sewing Archives - Seams Like a Story

December 17, 2024December 16, 2024

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas (pillowcases)

The Obsession Continues

the author holding a Christmas Pillowcase in front of a Christmas Tree

Once, when I was newly retired and trying out novel things to do, I became obsessed. With sewing. Christmas pillowcases.

It went something like this:

Excerpt from my first book, Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life:

“Since I was retired, I could sew whatever I wanted. That’s what I was thinking when the article about the Christmas pillowcases caught my eye. With the holidays coming
up, it was the perfect project to help me brush up on my sewing skills. Off to the fabric store I went with the exact measurements in hand, eager to get started. The first pillowcase was a cute little reindeer print with a snowflake border. It stitched together in a flash and I ran to Ed’s office to show off the finished product, eager to impress him with my talent.
“Look what I made!” I bragged.
“Wow,” he said looking up from the computer.
“That’s nice.”
Encouraged by the ease of my success, I trotted back to my sewing machine to stitch up another one. The candy cane print with red checked trim was delightful. As I snipped the last thread, I ran to Ed’s office to reveal my latest creation. He wasn’t there, but
I tracked him down in the living room. “Here’s another one!” I beamed. “See how I made
French seams so that the edges are nice and neat on the inside!”
“Mmm, yeah… that’s great.” He glanced away from the television, hardly noticing my exquisite French seams. By the time I had finished the third pillowcase Ed
was not in the office or living room. I found him in the bathroom. I’m sure he was hiding from me. That’s when I realized I had a pillowcase addiction. “

Christmas 2024

I thought I was over my obsession. I hadn’t sewn a Christmas pillowcase in over 6 years. I was clean until a friend wanted me to go to the fabric store with her to check out the flannel fabric sale. There it was. Staring me in the face. Bolts and bolts of Christmas flannel. I’ll just buy a bit, I thought. The next thing I knew The clerk was measuring out a yard of 4 different prints for me.

Back at home, I looked up the directions I’d saved. Ah yes, the burrito pillow case method. (It’s a thing…Google it. ) Once again, I was in sewing heaven. Is it the textures? The jolly prints? They way it’s a quick sew? By the end of the afternoon I had three cases ready for my holiday guests.

Now seriously?! Aren’t these cute? They make me smile…

I probably should have been cleaning house , but when I told my friend about my afternoon, she said it was ‘time well spent.” She gets it.

As I write this, there are 9 more days until Christmas. You may be in the Holiday blitz, but STOP, even for a moment, and do something that makes YOU smile.

Threads of Thought

Thanks for following me here at Seams Like a Story. I hope you find something in each post to make you smile or think, or feel encouraged. I’ll see you back here in the new year!

2 Books, Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life...and Until Italy: A traveler's memoir

Would you like to read more from Out of the Crayon Box? Or maybe you’d like a delightfully fun trip to Italy? You can find my books here!

December 11, 2022December 11, 2022

Writing and Sewing

A Creative Partnership

As the weather turns cooler, even in Arizona, I think about layers of soft fabric.

“The experience of creative living argures that hobbies are in fact essential to the joyful life. There is the hidden benefit that they are also creatively useful. Many hobbies involve a form of artist-brain mulling that leads to enormous creative breakthroughs. …Sewing has a nice way of mending up plots.” -Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way

SEAMS Like a Story

My sewing/writing studio is designed to accomodate my creative impulses when they strike.

If you’re new to my blog, you might be wondering about the name. Why “seams”? Shouldn’t it be “seems?” In fact, when my son-in-law helped me secure the domain, he suggested I acquire both names.

When I first retired from teaching, I wanted to pursue my two passions/hobbies: sewing and writing, and my blog Seams Like a Story was born. I find my two passions to be compatable, both contributing to my creative process.

(take a peek at my sewing/writing studio)

http://seamslikeastory.com/creating-a-space-to-sew-and-write/

Start With a Plan

For this project I chose a pumpkin-colored flannel fabric to make up the simple Dress #2 from 100 Acts of Sewing

Both writing and sewing begin with a plan, an idea, a spark of inspiration. Where writing pieces together words to create stories, the act of sewing involves the extra senses of touch and sight, colors, and textures as I piece together a garment.

Problem Solving

Rushed through this seam on the neck facing. Sewed it at 1/2 inch instead of 1/4 inch. Fortunately, I caught it in time. Thank goodness for seam rippers!

I’m halfway through a story or a sewing project and something’s not working. Time to rip out seams, sentences, words. Edit, revise. Take time to make it better. Try it on for size.

Unblock Your Creativity

It happens. Somedays the words don’t flow or I just can’t face the blank page. The act of sewing activates a different part of my brain and gives me a fresh perspective. Often, getting the creative juices flowing while sewing will jump start my writing. “Creative breakthroughs” Julia Cameron calls them. (for more ideas on overcoming writer’s block see http://seamslikeastory.com/4-ways-to-move-through-writers-block )

My new flannel dress is comfy and cozy , perfect for a writing day, critique group meeting, or lunch out with friends.

Threads of Thought

Activities like sewing, painting, gardening, quilting, woodworking, writing, photography, interior decorating, cooking,….. contribute to living a joyful, creative life.

What hobbies do you enjoy?

See more from Debra at http://amazon.com/author/debravandeventer

May 28, 2022May 28, 2022

15 Piece Summer Capsule Wardrobe

Featuring Me-Made Garments

Denim shorts…Emerson Pant and Short Pattern from True Bias,
Cap-sleeved top…Bondi Top from Sew to Grow

Capsule Wardrobe

One of my goals for this year’s Me-Made May celebration was to create a summer capsule wardrobe ( a limited selection of interchangeable clothing pieces that complement each other) featuring handsewn garments I’d made over the past few years. I wanted to eliminate the “I have a closet full of clothes with nothing to wear” syndrome that would usually lead me on a shopping spree. Don’t get me wrong, I love to go shopping, but this year I was curious to see if I could get by with less. With the addition of a few non-handsewn items that I already had, and three new sewing projects this month, I was able to come up with a 15 piece capsule wardrobe that should meet my needs all summer long!

Getting Started

I had read that the key to a good capsule wardrobe begins with a foundation of neutral colors. Going through my closet, I found that I already had some pants and shorts in black, beige. Sticking with these basic colors, I added in some denim, white, and printed tops. Nothing was thrown out, but the items that didn’t make the cut went into a box in the spare bedroom (my emergency stash in case I discovered I couldn’t really live with 15 items!!) I did not purchase any new clothing pieces, but I bought fabric to make 2 white tees in different sleeve lenghts and a pair of denim shorts. Here are my 15 items:

The Bottoms

Emerson Pant and Short Pattern by True Bias

Wide- legged pants in black stretch denim Emmerson Pant and Short pattern by True Bias

The Tops

Willow Tank Pattern by Grainline Studios in Rayon floral print and polka dot cotton

Black cap-sleeved tee (not handsewn) and white Bondi Top Patten by Sew to Grow

3/4 sleeve striped tee from Old Navy and white tee (made my own patten for this)

Finishing Touches

New Look Pattern N6651 out of navy blue rayon

My live-in cotton sweater(several years old) from TJ Maxx

well worn, but still functional Vans and sandals (didn’t count these in the 15 items…)

Pop of Color

Just in case I get bored with my neutrals, at the last minute I added these wide-legged pants in Goldenrod linen to my capsule wardrobe.

So there you have it! My 15 piece summer capsule wardrobe!

..as an added bonus, my capsule wardrobe fits into a carry-on…just in case…..

Threads of Thought

Even if you don’t sew, check out what you already have and create a summer wardrobe of your own! You might just surprise yourself!

When I’m not sewing, I’m writing! Read more in Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement and Life http://amazon.com/author/debravandeventer

February 5, 2022January 21, 2023

Tidying Up

What is it about the first of the year that makes me want to tidy up something? I think it has to do with wanting a fresh start. I even love the term “tidying up.” It sounds clean, sensible, British.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m tidying up.”

“Jolly good, then. Carry on.”

Spark Joy

During the pandemic shut-down, I became serious about tidying up. I watched the Marie Kondo series on Netflix and bought her book. I was hooked. For a while (because there was nothing else to do) I was taking her method seriously. I folded my undies and T-shirts into origami shapes and placed them neatly into drawers and went through my house asking myself if an item “sparked joy” or not.

Avalanche

Life goes on and my fascination with tidying up waned until the other day when a search for a stapler caused an avalanche of fabric in my office/studio closet. As a sewist, writer, and a creator of things, I end up with bits and pieces of fabric, sewing notions, buttons, patterns, rough draft manuscripts, notebooks, assorted pens and markers, books, journals… this and thats. Though fortunate to have a dedicated room for my creative life, the space is compact. Lately my tidying up style has deteriorated to stashing stuff in the closet, so I can run the vacuum across the floor now and then. Hence the avalanche. It was time to make a change.

Two Sides

Continue reading “Tidying Up” …

September 3, 2021January 21, 2023

Sew Write Teach

Same passion, different focus

One of the first things I did when I retired from teaching three years ago (after sleeping for about a month) was to convert a spare room in my home from a teacher’s office to a writing/sewing studio. https://seamslikeastory.com/creating-a-space-to-sew-and-write/ After thirty-seven years of teaching, I needed a different way to occupy my time and engage my mind. I rekindled passions I had put on the back burner and began to sew and write again.

A Different Type of Work

http://seamslikeastory.com/melanies-tutu/

I find the work to be satisfying and inherently different from teaching. After spending a morning working on a poem, story, or sewing project, I have something tangible to show for my efforts. In my teaching profession, though the goals were noble and the rewards great, it often took weeks, months, or even years to see progress.

Simpler Solutions

http://seamslikeastory.com/the-simply-complicated-dress/

If I make a mistake sewing a garment or am not happy with the way a story is going, I can rip out seams and rewrite paragraphs. Struggling students were much harder to figure out. Many times solutions weren’t obvious, and it took many tries to succeed. There were times I wasn’t able to unravel their tangled threads or smooth out their life stories.

The Mindfulness corner in my room was a place where students could go to collect their thoughts, reflect, calm themselves.

Reap what you sew

So why did I stick with teaching for all those years? Because sometimes, sometimes, a spark ignites, a plan works, a struggling student smiles and succeeds, I made a difference; I reaped what I’d sewn.

These moments, brief as they may be, are the rocket fuel that drives those of us who were, and are fortunate enough to be educators. That passion drives me still. I’m finding new ways to channel it.

Threads of Thought

Transitioning to retirement has been a three-year journey for me.

What are some of your retirement passions?

What do you look forward to when your retire?