Hemming Sheer Fabric Tutorial

I am, at the moment, swimming in fluffly, shimmery, very sheer, very slippery fabrics, a.k.a Organza - yikes!!

As I am working, in my eagerness to sew using organza, I realised hemming it is a an issue, a HUGE one for me! I mean the usual press and turn won't work and organza frays like crazy!

So I experimented a few techniques, using different presser feet and managed to put up this tutorial. I hope it is useful to another adventurous sewing friend out there, braving sheer fabrics for the first time like me. Pay attention to caption notes I wrote under the pics. Enjoy! :)

You want a SMALL zig zag stitch length. This is what I used on my Singer Confidence.

No need to pin...Keep rolling/folding the fabric edge as you sew. Do it slowly :)

 

The result - rolled hem using regular multipurpose feet.

Let's try and see....

Somehow, the result is better using the regular foot  :)

After a lot of trial and error and this experiment, I personally feel that hemming organza using a sewing machine is neater and more uniformed. You'd see some bits of fabric fray on them, just trim it and you'd achieve a nice result.

BUT, because I'm churning 3 gowns over here - I am opting for the serger rolled hem this time aound, purely because it's faster. So again, it's a matter of personal preference.

I hope you like the tutorial, have a great day! :)

Tiered Dress & Family Outing

This post is long overdue but better late than never. Last November, we went for a family outing in KLCC and saw that there was a Kids Fair going on at the convention center, so we decided to drop by. Lil Hanan was wearing a tiered dress I made for her and beaming non stop.

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The girls had fun while hubby and me...mehh...it was just an ok fair. The main reason we're not so excited is this kind of fair is always swarmed with agents pushing insurance plan and I was just tired of explaining that we already have plans for the girls sigh....

Hanan loves to twirl lately, it's good that the dress allows for lots of it. The fabric is a Patty Young's and I just love the red and aqua combo. Hanan wears this dress a lot these days. 

Just the four of us...finding happiness in every little thing in life and counting our blessings.... :)

Pretty Florals

 

I'm in love with all the floral prints I've been playing around all week. So pretty!

The above is a party dress for a good friend, Melia's baby girl 3rd birthday. It's a Michael Miller print, don't you just love how striking those poppy petals are?

And below are dresses I sewed for lovely Feena. Love the sweet floral, classic beauty!

I am now working on some major sewing projects (major, by my standard lol). Hint - it involves yards and yards of charmeuse satin, organza and tulle. Oh you can just imagine how the sewer looks like - all distraught and messy as I try to tame those unruly fabrics lol. If you don't see me posting about the finished products here sometime soon, then just assume I gave up ok? :P

Tomorrow is a busy day for me as my business training comes to an end and I prepare for the final presentation to the bankers and investors on Tuesday. Virtual aside, our business made a substantial amount of profit and I learned a lot! One sure thing I'd remember is - no matter how successful your business is, if you don't keep proper records and bookkeeping, chances are the business will go downhill.

Food for thoughts for you there and I leave you with a promise of another tutorial pretty soon, yeay! :)

Edge Stitch Tutorial

I was sewing many, many ribbon sash for dresses the last few days. I used to have issues with getting the top stitching on the edge of sash, camera strap cover or any straight edge even, without any derailment. Yes it can be done using the regular multipurpose foot, but I struggled and the results are never good enough. 

Then I remember this blind hemming foot that comes standard with any sewing machine. I had never used it before because obviously my sewing repertoire is not large enough to include blind hemming anything hahaha...So, after some trial and error, I discovered that this foot is great at keeping my edge-stitching straight and even. I took a few photos and prepared this tutorial for some kindred souls out there who might need this as much as I did. Enjoy!

 
   

Trial, Tribulations & Laptop Sleeve

I've been awfully quiet, so unlike me. But many things are happening and real life takes over.

My family is saddened with devastating news of my little sister (the youngest) Lin, diagnosed with a rare type of cancerous spinal tumor. The scientific name - sarcoma something - scares me but at least it exists in the medical world and not a totally unknown condition, even though the doctors said it's like one in a million. She is undergoing scans and tests at the moment as we wait for her latest MRI result. She is so thin now, with so many trips to the GH Neuro ward, she had to take a break from college.

To cheer her up, we organised a double birthday celebration for her and my Aisha. As usual we had it at my parents' but this time at their new home 25 kilometers away from Putrajaya. My dad had recently retired and moved to Dengkil. It was a wonderful event and I could see how my worried parents cheered up a bit when all their children and grandchildren are around. The kids enjoyed it the most of course as in my family, whenever there is a birthday party, all four grandchildren get presents to avoid tears and tantrums lol...My dad said, next year we'd have to combine all four birthdays in one party coz he's retired now and not making as much money to buy so many presents hahaha...

For my beloved little sister, I made her a laptop sleeve. I chose Keykalou pattern coz her patterns are always reliable and quick to whip up. It's bright and cheerful, with hearts a plenty to remind her how much she is loved. I'm glad she loves it.

I never stop praying for my sister now. Hoping that she'd get through this ordeal to enjoy a long and fulfilling life ahead of her. I have to be brave because she needs the strength of her family. We all love you so much Lin, get well soon my little sis *hugs*

Crafty Swap - Thank You Aim!

Yeay!! I received this fabulous bag from the gorgeous Ms Aim and my, am I loving it or what?!! I love the two color sides and as in the picture the seam binding is just so neat, I can't stop admiring it. It's a large bag and perfect for me to bring shopping, sorry Mr Plastic Bag I no longer favour you :P

And the sewist herself, Aim, rocker wife & wedding florist, how's that for uber cool? Totally! Head on over to her blog here and say hi to her. Thank you so much Aim I am so glad you joined the swap *hugs*

I have also installed a new comment system to allow me to reply to your comments here. Really I think blogger should pick this up already. I hope you'll not be put off with the new comment thingy, it really is user friendly and I will reply to your comments personally.

Okies, gotta run to class now, Marketing presentation in 1 hour and guess what the topic is? "Mass Marketing Is Dead" hahaha I am so gonna nail it.

Stay gorgeous!!!

Happy New Year 2011!

What a year it was! So many things happened in my life I could barely keep up. But I could not ask for more, thank you God for another blessed, wonderful year....sewing wise, these are just a select few I managed to compile. I sewed so much this year and improved my sewing skills to a different level. I can't say enough how much I love sewing....

    .....and Welcome 2011! Here's to another blessed and amazing year ahead. I don't do resolutions coz usually by mid year I forget them and along the way I wanted to do so many things and they get changed all the time, so no point setting any at the moment lol...

I am a dreamer. A person with too many ideas but too little time. The best I could hope for is 2011 to shape me to become more of a doer and better at execution. And with the love and support from family and friends, I know it would be a great year.

Thank you for visiting and reading this little blog of mine throughout 2010. You gals are amazing! *hugs*