Happy July to everyone! I suppose there is never a time when my workspace is a not a bit messy! You’ll see below in my photos the creative work messiness I have spread throughout my room. Lots of stuff going on besides my normal routines because I signed up for online workshops this summer. I thought that summer was going to be slow and purposefully looked for workshops to keep things going even in the humid heat of Tuscany weather, but now I’ve realized there’s so much. There’s the free digital card class with Jessica Sprague, Claudine’s class on Big Picture Scrapbooking and their upcoming Big Idea Festival, not to mention I just won a spot in Niki’s The Vintage Artist mixed media class. BTW, if you want to take a class with Big Picture take advantage of the 10% discount through Paperclipping to support their Roundtable podcast. To add to the excitement, I just bought a sewing machine and so excited to use it for my crafty projects. The first thing I did was sew paper…hehe!
Although I’ve used a sewing machine before, I’m a total newbie and doing all kinds experiments and tests to learn more. Beware of trying to sew too fast or through bizarre materials though…I’ve already been near breaking the needle – eek!
I tried some freehand kind of sewing to draw with the thread, but at some point I really have to figure out how to change the foot part for that purpose…I haven’t exactly gone through the manual yet.
I’m totally having fun just sewing paper though. I love the look and it’s so simple to create a nice texture for any kind of project. There’s something about the thread running through that adds such a handmade touch to things. At the same time, even a cheapie sewing machine has fancy stitch settings, so I was able to create really nice borders as well.
I also tried to sew a leather bag as a test, but confused myself with the whole lining inside, flipping over issue…oif! You can see it’s unfinished at the top straps that I tied up. I have realized leather is super slippery as well, so you can’t readily sew two pieces together so easily. I would need some special attachment I’m sure, but sewing designs into just one piece of leather seems to be okay. More tests…experiments…trials needed! The rest of my space has stacks of paper and leather to be made into journals…as always!
Finally, I just wanted to share this baby tomato growing on our terrace! I remember gardening as a kid with my dad and it seemed really easy to me. Maybe my dad did all the work I didn’t notice, because it’s a lot harder here or perhaps our terrace just seems to have harsher weather conditions as well. This baby tomato is only the size of my thumb…but it’s a start! Hope you all are having fun and making progress in your creative space. You can see many other creative spaces over at kootoyoo as well. Ciao ciao!
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12 Comments
I love the fact that you have tested your machine by sewing leather! That’s fabulous – no half measures for you!!
Enjoy all those classes you are taking this summer. They sound inspirational.
Thanks so much…I’m all into experimentation…as long as I don’t break the darn thing
Hehe…
I love seeing creative spaces in action! I had to reserve a machine needle just for paper because I was dulling my fabric needles sewing too much paper. It’s really fun, huh?
Oh great tip…I should label my needles! Thanks! I’m certainly having fun exploring…so amazing some of the fancy stitches the machine can do these days!
HI Linda! I always love “sneaking in” at people’s work space
Looks like you have a busy and fun summer! and your collages with the circles and newspaper are very cool. I’ll look into the online clases – Claudine’s sounds like would be lots of fun.
Have a great day!
Sarah
Hi Sarah! Thanks for dropping by…I like to see peoples’ spaces too…it’s all about stirring up the creativity! I’m already having fun in claudine’s class…if you want to get messy with paint and do lots of projects
go for it!
oh… doesn’t the foot keep the fabric straight? Wouldn’t lifting the foot give you complete freedom to move?
(I broke my dinky little plastic sewer so can’t really help ya out there lol)
I’m not sure you can just lift the foot and sew, I mean, you would just have to guide the fabric yourself because that’s what the foot is for. But there are special types for special purposes…haven’t gotten there yet! hehe…
Wow, I agree, going straight onto paper and leather is pretty impressive! Get the feeling you’re probably a ‘think out of the box’ kind of person, huh? Lining can be a pain, but so worth it. Now zippers.. grrr.
Thanks so much, it’s really fun to sort of push the envelope…although it’s nothing new to sew on paper – it’s all the rage these days! I certainly don’t know the normal sewing techniques – will have to learn! I just enjoy having this new option to work on projects…sew it up!
I like seeing what you see when you are working!!
That’s lovely to hear…I hope you will enjoy all my photo posts. I think sometimes I miss have a studio with other artists – to share, collab, discuss. I suppose now we can do it online.