Sewing Tips for Tuesday: How to buy fabric on the cheap

I have family members and friends who are amazed (or shocked) at how much fabric I truely own. Right now My fabric room is full and I have about 30 huge rubbermaid containers full out in a shed! A few years back, I hit a deal - the motherload so to say. I went to an estate sale and scored an entire 3 car garage FULL of fabric. It took two truck loads to transport all of it in garbage bags! I felt like I was rich that day, but truth being told...I paid $60 for the ENTIRE LOT!! No coupon at Joanns would have helped me purchase that! So I thought I would list some tips for those of you out there who want to score some good purchases of fabric.

Tip One: Buy used and shop around. I look everywhere for fabric and I usually find it. Some thrift stores keep it in with the linens and sheets if they have no place to put fabric. Some estate sales have fabric in the linen closet. Craigslist is always full of deals. I also subscribe to a local estate sale e-flyer. They take pictures of items in the sale and email them out. One way to look for fabric is to see if there are any sewing machines or notions in the picture. Don't forget yard sales as these are sometimes good deals too.

Tip Two: Buy the entire LOT! Ok, some of you are telling me that's not within your budget...well think again. I find that most people selling the fabric have no idea what it's worth is and secondly, they don't know how to sew! Most inherit the fabric and then WANT to get rid of it. So if you see some fabric at a yard sale..ask the question: "What would you take for ALL of it?" I always ask and then most of the time, I am pleasantly surprised at what the answer is. (Take for example the estate sale...I was thinking the guy wanted a few hundred for the lot and was prepared to buy it for just that...but he wanted to get rid of it and it was the last day of the sale! So $60 for him was what he expected to make just to get rid of it!!)

Tip Three: Ask around for fabric! I have friends at church who now know I sew for my family. In the past year, I have been blessed to have them hand me fabric at no cost because they didn't need/want it! Now granted, you never know what you get but I never seem to find a problem with having material to sew! And since the types of fabric I own are like the rainbow...I always seem to have material for each type of project.

Tip Four: Know a little about WHAT you are buying. (Ok, I probably should have mentioned this secondly as it is very important.) When you buy a lot of fabric - SORT THROUGH the piles. LOOK at the quality. Are their stains? Does the material have a smell or odor? Does the material look in good shape - no rips, etc.? I will say you do have to be careful and examine most of it before you buy. Bugs and other things can and will hide in fabric. This is the reason I bag fabric in trash bags first when I purchase them. If I feel I can wash the fabric with little or no problems - then I will ask the question. BUT if it doesn't look good, then it IS better to pass it up. No one wants bugs in their sewing room eating the fabric and causing issues in their homes. I also sort through the fabric on the porch before brining it into my home. I wash it and fold it, then insert it in my fabric room. This ensures I have no funky smells and more importantly no bugs!!

So that is my tip for today. Hope you are able to find more fabric for your stash. And always come back Sew Hungry For More.
Amanda

Sewing Tips for Tuesdays: How to NOT CUT a tissue paper pattern EVER!

Ok, confusing title I guess...I was just trying to think of the best way to describe my next tip. I'm the type of sewer where I still enjoy using patterns for some of my projects. I can design some, but otherwise I do like buying a new commercial pattern just to see how they created a design. However when saying that, I have two girls..two sizes to buy for and sometimes that means two patterns. It can also mean that I have one pattern that includes Both sizes. Ok, if I cut the biggest pattern...yes I can cut the smaller later but what happens if I want to make the pattern again for my oldest??

I know some of you out there are like...trace (no brainer) but how exactly do you "trace" a commercial pattern that was printed on tissue paper! And how LONG will that take?

Well, I cheat...I don't actually "trace". Here's how to (And hopefully the visuals will help)

1. Take your paper pattern out of the envelope. Cut the pieces apart so you know which pieces you will need to make the garment. Read your instructions on the cutting layout for placement of those pieces.

2. Find (or purchase) a paper tracing wheel and the wax "marking" paper that many people use in tailoring. (I will note that it doesn't have to be the "wax" type as there are many out there, but it does help as it leaves a mark better than others.)

3. Follow pattern instructions for pinning the garment on your material. Pin as much as you can or all of it, if you want to roll out your material and continue pinning. (Paper weights can be used if your table is long enough or you cut piece by piece.)

4. Take a color of wax paper out that is an OPPOSITE color of your garment. You want these marks to show...not to blend in so you can't see to cut. (Don't worry, these are on the edges of the seams...they never show after you sew it up.) As you can see my material is pink and pink with dots and the colors are red, yellow, orange and blue. I decided to use blue.

5. Place the wax paper with color side down on the fabric and underneath the pattern. (You will have to un-pin parts as you go but please don't unpin the entire piece as you don't want it shifting while you trace.)

6. Use your tracing wheel and trace the pattern where the wax paper is below. Follow the size you need. PUSH HARD ON WHEEL AS YOU TRACE. If you just "wheel" it around, the wax coloring will not rub into the fabric as you need it to. It also is always a good idea to take a scrap and try "tracing" a line to see how hard you need to push or if the color will really work on that material.

7. Continue this around each piece and re-pin after tracing. Here is a picture of what the line will look like after you mark it.

8. Cut each piece out after tracing. Sometimes my markings are lighter than I would like, so trace and cut with GOOD OVERHEAD LIGHTING. If you cut as you go, you are more likely to see any errors in tracing and can correct them easier.

9. After you cut each piece, pin the original pattern piece to each one in order to remember what is what. Also don't forget to mark darts or any other things needed to guide you as you sew.

Now you are on your way to sewing the garment and you can now fold your pattern pieces up and place back in the envelope for your next sewing adventure..no matter what size you make next time you sew!!

Also, as a side note, I am linking this up to NapTimeCreations linky party. So if you are new to my blog, feel free to click around. Hope that helps! And remember to always come back Sew Hungry For More...

Amanda

Delay and Disappointment

So Wednesday, my husband went to meet with his anesthesiologist to prepare for his right corneal transplant (scheduled April 7th) and well...things didn't go as we planned or hoped for.

My husband was so let down. They weighed him and measured his height. All the sudden he's shrank one inch (LOL) and their scale weighed him at 5 more pounds than our primary care doctor!!

This now means he can't qualify for surgery. They calculated that he needs to lose about 15 more pounds to re-qualify for another surgery date! His surgeon is also taking vacation during May. Since they only do this surgery the first of the month, he now has to wait til June 1st before undergoing surgery!

A let down for sure. We were hoping to get this show on the road and get his left eye done before the end of the year. Now though we are praying and I'm trying to encourage him that God has a plan and there is a reason we are waiting.

Well enjoy your weekend and come back Sew Hungry For More!

Nautical Lamps for Bedroom with picture tutorial

One thing that has also delayed a lot of my postings is our move. In January we finally "moved" to be able to sleep in our new place. We had actually been remodeling for one year and living with in-laws during that period of time. It's been a crazy experience and I will write more about our current "house" at a later date.

Our master bedroom is two rooms. One is a walk in bathroom with no doors! There are two closets on each side of the bathroom. Then the other room is our "bedroom". It measures approximately 13' by 13' with two windows. When we talked about what we wanted as far as design, I simply stated "an Ocean theme". I wanted something calming and relaxing when we needed to retreat from the world..or the kids! haha. I chose a blue from Lowes Valspar paint called Sea Spray. (However, now I can't find the color on the internet so here is a similar color in Behr's paint. We also decided to do bead board up to about four feet high, then trim in white.

On each side of our bed (later post) we were able to purchase a set of real wood mission end tables for $40 (as a set!) from craigslist. then we looked for ideas on what type of lamp we wanted to use. Our previous set was crystal with gold, but everything in our room was silver accents. We wanted something nautical, but in a more modern way. I searched the internet and found this lamp. But let's face it...$600 is a LOT for a LAMP. I also found this one for about $162 and liked the round shape but again couldn't justify the price. So, I began looking around for lamps. We visited our local ReStore (Habitat for Humanity's store where they sell building products) and found green lamps for $5 each! I liked the shape and the price since I was re-doing the entire lamp.

So here's what you will need to make your own:
1. Twine

2. A Lamp

3. A hot glue gun and glue sticks

Plug in your glue gun and get your rope out. Before you actually glue the rope down, figure out if you want to go from bottom to top or top to bottom of your lamp. I chose to go from bottom to top and started around where the cord came out. This hides the seam well.

Start with a line of freshly melted glue and start placing the rope over it. Squeeze only a little at a time so you can glue as you go. Remember that hot glue often dries fast!

Keep going and wrap and wrap. If you get tired, stop for a while and then get back to it. Just make sure that if you leave it, you unplug your glue gun! Also, place it where kids won't trip over a cord and break it as you are working on it!!

When you finish wrapping, ensure that your rope is secured at the end. If it's nylon, you may want to burn the end so not to unravel. If it's cotton or a natural material like mine, just secure with LOTS of extra glue around the end.

Viola! You Have a New LAMP!! A designer original! Also try to pick out the perfect shade. I chose these from Target. They are a nice accent color of Blue Jade and I liked the diamond shapes in the shade. I bought them on sale too...which was great as they were $14.99 each shade!!

So there it is...two nautical style lamps for under $50! Well enjoy making your own creation...Let me know if you make one..I would love to see it! Thanks for stopping by and come back Sew Hungry For More!

On a side note, I thought I would submit this to a great linky party on Sew Can Do. You can visit her blog by clicking on the link below!! Lots of great links for other ideas!

Spring Garden 2014

Just to let you know more about where I live..I do live in the city but also the country. Ok, that sounds weird but let me explain. I live in Jacksonville, Florida so I live in that city. However, our city has the largest land mass in the United States. How does that work? Our county is our city. It takes over one hour to drive from East to West in our "city". It also takes over one hour to drive from North to South. We are on the Eastern coastline and our river lets "out" into the Atlantic Ocean near our beaches. The St. Johns River is actually only the second river in the world to flow North! (The Nile being the first river discovered to flow North) Our city is called the River City to reflect the geography.

But my geography is far inland from the river. We are living in what would be the "sub-burbs" in most communities. So we live on a few acres of land with my in-laws. This year we wanted to start a garden in a different area. The soil is still very sandy, so you need to add lots of different soils to get the ground ready for planting. We also had lots of rains as much as the north has had snow. So we were a little smarter this year and planted seeds in newspaper pots and peat pots. Here's some pictures to share. I hope I will be able to share more once we are able to transplant the seedlings to the actual rowed garden.

These are some starter plants we decided to buy to see if they would grow well in our garden.

This is my husband's newest project, a compost drum made from a 55 gallon plastic drum. We are hoping to keep this going to help add more nutrients to the soil.

The seeds were purchased from Patriot Supply Company. Not the most likely place to purchase seeds but these were well priced non-GMO seeds. They are stored in mylar seed bags which I liked because I may be able to use some again for a fall garden.

Well those are pictures for now until better weather comes our way and seedlings start more sprouts. Always come back Sew Hungry For More.

Surgery date for husband coming soon (Keratoconus update)

I know my blog is mostly about sewing and I'm hoping to share some other things later for the homemaker and even home-schooler.
But right now I would like to give an update of why my blog hasn't gone so far and how my family seems as if it is traveling at the speed of light sometimes. Before the birth of our second daughter, a little over two years ago, my husband was diagnosed with a disorder known as keratoconus. (Say what?) Keratoconus is where my husband's eye though either genes or by series allergies has gone from looking like a normal contact lenses shape to looking more like a cone of ice-cream popping out from his eyeball. When he went to Lens Crafters for his regular glasses three years ago, he was told that his vision was still distorted after all the eye tests. We were referred to an eye surgeon to check up on my husband's astygmatism. At the time, our out of pocket expenses for medical care were high and thinking it was just some sort of "little" problem, we postponed his visit for a later date when we could afford it.

Months went by and my husband decided he should follow up as he was having some vision errors that were unexplained. They examined him and asked the optical surgeon, Dr. Bowden, to review the pictures and testing they did in office. I can remember my husband calling me..."Well, looks like I'm starting to show signs of keratoconus." My response was "What?" After he got home we researched and started to find out about more of this disorder. But in the beginning, it appeared that all he needed were special contact lenses to help his eye keep it's shape and not cone out as it was beginning to.

Months went by and we had our second child. I had a horrible pregnancy and was diagnosed with everything from Pre-eclamsia, gestational diabetes to eventually placenta previa at 2 weeks til inducement! I was hospitalized from about six months til c-section at eight months. This was hard on our family...not to mention me! I came home tired and had a terrible time healing. I bled twice out my incision site and felt as if death was at my door! But finally, I got better and things were somewhat back to normal with our family...or so I thought.

My husband resumed a check up through the doctor. The contacts were not working well. We were informed at this visit, his right eye would need intacts. (Contact lenses surgically installed over the cornea to stretch it back into shape.) We were also informed that his left eye was also showing worsening signs and he may need an intact in that eye as well. When we went into the "billing" room...we were floored at the cost. Most of the procedure was not covered! Our out of pockets were needless to say out of reach! Plus we still had to get approval from our insurance company to see what they would pay for! That was December...ya know, the month the insurance ends and a new plan begins. Time went by, he was approved on December 30th...Hello..no surgery dates available!

January started and so did our new insurance plan. We went back at the end of January for a follow up. My husband's eyes were again checked..bad news again. Right eye has gotten so bad we need a corneal transplant. Left eye still intact but uncertain if that will progress. We were also asked about my husband's weight....apparently they had also changed the laws about how much someone can weigh when they are put under for surgery. So now the goal was lose over 50 pounds to meet requirements!

Months went by again. My husband tried several methods of losing weight, but he was just going up and down. During the summer, we had a recheck of his eyes once more. This now revealed he needed a double corneal transplant! So, desperate for change, we sought the help of a natural nutritionist. She told my husband to go gluten free. He did and lost 20 pounds in four weeks! We were excited but then a plateau hit. And something else happened.

My husband called me on his way into work that morning..."Honey, I'm on my way home, I just had an accident, I rear-ended a truck" My husband could no longer judge the proper distance and the morning sun in Florida was just too bright for his condition. This was scary. We decided I would drive him to work with our family...in the mini-van I might add! My mother in law also helped drive him when she was able. Two months passed and my husband was now having even more trouble seeing...at work. He was typing things incorrectly, he was having more headaches, and even dialing phone numbers wrong. His boss at the time encouraged him...take company disability and get your eyes fixed..otherwise you'll be good for nobody. I encouraged him as well and he finally went on disability. A few months passed and he started losing more weight.
So now after sitting on the sidelines...my husband has been approved for surgery at the first of April. It's scary to think about but it needs to happen so we can move our family forward. They will do a right corneal transplant and when the doctor feels that has healed (anywhere between 3 months and a year) they will schedule him for the left corneal transplant.
Until then, I will try to blog as much as I can and as often as I can...but my God and my family do come first. Right now is a time for our family to prepare for the unknown. Thank you for all the support and keep coming back Sew Hungry For More!
If you would like to know more about Keratoconus, there is another blog here that you need to check out.

Sewing Tips for Tuesday: Vintage Pattern Refresh

I know, I know....so many other blogs do this too...But there are some things I do and haven't seen any postings out there about it. So to start, each week for a few weeks I am going to do some general tips to do with sewing. Now these tips are for sewing and how to help you with your sewing materials - like patterns.

I do buy things from all over. By "all over" I mean I will buy from thrift stores, yard sales, Etsy, Joanns, Quilt stores and estate sales. But when you buy used material or patters, you run the risk of a "funky" smell. It could be a "grandma's attic" type smell or even a musty smokey smell from years of tar attached to the pattern. (And sometimes we even debate whether to get the product because we don't want that smell in our sewing rooms.)

Sew here is today's tip: How to rid a vintage pattern of an old smell:

1. Look at the size of the pattern envelope and find a ziploc (or generic) resealable bag a little bigger than the pattern envelope. (I like to keep some generic dollar bags around just for this purpose.)

2. Look in your kitchen cabinets and take out your Baking Soda. (Not washing soda for those making homemade laundry soap) 3. Place sewing pattern in the plastic bag. Make sure you include ALL the pieces, even if they are loose or outside the envelope.

4. Pour your Baking Soda inside the plastic bag and a little even inside the pattern. (This will not hurt your pattern.)

5. Seal plastic bag. Shake the Soda around the pattern inside the bag. Let it get a good coat on it.

6. Let the bag sit overnight or longer. Open the bag the next day to check on odor. If there is a continued odor, place more Soda inside bag, shake and leave for another night. If the smell is mostly gone, then take the pattern out of the bag shaking all Soda into a trashcan. Toss the bag and keep your pattern. (It may leave some chalky residue, but over time this will wipe off and does not hurt the paper pattern.) You can also leave the pattern in the bag until the time you need to use it. I will sometimes store older patterns this way as it helps prevent an odor as much as getting rid of an older odor.

This tip is also good for older books either hardbound or paper! I use a 2.5 gallon hefty bag for those jobs. (sometimes Walmart carries these) Same directions, place book in bag with Soda and leave it until no smell exists.

I use this method quite often. In Florida, it also seems like the humidity makes the smell get worse over time. So I have been known to leave a pattern in the bag if I store it in the garage or another place.

I hope this helps some of you. Now maybe you will take a chance on buying that estate sale pattern even though it still smells! Happy Sewing and as always...come back...Sew Hungry for more!
Amanda