Use for sweatshirt neck band!

A creative student proved me wrong....I always say I've never found a use for the neck ribbing of the sweatshirts as I create my Creative Sweatshirt Jackets. Well...while presenting a seminar/workshop at Fabrics Etc. 2 in Bensenville, IL last weekend, a clever student came to me with this rose!
1. Cut off the neck band from the sweatshirt.
2. Rotary cut off the seam allowance.
3. OPen it up so you have double the width.
4. Set a serger for a wide balanced stitch with decorative threads in upper and lower loopers. This was done with the WAVE STITCH on a BABYLOCK serger - which is a new wrinkle to me since my days of selling machines/sergers ended almost 8 years ago now!
5. Gather remaining end and twirl and stitch into a rosette.
WALA....... WAY TO GO!
Sorry I forget the name of the student who did it - Cindy perhaps?

Had lots of fun at this candy store of a quilt/machine shop! What a nice owner - Mary Forte, and her helpers/associates. If you're ever in Chicagoland - don't miss Fabrics Etc. 2 in Bensenville!

GREAT Vest on my Houston Helper

As I was going through photos from the Houston Quilt Festival, I found these of my helper, Pat, and her great vest. She made it of recycled and felted wool sweaters, vests, etc. The striped binding is even the lining of a jacket she picked up for $.50 at her local thrift shop!

American Sewing Expo - Novi excitement

Wow! Novi American Sewing Expo just concluded its first day - and while I hardly have a voice left - it has been a GREAT day!
Tomorrow is the Passion for Fashion event - a Project Runway spinn off. Sew - at the end of the day - we get to sit and watch the contestant designers show their garments and then await the judges determination. Honestly, I forget the exact 'challenge' - but they each have a model car on display at their work area that they were given, as the 'inspiration' for their garment. Truly a very creative challenge.
I'll be sure to take photos tomorrow night to share - along with my 2 cents worth!

It was especially fun to see a customer from my old shop days at the show, and in one of my classes! Hi Cheryl - and I'm not sure I'm spelling your name correctly!

What a treat when women can escape into their creative 'world' in such a huge 'candy store' as this - and often with friends who share the love of sewing with them! Seems many have gift-making on the brain - an indication of the giving spirit of sewers!~!!

Meet Tina - my VERY talented neighbor Bridal Seamstress Extraordinaire

One of the VERY best parts of my 'career' in the sewing field has been the excitement of being even a small part of encouraging customers to make a business of their passion for creative sewing. I know at least 3 of my students from the Summer Sewing Camps during my retail storefront days went on to study fashion design... and Tina just shared with me her updated bridal sewing website. One thing I KNOW for sure - I surely loved having her expertise close by when I was stitching my daughters' wedding dress about a year ago.... I asked Tina to share how it all came about for her and her training...read below what she has to say.

"Clients often ask how I got started in the custom bridal gown business. My neighbor, Londa Rohlfing, gets some of the credit for encouraging me to start my business. At the time, Londa owned an independent fabric store in Champaign, Illinois, called Londa's Sewing Etc. She knew about my sewing abilities and love for fine fabrics because I spent a lot of time at her store buying fabrics and studying with the well-known sewing experts who came to the shop to teach classes. When Londa decided to add a bridal fabric department to her store, she suggested that I could use my skills to start a business and we could help each other out with referrals for fabrics and custom dressmaking services. It didn't take me long to realize that I wanted to specialize in wedding dresses and other special occasion garments. My two boys don't have much of a need for fancy dresses, and I have limited need for them myself. Making bridal gowns gives me a chance to work with beautiful fabrics and trims, and I get to meet all kinds of interesting people. Please visit my website at http://www.treasures-by-tina.com/ to see photos of some of the gowns I've created. Londa and I are still neighbors, and I was glad to be able to help her out last summer when she was making her daughter's wedding gown (see her blog posts for more about this including pictures of the gown). "

I hope her boys are smart enough to use their mom's talent as a real 'PLUS' as they date!