A New Toy

My mom sewed all of our Halloween (or as Katherine would say, Hagoween) costumes. She made us angels (hehe), witches (that made up for the angels), clowns, Strawberry Shortcake, kitties, etc... the list could go on and on. She made some really awesome costumes. It's a lot to live up to now that I am a mom.

A few years back... okay, about 10 years ago, I bought a sewing machine myself. I hated it. I couldn't thread it or even make a bobbin. It never saw love. Then, I took a lesson and still hated it. I gave it away after collecting about 5 years of dust.

Katherine is really into Strawberry Shortcake now. I love it. She was one of my favorites. I know that it is early but Katherine wants to be Strawberry Shortcake for Hagoween. So, i called my mom and asked if she would make her costume. For all that know my mom, she laughed at me and said, "No". I couldn't even convince her that it was for her grand-daughter. Yep, she still turned me down and said that I needed to do it.

Ugg!! Oh, what to do... so I started doing some research. I found a sewing machine on-line and watched the video. Yes, I was considering buying another. This one though, threaded itself and had easy bobbins. Then as usual, life happens and I forget all about it for a few months.

Katherine came up to me and said that she wanted to be Strawberry Shortcake for Hagoween a few weeks ago. So, I started (or continued) to do my research. I made the decision after reading all of the reviews and watching the videos once again, I was going to invest in a sewing machine.

It arrived while I had family over so it got put into the office for a few days. When I finally had the chance to open it, I couldn't believe how light it was. Then I started opening up all of the accessories. Oh boy, I have a lot to learn. There are about 10 different feet, 60 different stitches and lots of nick nacks that I have no clue what to do with.

I started reading the manual. I couldn't believe how easy everything looked. In my head, I thought, "I can do this". So, when all of our guests left, Katherine and I made a trip to Joann's Fabrics. Oh, we had a blast looking at the books of patterns. Katherine kept saying how beautiful all of the dresses were. Hmmm... where did she come from? I was a tom-boy. I hated dresses. It's crazy how we are so opposite.

Anyway... we picked out a couple of patterns and fabric and brought them home. I took Katherine to her Splash n' Dash (parents night out at the swim school) and then came home to play with my new toy. I made the first three letters in Katherine's name which also happen to be her initials. I was so proud how they turned out. The sewing machine was so easy to use.

I then started to read the instructions for the pattern for the dress that we chose. Oh, Wow! Way over my head!!

I went back to Joann's and they were having a gigantic sale on patterns ~ I picked up a few more but easier ones. I came home, sat down and tried to put a dress together. It came out alright but nothing that I would want for Katherine to wear to school. She love it, though. The material is purple with rainbow butterflies ~ all of her favorites!

After Katherine went to bed, I opened an different pattern. This dress took me less than an hour to make and it turned out awesome!! I am so proud. I cannot wait for Katherine to wake up and see it!

All in all... as of right now, I am very happy with my new purchase. I know that it will take a little more practice but I am feeling more confident now than I did earlier today with the butterfly dress.

It is interesting, though, my mom is left handed and she was the one that taught me how to sew. I do find myself using my left hand much more than my right.

Hmmm... I wonder if that will be the case for Katherine since she is a lefty...

(I will post a picture of the new dress tomorrow).