Sunday, April 3, 2022

Bunny Lovies for my Luvies

Creating Bunny Lovies 
for the grandbabies.
I love these completed snuggle bunnies- 
BUT, the chaotic threads now 
everywhere from the 
minky, plush, and flannel 
is another story! 
Hopefully the snuggles 
will be worth the now 
FUZZ everywhere! 
First stop was embroidering 
names for blankie fronts:
I sewed around 3 Lovie points 
and left 4th open to stuff topper
Next up came the ITH Bunnies
After completing front of face, 
I discovered my machine coped 
better NOT having to balance 
over all the minky layers... 
so after that first one, 
I machine stitched ears 
and backing out of hoop on the next 2.
Heads and paws had to be hand stitched...

The twins were born 3 days ago!!!
March 31, 2022
Anastasia Rachel 
debuted at 10:54PM 
weighing in at 6 lbs 5oz 
and 18.5 inches.
Margaret Jane 
took full advantage of her 
hard work and had easy exit
 at 11PM 
weighing in at 5 lbs 
and 18.25 inches. 
I can hardly wait to hand deliver!
Homeward Bound 4/2/22
Meet Anastasia!
Meet Margaret
And Of course... heeere's HAM!

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Creating a Stitch Book for Bernina 880 Plus

I LOVE my new Bernina 880 Plus 
Crystal Edition. 
It is bedazzlingly inviting to sew 
and embroider the hours away. 
But for me- 
getting to know a new machine 
MUST ALWAYS 
start with creating a stitch book
to take it on a true test drive. 
This superhero has 
1,764 stitches 
I had to explore- 
(honestly- there were a few times,
I thought I’d never finish!)… 
but now I am ready! 
Let the projects begin!!!
Each piece is a 10 X 10" 
piece of fabric folded in half
9 days later:
I cut each "sheet" down 
to 4 1/4" and put them in order 
and organized my book...
Wooohooo!
Let the embroidery 
escapades begin!!!


Tuesday, March 29, 2022

A First Embroidery on my Bernina 880


We did it... We got my dream machine!
I now own a Bernina 880 Crystal Edition. 
The stitches and embroidery 
are to die for and the crystal bedazzle 
embellishment cracks me up...
It came with all the bells 
and whistles this girl could want
 and I am thrilled!
AND
WAYYYYYYYYY
WAYYYYYYYY
WAYYYYYYY
OVER MY HEAD.
So, I knew I had to 
start at the very beginning-
a very good place to start...)
I took 2 days worth of classes at A NIMBLE THIMBLE in Tyler, Texas
and I am watching every online video I can to absorb all I can.
I had already stitched 25 pages 
of folded in half 10 X 10 sheets 
of stitches for my 
stitch sampling book 
when I decided to jump on the 
embroidery project of the month band wagon.
Just putting on the hoop- 
it was magic!
And now... 

back to my stitch book...




Wednesday, March 2, 2022

The safety device has been activated :(

I have completed so many more 
special baby items for the twins 
as I continued to obsessively nest
 since my last posting. 
BUT... with the obsessive sewing, 
and current use of fleece 
and flannel- my machine 
has been fighting back- 
even more than it had been. 

Honestly, I am beginning to fear she is terminal.

Her current status:

!!!The safety device has been activated. Is 

the thread tangled? Is the needle bent? !!!

Alas, No and No... 

I have replaced everything multiple times. 

I have disassembled and cleaned every accessible inch of my machine repeated times.

I got her in 2011. I'm not quite sure what the life span is on a modern machine? But she was in repair shop in December for 3 weeks and had a total tuneup.

Perhaps I should be surprised that I’ve managed to make a modern, overly-plastic domestic sewing machine last for almost 12 years! I’ve had to sew things I knew would abuse my poor little machine many times. And the past 2 years I have been on it for hours daily. (Not like covid allowed one much else to do!)

Still, I have had it serviced regularly, and been real good to it compared to machines of my past! So, I expected it to hold on, at least a bit longer...

But then came yesterday...the 6 hour bib day. 

In and out of the hoop with layers of flannel between the sticky stabilizer. And after bib 9... she just refused to go on :( 

I took her apart again 4 times today without any recovery... something I have always eventually been rewarded with in the past.

Finally, I had no choice but give up.

She is locked in place... On her screen of refusal :(

I no longer have a shop in town... so it will be a 1 hour drive to attempt repair. (& of course, there is the added frustration... I can't drive anymore).

I suppose my machine picked the most convenient time give up – I did get to finish both baptismal gowns... all their accompaniments. And then moved on to burp cloths and bibs.

Alas... one granddaughter shall have 3 less bibs... and thus will begin the start of one sibling getting more than the other.


... to be continued...

The bibs that did the final demise
And here is all I actually created with the embroidery!
And here are the Baptism gowns:


Wednesday, February 23, 2022

Love to Sew in The Robyn's Nest

After 6 weeks of

ALL THINGS 

in variation of Baptismal WHITE- 

I awarded myself 

with a free sew day. 

I downloaded Sweet Peas 

February K*I*S*S*.

This months project was a 

2 block quickie wall hanging 

to decorate my sewing space!

I made sure to use all those 

neglected Tula Pink bright fabrics, 

ribbons, and threads I had been craving.

And here it is completed!