#14 - Take a beginner sewing class

Look at that beautiful pillowcase! When TemTem saw it, she said "Oh, pretty!"

I signed up and took sewing 101 at the local fabric store on Saturday. The instructor was wonderful, and there were about 5 other ladies in the class all around my age. The class was great in that we were all the most beginner of beginners - not so much as a home economics class in high school or the basic knowledge of the sewing machine parts. The instructor stepped us through everything, and our project was a pillowcase. Now I have a long, long way to go, but I had fun! I can't cut or sew very straight yet, but I'm hoping that will just come with lots and lots of practice. I plan to sign up for the next class they offer, and I will take a look at a new sewing machine too. (Mine is the most basic. In class, I worked on one that had such nice bells and whistles and was pretty much idiot-proof).

Taking the class brought back such nostalgia for me. As a kid, I remember spending what seemed like hours flipping through the pattern books as my mom went about finding items she needed at Minnesota Fabrics (store closed, many, many years ago). The sound of the sewing machine humming away reminded me of the countless hours my mom would spend in the basement sewing everything from Halloween costumes to prom dresses. She is such a wonderful seamstress, and I wish I would have taken the time to learn from her. Now, I will have to wait until she visits me next to teach me beyond bare-bones basics.

And since I had so much fabric leftover from my project, I attempted (key word is attempted) to make TemTem a little smock dress. It was not super successful, but she's none the wiser and she told me "Thank you pretty dress" today, so it made me feel good. At least I learned a lot from the practice project, so maybe on the next outfit I will improve :)