Tips and Tricks Tuesday
How to remove serged seams

Today I'm going to show you how to remove stitching done with a serger. In the past year I've had to do this a few times and have finally figured out the easiest way to go about it. Your serger will give you a professional looking seam which is wonderful as long as you don't need to redo or remove it. I was making some pants the other day and my teenager came in my sewing room to chat with me when he got home from school. He asked me if there was a "reciprocating saw" on the machine that was  cutting the fabric (oh how I love my son!!) and then told me "wow mom those look like professionally made pants!" as he grabs them and tugs at the seams. Yep, the serger gives you a beautifully finished seam that is sturdy and equally difficult to remove. That is unless you rip the seams in the right order.



the top of the picture shows where the loops have been cut

First you want to remove the stitches that the upper
and lower looper have made (as you probably guessed, these are the ones that look like loops). I have found if I hold the fabric like I'm holding a sandwich, with the loops facing up, I can run my seam ripper right along it fairly easily.





After those loops are cut I can then move to the other 2 seams made by my left and right needle.

These are tricky to find if your using thread that is the same color as the fabric (which will almost always be the case- that's part of what makes it look so clean and professional). Be careful not to grab any of the fabric in your seam ripper or you will have a hole where you didn't want one!

carefully pull apart your fabric to expose the stitching

Once you get 1-2 of those stitches from both the left and right seam you should be able to gently pull the 2 layers of fabric apart. With these layers pulled away from each other a few of the stitches will be exposed. Now you can carefully start removing those 2 seams.

You will have a million little threads all over you as well as the fabric but they are really easy to just pull out. I hope this has saved you some headache and maybe even some tears!! What have you learned the hard way with your serger or sewing machine?
Happy sewing!

I'm BAAAAACK! And THRIVING!!!

I love my new machine!

It's been quite a while since I have posted! Life can get crazy from time to time and it sure did for me. I have been working hard to continue to grow my business and create new and fun outfits. In April I was able to upgrade my machine and now I have a 6-pin professional embroidery machine. Wow, what a difference it makes to have this! It was super intimidating at first and I let it sit for a week before I even touched it but once I figured it out I was in heaven. Even with the new found productivity of my machine I was still dragging.

In July I was introduced to an amazing product that allowed me to think clearly and have the energy I needed to accomplish things throughout my day. Since then I have been able to do in one day what I was doing in an entire week. My husband came home and said to me, "WOW! I used to come home from work and all your sentences started with "I meant to  . . . .  but I just wasn't able to". Now you are getting everything done and then some!" I can't thank Le-vel and the product Thrive for giving me my life back. 

I am off to go do some sewing but check back in next Tuesday for another "Tips and Tricks" post!

My beginning



The first pair of pants I made!



2013 was a year full of changes and new beginnings. I was blessed with my 3rd baby boy in May. He came unexpectedly 3 weeks before he was due, to my surprise. I was in labor at work all day and in total denial, after all he wasn't supposed to come until June! We had a beautiful home birth and it was more than I could have imagined; so much better than the 2 previous inductions I had in the hospital. I planned to quit my job as a nurse for about a year to be home with my kids. With him being my last it was a bittersweet time and I wanted to soak up every moment with my babies while they were still little. I made the decision to cloth diaper, mainly to help save money while I was home from work. At first the cloth didn't work, I had a tiny little 5lb 8oz baby boy and he was swimming in the newborn covers I had. Once he grew enough for the diapers to fit, his clothes didn't. He quickly "outgrew" clothes because of his fluffy bottom and I found myself going through his dresser frequently to put away another stack of clothes that just weren't roomy enough in the tush. About 4 months after my baby boy was born I was again going through his clothes I thought to myself, "I know so many mama's that cloth diaper, why in the world are there not pants that fit over cloth?!". It then struck me I should make some! Now, I have sewn in the past but nothing too hard. I made scrubs when I graduated from nursing school, crib bedding (with my mom's help) before the birth of my first baby, and a few projects in between but that was about it. I got out a few pairs of pants that were different styles, did some reading online and starting cutting. I made a pattern with some freezer paper and then sewed my first pair of pants out of an old t-shirt. I was so excited! They fit great over his huge cloth diaper AND his legs! It's OK if you are looking at them thinking, "those are really terrible looking pants!", I thought the same thing! I was seeing if my design was even going to work, I wasn't going for pretty here guys!



the first REAL pair of pants I made!!



 After what I called success, I went on and finalized the pattern and then started sizing them. That was a loooong process! You can't just add an inch to the waist and the bottom of the legs and think the pants will look right, trust me!! Thankfully I had several mama's who were more than willing to let me use their little ones as models to help me get the fit right. It took a few tries but I finally had my finalized patterns for all the sizes. As I continued to create, my ideas grew. From the beginning I knew I wanted each pair of pants to have a design on the tush. I had no idea how to sew them on but I was determined to figure it out. I read up on the subject and found you could use a regular sewing machine to sew a satin stitch. I was in business! I got to work right away with my trusty machine and sewed an owl on my first pair of pants. I have to say I was pretty surprised that it looked so good for my first try. But, I also knew if I was really going to do this as a business there was no way I could make each pair of pants that way, it was too time consuming.

my first design
 

With the help of my awesome step-mom another idea was born! I was going to get an embroidery machine and appliqué my designs on the clothes!

It's been a fast journey, and one I never imagined I would be on. I definitely had to adjust to being a stay-at-home mom who owns a business making clothes, but I wouldn't change a thing. I love being home with my kids and I truly enjoy being able to create adorable clothes that other people really like. Thank you to all my family and friends who have supported me and helped me along the way! You have made this possible for me.