RedHeadTexan

Everything I read said that you risk the two threads tangling if you use the thread guide for both. It fed fine with one on the outside.

Lisa

Well, the twin needle snapped on the 2nd pair of shorts. Material is thin Lycra Spandex, so that should not have caused a new needle to break. $400 on a coverstitch machine is sounding better and better. Even Walt agreed that a new machine would be better than needle tips flying. He was chatting with me when it happened.

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I tried the twin needle to hem my rowing shorts and it worked ok. I tested on scraps first, and reduced the bobbin tension after a few issues. The key to the twin needle is the setup. Thread the spools one at a time and only have one thread go through the thread guide. Here are a couple of pictures:

Overall, I am not a fan of the twin needle for what I am wanting to do. I can't see the raw edge, and I want to sew right on it. I have a feeling that a coverstitch is in my future.

Lisa

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I will go buy a double needle today and test it. I have three bottoms that need hemming. [emoji106]

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I don't know if this is because I am bored today...most of the company took today off, so I have nothing to do...but I am thinking of buying a coverstitch machine. I have my awesome Babylock Imagine Serger and my Husqvarna Emerald Sewing Machine, but I am ready to take my hems to the next level. And, I am too chicken to try a twin needle on my basic sewing machine.

The machine I am looking at is the Janome 900CPX for around $400. So, for those of you that have a coverstitch machine do you think it's worth the investment? How are they to thread (I am very spoiled with auto threading on my serger)? Am I overthinking the whole twin needle thing on my sewing machine? Oh, I make everything out of knits.

Lisa

Thanks everyone! I bought one more knit last night in Concord, NC. Thank goodness I am heading home later today. I need to sew a bunch now. [emoji106].

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I made the skirt on Sunday.

On a business trip in Charlotte, so I hit Mary Jo's fabric last night. It is less than a mile from the hotel...yes, I picked this hotel due to its proximity to the fabric store. [emoji106] I bought these to make rowing clothes.

Lisa

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Did a little online fabric shopping this morning at LA Finch Fabrics. Scored 2 end of bolts and the martini girl fabric. Thinking maxi's with the Liverpool and the martini girls will be rowing shorts and a sporty skort.

Lisa

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Cruise was ok and I loved wearing my creations. I bought this fabric recently at JoAnn's. It is embroidered on knit. I plan on making an a-line knee length skirt with it. And a matching head band. Fabric is cream and embroidery is black.

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I buy a bunch of my fabric online.

LA Finch Fabrics is awesome! They are my favorite for knits. Check out their End of Bolt section for some tremendous savings. www.lafinchfabrics.com

CaliFabrics...I have bought some knits from there and was happy with the experience. www.califabrics.com

So Sew English Fabrics...if you are in a hurry, don't order from them. The home page will tell you the current lead times (10-14 days until it ships currently). The quality is very good and I have been happy with my orders, but OMG are they SLOW. www.sosewenglishfabrics.com

Zenith and Quasar - I have bought swimwear and athletic fabrics from them. Fun and quirky prints. They ship quickly. www.zenithandquasar.com

Spoonflower - They print the fabric to order. All sorts of designs and you pick the type of fabric you want it printed on. I ordered Day of the Dead Skull Pattern on Sport Lycra. The sport lycra did not fade, but I have seen reviews of other types of fabric fading. YMMV. www.spoonflower.com

As others have said, know your fabrics before ordering online. And if you don't know what a fabric is, well, Google is your friend. :)

Lisa

Boarding the Dawn in a few hours. Here are some of my outfits made by me (scarves are store bought).

Lisa

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I finished up all of the tops and figured out my evening outfits. 85% of my non-swim clothing for the cruise is made by me. I am really proud of all the work I have done. I will try to remember to have Walt take pictures of me in my outfits on the Dawn.

I definitely want to make a swim cover-up for our November cruise. And maybe a few more skorts. I simply ran out of time and fabric to do those before we leave. Plus, I have a full week of rowing and coaching. :D

Lisa

All that is left to do is binding and hemming.

At least I will have lots of options to pick from when packing.

Lisa

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Lisa,

Your clothing looks great. It's nice to be able to make things you want in the fabrics you like. Keep posting thinks you make. I like seeing them. I ended up buying the Husqvarna Designer Ruby Deluxe. There are so many things I need to learn about it and sewing :D. Looking forward to making me something soon. Hopefully after this cruise and before the next one. I think I will start with a simple sundress so I can get some practice.

 

I like your fabric weights. They are on my list to buy, but now I am going to take them off. We have plenty cans of cat food. It's one less thing to store.

You bought a great machine! I love my Husqvarna, it is such a work horse. I am in the middle of sewmagedon this weekend. I am working on more sleeveless tunics for the cruise. After I finished up everything on my sewing list last weekend I realized that everything was prints. OMG, I had no solid tops to go with all the maxi's I made. So, 18 yards of fabric later, I am making 9 tunics. 5 are cut out and side and shoulder seams sewn, 1 now has the binding attached, and 3 fabrics are sitting on my kitchen table waiting to be cut. I bought those 3 yesterday, so they just went through the washer and dryer last night. The binding on the neck and sleeves takes the most time for me. Between the careful cutting, ironing, serging, then stitch it down so it stays flat...it just takes time. Wish me luck...I will post pictures later this weekend. :eek:

Lisa

So a 10 minute task to add cuffs to the harem pants took over an hour. I sewed the first cuff inside out. Ugh. After picking the stitches out, and sewing the cuffs correctly...they are finished. [emoji106]

Lisa

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WOW! I would never know how to do that. Would love to see them when done.

Hopefully I can finish them up this morning and the sleeveless blouse I have been working on too. Yesterday afternoon, after coaching a Learn to Row class, I cut out 5 tank tops, banding, and matching head bands. I know l will not get all of them finished today, but at least I am making a dent into my fabric stash. After that I am making 3 maxi skirts for the cruise in a few weeks (I will probably start those next weekend).

Lisa

Not allowed to buy more fabric until I complete the 10 items on my sewing list. :rolleyes:

I ended up making my own pattern for the harem pants. I started with the pattern from an a-line knit skirt, then extended the line down to mid to lower calf. Used my curved ruler for the arc. I will cuff the legs to make them hit my ankles. Here is a picture of the pattern I made...ignore the crazy lines.

Cat food cans make great pattern weights. [emoji4]

Lisa

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Roger, thank you again for the calendar. I have it hanging in my office as a wonderful reminder of our awesome voyage.

Lisa

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RedHeadTexan,

 

your sewing looks like the clothes were store brought! You are doing a wonderful job. It is great to be able to make your own. Nobody else will be wearing the same as you. Thats waht I like, home made is one of a kind clothing.

Thank you. I am tall and curvy, so finding athletic wear was tough in RTW. I love being able to customize the fit and then find some awesome prints in spandex. My fellow rowers love my clothes and they are always unique. I recently started making tank tops for rowing and the real world/cruises. I also patterned a pair of harem pants last night and the "muslin" came out pretty good. Just need to either cuff or hem the bottoms and then they are done. I have learned the hard way to never use my prints the first time I am making a garment.

Lisa

I also make my leggings and shorts for rowing on the serger.

Lisa

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Di you use a stretch fabric? If so, how was the serging on it. I have never serged a stretch fabric.

They both are stretch fabrics. The trick is to use stretch needles or ball point needles with your serger or regular sewing machine to sew the knits. As long as you have the right needle that comes out perfect.

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They can out great. I love the color. did you use your serger on them?

Thanks! I used my serger for everything except the hems.

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Just finished up my first athletic skort (skirt with biker short built in). The charcoal gray is an eyelet knit that I fell in love with at JoAnn's.

I think it came out pretty good. This was also the first time that I mashed two patterns together. I have gone back and tweaked the skirt pattern

Lisa

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Hi Lisa,

Thanks for the info about Facebook. I really don't do much on there, but I will look into it. Where in Texas do you live? I was born & raised in Corpus.

 

Renee

I lived in Dallas for 25 years. I moved to Tennessee 10 years ago.

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Hi Renee,

If you are on Facebook, I definitely recommend joining some of the sewing group pages. I love Patterns for Pirates and Made for Mermaids. Silly names, but awesome groups with great patterns to purchase on their websites (print at home). I am a newer pattern sewer. I started off refashioning thrift store finds and now I am customizing my patterns and sewing all of my athletic wear. I am slowly beginning to do resort wear, but nothing close to formal gowns.

Besides Facebook groups, YouTube is a great resource for sewing. That is where I learned all about the twin needle. I have a BabyLock Imagine Serger and a Husqvarna Emerald 116. My Husqvarna is a very basic sewing machine, but it is a work horse. Hopefully the ladies that don't have a serger can give you some guidance.

Lisa