I'm still here!

  It's been a long summer full of lots of little tasks, but very little sewing.

  I spent last week in Atlanta, Georgia with a bunch of stitching pals at the annual SAGA convention.  I returned home all fired up to get some stitching done!  I flew down on Tuesday night so I could have Wednesday to bop around and relax.  I'd thought about taking the Atlanta tour, but was afraid I'd be worn out halfway through the day and then grumpy for the rest of the week.  Wednesday evening Peanut Butter and Jelly Kids presented a fashion show of handsewn dresses.  The models were sweet and the dresses were lovely.  I won a doorprize!  The kit has everything I need to make this little dress except for the piping and the thread!

Jane's First Day Dress courtesy of Fine Stitchery

   Thursday I took a full day class with Susie Gay where we made a beaded scissor keep.  Mine is about half done.  I just have a bit of embroidery to do, some button stitch around the tab of the tassel, cording to twist, and then I can put it together.

   Friday was  a half day class with Bobbi Chase.  We made a sweet little one-piece undergarment for a 14" doll.  I'm hoping mine will fit my Mary Frances doll.  If not, I'll have to size up the pattern a bit and make another one.  It's so easy and quick to do, even though the entire thing is hand stitched.

Fine Handsewn Undergarments by Bobbi Chase

Saturday was another full day, this time with Jeannie Baumeister.  Our project was the Drawn Thread Lace Baby Dress.  Pulling small areas of  threads on linen is very intense work!  I didn't get as far along with this as I'd hoped, but I will finish it.  This is a photo of the dress top.  A partial thread is pulled from the center front of the fabric, then the area is hemstitched, a length of lace insertion is added, and then a piece of gathered lace is stitched on.  The flowers are tiny bullion roses and lazy daisy stitches.
Check the link below for Jeannie's post on this precious little dress.

Photo used by permission of Jeannie Baumeister of the
Old Fashioned Baby

  My Sunday class was quite fun.  We learned to make buttons using small wire circles (toy wheel frames, really) , wooden button molds and thread.  I get the idea of how to make them, but had problems in class doing the spiderweb stitch.  I'm left handed- my spiderwebs were upside-down, which means my button front wasn't very pretty.  Fortunately, these are so quick that I can take my samples apart and do them over.
   The photo below is Bobbi Chase's model board for the class.

Button board for Dorset Buttons

  All in all, this was an enjoyable convention.  I didn't win a basket (again), but everybody else at my table did!  I met up with some other Pittsburgh area women and we're discussing plans for a new, official chapter in Allegheny County.  Both flights were quick and uneventful, just the way I like them. 

  I'm already looking forward to next year's convention in Frisco, Texas.