I overcommitted myself this summer. Too many sew camps. Too many private lessons. Too.Much.Everything.
Is this the curse of creative spirits? An innate inability to say NO? Or is it just me? I have always been the kind of person who thinks that if a little is good, more has got to be better, right?
Well, not always, I guess. I love getting new students turned on to sewing. It is hard for me to say no, because I know the options are limited for people to learn how to sew, and particularly, to sew well. But I have not been able to pursue some new creative endeavors this summer, and I am frustrated by my lack of time/energy for some of these new things. Also not enough time for SEWING. Which is what we are all about around here, right?
So, all that to say SORRY for some radio silence around here. I miss you, dear readers. Part of my silence of course was my $#*^#$ hard drive failure. And part of it was exhaustiona bit of overwhelmed-ness. If that is even a word.
So, do tell. What have you been sewing?
I have been irritated by those little lumps of lead pellet/pattern weights I bought at Joann’s. You know the ones—a package of 4 made by Dritz. The seams have started opening up, and those little pellets fall out and roll around the sewing studio. That is kind of a safety hazard, not to mention annoying. So I have been wanting to mimic a different size/shape of pattern weights that a good friend of mine bought ages ago, and I can’t seem to find them anywhere. She called them wiggle weights.
Here’s how I made these little Seattle-slug-o-pattern weights.
- Cut bias strips 2 1/2 – 2 3/4 inches wide
- Serge into a tube, and turn right side out with your handy Fasttube turners.
- Cut into 8 or 9 inch pieces.
- Secure one end. (I just tied embroidery floss in a square knot, and wrapped some more around, and tied another square knot)
5. Fill with lead pellets or something heavy. Or get some cute kids to do it for you. Sometimes a chunk of a plastic straw might be helpful.
6. Secure the other end.
Ta-da! Plop these little guys down on your pattern pieces and get to cutting. I don’t know that my system will hold up any better than the purchased ones, but I am giving it a try anyway. Oh, and I used home dec weight fabric to increase the sturdiness factor. You could also interface.
Happy sewing!
Maris