I just wanted to make a quick post to show off my second drawstring bag:

   

This one went a little easier, for the most part, though I did screw one part up and had to tear out a few stitches. The fabric is pretty similar to the first, but I like it a lot. It makes me think of little pieces of candy, and they even had a pink version that I’ll probably do next. It’ll be a series, I guess.

I’m still feeling a bit overwhelmed by the machine itself though, which is funny in contrast with how comfortable I am with other machinery, like computers. I’m pretty good at tinkering around with software and am comfortable enough to open a computer up and poke around if I need to. And yet, this mere sewing machine seems intimidating to me. The good thing is that I recognize that I just need to try things and learn by doing and keep practicing them, and eventually I’ll probably feel as comfortable with my sewing machine as I do my computer.

My sewing machine arrived yesterday afternoon, a bit earlier than I expected. Here’s a photo:

I was out when it arrived, and was pretty tired at that point, so I didn’t spend too much time with it. I did open the box and check out everything, including the manual. It felt so overwhelming, with all the complicated parts involved, so I decided to leave it until today.

Before I got started today, I went shopping for a few basic sewing supplies at Joann Fabrics, including some dressmaker’s scissors, thread, and a few bits of fabric for playing around. When I got home, I sat down with the manual and figured out how to thread a bobbin and the machine itself. I had a little bit of trouble with the latter, and my roommate actually helped a bit on that. He took home ec in high school and had to sew a bit for that, whereas my only experiences with sewing were limited and completely devoid of knowing actual machine maintenance.

Once I got everything threaded, I played around with bits of scrap fabric at first, just testing out a few stitches and getting a feel for the machine. It got a bit frustrating at points, so I took a break before attempting my first project, a drawstring bag.

I used a pattern that I found on a LiveJournal community, and it was pretty easy to follow. They didn’t give any measurement suggestions though, so I just winged it a bit. Here are photos of the end result:

   

It’s not perfect, but I think it turned out pretty well, especially for a first project.. I think next time, I’ll wash and iron the fabric first, and definitely cut it a little less crookedly.

Edit: I changed the bag so that the drawstring is now a ribbon. Photos have been updated as of 09/05/05.