Monday 13 December 2010

Silk fabric from Vietnam & Sewing/Embroidery & Serger/overlocker

So my sister went out to Vietnam and I asked her while she was out there to buy me some silk if she saw any.  She went to the local market and called me to say that she had haggled with the stall owners and managed to buy me some silk.

She has sent me a lovely bundle of mixed fabrics some of which I can see myself making into something, but the two very shiny slippery ones (she doesn't sew so does not know the pain of sewing this type of fabric) I think will most likely be used for lining a jacket - one is blood red and the other purple.

When I arrived home from Dubai yesterday there was a message on the answering machine to say that Santa had delivered a package for me and it was ready to collect.

My wonderful partner Mike has bought me the Bernina Aurora 440 for Christmas.

The lady in my local shop Superstitch of Leigh on Sea advised that this would be the best machine for me and would compliment what I already have.  18 months ago Mike purchased the  Husqvarna Viking Emerald 118 sewing machine for me so I could sew up my wedding outfit for my son's wedding in Sorrento in Italy. 




That renewed my love of sewing, but sadly at the time he said which one, I was being a little shy and didn't want to go for anything too expensive and was trying to keep the cost of the machine to the same cost of buying the outfit we saw in one of the local dress shops. 

The lace top had tiny pearls stitched into the centre of the flower design - I took the lace and added it to the waist of the dress too.  The only thing that I didn't like was that my neck gaped a little more than I would have liked - however only when I was bending forward.




 I have the Janome 350E which I use for all my embroidery work and indeed  I have put up examples of some of the work I have done here,  the quilted jacket and the gift bags etc I made for my work colleagues.
 I also have the Babylock Evolution and following my one day training now have a better idea on how to use some of the other functions. I am really pleased with this machine, and the threading system which is done at the push of a button is a dream --- I used to want to  throw the old machine out of the window when I sometime threaded, rethreaded, walked away for half an hour and came back and tried again, but all in vain :-(.  This was one of the first babylock overlocker/sergers which I bought around 25 years ago - it does still work and I can't bring myself to throw it away.



So as they say I am good to go now - got all the equipment, got lots of fabric - all I need now is some more time to use it all, sadly work is manic at the moment but as I arrived home yesterday, my partner Mike flies off to NYC today so at least I can sew, guilt free this week ha ha.

I am keeping both sewing machines because Mike and I are going to split our time between here and a flat in central London and of course we are preparing a room so that I can take my spare sewing machine and sew at the flat in the evenings when I can.

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