Pleated, lined handbag

Making your own fabric bags means you’ll always have unique accessories. I have lots of them, and I get compliments all the time. They really stand out. This bag is pleated and nice and roomy as a purse. I have made this style in both a smaller and larger size, but neither ever seemed just right. This one I made somewhere in between. It holds all of my day-to-day purse stuff, with room to throw in a book or bottle of water, to boot.  I took this out today and somebody complimented me on it and wanted one. See? That’s…

Sewing a curved edge

Ever have two pattern pieces that are supposed to be sewn together but are actually curved in opposite directions? You wonder how they are possibly supposed to fit together. Sometimes you’ll see this in shaped seams, like a princess seam on a woman’s top that must make room for the bust. Sometimes, in the case of this tutorial, it’s a flat seam (meaning, not convex) that is rounded for visual effect. It’s really not hard to do, and I’ll show you how.

Doing buttonholes manually on the machine (no special foot)

For a long time, I hated doing buttonholes and I hated doing zippers. So I had a bit of a problem when it came to making closures on garments. The thing is, I’m not really ready to go for an all-Velcro wardrobe or elastic waistbands, but in 50 years? Who knows. When I first got my machine and began sewing, I was tackling a lot of new techniques all at once, and the buttonhole was a bit intimidating. I was actually pretty bad at them until recently. I am embarrassed to admit this, but after I broke my automatic buttonhole…

Make an ironing board cover

If you have an extra-wide ironing board like I do, you know it’s hard to find new covers for it. And when you do, they are usually just plain muslin. This could be the easiest sewing project you ever do, and it works for any size of ironing board. All you need is your old cover to use as a pattern. Best of all, you get to pick the fabric! I chose a ticking fabric that reminded me of the old days. Like the pillows my grandma would have had. This one is a light wheat color.