to socialising, sampling some of the sweets and finding out about other members' projects which is an important information sharing function of Social Sewing Saturdays.
Our resident FOML, expert in all things textile, has several patchwork quilts in the pipeline and some are due before Christmas so there is a little deadline pressure on there. Consequently she was carefully cutting pieces for a quilt which is based on triangles. We look forward to seeing photos of the completed project in the near future.
Our Christmas elf was crocheting a soft light green rug (maintaining a Christmas theme) amongst handing out beautiful living (more green) presents to SSSers and providing delicious paleo party pieces. This SSSer brought in a bag of fabric scraps from her stash which another SSSer gratefully accepted. We look forward to seeing how she transforms these tidbits into treasures as she is always mass producing some projects from various bits and pieces for various occasions. Currently this SSSer was busy embroidering using a variety of colourful stitches on a neutral background. It had the suggestion of the delightful old-fashioned doily about it. It'll be interesting to follow its journey to its eventual destination.
One of our SSSers has been stealthily stalking her skirt project for months. She brings along her machine and the cut-out pieces for her skirt, ponders through the machine instructions then picks up the pattern's instructions and wrestles with them for a while and then in sheer bewilderment turns to another less-taxing project she has brought along. But this SSS was it! With assistance from a more experienced sewer, she now has an operational machine and has sewn her first seams on her skirt which she then proudly modelled for her very appreciative audience. Hopefully this confidence boost will inspire her to continue manufacturing her skirt. The first step is usually the hardest but most important in a challenging journey.
One of our new SSSers was knitting a delicate white baby bonnet on her four needles. Unfortunately the socialising meant a bit of unravelling as well, but that's just part of its therapeutic benefits. This trendy bonnet complete with tiny ear flaps will match the beautifully-knitted overalls that she had knitted previously. This delightful layette is destined for far colder climes than ours and its owner will certainly look extremely cute in it.
Another new SSSer decided to work on the socialising aspect of SSS before she sampled the sewing aspect. She bought her family along for support so all was exceptionally social!
A decision to make a baby dress using traditional techniques brought another return SSSer back after an absence. This small frock complete with pintucks, handsewn hem, petit Peter Pan Collar and placket back to be closed with press studs, has been carefully constructed from a William Morris inspired lawn which adds to its vintage look. Another lucky baby is going to be rating highly in the fashion stakes.
Our resident cross-stitcher continues to stitch her Domestically Challenged kit. The picture is completely cross-stitched and she is now stitching the framing. Once the cross-stitching is complete, it'll be outlining time which, though rewarding, brings its own challenges.
As it was our last SSS for 2015, several regulars brought along some goodies to share and the whole afternoon certainly had an exciting vibe which was enhanced by the Christmas flavour.
Our first SSS for 2016 will be on Saturday 27 February at 1.00pm at the Community Meeting Room at the Gordon White Library.
Enjoy the Christmas break and we look forward to seeing what projects our summer has inspired.
One of our regulars was able to continue with her Knitted Knockers Project while enjoying the refreshing cool of the air conditioner and escaping the oppressive heat and humidity of our summer. She was knitting along very merrily but unfortunately socialising created a lapse in concentration and the project was cast into the unpicking category to be dealt with later. This was a very wise decision as one could then give full concentration to socialising, sampling some of the sweets and finding out about other members' projects which is an important information sharing function of Social Sewing Saturdays.
Our resident FOML, expert in all things textile, has several patchwork quilts in the pipeline and some are due before Christmas so there is a little deadline pressure on there. Consequently she was carefully cutting pieces for a quilt which is based on triangles. We look forward to seeing photos of the completed project in the near future.
Our Christmas elf was crocheting a soft light green rug (maintaining a Christmas theme) amongst handing out beautiful living (more green) presents to SSSers and providing delicious paleo party pieces. This SSSer brought in a bag of fabric scraps from her stash which another SSSer gratefully accepted. We look forward to seeing how she transforms these tidbits into treasures as she is always mass producing some projects from various bits and pieces for various occasions. Currently this SSSer was busy embroidering using a variety of colourful stitches on a neutral background. It had the suggestion of the delightful old-fashioned doily about it. It'll be interesting to follow its journey to its eventual destination.
One of our SSSers has been stealthily stalking her skirt project for months. She brings along her machine and the cut-out pieces for her skirt, ponders through the machine instructions then picks up the pattern's instructions and wrestles with them for a while and then in sheer bewilderment turns to another less-taxing project she has brought along. But this SSS was it! With assistance from a more experienced sewer, she now has an operational machine and has sewn her first seams on her skirt which she then proudly modelled for her very appreciative audience. Hopefully this confidence boost will inspire her to continue manufacturing her skirt. The first step is usually the hardest but most important in a challenging journey.
One of our new SSSers was knitting a delicate white baby bonnet on her four needles. Unfortunately the socialising meant a bit of unravelling as well, but that's just part of its therapeutic benefits. This trendy bonnet complete with tiny ear flaps will match the beautifully-knitted overalls that she had knitted previously. This delightful layette is destined for far colder climes than ours and its owner will certainly look extremely cute in it.
Another new SSSer decided to work on the socialising aspect of SSS before she sampled the sewing aspect. She bought her family along for support so all was exceptionally social!
A decision to make a baby dress using traditional techniques brought another return SSSer back after an absence. This small frock complete with pintucks, handsewn hem, petit Peter Pan Collar and placket back to be closed with press studs, has been carefully constructed from a William Morris inspired lawn which adds to its vintage look. Another lucky baby is going to be rating highly in the fashion stakes.
Our resident cross-stitcher continues to stitch her Domestically Challenged kit. The picture is completely cross-stitched and she is now stitching the framing. Once the cross-stitching is complete, it'll be outlining time which, though rewarding, brings its own challenges.
As it was our last SSS for 2015, several regulars brought along some goodies to share and the whole afternoon certainly had an exciting vibe which was enhanced by the Christmas flavour.
Our first SSS for 2016 will be on Saturday 27 February at 1.00pm at the Community Meeting Room at the Gordon White Library.
Enjoy the Christmas break and we look forward to seeing what projects our summer has inspired.
Wednesday, 18 November 2015
SSS is meeting one week earlier in November!
Thought I'd just remind folk that we will be meeting to sew and socialise (or socialise and sew whatever suits you) this Saturday!
As the weather heats up, the air con looks more and more attractive and certainly makes doing handicrafts of any kind much more comfortable.
It'll be our last get together for the fast retreating 2015!
Hope you can make it and show us what you are making! Or, you can just come and talk about what you're making too!
Looking forward to a very social sew!
As the weather heats up, the air con looks more and more attractive and certainly makes doing handicrafts of any kind much more comfortable.
It'll be our last get together for the fast retreating 2015!
Hope you can make it and show us what you are making! Or, you can just come and talk about what you're making too!
Looking forward to a very social sew!
Wednesday, 4 November 2015
So much sewing and socialising!
Saturday dawned damp and a bit on the dreary side: ideal backdrop for a very social sewing Saturday!
Two of our SSSers have returned from gallivanting on various continents in the Northern Hemisphere: much fodder for socialising and sharing! Stories of the lifestyle and crafts of the Amish of Pennsylvania were enthusiastically received. Who would have thought that so much was still achieved by hand-stitching and how a sewing machine could make such a dramatic change to this lifestyle?
Meanwhile the sewing and creating continued.......
Our puller-outerer extraordinaire decided to productively make knots this time and started her next knitting project - a prosthesis for the Knitted Knockers Australia project which several of us have been involved with over this winter. Despite much socialising she only had to pull back a couple of times and made much progress with this project.
Another of our regulars worked on preparing a sewing project for its next stage of production. Someone is going to have a delightful summery skirt added to their wardrobe. A simple style using very elegant fabric certainly has the makings of a winning combination. Once the next stage of the project was completed it was onto crocheting a soft fluffy white rug. A project like this is very soothing as it is not usually a short term project but rather one that can be picked up and worked on whenever there is a spare moment: an opportunity to meditate or chat.
With yet another Christmas on the horizon, another of our SSSers was looking at her fabric stash with the notion of sewing Christmas presents. A previous project had been sewing teapot cosies, so this inventive sewer decided to downsize this project and create egg cosies. She worked on a production line process, cutting out all the outers, inners and lining and then once there was a bundle of these, she started sewing them together in a very efficient fashion. In no time it seemed she had a queue of egg cosies lined up ready to march off to some lucky person's Christmas tree!
One of our globe-trotters unearthed her trusty sewing machine and after much wary inspection of the accompanying manual and machine, decided to seek assistance with using it. Another of our experienced SSSers was able to assist with the threading and eventually they were able to sew a lovely tensioned seam. Then the pieces for the winter skirt (well we have been gallivanting for some time haven't we?) were closely inspected. The skirt requires lining and it looked a bit too complicated for a Saturday, so that project was packed up for another day. Then it was on to some therapeutic mending so that means there'll be another summery dress available as the temperature rises.
Meanwhile our resident cross-stitcher sewed on. The cross-stitch project is coming along very nicely and soon it'll be time to start the single thread backstitch outlining.
Next month we'll be meeting a week earlier on the 21 November and hopefully our resident expert in all things textile will be back in Mackay and able to come along and offer her assistance and expertise.
Can't wait to see what folk are working on next!
Two of our SSSers have returned from gallivanting on various continents in the Northern Hemisphere: much fodder for socialising and sharing! Stories of the lifestyle and crafts of the Amish of Pennsylvania were enthusiastically received. Who would have thought that so much was still achieved by hand-stitching and how a sewing machine could make such a dramatic change to this lifestyle?
Meanwhile the sewing and creating continued.......
Our puller-outerer extraordinaire decided to productively make knots this time and started her next knitting project - a prosthesis for the Knitted Knockers Australia project which several of us have been involved with over this winter. Despite much socialising she only had to pull back a couple of times and made much progress with this project.
Another of our regulars worked on preparing a sewing project for its next stage of production. Someone is going to have a delightful summery skirt added to their wardrobe. A simple style using very elegant fabric certainly has the makings of a winning combination. Once the next stage of the project was completed it was onto crocheting a soft fluffy white rug. A project like this is very soothing as it is not usually a short term project but rather one that can be picked up and worked on whenever there is a spare moment: an opportunity to meditate or chat.
With yet another Christmas on the horizon, another of our SSSers was looking at her fabric stash with the notion of sewing Christmas presents. A previous project had been sewing teapot cosies, so this inventive sewer decided to downsize this project and create egg cosies. She worked on a production line process, cutting out all the outers, inners and lining and then once there was a bundle of these, she started sewing them together in a very efficient fashion. In no time it seemed she had a queue of egg cosies lined up ready to march off to some lucky person's Christmas tree!
One of our globe-trotters unearthed her trusty sewing machine and after much wary inspection of the accompanying manual and machine, decided to seek assistance with using it. Another of our experienced SSSers was able to assist with the threading and eventually they were able to sew a lovely tensioned seam. Then the pieces for the winter skirt (well we have been gallivanting for some time haven't we?) were closely inspected. The skirt requires lining and it looked a bit too complicated for a Saturday, so that project was packed up for another day. Then it was on to some therapeutic mending so that means there'll be another summery dress available as the temperature rises.
Meanwhile our resident cross-stitcher sewed on. The cross-stitch project is coming along very nicely and soon it'll be time to start the single thread backstitch outlining.
Next month we'll be meeting a week earlier on the 21 November and hopefully our resident expert in all things textile will be back in Mackay and able to come along and offer her assistance and expertise.
Can't wait to see what folk are working on next!
Monday, 26 October 2015
Here's something to inspire you!
Our illustrious expert in all things textile has been busy while house sitting and farm sitting this year. I thought I'd show some of the projects which have kept her occupied while away from home.
Here is a cot quilt.
Here is a cot quilt.
Of course one must have a matching pillow.
Then there are the presents for the 'rellies':
his ......
and hers....... Aren't the colours just fabulous?
Then one has to do something for that spare bed at home..... an eyecatching design which has been really enhanced by the colour choice.
Then there's the project which is still looking for a home.....
Well how about that little lot for a bit of inspiration? Every project so different and so brilliant in their own way!
It'll be great to have our illustrious expert back at SSS before the end of the year! I wonder how many more projects we'll have to add this magnificent gallery!
Thank you so much for sharing your achievements with us - truly inspiring!!
Looking forward to seeing everyone brimming with ideas on Saturday!
See you then!
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