Invisible Zipper Success!!

I got to the scariest part of the Cabo Halter today. The part that has had me kind of putting it off, and saying, "I'll try to figure it out tomorrow." The invisible zipper. I've never put in a zipper before, and it just seems so complicated and impossible somehow. A big thing in a lot of the online tutorials that I found was the importance of an invisible zipper foot. They had them right by the zippers at the fabric store, but it was all in pieces of different colored plastic. I took one look at them, and deemed them utterly not for zipper novices, such as myself. So I did a quick search on Ebay and ended up with one for my machine. And it is ONE piece, so that made it a little less intimidating. And guess what? I did it today. I still need to do some hand-finishing, and finish up the rest of the back seam, but I put in an invisible zipper! In one try!

See...

Tomorrow I just need to do some finish work on the zipper, and hem it, and I will be done with the halter. And it fits perfectly, I didn't even have to mess with adjustments or anything. The only thing is that the pattern doesn't match up...a lesson I'll need to learn on another day.

All in all, I'm pretty proud of myself. More pictures once it is finished!

Because I couldn't help myself

I really should be SEWING, not out buying old (1925!) Singer sewing machines off of Craigslist! I blame it on the find at Goodwill yesterday, and I will control myself...now...

Isn't that a lovely wooden case? It fits over the top and locks with a little key. It is electric, but instead of a foot pedal, it has this long curved metal bar which is a knee lever. Singer has a list of serial numbers on its website, and that is how I discovered what year it was manufactured. I'm hoping to display it on top of our new entertainment center. I love it! But no more, or my husband will set me out, with all my machines! :)

So THAT'S why people go to thrift stores!!

I had some time to kill before I picked Emi up from school yesterday, so I ran over to the Goodwill store. My husband and I were just strolling through when he pointed out a FILTHY plastic sewing machine box. Hmmm...can a girl who sews POSSIBLY pass up a sewing machine box without looking inside? As I pulled it out, I began thinking...this is going to be some totally disgusting yellowed plastic monstrosity, that I'm going to shove right back under the shelf. Imagine my shock when I opened the case and I saw THIS!!!
(Sorry for the sideways picture, Blogger won't let me flip it!) An antique cast iron ( I think, it weighs a TON!) Kingston sewing machine.

And it works!! For $24 dollars, I could not resist, and bought it. My husband cleaned it when we got home, while I searched the internet for information on it. Sadly, I couldn't find much in the way of info. I DID find a site where I think I can get a reprinted manual, and a couple of sites where various Kingston machines were for sale. I think it might be affiliated with Brother, and I know it was made in Japan, potentially from 1945 to 1954 or so. I also read that Post War Japan basically "borrowed" Singer's design and churned out quite a few machines that are basically Singer knockoffs. Even parts were basically interchangeable. Collectability for these machines isn't that high, and I paid pretty much what they go for. BUT! Who cares! What a cool old machine! I actually SQUEALED when I opened the box and saw it. For a split second I thought it was an old Singer...because of the shape.

Whoever used it before, had placed masking tape strips at two and a half inch, and four and a half inch intervals. Quilting, perhaps? The second picture with that beautiful scroll work plate, isn't that pretty? I'm not positive where I am going to put this thing, but I HAD to have it, even if is just for looking at. What a cool piece of history where sewing is concerned. Someone just like me sat in front of it for hours, sewing up fabric, creating...I am so glad I went to Goodwill yesterday!!

I'm not even done with my quilt top!!

And look, I've already started Amy Butler's Cabo Halter. I'm kind of at a standstill with this right now, because I'm at the part where I need a friend to help with the fitting before continuing. And my husband is sleeping, 'cause he was up since 4 AM flying. Ugh! It is coming together quite easily so far. Of course, this little halter comes with an Invisible Zipper. I just bought an invisible zipper foot for my machine, so hopefully it won't be too painful!

I love how I am sewing up a halter near the end of August. :) Probably more work on my stacked coins quilt tomorrow. And cleaning the house and putting away laundry. Fun, fun!

Summer has been fantastic...

There are so many things that go on during the summer...that sewing definitely was not in the cards...BUT, I've done a couple of things in the last week or so gearing up for quality time with my machine...

Like finishing my sister's long awaited lounge pants from Amy Butler's In Stitches book. I made them with Arkansas Razorback fabric (she went to school there) that I bought last year. I have yet to send them to her, and when I do, it will probably be a huge surprise, because she quit expecting them by now.



Also, I busily traced Amy Butler's Cabo Halter pattern out on tracing paper so I wouldn't have to cut the actual pattern. Part of the pattern overlaps itself, plus it is nice to preserve it for the different sizes. I picked up some really cute fabrics at Hancocks of Paducah (I could have spent HOURS in that store!) when we drove through Kentucky this summer, with the Cabo Halter in mind. I've got an invisible zipper foot ordered, and aside from having to sew an invisible zipper into the halter, it looks pretty straight forward and not too intimidating/difficult. Hopefully I will get a couple sewn up before summer is gone, and halter tops will be the last thing I want to wear! Thank goodness that summer lasts for basically nine months down here!



Then, a project I'm also very excited about is this:

For three and a half yards of fabric plus two charm packs, you can make a very simple baby quilt. There are a couple of Moda fabric collections that came out this year that I fell in love with...and I discovered Moda charm packs, which has a square of EACH fabric in the collection. Then I went to Moda Bake Shop, and discovered the perfect recipe to showcase an entire fabric collection in one piece. The stacked coins baby quilt. The collection in the picture above is Aviary by Three Sisters for Moda. Ooooh, I love this collection! I love the bird egg prints, the soft colors, the fabric itself is so nice...I could go on and on. Charm packs are a great way for fabric lovers to get an entire collection for a small cost. But the idea of just hiding these gorgeous fabric samples away in a drawer, box, or shelf just seemed like such a shame. Now AmandaJean at Crazy Mom Quilts uses charm packs and then other fabrics. But, it is obviously open to interpretation, and I decided to use all Aviary fabrics. Right now I've just finished pressing my stacked coins, and need to move on to the sashing.

I have two more collections that I'm going to turn into this same quilt. Howard Marcus Collection for a Cause Legacy, and Fig Tree Quilts Patisserie. I have to be careful, because since it could easily become an obsession. And if I have uninterrupted sewing time, like when my little one goes back to school here pretty soon...I could probably churn these out like nobody's business! And you know, the Halloween and Christmas collections are coming out...