A Sewing Day

Embroidery and sewing supplies, as well as the roll of trim, from the sewing meet. I need to figure out a better way to carry my embroidery frame.

Saturday, I attended a sewing meet. I’ve sewn with others before, but this was one of the first times I’ve gathered in a larger group for a sewing day.

What I worked on

I actually ended up bringing my second 18th century pocket to work on embroidery since I didn’t have any actual sewing ready in time. I transferred the design, basted it on the frame, and did the two crossing borders a few days before the meet.

I decided to work on the scrolling vines at the meet since it is very simple.  On the off chance I got too distracted with chatting, or forgot a stitch (I sometimes still refer to the embroidery website for stitches or techniques I haven’t memorized yet), I wanted to keep it simple.

I probably would have come close to finishing all of the vines if it weren’t for the frame itself.  I didn’t notice it when the frame first arrived after I bought it, but quickly after starting the first pocket I saw one of the wood pieces was cracked.  It held up during the first pocket, and I never got a chance to figure out what to do with it before I started the second.  Sadly, it’s starting to crack even more, so I will have to stop working on the pocket until I get it fixed or replaced.

Nice Surprises

We had a chance to chat about goals as well as sewing techniques. A few people chatted with me about embroidery, and I recommended the embroidery website I’ve been using.

The hostess also mentioned that she would like to test out a new dressform-making technique with me before she gives a class on it later.  I am very excited about that since I have been needing to make two different dressforms for 18th and 19th century costume fitting.

We were also given a gift by a very kind lady who gave us all a large roll of trim.  She’d been given so much of the trim she didn’t know what to do with it.  I’m looking forward to figuring out what to use it on, and very thankful for the kind gesture as well!

Time flies when you’re having fun

It was a blast, and I very much enjoyed chatting with friends and meeting new people.  It definitely made embroidery seem more like fun instead of work.

Using my old art bin seems to be working for now, but I didn’t have anything big enough to carry my embroidery frame in.  I was a little nervous about damaging the frame or getting the fabric dirty.  It worked out fine, though.  I’ll have plenty of chances to figure out other ways of carrying my supplies and sewing or embroidery, not to mention plenty of people to chat with and see what they use!

I highly recommend getting out and working with others occasionally.  It can be such a slow and lonely process sewing on your own.  Sometimes it’s nice to have someone to chat with, not to mention extra hands to help you pin or hem something!