Learning To Sew, Project 1

I used to know the basics of sewing with a sewing machine.  They were:

1.      Put fabric under the needle

2.      Push the foot pedal down

3.      Sew in a semi-straight direction

4.      If anything goes wrong, call Mom

These skills were used to create some real sewing gems, including a blanket made of mismatching left-over fabric, a lumpy pillow, and stunning outfits. 

An example of one of my many stunning outfits

However, I have not sewed anything in many years.  This did not seem likely to change until I received a Singer sewing machine this Christmas from my mother-in-law.  Upon learning of my gift, my mom bought me a book to teach me to sew—Stitch by Stitch: Learning to Sew, One Project at a Time.  The book is laid out so that you start with easy projects learning the skills you need in order to make the more complicated projects later on in the book.  In theory, I agree with this idea 100%.  In practice, however, I’ve discovered that I first have to make several boring projects before I can make fun things like throw pillows and skirts.

My new sewing machine

In Chapter 1 of the book I learned about the overwhelming number and types of tools that are used in sewing.  I bought with the items listed as essentials (such as a seam ripper, measuring tape, and a pincushion) but have not yet opted to buy the optional, suggested items (such as a cutting mat and acrylic ruler).  I learned that nice sewing scissors are expensive, which is why my sisters and I got in trouble when using them to cut construction paper, doll hair, and cardboard (although in our defense, the scissors did a really nice job on all of these).  Also, to my surprise, pin cushions are still in the shape of a tomato.  I now own a matching one to my mom.  I also picked out a blue and brown checkered flower pattern fabric for my first sewing project.

In Chapter 2 I had to learn how to turn on the machine (check—easy, peasy), thread the machine (check—been there, done that) and wind the bobbin (wait—what?).  Apparently, I had always relied on my mom to do the winding the bobbin thing, so it was a brand new adventure.  After making a huge tangled mess of thread twice, I finally successfully wound my first bobbin and was ready to move on.

In Chapter 3 I learned all about different types of fabric.  I also learned that you have to use an iron a lot in sewing—and I can now distinguish between pressing (lifting the iron up and down) and ironing (moving the iron in a side-to-side direction).  I don’t like either.  Also in Chapter 3 I was instructed to make a sampler of the different stitches my machine can do.  Realizing that my particular machine has 99 different stitches, I decided to sample a few of my personal favorites.  The first sampler had to be thrown away after it got stuck in the sewing machine, and I had to wrestle it out through pulling and hacking with scissors.  The second sampler was much smoother.

My second sampler

Finally, in Chapter 4, I was ready to start my very first sewing project as an adult (drum roll please): “Fancy napkins with mitered corners”.  Now, I know I give off the impression of being very fancy and formal, but I only use cloth napkins at nice restaurants.  Therefore, this project did not capture my imagination.  But, the author insisted that I needed to learn the skills of stitching in a straight line, mitering corners, pivoting, and edge finishing.  So, I stitched in (semi) straight lines, mitered corners, pivoted with ease, and finished the edges, and I am now the proud owner of four very fancy cloth napkins. 

The final product!

The author also assures me that I will never go back to paper napkins again, but since Sean and I rarely use napkins anyway (and when we do they are paper towels), I’m not convinced.

Next project: Picnic place mat with bias-bound edges.  

An Evening at the Opera

Last night Sarah and I went to see the Moby Dick opera at the Civic Theatre in downtown San Diego. Through a very generous donation to SDSU, Sarah was able to get us seats in the Mezzanine for just $5 a ticket. We also attended a short talk before the play about how the opera was created and some of the nuances of the music and the arias.

The speaker mentioned that, since Moby Dick takes place on a ship, all of the songs and accompaniment crest and trough like waves. I feel like this wave metaphor translates nicely to how the evening went.

When Sarah told me that she bought us tickets to the opera, my first thought was “Why me!?” I have to admit that most of my preconceived notions of opera were based on television shows – images of rotund women belting out songs in a foreign language come to mind. As the evening drew closer, I warmed up to the idea of, at the very least, getting dressed up nice and taking my wife out for some culture. I’ll admit, when we were in our fancy clothes, standing in the theatre lobby, I was excited.

The lecture before the show was an added bonus. I know very little about music and even less about opera, so it was nice to have somebody knowledgeable explain the subtleties. I now know that Moby Dick, the opera, is very Puccini-esque. It was also a new experience to see San Diego’s opera going sub-culture (to be a member, you must have white-hair). At this point, I was very excited about the opera, and I distinctly remember telling Sarah that we should go to the opera again sometime.

After the lecture, the same generous donation that paid for the majority of our tickets, hosted a small reception of gourmet appetizers and desserts for the SDSU students and their dates. There were meatballs, cream-cheese filled filo-pastry, peanut chicken, caprese skewers, a lettuce leaf with goat cheese, brownies, and appropriately whale cookies. I was completely sold on the opera – style, culture, and delicious finger food!

The first 15-minutes of the opera were incredible. I was very impressed that these performers were filling this enormous concert hall with no amplification. Then I realized that they were singing when they could have just been talking; saying something as simple as “Raise the sails!” takes 40 seconds.

As it turns out, I can only appreciate great singing for 15-minutes at a time, which is why I like musicals, but not opera. I am sure the rest of the graph is self-explanatory.